What I’m reading downstairs: The Jungle by Upton Sinclair
What’s on the iPod: Nothing Like You by Frightened Rabbit
Don’t forget to register for The Confident Freelancer seminar this Saturday from your very own computer chair! Devon Ellington and I have nine information-packed sessions for you covering fiction and nonfiction topics, plus two attendees will win one of two free critiques – a fiction one from Devon and a nonfiction one from me.
What a freakin’ gorgeous day Friday! The weekend wasn’t awful, either. We hosted our meditation monk on his way through to Haiti, then spent time outside getting the garden ready.
Anne Wayman has a neat post up about clients not knowing what they want sometimes. Anyone who’s ever been on the receiving end of client upset that was caused by misunderstanding or miscommunication can appreciate the topic. As much as we may or may not like it, it’s up to us writers to help them figure out what they want.
When I go into project discussions with new clients, I like to ask some pointed questions that not only help me understand what they’re after, but help them come to that same conclusion:
What is your primary message? I like this because it gives me an idea of just how organized/scattered they are in their thinking. If they can tell me in one or two sentences what they’re trying to convey, chances are I can give them what they want.
Who is your audience? Nothing is worse than writing the project to appeal to say consumers only to find out later they really wanted to target businesses. And yes, sometimes they’re not even sure. In one or two cases, I’ve had clients who were combining their audience focus, which was resulting in some odd messaging. If you know ahead of time, you can suggest alternative approaches.
What outcome do you hope to attain from this project? Ever wonder if you’re working on a white paper or a marketing piece? Maybe they wonder, too. If they’re trying to show market expertise, white papers and thought pieces should be the project result. If they want to increase business, then a white paper may not have the impact they’re hoping for.
Who has final decision-making authority on this? It may seem strange to ask it, but if you’re working for Patti and suddenly at the end of the project you’re rewriting to please Amanda, you get the importance of finding out who is in charge ultimately. And it helps them narrow focus because then you can have direct communication with Amanda to make sure the project goals are really the ones you need to embrace.
What do you hope to get out of our partnership? I ask this verbatim. It sends a clear message that they’re not handing it over to me and forgetting about it – I’m expecting their input and their guidance as we go. By putting it this way, I’m also having them verbalize their expectations (and maybe having them think about it for the first time) so that I understand, as do they, what our final outcome should be.
There are other pointed questions I ask that are project-specific, but the questions above are always part of that process.
What do you do to help your clients narrow their focus?
I use similar variations on your questions, Lori. I find for the clients who really don't know what it is they want (as Anne's post so eloquently describes), I need to get even more specific.
For example, when trying to figure out who their audience is, I'll ask, if you could get this in the hands of one person, who would that be? What is their role in the company? If they answer a CFO, I know it's someone who is going to be much more focused on the financial benefits than an administrative or operational benefit.
I may ask What is the purpose of your message? Is it to educate, increase leads, PR? Another variation on what outcomes they want to achieve.
Another one I often ask is What differentiates your product/service from your competitors? -or- What do you do best?
This is great info for bloggers who are either firing a blog up or those who are at a crossroads.
My issue is stalling out when I try to determine who I'm writing for…and worry whether or not my target market is reading. Truth is, I have to keep the blog going. While I won't throw crap up just to post, at this point, I think it's necessary to carry on with the process.
Plus, there's so much to say! 😉
Happy Monday!
I like that last one, Lori. I need to add that to my list.
I find it most frustrating when I ask very specific questions like this and the answer I get is very different from what the client *actually* means. It does take a bit of training to make sure your ear hears what's NOT being said as well.
A couple years ago the owner of a small business asked me to write a press release about his new yard care invention. He knew his message and the outcome he wanted. He was the sole decision maker, but was scattered when it came to defining his audience – he wanted to target professional landscapers as well as average homeowners.
I explained that doing two separate press releases – one focusing on efficiency and cost-savings for the trades, and one about ease-of-use and professional-looking results for consumer media – made more sense than a shotgun release. He really liked the approach because each release had a little room to include more details than had he tried to cram everything into one press release. Yes, knowing one's audience is important.
Cathy, those are great questions! I really like asking who that one person is who they want to get the message in front of. Super!
Laura, you're right. We're basically selling to our blog readers, aren't we?
Ashley, hate to say it, but sometimes even trained ears get it wrong. If the client doesn't know the message or the audience or can't convey it, you're not going to get it. It make take a few stabs to get to the point.
Great way to please him, Paula! Usually they balk at additional work, but you had a smart client who understood that combining too many messages gets confusing and misses the mark entirely. I get a lot of this with resume clients who want one resume to target six different industries. It can be done IF the skills are transferable, but you can't write one resume that's not going to need some tailoring if you're in banking and suddenly want to be in construction.
Now this is good stuff. I'm going to go back and read Anne's post. I was just recently dealing with a prospect who couldn't understand that his target audience was not narrow enough. He is so afraid that if he doesn't include everyone it will negatively affect his bottom-line profitability.
I hope you don't mind if I add one of your questions to my list: "Who has final decision-making authority on this?" Oh the headaches I could have avoided if I'd just asked this question while working on a couple of past projects!
Sorry – I was signed into the wrong account when I posted my comment!
This is a great list of questions…we use something similar at my office whenever we start a new project. Sometimes we use it with the client, but sometimes we just use it internally to make sure that those of us who will be working on it–the writer (me!), the designer, and the account services person–are all on the same page.
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