Not all customers agree with your opinion. Most customers often disagree, especially when negotiating the scope and price of a project. or suggest your own ideas that are inconsistent with there own. In such cases, it is very important to know how to deal with the client without being rude or offending. Today, I’ll give you some tips of negotiation and tricks you can use to convince your clients to act on their ideas. Or help earn more from the project.
Table of Contents
1. Your Price Is Too High
This is one of the most common feedback that almost all freelancers get from their clients.
You send a well-crafted proposal and write a killer message to convince the client of your abilities, skills, and experience. And customers say your prices are too high.
Now your immediate reaction would be to shout at the customer “How can you be so cheap?”
Now, don’t react to that instant thought.
This customer clearly has no idea how you price. Or why you’re worth it. Your job now is to convince them that you are worthy.
You can do this by asking them a few questions and helping them realize the value of your work. This is how to negotiating with clients on pricing, It could go like this:
Freelancer: “John, I understand your concerns. I wonder, what do you hope to get from this new logo? ”
Customer:” We especially wanted to refresh the old logo. And updated all of our social networks with a brand new image “
Freelancer:“ Do you think this new logo will help with more sales and conversions?
Customer: “I hope so, we hope this brings more visitors to our site. ”
Freelancer:” It’s amazing. John, I have no doubt that this logo will be a great investment for your brand in the long run and I guarantee that I will do my best to make it well worth the money.
“I think compared to the brand visibility, traffic and sales that you will get after this new logo, the cost of the project will be amortized. But if it’s still too high, I can recommend a few independent marketplaces you can go to to find an affordable designer.
This type of feedback is sure to throw the customer off balance because it’s not what they expect from you.
And it’s also a great way to show professionalism and authority. Because you’re basically saying you know your worth and can find another customer pretty easily.
2. I Really Have A Very Small Budget
I have received this kind of message many times.
They always say, “I have a very small budget. Can you offer me a discount?”
My typical reaction to this is:
“John, I am you I fully understand your position. I have worked with many clients in the past, including brands like X and Y. I offered them the same price I offered you. I’m worried that lowering it would be unfair to all previous clients. ”
” But if quality isn’t important, it offers a much cheaper price than I charge. You can introduce a freelancer or agency. Again, this approach is similar to the one described earlier. It is to show the customer that you “do not have to” do the job.
Most customers believe we rely on them to make a living. And sometimes it’s okay to prove that they are wrong.
3. Can You Do A, B, and C As Well?
From time to time, the customer will agree with your asking price, but then ask you to do additional work at the same time.
These types of clients are called “scope creep”. Give an overview of the project and negotiate the price. And secretly add some more tasks to your project without paying extra work.
For this reason, it is important to understand the scope of your project before you start. Therefore, make sure you are asking the right questions to get a good idea of the scope of your project. Then get the customer to approve the project outline.
But when a customer tries to do extra work anyway, such as asking a web designer to optimize an SEO page, he can answer:
“John, I’m good at website design and UX design. But I don’t have SEO experience so I don’t want to deliver a terrible product. Therefore, to optimize search engine pages. We recommend hiring an SEO agency. Or you can recommend some freelancers. ”
4. Can You Send A Free Sample?
The most popular type of customer in the freelance marketplace. “Work for Exposure” clients are many at times scammers who want to trick you into doing the job for free.
I usually recommend that freelancers never work freely. However, in some cases it is okay to work for free. Getting you a free job can actually get you more paid work, especially if it’s a non-profit business.
But when it comes to for-profit, you should never be fooled by her tricks. Of course, you don’t want to be rude either. Therefore, this is how to respond to customers queries for asking for a free sample.
“John, when I started freelance, I’ve done a lot of freelance in the past, mainly for charities and nonprofits, but I’m no longer a freelance without job If you need an example of my work, take a look at my portfolio. Here is a link to my website. ”
5. I Want It to be Done Differently
When you apply for a job with a project proposal, you usually get an overview of how the project is handled. This is the way you convince your customers of your point of view and show your creativity.
But if the customer rejects your idea and then responds to you by asking you to do things your way, you need to disagree.
The decision you make in this situation depends on where you are. Do you want to keep your creative style and brand, or do you really want to make money now?
If you`re in the latter situation, you could consider agreeing with the client and taking on the job.
But I highly recommend that you always follow a path that relies on your creative abilities and helps establish your personal brand. So, respond like this:
“John, I agree with you on some of the points you`ve made. But based on the results from the past projects I`ve done for clients, I strongly believe that my output on the project will bring the best results for your business. If you still want to do the project your way, I could recommend you another freelancer who would be willing to work under your guidelines”
Conclusion
You may have noticed that etiquette and kindness were common themes in all the answers I suggested.
Whether you’re recommending someone or helping your customers understand what’s wrong, there’s always a way to be more polite.
This is actually one of the most important parts of success as a freelancer.
Read Also: How to Hire a Freelancer in 6 Easy Steps
