probably the main reason a lot of us came to the creative freelancer conference last week was to talk about clients! for solopreneurs, every client is different and a big part of our job is reading them and interacting with a variety of personalities. the sessions on presentations and client-wrangling had me taking lots of notes and laughing in acknowledgment.

effective presentations for creative solopreneurs with darryl salerno
above and beyond the givens about speaking clearly and making eye-contact [though those are no less important], salerno approached his talk from the position of knowing the personality types of your decision-makers and tailoring your presentations to work with how they best deal with information. he breaks them down thusly:
– the thinker: content-driven, logical, likes facts & data. give them organized information with references.
– the feeler: interactive, perceptive, experience-driven. talk about impact, context, build rapport with them.
– the intuitor: theoretical, conceptual, likes the big picture. focus on uniqueness, global & future impact.
– the sensor: perfectionist, impatient, likes actionable steps. start with conclusions first, be the problem-solver, keep it brief.

once you have your audience figured out, keep these things in mind when creating your presentations:
– your presentation is about them, their concerns, needs, company & situation.
– it’s not what you say, it’s what they hear: choose your words carefully.
– use storytelling that is relevant, authentic, and connective.
– use humor as a bonding agent between you and your audience.
– ask questions periodically to keep your audience engaged; offer Q&A to relate to individuals directly.
– order your topical progression: an inital situation > business objectives that address the situation > communications objectives that support the business objectives > and strategies of how these objectives will address the initial situation—bring it back around.
– follow the 3 P’s of presenting: prepare, practice, perform!

dealing with nightmare clients with michelle goodman
after taking time to collectively commiserate about some of our less-favored past clients, goodman took the anti-victim stance that working with difficult clients isn’t about them—it’s about you! people are who they are, but it’s up to us to know ourselves, clearly define our policies, and make conscious choices about working with the best clients for us. in the meantime, there are strategies for dealing with some of the more challenging personalities out there before anything truly unfortunate happens:
– add a “how i work” page to your web site [i have a process outline here]
– set up an in-depth discovery meeting before a project starts to explore good fit and identify specific goals.
– set limits on preliminary time and travel before projects start.
– set expectations by defining scope, naming a project manager, and checking in at regular milestones.
– separate the serious clients from those who are less committed by instituting a non-refundable deposit or a cancellation policy so you can concentrate on those who are ready to work.
– address your policy on revisions and provide info on how to keep them to a minimum before the project starts.
– research potential clients ahead of time, conduct a credit check if it’s a particularly big project with a new client.
– make friends with someone in accounting [this can get you a lot farther than you think!].

if you do find yourself at odds with a client that comes to a financial disconnect, and you know you’re in the right, use the resources available to you:
– stop & withhold unfinished work
– look into collections & small claims and decide which is best for the situation in question.
– report them to the better business bureau or industry-specific watchdog association.

the first 2 thursday morning sessions of the creative freelancer conference dealt with the business-end of design: taxes and proposals. creatives notoriously struggle with balancing out the finer points of paperwork in our lives, so these sessions are a great mix of new & innovative information as well as cheerleading to keep us all on the right path.

money-saving tax solutions for creatives with june walker
walker started off the morning sessions with a lot of helpful tax advice, first and foremost that creatives have a specific set of concerns with our businesses and it’s important to work with a tax professional who understands how the law best applies to us. rather than give a run-down of standard deductions, she explained how some deductions can be interpreted differently in various situations, and dispelled some common misunderstandings of tax law. her book, self-employed tax solutions is a great value and comes highly recommended as a definitive reference guide for self-employed creatives.

the essential rules for writing and presenting proposals with peleg top
if you find yourself spending too much time crafting proposals that don’t necessarily get you the work you want, it’s time to take a better look at your marketing process and redefine how a proposal can work within it. top offers the 3 elements in an effective sales cycle to work toward using your proposal as a recap of a sales meeting rather than using it as a selling tool: put a strong brand for your business in place, operate a well-oiled marketing machine to attract ideal clients, and have the right conversation with potential clients:
– ask how they chose your firm and how they define their challenge as well as a successful solution.
– ask them to define their market, goals & objectives, and what models they’re using.
– ask where they are in the buying process, speak to the decision-makers and ask how their process works.
– ask what kind of research has been done and will it be available to you.
– ask what level of involvement they want from you: strategy or execution?
– based on these criteria, ask about the 2 most critical resources allocated: timeline and budget. talk about both and agree upon realistic solutions in person!

once you get your potential client to this point, the proposal itself should be a recap of the discussion as a project scope, timeline, list of deliverables and cost estimate. the support info you include should be boilerplate copy you have on file, including terms & conditions, and information about the design team. this system should change how you approach proposals and minimize the time you spend preparing them. always present in person, and stay in touch with clients who are still on the fence—they may just need more time to decide. once they do, get a signed contract and a deposit check—and get to work!

[photo by bruce wayne stanley]