My perfect client

Over my years of consulting, I have been fortunate to work will all kinds of great clients. In fact, one of my clients is pretty much perfect and this post is about her. Why should you care? Because by doing everything right as a client, you will get the best possible outcome from your freelancer!

• Professionalism: My perfect client’s behavior, approach, tone and language are perfectly professional. While I always ensure professionalism in my own business interactions, working with someone who values this trait sets a nice tone for what we can expect from each other.
• Clear direction and fixed parameters: This perfect client of mine puts some thought into how she will brief me before she picks up the phone. She knows exactly what she wants from me and gives me the information to deliver it successfully for her, including audience, key messages, word counts, creative insights and communications objectives.
• No scope creep: A project assigned by my perfect client doesn’t change unexpectedly. Of course, there is room for some flexibility, but anything that significantly changes the project scope is arranged under a separate agreement.
• Responsiveness: While my job is to take as much work as possible from her plate, my perfect client understands the importance of her input when it is needed. She honours her side of timelines and deadlines (reviews, revisions, approvals) so that I can honour mine.

Some of the other things I love about my perfect client include the following:

• She trusts me to take over and deliver what she’s expecting. Who wants to spend time micro-managing a supplier?
• She is smart, which makes working for her stimulating and rewarding.
• She pays professional fees. To get quality work from an experienced professional, she is willing to pay for one!
• She has reasonable expectations.
• She is organized.

I work with some terrific people, including my perfect client! Are you getting the most from your suppliers? How do you measure up as a client?