When you first make the decision to enter the world of freelancing, there are often a lot of factors to consider. You may have expenses that require immediate attention (like a laptop or other equipment). You may have to take time away from your full-time job in order to set up your new business. And while the details are important, they aren’t quite as crucial as your first impression in this niche market.
The way you communicate with clients frequently lays the groundwork for future work and sets the tone for how other people view you. If you seem unprofessional or disorganized, these attributes will quickly overshadow even your most impressive skills and hinder any chance at success in this field.
In fact, meeting deadlines and maintaining an organized schedule is absolutely essential but what about everything else? What must be done in order to ensure smooth communication with clients? We’ve outlined some basic tips below:
| Takeaways |
|---|
| Effective communication etiquette is crucial for success in today’s freelance market. |
| Maintaining professionalism and clarity in written and electronic communication is essential. |
| Proper communication etiquette fosters positive relationships with clients and colleagues. |
| Social media etiquette plays a significant role in shaping a freelancer’s online reputation. |
| Time management skills are essential for balancing workload and meeting deadlines. |
| Email etiquette tips can help freelancers create professional and effective email communications. |
| Good communication etiquette contributes to a productive and respectful work environment. |
| Adhering to communication etiquette enhances the freelancer’s overall professionalism and credibility. |
| Clear and concise communication is key to avoiding misunderstandings and conflicts. |
| Continuously improving communication skills can lead to increased client satisfaction and success as a freelancer. |
Proofread Every Message Before Sending
The message you’re trying to send is incredibly important, and proofreading is a great way to ensure it’s sent clearly. Even the most seemingly innocent typos can be enough to turn off a potential client, so make sure you go through your messages with an eye for detail before sending them.
While you should always use a spell checker on any correspondence you have with potential clients, I also recommend reading the message out loud to yourself. This will help you catch any grammatical errors that may have slipped through the cracks and make sure everything sounds natural as well.
And finally, make sure that your message conveys all of the information you wanted it to convey! This seems obvious; however, this can sometimes be difficult when communicating via email or text message (especially when writing a reply), so take some time to read over your messages and make sure they’re clear before hitting send.
Working from home requires effective communication skills to maintain productivity and collaboration. Our article on 15 Tips on How to Communicate Effectively provides valuable insights and strategies for remote professionals to enhance their communication abilities.
Leave Unnecessary Information Out Of The Message
Many freelancers make the mistake of including too much information in their message, which results in the client only skimming the first few sentences and therefore missing the most important parts of the message. With that being said, be sure to keep your message short and to the point.
Remove any unnecessary information, especially if it is not directly related to what your client needs from you. In addition, if you are answering a question that was asked by your client, be certain that you answer that question before moving on to other topics. Don’t forget that clients can ask dozens of questions at once and will most likely forget about them soon after they ask them unless they get an answer from you immediately.
Minimize The Use Of Exclamation Marks, Smiley Faces And Emoticons
No matter your age, industry or location, using an appropriate tone in email is a key to success.
Beyond the perils of text-speak, there are also some other more subtle ways that emailers can use that don’t always come off as professional.
I cannot stress this enough: you should avoid exclamation marks when corresponding with clients. You may think it comes off as excited and upbeat but a client may see it as overzealous and unprofessional (and even desperate). You can still write professionally and show excitement about the project at hand without using exclamation marks!
Also, emoticons and smiley faces do not belong in professional emails or correspondence. Ever. These types of things should be reserved for friends and family. If you aren’t sure whether to use them or not – just leave them out!
Avoid Long Continuous Paragraphs
You’ve probably noticed that this guide is broken up into several sections with headings, subheadings, bullet points, and ample white space. The breadth of content is a good thing; don’t be intimidated by the number of topics we’re tackling if you organize your thoughts clearly and concisely, it’ll be easy to scan through in a couple of minutes and pick out the most important pieces of information.
Here are some tips to help you break down your paragraphs into easily digestible components:
- Avoid long continuous paragraphs. The average reader will have lost interest by the time they reach what feels like the end of a phone book entry. If your paragraph exceeds six sentences or so, consider splitting it up or making use of lists and bullet points.
- Use bold and/or italicized text to highlight key points. Your audience may not want to read every single word; these formatting features allow them to get the gist before committing fully to reading all the way through each section.
- Include images or videos that illustrate your point effectively. These can add visual interest and make it easier for people who learn visually (as opposed to those who prefer words), but remember that any picture you upload should directly relate back to what you’re discussing in its caption.
Maintaining professionalism while working from home is crucial for success. Learn essential etiquette tips for remote workers in our comprehensive guide on 16 Etiquette Tips for Those Who Work from Home. Discover practical advice to create a productive and respectful work environment from the comfort of your own home.
Keep Your Tone Professional, Not Friendly
If you are unsure about how to approach a situation, or you feel like your client may be uncomfortable with friendly communication, stick to the professional. It’s not that you can’t have fun working with your clients, but it’s important to remember that in many ways, the lines between personal and professional relationships will become blurred.
You don’t need to be best friends with everyone you work for or with; however, if your client does turn out to be a great friend in addition to a happy customer, that’s icing on the cake!
Don’t Leave Out Any Critical Details
One of the most important things to include in your communication with clients is details, and you should never leave out any relevant ones. If a client asks where the meeting is and when it starts, don’t simply reply by saying “the meeting” and asking them what time works for them. Give them all of the information you have about it so that they can let you know if there’s anything else they need to know before arriving.
This may seem like a no-brainer; however, I was once given an empty room number for a meeting with a client, which turned out to be correct! The room I was supposed to meet in only existed on one floor of the building, but I had arrived at another floor entirely because I thought the room number referred to two different places.
Luckily someone helped me find my way (which would not have been possible without that extra unneeded detail), but imagine how frustrating it would’ve been if there was no one around who could’ve guided me toward my goal!
The lesson here is this: while communicating with clients, make sure you give them everything they ask for or need from you but also make sure it’s accurate!
Reply To Every Message In A Timely Manner
If you want to be a successful freelancer, you must reply to every single message. No matter how busy or tired you are, the benefits of responding quickly far outweigh any potential costs of not doing so. It’s vital that your client knows that their needs are being taken seriously and that they have someone they can rely on and certainly someone who will respond when they need a response.
This is especially important if your client is experiencing an issue with the work you’re providing them; if they feel like they’re unable to communicate with you, it won’t exactly inspire confidence in your abilities as a freelancer. But sometimes, despite your best intentions, you simply don’t have time to respond to every message immediately.
Luckily for us all, there’s a simple solution: let the other party know when you’ll be able to respond! Say something like “I don’t carry my phone around with me all day,” or “I take one hour off each afternoon and don’t check my messages.” That way the other party has reasonable expectations about when they can expect to hear back from you.
In today’s digital world, effective electronic communication is essential for building strong relationships with clients and colleagues. Our article on 11 Guidelines for Excellent Electronic Communication provides valuable tips and best practices to enhance your online communication skills, ensuring clear and professional interactions.
The Constant Stream Of Digital Communication
With the rise of round-the-clock digital communication, you have to be careful that information overload doesn’t shut down your productivity. While it can be tempting to respond to every ‘ping’ and notification immediately, you’ll lose yourself in a constant stream of trivial communications if you don’t establish some boundaries.
If you find yourself overwhelmed by the sheer volume of messages they are receiving, it is time to impose limits on yourself. You may want to turn off some notifications or even deactivate your Facebook account while concentrating on large projects so they aren’t distracted by all the chatter. When they do set aside time for social media engagement, keep the task limited and finite so the distraction doesn’t consume their day.
Don’t Let Your Emotions Bleed Into Every Message
With freelance work, you’re usually at least one step removed from your project manager or direct supervisor. That means it’s even more important to make sure that you don’t let your emotions bleed into every message.
A client isn’t just looking for a contractor who knows the ins and outs of the job they’re doing; they also want someone who will be able to work with them collaboratively if deadlines are missed, directions need to be clarified, or there is a problem in any other area. If you’re upset about something going on at work and think it would be best not to communicate until things have cooled down a bit, that’s totally okay just take some time off before sending an email or calling back once your mood has improved.
If something is unclear in the project requirements document and you need clarification before starting in earnest on tasks related to that section of the contract, send off an email (or call) as soon as possible so no time is wasted. It’s important when communicating with clients that we keep things professional without being overbearing and staying objective when we have concerns can help us do just that!
Speak Up About Your Needs And Expectations
When you’re not working for a company, it can be intimidating to speak up about your needs and expectations. Maybe you’ve been told that you don’t have the experience or qualifications to ask for what you want, or perhaps it’s just difficult for you to express yourself confidently.
However, in order to produce your best work and feel confident about the outcome of a project, it’s important for organizations and clients alike to know what your needs are. If you are unclear about something but afraid to ask for clarification because of imposter syndrome or nervousness in general, keep in mind that most of the time people aren’t going to criticize you as much as they’ll be annoyed with themselves if they haven’t communicated clearly.
This is especially true when dealing with an organization that has employees dedicated specifically to communicating with clients. So don’t be afraid! It’s better than everyone is on the same page than one party being in the dark about something integral to their job/project/life.
Remove Distractions When You Can
Today’s digital world is filled with distractions. The plethora of emails, instant messages, text messages, and phone calls that fill your inbox can be overwhelming and make it difficult to focus on a single project. To avoid the temptation of multitasking, turn off or silence notifications from any applications that are not needed for the task at hand.
This allows you to focus solely on work, which will help you stay productive and finish your projects faster. To optimize your productivity even further, work in a quiet space free from any distractions that may cause you to lose focus. For example, keep your cell phone in a drawer or another room so you don’t get tempted to check social media or personal email every time it dings.
Business writing requires adherence to specific communication etiquette to convey professionalism and clarity. Discover the key communication etiquette practices for effective business writing in our informative article on What are the Communication Etiquette to be Observed in Business Writing?. Enhance your written communication skills and make a positive impression in your professional correspondence.
Get A Good Writing Tool For Mobile Communication
When you’re on the go and want to send a message in a hurry, it’s imperative that you have good editing tools at your disposal. There are several apps available on mobile devices that will help you check your email for spelling and grammatical errors.
One of the best apps for writing emails is Grammarly. It can be installed on your computer, phone, or both. It’s totally free to download, but it does charge $11.99/month if you want more advanced features like an online editor and more suggestions for correcting errors in your writing style, grammar, punctuation, etc.
The app has several different “themes,” which allow users to choose between different styles of writing (formal vs informal) and languages (English is the default). You can also set up alerts so that every time you receive an email with specific keywords or phrases like “urgent” or “project deadline,” they are automatically flagged as high priority by Grammarly’s algorithm.
Ask About Favorite Delivery Methods And Times For Communication
Asking about your clients’ preferred communication methods is a great idea for setting yourself up for success. You may find out what time of day works best for communicating, or that they prefer to be messaged via text rather than email. Knowing this information will help you create and maintain a better working relationship with them.
Being respectful of their preferences will go a long way in letting them know that you value their time and communication, which is always good practice in the freelance world.
Maintaining proper communication etiquette in the workplace fosters a positive and productive environment. Our simple guide on Communication Etiquette in the Workplace offers valuable insights and practical tips to promote effective communication, resolve conflicts, and build strong professional relationships within your organization.
Final Thoughts
We have covered a lot of ground in this article. Hopefully, you’ve learned a lot about communication etiquette that will help you stand out as a consummate professional. As we move into the future and remote work continues to grow, it’s more important than ever for workers to maintain the same level of professionalism they would in an office setting and it’s up to freelancers to take advantage of these tools and show clients why they should be hired over traditional employees.
Further Reading
Here are some additional resources for further reading on related topics:
Freelancer Time Management: Learn effective time management strategies specifically tailored for freelancers to improve productivity and work-life balance.
Freelance Professional Etiquette on Social Media: Discover essential tips and guidelines on maintaining professional etiquette when using social media platforms as a freelancer to enhance your online presence and reputation.
Email Etiquette Tips: Master the art of email communication with practical tips and best practices for proper email etiquette, ensuring your messages are clear, professional, and respectful.
People Also Ask
What Are The Best Ways To Communicate Online?
It’s a good idea to have a communication tool set up for in-depth communication, like email. You should also think about using social media, or platforms such as Slack, Trello, and Asana for more instant communication.
What Are The Best Communication Strategies?
A good strategy is to be polite and direct while communicating. For example, “Hello [Name], I hope you’re having a great day! Would you mind responding at your earliest convenience regarding [topic]?” This shows that you value the other person’s time and want to be respectful of it. It also lets them know what you’re contacting them about so they can reply promptly.
What Are The Top 3 Communication Skills?
The top three skills: are active listening (or receiving messages from others), providing feedback (or sending messages to others), and self-disclosure (or sharing information about yourself). These skills will help improve any relationship! To learn more about these types of skills please visit our blog post on Top 10 Communication Skills Every Professional Needs.
How Can I Improve My Communication Skills?
Maybe you don’t think your communication skills are anything to write home about. The good news is, however, that you’re probably wrong. In fact, you may be a better communicator than you realize! Be confident in yourself and your abilities. You already have what it takes to succeed in this industry. Take a moment to consider your strengths, and keep those in mind as you seek to improve.
What Are The 5 Principles Of Effective Communication?
You can work on improving how well people understand what you’re trying to say by adhering to certain basic principles of effective communication: clarity, brevity, understanding, patience, and empathy. If you keep these principles at the heart of all your communications with others (be they clients or colleagues), nothing will be able to stop you from achieving success in this business!
What Are The 5 Basic Rules Of Etiquette?
These rules should help guide everything else: don’t talk with food in your mouth, don’t interrupt someone while they’re speaking (unless it’s an emergency), always greet someone politely before starting a conversation with them (even if they’re not literally standing right next to you), show gratitude for any gifts or services received from another person or organization (whether or not those gifts were solicited), and always address other people with respect and consideration for their feelings.
Costantine Edward is a digital marketing expert, freelance writer, and entrepreneur who helps people attain financial freedom. I’ve been working in marketing since I was 18 years old and have managed to build a successful career doing what I love.