Service companies - Does it apply to a freelancer?

HOWdesign.com - Doing Business

I often post things just to keep track of them. Knowing that by putting a note here in my blog I have a way to find the content again if I want it. Providing good service is part of my mantra - so I read a lot on it. I came to this article expecting great things and was disappointed. It was from a small company perspective. Then I realized that there were still parts that applied and I further realized that there was an opportunity to do a bit more thinking about my own client service.

Complex Sales

How Web Content Can Shorten a Complex Sale

Many of my clients have a long sales cycle. In fact I do too. And the idea of thought leadership pieces is critical to developing business. I need to guide people's thinking about the problems they have. Help them to develop a clear definition of the challenge that they face. Then and only then can you introduce more complex solutions.

Success?

Robin's Blog: The 8 Forms of Success: "#1: Inner Success. This includes a positive mindset, high-self respect, internal peace and a strong spiritual connection. #2: Physical Success. Your health is your wealth. What's the point of getting to a great place in your career if you get sick doing it? Why be the richest person in the graveyard? #3. Family Success. When your family life is happy, you will perform better at work. No one gets to the end of their lives and regrets making their family a top priority. #4. Career Success. Actualizing your highest potential by reaching for your best in your career is incredibily important. Getting to greatness in your profession brings a feeling of satisfaction on a job well done. #5. Economic Success. Money is important. Makes life easier and better. Money allows you to live in a nice home. Take beautiful vacations and provide well for those you love. #6. Community Success. Human beings have a psychological need for connection and belonging. A rich network of mentors, interesting thinkers and valued friends just makes life better. #7. Adventure Success. To be fulfilled, each of us needs mystery in our lives. Challenge is necessary for happiness. The human brain craves novelty. And we are creative beings so we need to be creating constantly if we hope to feel joy. Lots of adventure (ranging from meeting new people to visiting new places) is an essential element of success. #8. Impact Success. Perhaps the deepest longing of the human heart is to live for something greater than itself. Each of us craves to be significant. To make a difference. To know that the world has somehow been better because we have walked the planet."

I started to put this into my personal poetry blog. Then I realized that it is a part of what I do from a business perspective too. Much of it relates to the reasons that I became a freelancer.

My first comment spam

Though it does little good to kevetch - let me get it out of my system. I have a page rank six for my blog. Well worth the time to spam. I do have the no follow tag implemented so spammers will recieve no boost. And I will wait a day or so to see if I need to implement word verification. A pain for those who do want to comment but necessary if I am going to stop this in its tracks.

Micro Persuasion: Ten RSS Hacks

Micro Persuasion: Ten RSS Hacks

So this is simple RSS? little wonder people get confused and lost. But the hacks look great and very useful

Shopping locally

West 4th Ave Vancouver - Shopping, Restaurants, Kitsilano, Vancouver BC Canada

Many of my clients are concerned about local search. How do you create visibility locally? Here is afantastic local site. Kind of a Chamber of Commerce thing but really the low-tech street scape approach makes you realize that there is much more to it and has the added benefit of making you feel comfortable with a place that you have never been

Blog Checkup by Jakob Nielsen's Standards

Weblog Usability: The Top Ten Design Mistakes (Jakob Nielsen's Alertbox)

I bet there will be a lot of blogs that do a quick and dirty evaluation based on this list. It is a good one by someone who has a large platform one which to stand. Here's mine:

1. No Author Biographies Business blog that has a little blurb but really - no biography.
2. No Author Photo I have the Flash video - but then Flash is another one of Jakob's pet peeves.
3. Nondescript Posting Titles Working on this one. It has actually become quite fun to make it punchy but also accurate.
4. Links Don't Say Where They Go I don't often link within an article - I should more. And the top link I tend to let it speak with the author given title.
5. Classic Hits are Buried Okay this is a problem. I can't call them hits because I don't have that many visitors. But I do have some key posts for myself and my clients and they are buried
6. The Calendar is the Only Navigation Yup that's a problem. But then again I've been working on that with trying to work out how to put some categories on things.
7. Irregular Publishing Frequency Sunday so it's time to blog - nope. But several updates a day and a six or seven a week.
8. Mixing Topics I manage to stay fairly focussed here by having some other blogs that I'm using for more personal stuff.
9. Forgetting That You Write for Your Future Boss Ha! but I may be writing for a future client and that is critical.
10. Having a Domain Name Owned by a Weblog Service Built it into my website... Thank you. If indeed Blogspot gets canned then we are indeed home free as are the clients that I have been working with.

How to differentiate yourself

The Four Myths of Professional Services Marketing says: "Professional service firms differ from one another in many ways, including size, scope of services, culture, client management philosophies and people. Yet, to clients, their Web sites make professional service firms look like clones of one another. Look at the Web sites of a handful of firms, and you'll find similar, hollow marketing messages, such as these: 'Our passion is providing insights to small businesses which lead you and your organization to financial well-being.' 'We have built our firm with the resources and support to help meet your long and short-term financial goals.' Clients buy services from people they believe in. Meaningless claims like those won't get the job done. Your Web site should help you gain clients' trust. How? Build your site's content around specific client problems and issues, not your qualifications or generic mission statements. Give clients what they're looking for—a way to see that your firm understands exactly what they need."

Currently working with a client on exactly this problem. Case studies - show me don't tell me - the old writers adage. I have to call to find out how big an event you can handle. I want to know what you have done. Remote service? How remote? Can you do my job in Kurdistan? or Kelowna or next door?

Investers? How do you make money on an idea - someone else's!

Open Source: Now It's an Ecosystem

I often wonder about the people that have and the people that don't. An ecosystem is the perfect description of the investment pool. What would it take to come up with an investment worthy idea based in Web 2.0?

Story telling blogs

Hello, my name is Laura, Welcome to my site

I write about a need to follow passion in writing blogs and then come across this example.

Is it really a blog? Maybe not but it is a serialized collection with a fiction theme and some neat technology. The premise seems to be that by showing that they are connected to technology the Vancouver Art Museum can generate some traffic. Kind of like subservient chicken advertising. (If you don't know the story - tell me and I will put it in the comments.)

Follow your passions when blogging

Firefly Forest Blog

Innocent enough blog. Some remarkable photos and some great discussion - informed discussion on an area that people are curious about. I can see a carefully tuned google adsense revenue stream trickling out of this blog without much difficulty. I have a little note on my computer. When do people blog? When they have a story to tell! This is a perfect example.

It isn't just about web design

A List Apart: Articles: Never Get Involved in a Land War in Asia (or Build a Website for No Reason)

Great title - even more poignant subject. Yes sometimes we need to turn down work. Part of great service is getting a client focused on what the strategy is. Where does a site fit into the marketing? Will it work?

: "The strategy Your strategy will define how you are going to achieve the objective you just developed. When it's finished, the strategy will outline the who, what, and why of the website. A strategy for the above example might look something like this: To convince: anyone who wants to create better websites to read: A List Apart instead of: ReaderÂ’s Digest because: A List Apart actually has articles on the subject whereas Reader's Digest contains none."

Growing an email list? Some tips

12 Quick Ways To Grow Your E-mail Newsletter (Ezine Publishing): "Want to grow your e-mail list? Christopher M. Knight suggests 12 ways to grow your e-mail list membership: 1. Your website subscription form 2. Your newsletter should ask them to subscribe (to capture folks who are forwarded your newsletter) 3. Submitting your ezine to ezine directories (like New-List.com) 4. Giving them a reason to subscribe such as a free report or outlining the benefits they will receive when they join 5. Making it easy for them to get on your list (testing your forms and e-mail addresses to be sure they work) 6. Sponsorship swaps with your ezine publishing peers 7. Registering the domain name that is the same as your ezine name to make it easy for folks to find your ezine. 8. Inviting folks to join your ezine from your SIG line on every business e-mail communication 9. Writing articles available for distribution/syndication that invites them to join your list (put your e-mail newsletter subscription invitation in the resource box below your article body). 10. Create a viral movie or humourous/inspiring animation that gets forwarded to spawn buzz related to your niche expertise and list. 11. An exit pop or java hover ad that invites them to join your list. 12. Launch an advertising campaign to get new subs."

Wininning Writers site...

Tim Bete -- Award-winning parenting humor columnist and author of In The Beginning There Were No Diapers This is what an authors website looks like if it is a winner. I really like the For Editors section. Many authors don't understand the first person that they need the support of is the editor. Here is a section geared right to that person.

Advice for this Blog?

Intelligent Bacon: 16 Ways to Drive Traffic to Your Blog. Tips for Terrific Telephone Interviews.

It's not often that I don't get through an article like this but I want to come back and follow all the steps. For my blog... I need to put it in place for my blogging clients too.

Great Reminder of the Basics

Follow Nine Rules Of Good Web Design For Freshers - Freshers News India

This might be the start of a really good little checklist for a website rebuild.