At some point in you career you will have multiple projects at the same time and, for most of us who want to work full-time as copywriters, having multiple clients is the goal! Many of you may be experiencing this already and, if you’ve had to juggle multiple deadlines, you know it isn’t always easy.
Nicki and Kate are sharing their top tips for managing several projects and clients at the same time. The good news is there is basically zero chance that every client you pitch is going to get back to you at the exact same time and want the work right away. You will, however, likely have projects in various phases of the project process. Here’s what that looks like and how to best manage your schedule.
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A Sneak Peek at the Episode
[0:52] This episode is all about how to manage your time, schedule and expectations when juggling multiple clients. As a freelancer, having multiple clients is the goal and you’re going to want repeat clients to have ongoing projects but how do you do it? Nicki and Kate are here to provide insight to help you juggle multiple clients with ease.
[2:02] A question they get often is if you’re pitching to a lot of clients, what if they all have the same deadlines? Generally, this doesn’t happen but remember that you’re running a business and so it is first come, first serve. More often than not, you can set the timeline when you follow up and explain to those clients when you have the time to start their project. Project deadlines are usually a discussion between you and your client so be honest about your time and availability.
[4:49] As a freelancer, is very easy to overload your schedule and to say yes when you have multiple projects, that is one thing that copywriters of all levels of experience. Kate explains how important creating time management skills are for when you’ve agreed to multiple deadlines so that you are equipped to figure out how and when to work on each project. She also expresses that with time and practice you will get better at it but an important point to remember is that different stages of each project take more or less time so staggering your deadlines is a great way to set yourself up for success.
[6:38] – Kate explains how there is no such thing as multitasking because you’re never simultaneously writing copy for two different clients. Multitasking is managing multiple projects and knowing that and knowing yourself and how you work best, can help you plan your days.
[8:20] Nicki explains how in an office setting, you’re not sitting at the desk working 9-5, you have meetings, getting up to get coffee, getting lunch, etc. As a freelancer, you will burn yourself out if you work 8 hours straight. You don’t have the same quality of creativity at certain points throughout the day, the vast majority of human beings are really creative in one part of the day and really uncreative in another. She explains how to build your week based on your work style and to conserve your strong brain power times for hours when you are at your peak in terms of performance and creativity.
[9:28] Kate discusses the flexibility of having a freelancer’s schedule and why you should never schedule a Friday deadline because you may want your weekends. As a freelancer, you don’t have to think of things as M-F or 9-5. No one will look at things Friday EOD and your weekends are a big part of managing multiple clients and your time. Want more insight into how you can optimize your work schedule? Kate and Nicki provide examples for how they would plan out a week with a few clients and build their schedules.
[14:17] Kate and Nicki discuss balancing deadlines and utilizing your schedule to work for you. Regardless of how you work, they recommend staggering your deadlines with a day between because 24 hours will not make a difference for a client but could impact whether or not you meet the deadline. There will be times where things get a little hectic and you need to adjust your personal schedule to make sure you hit the deadlines. Just remember not to change your deadlines because those are sacred to your professionalism.
[17:21] It’s important to build in that “life happens” time. Nicki and Kate provide advice on how to be proactive for those moments when something unexpected happens and advice on how to manage those situations.
[23:01] Nicki and Kate explain how to say no in a situation where a client seems firm on a deadline when you can’t fit them in. Kate then provides advice on how to say no while maintaining the relationship with that client. Remember, you are your business so if you don’t take care of yourself and you burn out, then you don’t have an income. You need to guard your well-being to be at the top of your game.
[27:00] Kate and Nicki conclude this episode with a final piece of advice about why saying no to a client can help your business. They provide personal anecdotes about why boundaries and managing their schedules made their business better.
Related Links
- The Creative Project Process
- Top Free and Affordable Project Management Tools for Copywriters
- Freelancer Self-Care: 5 Tips for Avoiding Burnout
- 5 Easy Tips for Maximizing Your Time
- The System Copywriters Need to Efficiently Get Work Done
- Improve Your Copywriting Productivity and Professionalism
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About the Build Your Business Podcast
Ready to turn your love of writing into a successful copywriting career?
Join professional copywriters Nicki Krawczyk and Kate Sitarz to get the tips, tools, and training to help you become a copywriter and build a thriving business of your own. Nicki and Kate have 20+ and 10+ years of experience, respectively, writing copy for multi-billion-dollar companies, solopreneurs, and every size business in between.
Whether you want to land an on-staff job, freelance full-time and work from wherever you want, or make extra money with a side hustle, the best place to start learning is right here.
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Ep. 60: Set Your Copywriting Business Up for Success in 2022
Last Updated on September 10, 2023
