The 10 greatest freelancer no-no’s!
23 Jan, 2008
Once you’ve just started your freelance career, we want to say “YES” to every single project that crosses in front of our eyes. Without even taking in consideration the time we have available, or the technical knowledge we might have about the project. Sometimes a no here will go a long way.
1. Could you show us a brochure of your previous work to hire you first? No.
You’ll find yourself doing something you might not even have and you’ll spend lots of time and they may not even hire you. They’ll find maybe some one who will charge them less.
2. Could you give me a discount? No.
Remember you are providing a quality service. Image yourself at a prestigious store, buying clothes, would you ask for a discount? You’ll find yourself with tons of work and with not a lot of cash?
3. Could you register my web site? No.
I don’t advice this, unless you have a server of your own. Because if something happens, you’ll be held responsible.
4. Could you copy this web site? No.
You might probably say: “it’s done and it’s easy!”. Think twice, this is not something you’ll use for your portfolio, because it’s going to be a copy of a previous work.
5. Can I pay my e-commerce with the sales produced by the site? No.
If this doesn’t apply for other businesses, why would it apply here?
6. I have a great idea, would you like to…? No.
If someone wants to create a site with a “future benefit”, think this over as many times as possible. Make sure you’re doing your e-business with someone you fully trust.
7. Do you have MSN, hi5, etc? No.
Remember this is not your only customer, and you’re not an employee anymore. Unless you have a lot of trust in this person or group of people, don’t give them your MSN info.
8. Can I pay you at the end? No.
I highly advise you to get 50% of your final payment at the very beginning, try to cover the most amount of possible charges. If the client withdraws his design or product, you’ll at least be compensated with the half of your final product in cash because you spent time and a big amount of effort in this.
9. Could you have the design done for tomorrow? No.
Don’t hurry and die over any customer. If you do them a little favor today, in the future, they’ll be expecting the same time frame from you. This is not good.
10. Can we be sure you’re not going to use this work for anybody else? No.
This can be a really sensitive question. You are after all the creator of the code and you can use it at will, I advise you to tell your customer: “Sr./Mam’, anyone can use them, but the house will not be the same every time.”
I invite you to share your thoughts about this article.
Source: Wake Up Later
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