Want to know the secret to attracting high paying clients?
STATUS.
Clients respect status.
But it’s not something you can earn just dropping knowledge bombs in Facebook groups.
You’ve got to project status with every interaction, Skype call, and piece of content you publish.
Here are five ways of developing the aura of status A list copywriters project to compete at the top table.
1.Demonstration
Demonstration is Gary Bencivenga’s #1 form of proof.
‘Showing’ how you achieve results is far more powerful than ‘telling’ clients what an amazing copywriter you are.
Publishing case studies on LinkedIn, being interviewed, appearing on Podcasts, and sharing your secret tactics are all great ways of demonstrating your status as a major player who walks the walk.
2. Be scarce
When you’re on a call with a new client, it can be tempting to offer 24 hour turnaround time on your proposal, email or whatever.
But this is firstly going to result in quality issues. Secondly, it’s going to give the impression you were sat around twiddling your thumbs until you got their enquiry.
Always ask for more time than you realistically need (for practical reasons too) and make it clear your time is valuable by making it scarce.
3. Be the prize
As any high stakes negotiator (or serial dater) will tell you, neediness is the #1 way to repel people.
In every discovery call, make it clear you’re the prize and the value you offer is greater than your fee. Remember that you’re ultimately providing them with a ‘sales machine’, not a Word doc.
If your dance card is consistently full, consider giving new clients hoops to jump through, like a prescreening questionaire or simple puzzle. This helps scare away the price shoppers and ensures you’re dealing with people who value your time and skills.
4. Be expensive
When a client asks for your rates, don’t handover a pricelist like you’re selling burgers at McDonalds.
Copywriters supply a service that results in customers, profits, satisfied shareholders, and salaries getting paid. Charge accordingly.
If you want to know if you’re charging enough, check out AWAI’s recommended rates for guidance.
5. Be the adult in the room
B level copywriters write the sales letter, wish the client luck then ride off into the sunset to hunt for their next victim.
Whereas A level copywriters take ownership and stick around for the long haul.
Experienced pros know only too well that campaigns are rarely profitable from day one. So they know to dig in and help the client make sense of the data, find the leaks, and to test what screams rather than what whispers.
A level copywriter also don’t shy away from telling clients hard truths.
Sometimes clients have to be told their new super ingredient isn’t all that super and how much they’ll need to spend on testing before they have more than a snowball’s chance in hell of profitability.
Sure, sticking around for the hard times is going to make your job harder, more stressful, and make you fondly remember the days of writing keyword articles in bulk.
Yet being the adult in the room is what defines A listers, and defines your status as a problem solver rather than just a wordsmith.
When all else fails, get adventurous
If you’ve already ticked off all 5 status builders, try being outrageous.
Wear suits with a personal coat of arms… add pink streaks to your hair… or create your own tagline.
But ultimately, when you strip away all the tactics and gimmicks, what matters is being someone who can get the job done.
There’s no fast track to this.
The only way is to build your skills, get some wins, and take ownership of your losses.
Think and act like a class act and status will follow.