Meeting Clients
Tue, 6 June, 2006 – 11:13 pm
I've just got back from a quick business trip down to Cardiff. I had a call on Thursday from a client who felt that his web site (which has been under redevelopment for a year now!) suggestions were getting confused. As it happens Internet Explorer had messed up the styling and we hadn't realised this (gotta love that standards compliant browser :|). However we really needed to meet and run through some other questions and items too.
I hate meetings. I'm sure most people do. When I first started freelancing full time, back in 2001, I used to get a buzz from it. Shooting into London (I lived by Heathrow then) to see a couple of clients, or later on when I lived back with my parents (whom without their help and support I wouldn't be where I am today) and having to shoot up the motorways to see a client, often arranging 3-4 meetings in one day to make the journey worthwhile. However now I don't enjoy it. Probably because I'm so busy and stressed half the time. I don't mind catching up with long term clients, however some of those have been waiting on work for quite a while and due to my busy-ness are having to wait longer than the old few days or so before I can give them the attention they pay for.
I only seem to have concerns, or issues, with clients that I have a more business relationship with compared to the friendly relationship I have with most of my older clients. I've also recently noticed how I seem to talk too much and a lot faster than normal when on the telephone or in person with these clients. I kick myself afterwards for sounding so silly in my opinion. I think it's a combination of nervousness and trying not to talk technical, afterall most clients won't even know what FTP is or means.
Of course I'm not a business person really. I'm a computer user, a programmer through and through. Besides some A Level Business studies I've never really learnt anything as far as business is concerned besides the learning curve I've had with my own business. But it's definitely something I need to improve, either that or find someone who can do the job right!
