Dealing with fussy clients

The biggest challenge in this business is getting the client to tell you what he wants. Most have no idea. You'll ask them, what are you trying to accomplish? And they think you're stupid so they'll reply, I want to make money, of course. Most don't know anything about their target market either. Until they understand a little about the sales process they aren't going to get anywhere.

And if you take on a client who doesn't have objectives you're going to end up frustrated because you'll deliver a piece of work based on their vague idea of what they think they're after. And guess what? They'll read what you've written and won't like it. Why? Because they might not know what they want but they definitely know what they don't want.

I reject more work than I take because I refuse to play guessing games with people. I found out early that if someone doesn't understand their own objectives you can't make them happy no matter what you write and you'll find yourself on the eternal 'rewrite' merry-go-round.

The client will always get what they want to pay for, that's how the game works.

You say you are new to the business (I'm not commenting on your writing - I assume that's good if you have clients ) - treat this as a learning curve.... I have work out there I wouldn't put my name on (not much thankfully but every now and then a client crops up who has zero taste!). But the clients are happy. I gave them what they wanted - but only after explaining to them that I'm the 'expert' and the reasons why if I follow their brief in this way (most people listen at this stage if handled tactfully) - they are making a mistake. If they are insistent I'll give them what they want, but don't put my name on it.

Of course none of us would take these jobs on if we knew what was coming - but you have to leave the client happy- and learn from the experience...

Ask yourself some questions might help you develop a process...

Are you taking the brief correctly?
Do you talk that brief back through with the client?
Do you outline your ideas so they have an expectation of what's coming back to them?
Are you conveying convincingly enough to them when they have issues the mistakes in the changes?

Fine tune your process and you'll find something that works for you over time.

As for your portfolio - there's nothing to stop you using your originals that you are proud of when you meet a new client as long as you make them anonymous. You can also turn it into a positive - by showing the two texts side by side as an example of why they should trust your expertise...

Good luck - this one gets easier (and less frequent) over time

Assuming you have any kind of chops as a copywriter, there are three reasons clients "*******ize" your copy:

1) They don't believe in, or respect, your expertise (i.e. you have failed to establish your credibility)
2) They still believe sales copy is all about them (i.e. they haven't grasped the most basic concept of selling anything)
3) They don't believe in, or respect, your expertise (i.e. you have failed to establish your credibility)

Most clients will ask for changes. That's not your problem. Your problem is that clients are asking for changes that you believe will kill the copy. The reason they're "insisting" on those changes is because you have failed to establish your credibility as a professional - from the first "meeting".

Selling yourself as a copywriter is no different than writing a sales letter. In a sales letter you "begin" the selling process by carefully crafting the headline, yes? Why?

Because the headline is the first impression the prospect has of the product you're about to show him. So the headline needs to do more than just attract attention. The headline should immediately establish that what you're about to offer is something very valuable to the prospect.

Then you craft your body copy to build the prospect's confidence in the product and offer, so the prospect understands, very clearly, that his decision to purchase the product is smart, and wise.

So... to bring it back to you...

You have to "educate" the clients sufficiently beforehand (using articles, reports, consultation, creative brief, whatever) so that they have a baseline of understanding. And respect.

Then, before you begin the project - before you commit one word to the draft - you must prise project USP, direction, goals, and expectations out of the client.

With green clients, this is not easy. However, its an essential step in the process, and you absolutely MUST do this.

You put all of it in writing, and have the client sign off on it before you begin.

Because this step puts both you and your client on the same page. And it gives you something to point to when you're being asked to make changes that will change the direction and scope of the copy.

The alternative is to spend enormous amounts of time during the course of the project explaining why you did what you did how you did it, and explaining why they should not change what they're asking you to change. (This, believe me, is time-consuming and mentally exhausting)

You can ask that your clients run a split-test with your copy vs theirs, but typically, clients this ignorant aren't going to have a clue about split-testing.

Also, as Mike pointed out - ya gotta choose your clients, instead of letting clients choose you. There's no harm in working with copywriting-clueless clients, as long as they respect your expertise and your status as a professional.

Otherwise, as you've discovered, it's a waste of your time.

My advice... write the copy the way you think it should be. Host it on YOUR server.

Then when the client says "I want this changed"... well, at least you have a decent version to show other prospective clients.

When I was charging low fees clients used to mutilate my copy, too. That's why it's good to keep YOUR copy around as a "sample".

-Dan

-Dan

Quite frankly, I don't think you can stop people from changing the copy.

If they're hell bent on changing it, then they're going to do it anyway.

But the thing about the more accomplished clients is that a majority
of them are familiar with copywriting and the importance of copy.

And the inputs they give often help you in making the copy better.



Regards,
Dean.




_

Absolutely - it's still your work....

The best way to solve this problem is to do one of two things:

Step 1: Write a book or booklet. Get them to read it before hand. That shows your audience you're following a system. And they either agree with the system or they don't. And your problems stop instantly.

Step 2: Create a presentation: This can be either one hour or two hours, but it will have a clear outcome that shows how bad copy destroys sales. And good copy increases sales.

The key to both of these factors is that you're establishing expertise. Right now, you're just a "supplier"; just a "commodity". When you're the expert, people don't come to you on their terms. They come to you on your terms.

We charge $525-$550 per hour (yes per hour) for consulting. And we get people signing up. And those that don't sign up, buy our book (you can look for the Brain Audit online) and they see the value of sticking to our system.

This isn't about some dictatorship. It's about knowing that part of the problem lies with you. If you're just another 'copywriter', you're not the expert. If you're not the expert, then clients will do what they want, how they want, and when they want.

There's no easy way out of this.
Establish expertise first.
Do the booklet.
Do the presentations.
Do the book.

Do it and then watch the response. You'll be amazed and you can send me chocolate later