Managing client expectations is necessary for a successful business
One way to avoid an unhappy client is to communicate all relevant information from the very beginning of your relationship with them. Clearly stated expectations (on both sides) reduce the likelihood that either will be less-than-satisfied.
Understand What the Client Wants
Be sure you understand how the client expects you to edit. Sometimes the author will ask for a copyedit when the ms isn’t ready for that—maybe it still has developmental issues. If you don’t discuss this ahead of time, you’re unlikely to be able to do a good job. And if you turn in a developmental edit when the author has just asked for you to double-check the comma placement, the author will not be happy.
Before you offer a quote for editing, it’s a good idea to review the manuscript and read at least a chapter or two. Supporting information, such as a synopsis or promotional blurb the author has written, can be very helpful in spotting potential problems and understanding the author’s vision for the work.
This review will give you a sense of how skilled the author is and how much work it will require to edit their work, which will help you estimate how long it will take to edit the complete manuscript. It will also help you come to an agreement with the author/client about what needs to be done. The author may think that all the manuscript needs is a final read-through, whereas you’ve spotted five big problems in the first three pages. Knowing this ahead of time will help everyone understand what the edit will include.
Some editors edit a small sample to get a better sense of how long it will take to edit the manuscript. They provide that edited sample to the author so they can know what to expect from this process. This can be an excellent way to establish expectations, but of course it does require you to do a certain amount of editing without any promise of landing the client. And in the case of a developmental edit, a small edited sample may not capture the true extent of what the overall edit will look like. However, it can be a good way to calibrate how much line editing you will do compared to what the author/client expects.
Keep Long-Term Relationships in Mind
Freelance editors who build successful businesses seek long-term client relationships that involve repeat business. A private-pay individual who hires you to edit each of the four novels she writes a year will be a bigger boost to your bottom line than the one who hires you to edit a better-paying project once.
Developing long-term client relationships requires flexibility because you’ll be working with different kinds of clients who have different needs and different ways of communicating. So it’s important to keep good notes about what different clients prefer and how they communicate with you.
Ask Questions
I’ve noticed that many freelancers seem a little intimidated by their clients. A client approaches them, says, “I need this project edited, I’ll pay you $X,” and that’s acceptable. Then, the editor has some questions, but she’s afraid to approach the client. She’s afraid of coming across as not an expert or as a pest. Yes, it’s important to not be a pest, but you also have to be sure that you have the information you need to do the job right. There’s nothing wrong with asking questions.
If you can anticipate the kinds of questions you’ll have, and if you put them together so that the client is only answering one or two emails from you instead of ten, that’s helpful. As you gain more experience, you’ll know what types of questions you’ll be likely to have, and can ask them in preliminary conversations about the project. You may find that developing a template can help—checklists are so useful in our business! You don’t necessarily show the template to the client, you just keep it for yourself.
Show Trustworthiness
Trust is one of the basic principles of all good relationships. Clients need to trust that you will be a competent editor, delivering on the expectations you’ve agreed to. Building trust requires attention to details: meeting deadlines, calling when you say you will, responding to email messages in a timely manner, and letting clients know when you’ll be unavailable.
In order to build trust with your clients, be open and honest and do what you say you’re going to do. And while you don’t have any control over whether your clients will do the same, you can make an extra effort to confirm payment, payment dates, and other important information. Doing so helps minimize potential misunderstandings.
Another way to establish yourself as trustworthy—especially when first marketing yourself to prospective clients—is by providing a list of your past work. For instance, Client A is much more likely to trust your ability to edit her novel if she knows you’ve already successfully done so for Clients B and C. References and testimonials can also be extremely helpful in the same way.
Remember that even if you volunteered or bartered, you can still ask the client for a reference or testimonial.
Ready to Take the Plunge?
Save half! 50 percent! Lots of lucre!
This collection of classes is normally $350, but right now you can enroll for just $175.
Thinking about exploring developmental editing as a career? The Club Ed starter pack, also called DE 1 - 6 (I need to come up with a sexier name), is your answer.
This is a package of six self-paced classes that will help you understand what developmental editing of fiction is and gives you the basic skills to get started. It’s all the stuff I wish I’d known in the beginning before I made all those mistakes.
We’re entering the last weeks of summer here in the western hemisphere, and that’s often when people have a little more time to invest in themselves. Or, you can buy now and start in the fall when you have more time (if you’re like me and spending most of your free time at the beach right now).
To get the half off (50% off! Lots of lucre!), just add this package to your cart and use the coupon code SUMMER when you go to check out.
Coupon good through August 4, 2024. Let me know if you have any questions: ResortDirector@ClubEdFreelancers.com
For Members
If you have any questions about the membership program, please reach out to me at ResortDirector@ClubEdFreelancers.com
The Marketing Challenge Is On!
Through July 31, 2024.
Every quarter, Club Ed runs a marketing challenge for members. During the challenge (which is usually about four weeks long), we do a marketing task each weekday (something like interacting on social media, updating a business profile, writing a blog post). Then we report on the forums what we did. We also discuss stumbling blocks and ask each other questions.
This is a great way to get into a daily marketing habit. Small, persistent efforts are a more effective way to spread the word about your work than dramatic, exhausting pushes that last three days.
At the end of the challenge, the Resort Director randomly chooses a participant to receive a $25 Club Ed gift card.
You'll see the marketing challenge forum (where we report our daily efforts) in your Dashboard. If you have any questions, please drop me a line at ResortDirector@ClubEdFreelancers.com
Other Member News
Club Ed Conversations: on August 13, 2024, from 11 a.m. to noon Pacific time, James Gallagher and Penina Lopez will be discussing copyediting. Visit the Membership classroom page to find out how to register for this free Q&A.
Enjoy a replay of this month’s talk with Brittany Dowdle and Linda Ruggeri about networking, now available in the Membership classroom.
Becoming a Member
You can find out more about becoming a member here.
Upcoming Classes
Fall classes:
NEW! Fall Study: Editing Narrative Nonfiction, starts Sep 3, 2024
Beginning Developmental Editing for Fiction, starts Sep 4, 2024.
Editorial Toolkit: Coaching Writers, starts Sep 9, 2024
About the Resort Director
I help editors figure out what the hell they're doing.
If you're an aspiring, new, or established book editor or story coach, I can probably help you learn how to do the work better and more profitably.
Through Club Ed, I offer developmental editing classes, a freelance editor membership program/support group, and a slightly bony shoulder to cry on.
I've worked as an editor for more than twenty years. I learned how to edit in the trenches of traditional publishing with its insane deadlines, pitiless competition, and crushing bureaucracy. To that I added a Ph.D in English literature with a specialization in medieval literature because of a long story.
Editorial clients have included Simon & Schuster, Girl Friday Productions, Glencoe/McGraw-Hill, Barnes and Noble Custom Publishing, and others, along with many independent authors.
For fiction self-paced classes, click here.
For fiction instructor-led classes, click here