How to Retain Clients: 7 Tasks for the Content Writer

Table of Contents  

• Why You Need To Learn How To Retain Customers
• 7 Tips to Retain Clients
• Key Takeaways 
• Conclusion 
• FAQs 

All freelancers go through days when it feels like there’s just not enough coffee in the world to fuel your work schedule. And then there are other days when there’s little work but lots to worry about the next big project. While the freelancer journey is absolutely thrilling, it would be good for work-life balance to have a solid set of clients who provide regular work, wouldn’t it? 

There’s only one way to become a financially stable full-time freelancer. Read on to find out everything you need to know about how to retain clients! 

Why You Need To Learn How To Retain Customers

If you’ve chosen the freelance writing journey, you would know that it’s important to keep a diverse portfolio and garner experience with multiple clients to grow in the biz. So it would seem illogical to work with the same clients again. However, it’s essential to note that there’s another crucial reason to keep your client coming back to you apart from stability.

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Did you know that according to Invesp, it could cost more than five times to acquire a new customer than to retain an old one? It simply makes business sense to spend less on your sales funnel. Think about it – freelancers spend hours researching online for customers, attending meetings and conferences, advertising online, and much more just to acquire that next client. But, it takes just a few simple steps to reach out to someone with who you’ve already worked. 

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7 Tips to Retain Clients

1. Under promise, over deliver

This tried and tested formula on how to retain clients works like magic. The reason? Who doesn’t love a little freebie every now and then? If you’re just writing a blog for your client and stumbled across an ad copy that your client would really like, why not bring it up at the next meeting?

2. Ask relevant questions

Even if you think you already know the answers to all your client’s problems, it doesn’t hurt to confirm that you’re on the right track. Implementing this freelance writing tip the right way can help you show your clients that you genuinely care for their brand or business. You may never know how one doubt can lead to a long and complicated discussion about the larger projects they have in mind. 

The key to understanding how to retain clients in business is not to use the same formula on each client. Every client is different, and it takes time to build a trusting relationship. It’s important to showcase to each client that you do your homework. Before every meeting, prepare for the topic in hand and ask relevant questions.

Pro-tip: In many cases, clients are hesitant or unwilling to share what they like or dislike about their competitors’ work. Bringing up your research on competition analysis can often help them feel at ease to discuss exactly what they like and don’t. It takes time to build this rapport, but it is a great ice-breaker for trust-building when it works well! As a freelance writer, you need to show your clients that you’re not interested in their products or services but rather their marketing strategy. If you’re working with SBOs, it helps to look at what the top brands in the segment are doing.

3. Make it a point to incorporate your client’s tone of voice

If you’re ghostwriting (writing on behalf of your client, but your name won’t appear on the blog), it’s important to ensure that you’ve got the tone of voice just right. Remember that when it comes to B2B write-ups, C-Suites and other marketing team members may be sharing the blog posts as their own. In this case, it’s crucial to make your piece sound professional and portray your client’s unique voice. 

A subtle yet effective hack on retaining clients for your freelance writing business is to incorporate words that your customers often use into your write-up. For example, if your customer likes to throw in business jargon like “get rid of the bad apples” or “best practice,” use those phrases in some of the important pieces – but don’t overdo it! These simple things can help you build a closer relationship with your clients and communicate effectively. 

4. Be open to criticism and changes

Often, the amount of research and hard work you put into your piece can make you more emotional about your work than you need to be. But remember that as a freelancer, you’re simply providing a service to the best of your ability. A constructive freelancing tip for beginners is to make sure that you understand the intention behind why your client is asking for changes. You may or may not agree with it – but being standoffish about the situation is an immediate red flag to your client. 

5. Involve them in the process

Want to save time on research and deliver well before the deadline? Here’s a freelancer tip: involve your clients in the process. Remember that as a writer, no matter how good your research skills are, they’re no match to your customer’s knowledge and experience. Go through their website and social media profiles. Try to find existing work that’s relevant to your write-up. As you progress through the project, show them posts they’ve used before and how you’ve tried to maintain the same tone of voice or repurposed that idea. This can help your clients jog their memory. 

P.S. Sometimes it also helps them understand how difficult their life was before they found you! 

6. Promote their brand on social media

Most freelancers tend to ignore their social media profiles or only post sporadically. If you’ve found yourself having some spare time, spend it on building your own social media profile. In this digital economy, remember that freelance writing is only a part of the wider content strategy for your clients. 

Any customer, especially SBOs, can benefit from promotions of any form. If you’ve built a quality following on social media, even a small post showcasing your work and telling your followers how enriching your experience was can go a long way in helping you bring back some of your old clients. This tip for new freelancers not only provides answers for how to retain your customers but is also a crucial tool for increasing your rates.

7. Don’t forget to ask for feedback

If you notice that a valuable client is slipping out of reach, simply do this one thing – send out a feedback form via mail or give them a call. Ask them how their experience was and what you can do to improve. This freelancer tip helps understand why your retention rates may below. 

Secondly, it offers you an opportunity to interact with your customer even after your project is closed. If the review is largely positive, make sure you leave them with your contact details to reach out to you any time they have other requirements.

Key Takeaways

• Never underestimate the power of delivering within the deadline. Even if you’ve delayed, it helps to take up extra work if you’re working with an agency and client deliveries are running behind schedule. 
• Always treat your customers’ reviews with respect.
• Involving your customers in the process is the best way to ensure thorough research.
• Don’t be afraid to ask questions.
• Be prepared for every meeting.
• Give out some freebies to your valuable clients.
• Improve your social media profiles during your spare time.
• It’s okay to promote your client’s work even long after a project has closed.
• Always ask for feedback.

Conclusion

Implement these freelancing tips on retaining clients, and you can slowly but surely ensure a stable income from the profession!

FAQs