If a pipe burst in your home and the plumber you called to fix it promised to be there by 6, you would be pretty upset if you were still waiting around at 7. Clients feel the same way about the work you do for them. If they expect articles to be delivered by 9 pm on Friday and you send them in at 8 am on Saturday, they will most likely find another writer for their needs.
Being dependable is one of the most important things you can do for your business. Just as you do not want to use a business that you can't depend on, clients will not want to use your talents if they aren't assured work will be done on time. And since word of mouth is an important part of advertising, people will start hearing bad things about your business and be less likely to choose you.
Being well organized is one way to ensure you meet deadlines on time. Knowing what work you have to do and when it needs to be done will enable you to get work done in the correct order to get it turned in on time.
Time management is another important factor in dependability. It is also one that I struggle with regularly. A fellow blogger has been doing a series on time management that I have found inspiring. You can find her at The Self Employed Writer. Her posts have inspired me and helped with managing my own time. It is well worth the read.
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I always do my best to state a date and then provide it for them before that date.
ReplyDeleteYou can be great at what you do, but not doing well if people can't trust you to deliver the product on time.
ReplyDeleteThank you for the mention. I am glad you found the time management posts useful!
ReplyDeleteThankfully I have never had to turn a clients assignment in late. I do admit that there were times when I would unclaim an article at a company, only to reclaim it. LOL.
Excellent post, Carrie. When it's your business, it's your reputation on the line.
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