Home
>
Writing
>
Freelance Writing: How Many Regular Clients Should You Have?

Freelance Writing: How Many Regular Clients Should You Have?

This is a tough question for every freelance writer. For me, the worst working scenario is when a few weeks go by and all my work comprises one-off jobs for small clients who never become repeat customers.

It takes a lot of time finding and developing each new client. That means lots of unbillable hours.

My best scenario is to have three to five repeat clients I can pretty much depend on for work each month. Plus one or two new clients who may or may not turn into repeat customers.

That way, if you lose one repeat client, you're not in big trouble. You have your other regular clients, plus some more prospects in the 'hopper'.

>> The two danger scenarios

It is dangerous for you when you have too few clients. I found myself in this situation a couple of years ago. I had one client that was worth over $10,000 a month to me. The result was that they took up a lot of my time and I found myself with very little free time to develop new clients. I had other work, but this one client took up a significant proportion of my time.

And yes, one day I got that phone call and, due to a change in management, I ended up losing their business. Suddenly I had a big hole in my income and it took me quite some time to fill it up again.

Should I have declined the one large client? I don't think so. Not for that kind of money, month after month. But I was always aware of the danger I was in.

The other danger scenario is when you have too many small clients, and too few are repeat clients. As I mentioned above, multiple one-time clients eat into your billable hours.

You need to be honest with yourself about the profitability of each job and client. Every client and every job you do results in time spent on administration, accounting, email and phone calls. Not to mention the time and expense involved in finding that client and job in the first place.

>> Aim for the perfect balance

You'll be lucky if you can do it all the time, but if you can work with a handful of good, repeat customers, that's the best position to be in.

If you have too few clients and don't have the time to develop new ones, take that as a danger signal. You could suddenly lose a big chunk of your income.

If you have too many one-time clients, take that as a danger signal too. You may be working long hours, but not billing a high enough proportion of those hours.

Can we always sustain the perfect balance? No, but we can try.

Nick Usborne is a freelance writer, author, speaker and advocate of good writing. You'll find more articles and resources on how to make money as a freelance writer at his freelance writing success site.

monthly home cleaning Buffalo Grove ..

In The News:

Smart home hacking fears overblown? Expert reveals real cybersecurity risks and simple protection tips to keep your connected devices safe from hackers.

MIT develops needle-free glucose monitor using light technology. Revolutionary device could replace painful finger pricks for diabetes management.

The ClickFix campaign disguises malware as legitimate Windows updates, using steganography to hide shellcode in PNG files and bypass security detection systems.

Researchers from Osaka Metropolitan University designed a 21-foot dome that combines aquaculture and hydroponics to create a self-sustaining urban food system.

The Fox News AI Newsletter gives readers the latest AI technology advancements, covering the challenges and opportunities AI presents.

ChatGPT data breach exposes personal info of users through partner Mixpanel. OpenAI confirms names, emails compromised in security incident.

Android rolls out Emergency Live Video for 911 calls, letting dispatchers see real-time scenes during emergencies. Great for holiday travel safety.

Malicious Chrome and Edge extensions collected browsing history, keystrokes and personal data from millions of users before Google and Microsoft removed them.

Google's new Call Reason feature lets Android users mark calls as urgent before dialing, displaying an urgent label to recipients using Phone by Google app.

Medical history made as surgeons successfully restore sight to legally blind patient using world's first 3D printed corneal implant grown from human cells.

Data brokers aggressively collect your holiday shopping data to fuel scams and targeted ads. Learn how to delete your digital profile before 2025 starts.

Scammers are sending fake MetaMask wallet verification emails using official branding to steal crypto information through phishing links and fraudulent domains.

Learn what background permissions, push notifications, security updates, auto-join networks and app refresh mean to better manage your phone's privacy settings.

Criminals test stolen data by applying for deposit accounts in victims' names to prepare bigger attacks. Learn why banks won't share fraud details.

New study of 10,500+ kids reveals early smartphone ownership linked to depression, obesity, and poor sleep by age 12. Earlier phones mean higher risks.

A phone phishing attack compromised Harvard's alumni and donor database, marking the second security incident at the university in recent months.

AutoFlight's zero-carbon floating vertiport uses solar power to charge eVTOL aircraft while supporting emergency response, tourism, and marine energy maintenance.

A new phone return scam targets recent buyers with fake carrier calls. Learn how criminals steal devices and steps to protect yourself from this fraud.

New Anthropic research reveals how AI reward hacking leads to dangerous behaviors, including models giving harmful advice like drinking bleach to users seeking help.

The Fox News AI Newsletter gives readers the latest AI technology advancements, covering the challenges and opportunities AI presents.

Holiday email scams, including non-delivery fraud and gift card schemes, spike in November and December, costing victims hundreds of millions, the FBI says.

Holiday visits offer the perfect opportunity to help older parents with technology updates, scam protection and basic troubleshooting skills for safer digital experiences.

Swiss scientists create grain-sized robot that surgeons control with magnets to deliver medicine precisely through blood vessels in medical breakthrough.

Researchers exploited WhatsApp's API vulnerability to scrape 3.5 billion phone numbers. Learn how this massive data breach happened and protect yourself.

Travel companies share passenger data with third parties during holidays, but travelers can protect themselves by removing data from broker sites and using aliases.