If you’re a freelancer, chances are that you give out several quotes each week. Have you ever wondered why some people flake?

Giving out quotes is an art. Once someone contacts you about a service it’s your job to make them interested enough to buy your service. It also helps if you do things that are unique.

The one thing I have found that works for me is the project first, payment last method. This means that the last thing you discuss with a prospective client is price. What if that’s the first thing they ask about? I hate to say it but if they are more concerned about price than quality odds are you may not want that type of client anyways.

Sure, you want to give out quotes to everyone who is interested but you might want to put less time into people that seem flakey. Here are the signs of a flake:

• The first question they ask it “How much does it cost?”
• They ask hundreds of questions but never express any real interest or desire to buy your service. i.e. What color shirt are you wearing? How old are you? etc. (This has nothing to do with writing by the way) This type of person is usually just lonely and looking for someone to talk to.
• They continue to say “I’m still deciding, I’ll get back with you hopefully this week, etc.” and it’s already been over a month.
• They can’t decide what they want but they want you to tell them what they want only so they can reject your suggestions.
• They want an “in-person” meeting for a very small project (less than $100) where everything can be done by telecommute. They may ask for several of these and then decide they just don’t want to do it.

When you’ve been freelancing for at least a year you can generally recognize flakes. I like to call it freelancer’s intuition. You may want to create a quote template or an FAQ that answers all of the most common questions. This will save you time and give potential clients confidence in your service because it says you’re well-prepared and professional.

Use the three-strikes and you’re out rule with follow ups. If you follow up on someone three times and they still aren’t decided, leave them be and let them come back to you if and when they are ready. Usually if you have to keep following up, they aren’t interested anyway and getting the same answer over and over can be frustrating and stressful for both parties.

Remember that all potential clients deserve a fair chance. Send regulars courtesy emails and offer them discounts. Point new clients to an FAQ and attach samples to the email. The more caring that you show towards a potential client the better it will be in the long run. Even if they don’t choose you, if you act in a professional manner someone is bound to talk positively about you.

This entry was posted on Sunday, November 22nd, 2009 at 1:06 pm and is filed under Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.