FREELANCING | WRITING

Are You and Your Writing Clients Speaking the Same Language?

How freelancers can communicate better with clients

Illustration created by Luana Spinetti for Sharon Hurley Hall

Ever felt that you and your writing client weren’t on the same page?

Me too.

In fact, I reckon it happens every freelancer at some point. I’ve been thinking about the reasons why, and I’ve come up with three possible causes of clashes with clients:

1. The hidden brief
2. Too many cooks
3. Incompatible working styles

Let’s take a look at how these play out.

1. The Hidden Brief

The hidden brief is a plague on a freelancer’s working life. It’s where clients give guidelines and you think you’re following them to the letter. The trouble comes when you submit the work and it turns out to be not what your client’s looking for. That’s when you know that the hidden brief has messed up your day again.

You return to the original brief in puzzlement, check that you’ve ticked all the boxes (you have), then go back to the client, who digs his heels in. Then you spend time talking to the client to find out what’s needed to “fix” your perfectly good work.