The Need + Respect Axis (How To Find Good Clients)

When I first started freelancing, I spent a lot of time pitching clients who didn’t respect me and didn’t want what I had to offer. I wasn’t pitching these clients on purpose. I just hadn’t found my target market yet. I hadn’t yet learned how to find businesses that had resources, value, and a way in. I just blindly emailed decks to people and never heard back. 

After a little while, I found some clients who really wanted what I had to offer. I was able to win their business because my pitches got better, and they needed what I could do. There was one problem: they didn’t respect me. These clients businesses weren’t healthy, so they hoped I could deliver a short-term win to turn their revenue around. When I couldn’t deliver that, or when it didn’t happen quickly enough, the claws came out. These clients didn’t trust the process, didn’t believe me when I advised them to stay the course, and they didn’t respect me. 

A while after that, I started connecting with potential clients who respected me–but they didn’t need what I had to offer. These were industry professionals with healthy businesses. They either already had my role filled, or had designed their business in a way as not to need it. Even though I wasn’t able to pitch these clients, they were great for me to be connected with. Why? Because they usually connected me with other clients, or they ended up coming back around to ask for a proposal down the road.

Finally, I began connecting with clients who had a high need for my services and a high respect for me. This is when freelancing became incredibly rewarding. They didn’t devalue my rates with a lowball. They asked me to do more for them. They considered my advice and respected my opinion. They showed their appreciation often. Working with clients like these makes me feel like I’m winning; like I hacked the system and scored something incredibly rare. 

Two of the relationships on this axis are bad. Two of them are good. What’s common in the good relationships? Respect. If you’re working with a client who doesn’t respect you, make sure you’re getting paid and you have a short-term agreement. Then go find people who respect you. 

Good luck out there.