1 – Deliver Quality Work
2 – Create and Foster Trust (with the client)
3 – Add Value to the Production/Company/Idea
This client liked my social media work and wanted me to make similar content. I have a mix of both on-camera and iPhone videos, and she said she didn’t care how it was filmed. I had put expectations on myself and felt terrible for filming on my phone because I thought the client wanted the highest quality work. (I really wanted to practice creating crisper, high-quality work.) I learned later that this job wanted more quantity than crisper quality, which I knew from the beginning. I undershoot that I was adding value by increasing their social media presence and having higher engagement. That was the focus and the goal, but I was so anxious about the quality that I lost focus on how I was adding value to the client, which made it harder for me to foster a better relationship with the client at times. So much so, I’m surprised she still highers me because it would take me forever to email back. (I know, yikes)
I was nervous about everything, yet the people highering me were sweet as peaches and weren’t worried about the quality of the value I added.
I lost sight of both the quality of the work and the communication with the client. At the end of the day, I failed to be transparent about how much I could give to myself.
I learned that it is essential to write follow-up emails re-stating what you learned from the meeting and how you interpreted it. I also learned that being a freelancer means sometimes setting your deadlines; whenever you are given a project, try to work on it immediately. I also learned that if someone is hiring you, they believe you can do the job. They are not waiting for you to fail.