Tips for
New Clients
© Copyright Andrea
Reynolds, 2011-2024
These are
the requests I make of new clients. These are the kind of
people who make me smile. My intention is to set an example
that I hope you, as my client, will implement in your own
professional practice.
1. Tell me
what you want. Be direct. Many people
will send me an introductory email telling me about
themselves or their new book, but they don't say why they
are contacting me. I assume it's because they want my
assistance, but they don't say what exactly.
Be specific. Make a wish list and show it to me. Then I can
tell you how to best achieve what you want. Don't ask me
for a proposal of services I can provide. If you don't know
what you want, I can't tell you. All my services are/will
be listed on this web site.
2. Don't
ask me to bid on an assignment. After 40
years I've earned the right not to have to bid against
people decades younger than I who have far less experience
and know-how than I have.
3. Tell
me what your budget is; don't ask me to guess
what you can afford (your magic number). I'm not psychic.
Let's collaborate on this factor.
4. Don't
ask me to discount my fees. If I do, you won't get
my best work. If you pay my stated fees, you will get my
best work.
5. Don't
ask me to work on speculation or on
commission. I run a business, not a
charity, or a hobby. Neither do you.
6. Don't ask me to consult with you for free
if you're not
going to hire me. If you wouldn't expect your doctor,
dentist or lawyer to work for free, and if you yourself
would not consult for free, why ask me?
7. Take
notes. If you've hired me to
answer your questions, please write
down and keep my responses. Calling me or emailing
me again with the same questions wastes time for both
us. Time is
Money. Read through my email
replies before you ask me the same question again. If I
have to remind you of my original reply, I probably will
decide not to work with you. (That's a sign you're going to
be a high-maintenance client... and high maintenance
clients require more of my time and energy, which will
result in you paying higher fees. If you don't want to pay
me higher fees, it makes sense to keep track of our
communication.)
8. Say
thank you. I sometimes test
prospective clients by giving them a small gift (sometimes
a $10-$20 report). If you don't say thank you and show a
little appreciation, I probably won't accept you as a
client. I prefer not to work with clients who are
impossible to please. I want to assist and represent
clients who have good manners.
9.
When I give
you a price for a specific task you request,
my quote
is usually valid for 10 days. If you wait 11 days
before deciding to go ahead or give me a deposit, the price
I gave you may be null and void.
10. Have
reasonable expectations. Don't expect miracles.
If you haven't yet achieved celebrity status as an expert,
you're not going to immediately receive invitations to
speak that pay you handsomely.
11. Don't
sabotage my efforts to help you build a
platform. I've watched clients act
against their (and my) best efforts often out of fear of
success. No joke. If you undermine my efforts to position
and promote you, you will only waste your time and your
money. If you're not ready for success now, you should wait
until you are ready.
12.
Expect to do the work. It's called "paying your
dues". There's no fairy godmother who is going to wave her
magic wand and make you instantly famous and wealthy. You
have to make an effort to learn, develop yourself, practice
and perfect your skills. You can't go play golf while
waiting for me to achieve success for you.
13.
Expect to invest in yourself. Don't expect others –
like me! – to take financial and career risks that you
yourself should be taking.
14. I
work with entrepreneurs. Entrepreneurs take
risks. If you're not willing to take career risks, you're
not an entrepreneur. If you want to be an entrepreneur
learn how to be one before you contact me. There are lots
of books on the market that describe entrepreneurship.
15. Show
up. If
I book you to appear on a television program or radio show,
be there, early, and ready to perform at your best. "No
shows" cost you big in terms of reputation. They hurt me,
too. That show you blew off may never book another client
of mine.
16.
Promote one thing at time. I've watched a few clients
launch multiple campaigns at one time – against my advice –
and inevitably they can't devote the necessary time to any
one activity to avoid major crises. And they crash and
burn.
17. Hire
one marketing and promotion firm or professional at a
time. Hiring multiple people
often means they are working at cross-purposes to each
other and to your strategic plan. I've watched clients hire
multiple publicists and public relations professionals at
one time, and in doing so created a false feeling of
prestige for themselves, but at enormous cost... and no
profit.
18. Heed
my good advice. You are paying me to
give you the best advice possible based on my four decades
of experience. I'm here to act in your best interests.
You're paying me to act in your best interests. While you
certainly have free will to make your own choices, I don't
want to be in the position in the future where I have to
say, "I told you so."
19. Have
a strategic plan. I'll work with you to
build a detailed plan based on your wish list. Stick to it
for 6 months. Refer to it often to keep you focused. When
you start to deviate from your plan you dilute or waste
your efforts and then wonder why you haven't met your goals
by your target deadline. See #24 below.
20. Don't
copy or distribute other people's creative
work/intellectual property without permission.
(That includes
work I write and sell.) While making use of other people's
work is lazy and makes you appear to be a copycat, it's
also illegal and unethical. Copyright infringement is theft
and a federal offense. Not only could you be sued for a
pile of money, but if I find a client using someone else's
work without permission – just giving credit is NOT enough
– our working arrangement may be terminated quickly. I
would expect you to contact the party whose work you took,
apologize and make restitution.
21.
Retain me before you retain someone else and
before
you sign
a publishing or syndication contract. If you've already hired
and terminated a relationship with another
marketing/promotion professional, it may not be wise to
retain me to "do a better job". Some of those people are my
professional colleagues and my handling their former client
may cause hurt feelings. Also, I can advise you of
important facts before you sign a publishing or speaking
contract that doesn't represent your best interests. If
you've signed a contract there may be nothing I, or anyone
else, can do for you.
22.
Contact me directly, not by one of your
employees or hired staff. Don't treat me as a subordinate
or employee: I've already achieved the success in my life
you want me to help you achieve. I don't treat my clients
as subordinates; I treat my clients with the respect and
appreciation they deserve. Treat me as a professional of
equal status or I won't feel very interested in helping you
boost your income, visibility and reputation.
23.
Don't ask
or insist that I use conventional marketing methods that
are far less efficient and more costly to
you. I
hope you see yourself as a professional with a body of
specialized knowledge, and not a retailer selling a
product. When you retain me, it's my duty to work in your
best interests, and I've discovered ways that work better,
make more sense, and will, in the long run, bring you more
prestige. Remember: I've been doing this work for 40 years,
often 3-8 times longer than some of the "gurus" out there
who haven't yet acquired all the experience I have.
24.
Don't try
to do everything at once. Develop one thing and
when that succeeds add the next. If you try to launch 6
activities at once, you will dilute your efforts, get
distracted, and perhaps miss important rules and
regulations that could wipe you out financially. This is
why a marketing plan is critical to your success, and not
having a plan to keep you focused could be disastrous.
The more professional you
choose to be, the better will be our working relationship.
The better our working relationship, the quicker and easier
(and more pleasant) it will be to help you reach your
target objectives. And in the long run, that may very well
be less expensive for you.
Your wisdom is worth a million!