The 4 types of freelance clients and how to handle them
After having worked with hundreds of clients over the years and hearing my freelance friends’ experiences, I thought I’d draft up a handy list to help you identify the main types of clients you may run into and how to handle them.
There are four main types, the:
‘All price’ clients.
‘I know it all’ client.
‘Indecisive’ client.
‘Result-based’ client.
All price client:
For this kind of client, price is everything. Saving money is the top priority, they want the cheapest option possible — even if that means compromising the quality, they mostly hire based on their budget.
How to spot them:
My cousin can do this for £400 why can’t you?
Can you do it for less?
Tell me how much the video costs first.
Your rates are really high I know Gary does it for £300.
How to deal with them:
To deal with these kinds of clients, refer them as fast as possible to someone else. Their priority isn’t quality, it’s the game of spending the least as possible. If the budget is £500 & your minimum level of engagement is £5000, there’s little hope of negotiation so it’s not the gig for you. Do a good deed for the day and refer a freelancer that it may appeal to.
I know it all kind client:
The one who always knows best.
How to spot them :
It’s easy, I can do it myself or I did this in the past.
It will just take one hour to create this.
I’ll storyboard the video you just need to shoot exactly that, then it will be easy.
They will always want to be heavily involved and advise what’s best, even when they don’t have expertise in that field. Rather than asking questions like, ‘what do you think?’
How to deal with them:
Embrace what they say and turn around the conversation.
Client — This isn’t difficult, I know you can do it in just one hour or so. Here’s an idea, I’ll write the script for the video and you just need to follow the script, then you can just knock it out.
Freelancer — [and…breath…] I appreciate the suggestion, from my years of experience, there’s a process that involves understanding the script, conceptualizing this into a video/animation, rounds of amends, and a lot more that actually goes into this, to get to the final outcome. [Show your understanding by educating and setting expectations]
Client — But it’s a simple script right?
Freelancer — [handle any objections head-on] the script itself is fairly simple on paper, although there’s X amount of time involved to understand, produce and refine your film and for this time and expertise, I charge a minimum engagement of £5000.
Client — Can you just work with my script and give me a discount on the price because I’m writing the script for you?
Freelancer — [keep your composure + position x2 outcomes] Your script writing skills are great, you can hire a storyboard artist, camera operator, and animator on a service like Fiverr, who can follow your script and do it for less, although I can’t guarantee the quality of the final film and service will be what I can offer as an all in one service, which do you feel is the best solution?
All you have to do is come from the stance of an experienced freelancer and consultant, and hold your ground on the value that you offer. If they’re not budging on price or don’t value what you do, politely decline or pay it forward by referring someone else for the gig that it may suit.
Indecisive clients:
They do market research before they buy anything, a lot of market research. If you educate them in the right way, it could pay off.
How to spot them:
Let me think about it.
Let me check other freelancers.
I’m not sure.
I’m not ready to make the purchase but just asking.
I’m waiting for the money.
Let me check with my partner.
I’ll know when I see it.
How to deal with them:
Say this — That’s totally fine that you’ll compare quotes and shop around. To let you know, it will be best to contact me last, as I’m likely to be in the top 3 highest bids. I come with 7 years of experience in this field which is the reason I approached you, and may not even have the availability for when you decide that you need me. I don’t want to get into pricing or the proposal just yet, until you’re able to clarify what you want.
Here’s what you need to let your client know:
Ask your client to call you last, once they’ve shopped around.
Say that you’re likely to be the highest price, which will be in line with the value that you will bring.
That they can risk going with a cheaper and less-experienced freelancer, but it’s likely to result in more time through needing more amends, take more of your time to manage them, be done to a lower standard and therefore, less likely to be a high-quality end video.
Result-based clients:
These are the clients you should aim for. The ones that favour value your time and value the outcome over price. They make decisions on the basis of quality and progress at the forefront of their mind.
How to spot them:
I don’t care where it’s going just get it done fast.
I’m not going to bother you on each detail because I trust you get it done, just fix it.
They have more requests than any other type of client.
How to deal with them:
Don’t treat them like the rest of the clients — you can use value pricing here. Plus, you don’t need to sell to them because they would’ve done a lot of research and had key decisions made on what they want before reaching out to you. Talk about business problems, ask from the stance of an advisor and consultant, rather than just an ‘operator’ because you’re both in the business of solving problems.
Hope this helps 💗
If you want to learn more about getting work, finding clients, pricing, negotiation, how to deal with clients, client communication, and the business side of freelancing then enrol for Freelance Mastery — the #1 freelance course which helps you to land high-paying clients, fast.
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