Are you ready to ditch the demanding, difficult clients? Are you ready to spend more time creating and less time doing the admin work that goes along with working with clients?

What does it take to have happy (non-demanding) clients?

You probably have already created onboarding documents, email scripts, or scripts you use when letting clients know how you work. But today, I’m going to share with you how client policies can be a critical piece to your goal of having happy and non-demanding clients.

Many creatives believe that policies are a hindrance to collaborative relationships, but that belief may be holding you back.

Because the reality is that your polices create the collaboration’s sandbox. And sets the expectations of how the collaboration can achieve its goals.

Ready to dive into how your client policies can help you create smooth working relationships?

Always remember you are the expert

Before we dive into the nitty gritty, I want to remind you of one fact: your client is hiring you because you are an expert.

They came to you because they believe you can get them the outcome they want.

And your job as the expert is to validate this belief by showing them that you have a plan and process to get them that outcome.

And part of having a plan and process is to create policies and plans for when common hiccups happen.

Clients love clarity. And this clarity not only leads to happier clients, but it makes your life so much easier.

For example, 

• If your client knows that you need to be left alone for the first two weeks to come up with concept sketches, then they will leave you alone because they expect you to be quiet for two weeks..
• If your client knows that you will do all the creative work, but your admin person will be the point of contact, then they’ll email her and not you.
• If your client knows that you won’t start the project until you have a signed contract, the deposit, and the Pinterest board, your client will do those things so you can start.

Which means you’ll have more time to focus on the work you like best, rather than managing the client.

My process for happier clients

I love opening up my email to something like this:

Kiff:

I was really scared and nervous when I reached out to you. I thought that working together wasn’t going to be fun. Honestly, I was dreading it so much that reaching out to you sat on my to-do list for months.

You’ve been so patient with my questions and have a knack for translating the legal mumbo jumbo into plain English. Working with you has been such a treat and relief!

Thanks so much!

I’ve changed this email a little bit to protect the client, but do you know why I get these emails so often?

Because I’ve established a system and process for working with clients. And I make all of these things clear to them before we start working together. 

For example, when I’m working with a client to create an LLC. She often has questions at the start about permits, licenses, costs, bank accounts, taxes, keeping her LLC legit, etc.

In our kick-off call, I ask her to write her questions down and email them to me. And I tell her that my process is designed to address these questions at the point in time we can take action on them.

For example, I tell her that we can’t deal with moving the bank accounts to the LLC until we get the LLC paperwork back. So once we have the pieces she’ll need to present to the bank, I’ll give her the information she needs to tackle that piece.

Of course, I tell her that if I don’t address them all by our final call, then we’ll address them then. But most of the time, by the time we’ve gotten there, I’ve not only answered all of those initial questions, but shared things she didn’t even know to ask.

Having policies and processes that match how I work best is the key to having happy clients and getting emails like this.

What might you want to include in your client policies?

• What does the process of working together look like?
• Who will be working on my project?
• How do you charge?
• How can I pay you?
• What is your refund policy?
• If there are calls/sessions involved, how to reschedules/no-shows work?
• How many rounds of revisions are included? How long do they have to request changes?
• How do we get started?

Now, I’m not crazy enough to think that everyone is going to read your policies before reaching out. So I think that it’s important to reemphasize these policies throughout your intake process. That could be:

• an email follow-up to your initial consultation
• a conversation during your initial consultation
• an onboarding packet
• the cover page of your contract

The method will vary based on what works for you and your clients. But what’s not negotiable is communicating them to your potential clients.

But don’t selectively enforce your policies

A few years back, I was the president of a nonprofit. And we were having an issue with an independent contractor. So I’d been emailing back and forth with a Board Member about how to deal with it.

The day before I left for a weekend off-line writing retreat, I chimed in on how I thought it should be handled.

I checked my email right before I left and didn’t see a response, so I assumed he agreed with my approach.

And then I went off to my retreat and wasn’t able to check email for two days.

When I came back, I had four emails from him. And as I read through them, the tone got more and more frustrated.

My initial reaction was irritation.

I thought…

I left on a Friday at noon, and now it’s Sunday at 3 pm. Seriously, it’s a weekend, buddy, calm down.

Luckily, rather than shooting off a snotty response, I went for a walk.

And while I was out walking, I realized that his irritation was partially my fault.

And that’s because I had set email policies with the Board when I became President, but had never really stuck to them.

I’d been responding to emails:

• throughout the day, in the evenings, and on the weekends
• randomly based on what seemed most urgent

And because I didn’t follow my rules, he expected that I would quickly chime in and respond. Which meant that I created the problem.

So once you create (and share) these policies, you have to follow them.

But you don’t have to be mean and unfair

That being said, these policies are not about being rigid. They’re about clarity, trust, and honoring your time and process. You’re allowed to have a heart and a policy at the same time.

We all know that life gets messy. And you should be kind and generous when things happen to your clients.

But here’s the key: you should be offering to bend your policies from a place of control, not because you feel like you have to.

Policies aren’t about saying no, they’re about showing what yes can look like.

Policies give you a starting place; they are not a rigid rule. They remove the need to make emotional decisions when things get complicated or when life gets messy.

Wrapping it up! 

Remember, you are the expert. And your client is hiring you for the plan and process you’ve developed to get them the results they want.

And part of making sure you deliver the results they want is to clearly explain your policies and the easiest path to the results they want.

But that doesn’t mean you can’t be the kind, generous business owner that you are and occasionally bend the rules when life gets messy.

Could your contract use a little refresh to help you have smoother client relationships? Then make sure to enter your email below to get my free No Surprises Contract Checklist.