What clients want from freelancers

In order to win jobs, a freelancer must connect with the client. (Pixabay pic)

A lot can be learnt from the experiences of the top 100 Workana Hero-level freelancers. One thing is connecting with clients.

A freelancer must create a formula that is based on what they know works. But to do that, one must understand the client first.

Do clients really know what they want?

There is a myth out there that clients do not know what they want. Most freelancers would have run into an entrepreneur or business professional with years of experience who is looking for a service but does not have a clear profile of the professional they need.

For example, a client needs a web design, but they contact an editorial designer. And yes, an editorial designer can have web design skills but they cannot guarantee a user experience in accordance with their niche in the market.

In this case, the job can get a little tedious both for the freelancer and the client. This happens in environments where client searches produce a wide range of possibilities.

But, do Workana clients know what they want?

For starters, a freelancer should keep the following three principles in mind in order to change their mentality regarding potential clients and cultivate a better approach to presenting proposals.

• Bust the myth: the client does know what they want.
• If they don’t really know, acknowledge that at least they have an idea of what they want.
• In this case, guide them, walk them through it with a friendly attitude and without pushing them.

1. The myth needs to be busted

Even if the client is not clear about the type of professional they need, they do know what they want. So, the job of a freelancer is to understand the client and translate their project into clear terms before making a proposal.

If the client is approached with the thinking that they do not know what they want, it starts a vertical relationship of superiority and guidance without understanding them and it ends up with the freelancer trying to take the client where they think a client should go.

This focus hinders the creation of attractive proposals that allow contact to be made in order to and obtain the desired result: the acceptance of a proposal.

The freelancer must be prepared to ‘guide’ a client with an idea of what they want. (Rawpixel pic)

2. Even if they don’t know what they want, they have an idea

Of course there are clients who are not very clear. Sometimes projects appear on Workana that do not explain the client’s expectations very well. But one of the platform’s advantages is the extraordinary filtering of different types of freelance work.

If the client is not totally clear, Workana helps them place their project in the appropriate category to find the professional to talk to and build on the idea they have about how and why to develop their project.

3. If they have an idea, give them guidance

So, to pave the way for a proposal that converts, the freelancer must recognise that the client has an idea of what they want and be willing to guide the client. “Guide” refers to accompanying them.

A professional must prepare themselves not only in the technical aspects of their area but in social skills as well, improving one’s ability to be the client’s coach in one’s field.

Along this vein, an interesting fact from the 2019 Workana Report is that the freelance population develops professionally and complements their formal studies through books and magazines (58.5%), or courses (34.8%) to continue to hone their specialisation.

Within this population, training through digital platforms or e-learning spaces predominates for up to 73% of study participants. Those who are not already continuing their training to be able to better present their services, could join this group who are doing so online.

In order to accompany the client, a proposal must be submitted, which is used to give potential clients the confidence to start this journey with an individual freelancer. Take advantage of some training to achieve this level.

So, what do clients expect from proposals? Both the client who knows exactly what they want and the client who only has an idea expect the following:

• A personalised proposal.
• Professional writing style.
• Information about specific skills for the development of their project.
• Good social and communication skills from the freelancer.
• Confidence that time will be spent on their project.
• A fair price that matches one’s experience level and professionalism.
• Results.

- FMT