I know I made more than seven mistakes working with clients early in my business but today I’ll not overwhelm you. We all make mistakes, it’s only natural, but we don’t have to get stuck in them. When you make a mistake, after acknowledging it, you should move forward. I’m sharing some of these mistakes to help remind you that everyone makes them. Here are 7 mistakes I made with clients as a new Solopreneur.
7 Mistakes Made Working With Clients
I made many mistakes working with clients as a new Solopreneur. I’ve been doing this (in business) for over 16 years. As I reflect and try to remember some of the most important lessons I learned from my mistakes to share with you. It is alright to make mistakes, we all do it, but how you handle the mistake will make a difference, especially with the client.
7 Mistakes I Made With Clients As A New Solopreneur
- Allowing Clients to dictate my hours
- Allowing clients to negotiate rate
- Not firing a client although I knew it was time
- Waiting too long before hiring a subcontracted team member (outsourcing)
- Reacting emotionally instead of responding
- Not setting clear boundaries with clients
- Not Managing My Work Properly
1. Allowing Clients to Dictate My Hours
I think this is a common mistake with Solopreneurs. We tend to do what the client demands. That is until we learn better.
Example
I had an insurance broker as a client once and to say he was demanding does not begin to touch how difficult he was at the time.
“The client demanded that I be available for his unscheduled calls anytime he dialed my number.“
Once while getting ready in the morning, I fell out of my shower and hit my head. After getting up with help, I lay on my bed (I couldn’t move well). My husband called this particular client (at my request) to let him know I was on my way to the hospital and wouldn’t be able to work today.
The client responded to my sudden fall and head trauma saying, “Did she finish that quote yet?”
After he found out about the project, then he said he said he hoped I’d be alright. I had a concussion by the way.
Later, as this same client was becoming busier he suggested (strongly) that I needed to give all other client work to my team because he wanted me to work solely with him and no other clients. <WHAT?!!!> He was telling me how to run my business – and not very tactfully I might add. Yes, believe it or not, all of this happened, true story.
To be fair I allowed myself to be treated like an employee rather than a business owner partnering with him. I did not have the confidence yet to give clear boundaries nor did I know that I should vet my clients.
“Forgetting that I’m a business owner – In general, don’t allow clients to dictate to you how you run your business or carry out your work (with a few exceptions).”
Reddit user: i write things (thread: “every freelancing mistake I’ve made”)
2. Allowing Clients to Negotiate My Rate
I was very gullible early into my business. Nor had I done my market research or competitive research. Therefore, it was easy when the tire kickers (those who want to pay little or rock-bottom prices) came around for me to give in and discount my work.
I was brought up haggling and bargaining as my parents wore many entrepreneurial hats, one of which was antique dealers. So, I can haggle with the best of them. My husband jokes that if we buy a new car he takes me to get the best deal. The problem is that our services are not cars and are valuable. Please own your rate and know many will pay full price (or more) for your services.
We have all been there and charging much too low when we began. I know I had to learn my worth and the value I provided to others. I believe that it also takes time to get comfortable in your position online as a freelancer or solopreneur. If, however, you have been providing services online for over a year you should be at a rate that is comfortable for you (providing you did market and competitive research) without discounts.
3. Not Firing a Client
The first time I heard someone talk about firing their client I didn’t know what to think. I was confused coming from a corporate background. We didn’t fire clients. In my new virtual world, however, it was alright to fire clients if for a good reason.
It was not until years into business that I finally fired a client. Firing a client is serious. You should review your contract and consult your lawyer (or Legal Shield if a member) to ensure no legal action can be brought against you. The client you read about above was demanding, controlling, pushed his way, and gave me many other reasons he needed to be fired. Yet it took all my strength and willpower, along with a little encouragement from my family to do it. It is not easy but it is worth it when you have a difficult or abusive client.
Loss of Income Related to Firing Clients
Let’s not forget the loss of income from this client when you fire them. For me, this was one of my largest clients and suddenly he was gone (thankfully) but the effects of the loss were felt. If you are going to fire a client you may want to wait until you have a new waiting in the wings to onboard with you. In my case, I waited too long, and although I lost some revenue it was worth it for my health. Without the stress and strain of that client, it allowed me to feel free to pursue other opportunities with clients I loved.
Although it took me time to work up the nerve to fire him the relief I felt immediately was wonderful. You know you did the right thing when you feel the unhealthy weight of the client lift.
That’s the first, and only time I fired a client
4. Waiting Too Long to Hire a Subcontracted Team Member
Another mistake was waiting too long to hire a team member (subcontracted). If I had to start an agency over again I would begin by hiring my team members as soon as I began having clients. This would have allowed me to scale well and make more money earlier.
In trying to be everything to everyone you are doing a disservice to your clients and yourself not to mention your family. Thankfully, I scaled fairly early and outsourced (or subcontracted) to team members. If I had not my business would not have survived when I coded in the hospital and was out of work for a month.
5. Reacting emotionally instead of responding
I admit this one was always more difficult for me. When your business is YOU and you are the only person running everything it feels personal when someone criticizes it. Something I learned, in time, was to take time replying (if an email/text/social media message).
If you are in a video meeting it is a little more difficult to hide your emotions, but try to take a deep breath. Then, tell your client that you are always open to suggestions and will take all of this under consideration. This gives you time to think about what they’ve said and if it has merit.
Often when a client is unhappy it can easily be rectified but if not try to respond not react. This takes time to learn so don’t be hard on yourself if you are not able to do this every time. The main thing is to try to put a little time between you and the client (although it will be important to respond timely if something needs to be fixed or changed). Even 15 minutes of breathing time or praying time can make all the difference so you respond in the right mindset. This also gives you time to go to your coach, mentor, or colleague to talk it out and brainstorm ways to help the client (or decide if it’s time to fire the client if they consistently do this).
Constructive Criticism
Taking constructive criticism is not easy but is necessary if you are in business. It is not that it won’t happen but rather when. Remember too that some clients are negative thinkers and will always have some criticism but look for the good they say. If they compliment you on a project fulfilled before the deadline if something you produced helped them with a client and other reasons.
BUT, you can’t process all of your emotions with your client, and you can’t look to the client to help you feel better. It’s not their job.
So, find a friend who can empathize and ask them to be a soundboard for your frustration. Let it all out without unloading on your client because if you do it’s like adding gasoline to a fire.
Your job is to sympathize with your client and manage your own emotions.”
Sifting Criticism
Someone once taught me years ago to take all negatives thrown my way and put it through a sifter in my mind. As you sift you want to…
- Look for good advice to keep and work on
- Words that simply do not apply and trash those immediately
- See that many times it is more about them than you so try to see this as well and set that aside as something not about you
This will serve you well in business and life.
6. Not setting clear boundaries with clients
It became clear that I did not set clear boundaries with this client as he sent text messages at 10:00 and 11:00 PM, as well as, on the weekends. As I became a more self-assured business owner I gained the confidence to put boundaries out, especially with new clients. I set clear communication rules in my contract now so clients know I do not communicate after hours unless approved (and they are charged a premium for it). Eventually, all of my clients knew the boundaries.
Scope Creep
Let’s not forget one other boundary-busting style, scope creep. Most of us will or have experienced this. Scope creep, ever so slightly, takes over the project and becomes a life of its own.
Scope creep is defined as a subtle deviation of the project from the original scope through the addition of new features. It starts with a very small change request that you don’t mind doing. These requests slowly start to pile up and ultimately lead to huge problems.“
KISSFLOW
Another reason why setting boundaries and having a clear contract is important. By setting up these boundaries in your contract your client will know that anything outside of the original scope will cost them extra. Many clients are willing to pay the extra fee but do not realize they’ve requested something outside the scope. Be clear when this happens and notify your client that you’d be happy to provide those services but that is not included in your current scope. Notifying clients when this happens is key to your being happy and having the client satisfied without negative feelings on either side.
7. Not Managing My Work Properly
The last lesson (although I know there are probably many others) is that I did not manage my work properly. I tried to remember all of the tasks I needed to do for each client – Big Mistake! This is how you miss deadlines or entire projects.
I quickly learned I needed a project management system to help me keep in front of the services I provided to my clients. I tried so many project management systems. It truly took me a year to find one that worked like I worked, Wrike. I tell my clients to look for project management systems that work like they work or it won’t work in your business. You will not use it unless it makes sense and you can easily integrate into your business.
Final Thoughts
At the end of the day, one of the most important lessons I learned was that I needed to vet my clients properly. It helps to know who you want to work with and what work makes you happy. Then you will attract the right clients for the services you want to provide.
If you want to avoid some of these mistakes let Tammy help you. Set up a free mini-coaching session below.
Thanks for reading and wishing you continued success!
Tammy Durden is a thought leader, speaker, and business coach for online service solopreneurs.
Tammy has established herself as an authority figure over the last 16 years of owning several online service businesses. She specializes in helping solopreneurs scale by outsourcing – adding a virtual team to grow your business.