Not asking the right questions of your client can lead to a failed project.
As a writer, it is your job to create emotions in your readers. Your content should move them to take action. To create the right content, you must first understand how your client wants them to feel.
Getting It Right the First Time
Let’s look at this a bit more.
You get a contract to write for a new client. They want your content to sing, dance and sell their products all at once. Yes, I have heard of clients that want all that handed to them on a silver platter.
You think to yourself, “ok, no problem; I can do that.”
You write the copy; the client approves it; you get paid and move on to the next client down the line.
Now what?
They are not getting increased sales, their traffic is not increasing and they are all blaming one person: you.
Why?
Did you not deliver your copy on time?
Did you not edit your copy before sending it to the client?
Nope and nope – you did those things.
What was it? You asked the wrong questions before you started.
Now that client is not going to use you again; they will have to fix the copy and they are probably complaining about you to others they know too.
Help Me Help You
You are the writer. It is part of your job to understand the client’s needs. Intimately.
Asking the right questions will get you invited back for more work.
Don’t ask a HUGE amount of questions either. Think quality over quantity.
Include questions such as:
- What is the web site all about? What is its purpose?
- What are you trying to promote on your site?
- Who is your target customer? What do you want them to feel about your product?
- How do you want your customer to react to the content? What action do you want them to take?
Put together a checklist of questions that you can use for future clients. There will be some you may need to tweak the checklist for, but the majority will fall into the range of the template.
Again, you need to know what your client wants. You are there to do a job for them. Don’t create the wrong solution for your client because you didn’t ask the right questions.
For every client, ask them the right questions and verify their answers. With that information, you will have what you need to start the project on the right foot.
What types of questions do you ask your clients?
What tools do you use to create the right questions?
Photo credit: aymlis
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