Freelance Heroes

Aug 02, 2012

Hi, and welcome to the "Freelance Heroes" thread, a place where Articulate Freelancers help each other. Got a question about freelancing? Or perhaps you have an e-learning asset that may be valuable to those "doin' their own thing"? This is the place to share--to give.

To start things off, I'd like to share a short list of questions that help me figure out what kind of training a potential client wants. (So often they have no idea what they want.) The list is far from exhaustive, but may be of some help. Looking forward to meeting you. --Daniel  

1293 Replies
Daniel Brigham

Sheila Cole-Bulthuis said:

I’m hoping some of my fellow freelancers might have someadvice, words of wisdom, or maybe just offers of moral support (ha ha) on something I’vebeen struggling with.

 

I have a client who is fairly new.  Overall, great client, and my first project withthem was a fairly large e-learning course. There were some bumps along the way, but I chalked those up to theprocess/expectations kinks you have to work out with a new client.  But at some point, it got beyond that and I started spending alot of time on things that turned out to be unnecessary. 

 

Let me give two examples:  (1) In one review, the client tells me thegrey used in the course isn’t consistent, different greys are used in differentplaces.  I’m pretty sure I was consistent,but I double check anyway.  I go throughall 100 or so slides, and check the color every time grey is used.  They’re all the exact same shade.  (2)  Inthe final review, the client tells me there is a technical glitch. (I'm not going into details in order to keep things simple here.)  I asked, "When you're reviewing, are you doing XYZ , which would definitely result in that behavior?"  Client says no, i start troubleshooting.  After LOTS of troubleshooting, it turnsout that he was doing exactly what I thought he was doing. 

 

 

There were several other instances like that.  The course is now done, but I’m just not surehow to handle this kind of thing in the future.  Obviously, I want to fix any issues a course may have, but I’vebeen spending time “fixing” things that it turns out aren’t broken.  We’re about to begin another project togetherand I want to avoid this issue, but I’m not sure how to talk to her about it…  On a personal level I really like her andenjoy working with her, and this could be a good, ongoing client, so I want tobring it up in as respectful a way as possible.

 

Has anyone else run into this?  Any ideas????


Hi, Sheila: Different variations of gray? I can imagine your eyes rolling when you first heard that one. Sounds almost worthy of a spoof.

There's something odd about your client: saying she's not doing what she is, etc. I doubt she is purposefully lying, but there's something odd.

Might you consider creating a bucket of hours for "oddball requests that will probably come up" for the next project? Clients don't usually change their behavior much, as you well know. That's the way I would probably handle it, saying something like "hey, I totally dig working with you, but as you know I've add to spend a lot of time researching issues that turned out to be on your end, so I just wanted to make sure we have hours for that, if we run into that problem." --Daniel

Daniel Brigham

Mario Vittone said:

Where can I go to get quotes for online course development using Storyline?  I need online course development help.


Mario: This is a good place to post, as well as on the "Building Better Courses" thread, but if you've got Steve Flowers in your corner, I'd say you a well covered. Thanks for the post. --Daniel

Bruce Graham

@Sheila...

Have a kick-off meeting, face-to-face.

Say there are some things you FEEL need to be addressed - feelings are personal and difficult to counter in defence.

Start with the things that worked well, however then explain to them that certain things they have done have reduced your effectiveness. Stick to the facts on your side. I have found that it is very doable to change client behaviour, especially if they are new to creating eLearning with an ID.

You can be respectful, but still professionally disagree with them - that's called negotiation, and if it all goes well you will come out stronger, with them as a stronger advocate.

Bruce

Daniel Brigham

Tommy Casey said:

Hi Daniel,

Im looking for someone to help me put 10 modules of a project together in Storyline. Basically, to help putting together interactions and quizzes using our graphics and video content. I have a 3 week timeframe. I am working from power points as guides.

anyone interested.

regards

Tommy

Welcome to "Freelance Heroes," Tommy, and welcome. I imagine you'll get a few Storyline pros PMing you about the opportunity. --Daniel

Sheila Bulthuis

Daniel and Bruce,

Thanks for the input and advice.  I think you’re both right.  I need to up the pricing on this next project and explain why, and I can do that in the context of the “how did things go on the last project, what are the expectations for this project” conversation Bruce suggests.  I do tend to agree with Daniel that clients (and the rest of us!) generally don’t change their core behaviors, and if that’s how she’s most comfortable working, that’s cool – I just need to price for it.  But if she does think she can work differently, then I could price accordingly – set the fixed fee based on a “normal” project, but build into the contract automatically-charged hourly fees for anything that’s out of scope, including requests for unwarranted troubleshooting/rework.

Thanks again, guys!

Daniel Brigham

I might spin it using language like, "I just want to make sure you are completely comfortable with the process going forward." And then explain how her being completely comfortable is going to cost more money, at least potentially.

Sheila, you were one of the first elearning pros to bring up to me the importance of price ranges, and I think that's a capital idea in this sitch.

Pano K.

National PTA is currently looking for a short term Articulate Storyline contractor to work on up to 7 courses (each about 30 min. in length). The course content has been written and the branding, layout, and template design has been established. The contractor will use established tools to build out the courses and include supporting resources (which will be provided). Suitable candidates should have a strong background in e-learning design with extensive experience developing training content using Storyline (experience with Adobe Captivate is a plus but not required). Voice-over experience is also preferred. To be considered for position, candidate must be located in DC Metro area and should provide cover letter, resume, 3 references, and links to sample course(s).

Please send a Private Message with the requested information if you are interested. Thank you.

Daniel Brigham

Pano Kallis said:

National PTA is currently looking for a short term Articulate Storyline contractor to work on up to 7 courses (each about 30 min. in length). The course content has been written and the branding, layout, and template design has been established. The contractor will use established tools to build out the courses and include supporting resources (which will be provided). Suitable candidates should have a strong background in e-learning design with extensive experience developing training content using Storyline (experience with Adobe Captivate is a plus but not required). Voice-over experience is also preferred.  Candidate must be located in DC Metro area and should provide cover letter, resume, 3 references, and links to course(s).

Please send a Private Message with the requested information if you are interested. Thank you.

Pano: Thank you for your post to Freelance Heroes. Because of the geographic requirement, you might also consider posting in the "building better courses" thread as well. You are sure to get some quality replies. --Daniel
Daniel Brigham

Belen Casado said:

I wonder if everything is stagnated in other countries, due to summer. Is this happening in your country?

I've been working on a few projects during August, but I expected more activity at the start of September. Even the clients that have unfinished projects with me are not asking for anything.

Hi, Belen: It's pretty natural for things to be slowish in August, at least in the US. Gives us freelancers opportunity to work on our brand, write blogs, practice our craft, etc., etc. --Daniel
Pano K.

Daniel Brigham said:

Pano Kallis said:

National PTA is currently looking for a short term Articulate Storyline contractor to work on up to 7 courses (each about 30 min. in length). The course content has been written and the branding, layout, and template design has been established. The contractor will use established tools to build out the courses and include supporting resources (which will be provided). Suitable candidates should have a strong background in e-learning design with extensive experience developing training content using Storyline (experience with Adobe Captivate is a plus but not required). Voice-over experience is also preferred. To be considered for position, candidate must be located in DC Metro area and should provide cover letter, resume, 3 references, and links to sample course(s).

Please send a Private Message with the requested information if you are interested. Thank you.


Pano: Thank you for your post to Freelance Heroes. Because of the geographic requirement, you might also consider posting in the "building better courses" thread as well. You are sure to get some quality replies. --Daniel


Ok, will do. Thanks for the tip Daniel!

Holly MacDonald

Belen, I'd agree with Daniel for the most part, although I found this year that summer was just as busy as the rest of the year (in Canada) and my September frenzy started a little bit earlier than in past years. I actually found that my clients were working during their vacations, and had many calls where they were sitting by the lake or at their vacation destination. 

My advice - reach out to them now rather than waiting. If there is an economic squeeze on the horizon, you don't want to end up the victim. I find "back to school" is a perfect excuse to send an email to existing clients asking how their summer was and if they are gearing up for fall. I'll also ask about their 4th Quarter plans. Be proactive.

Holly

Sheila Bulthuis

Holly MacDonald said:

My advice - reach out to them now rather than waiting. If there is an economic squeeze on the horizon, you don't want to end up the victim. I find "back to school" is a perfect excuse to send an email to existing clients asking how their summer was and if they are gearing up for fall. I'll also ask about their 4th Quarter plans. Be proactive.

I totally agree.  I don't usually get slow in the summer, but the first quarter of the calendar year is often slower than the rest of the year, so I often do a "happy new year, what are your plans in the new year, what can we get a jump start on" type of email. 

On the other hand, a lot of my clients have a fiscal year that starts in January, and sometimes budgets for the new year don't get approved until around Feb, so they're reluctant to spend money before then; with them, I usually talk to them in September (right around this time of year!)  about "what can we get done before the end of the year in order to maximize this year's budget?" 

Holly MacDonald

Great point Sheila!

I also find with clients who are Jan - Dec fiscals, they are planning in the fall for what they will develop. For example, one global client called me in late August asking "how much should we put in the budget for next year" (by the way, that's the kind of client you want). If you can help them with their budget planning at this stage, that's a great place to be for them to know what it will take to build a solution (rather than the "I have $2500, you can build a suite of courses for that, right?" discussion) and for you to have a good shot at developing the solution for them. Our local government's budget is April - March, so also keep in mind their business cycle in terms of timing.

Hope that helps.

Holly

Sheila Bulthuis

Help!  Is anyone here fairly experienced in Flash development and open for some work this week and next?  I'll spare you all the long, convoluted story, but the bottom line is that due to a mis-communication with a client, I now need some work done in Flash, and quickly.  I'm reaching out to my usual network, but thought I'd try here as well, since there are so many talented folks here.  Please PM me if you're available.... 

Thanks!!

Belen Casado

Thank you very much @Daniel, @Holly and @Sheila.

It's true that in this period I've done some R&D, wrote some posts in different sites and built new courses to gain expertise, but still, now it's time to work and have a payment for it!

I agree with Holly, I think I should be more proactive at this point. I was waiting for the clients to set down after a month out of the office, but it's true that it'd be better for me to know their plans and to move in case their plans don't include new projects or finishing the ones that are open.

In Spain the usual billing period is Jan-Dec, so that's why I thought it's weird that no one was trying to spend the budget before Dec. Maybe they've already done so? 

It's very interesting to collaborate with them helping with their budget planning, this gives them a very good image of us not only as IDs, but as stakeholders.

So... now I'll send a few emails. 

Thanks again for your advice!

Belen

Bruce Graham

It is good to engage with them as business partners rather than "people who deliver courses...", so anything like this is worth doing. I have just sent out my "Summer Services Update" email to all clients, showing them some new ideas and developments that they might like to include in courses.

My Summer has been the same as ever - which is good I suppose

Bruce

Daniel Brigham

Thanks, Holly, Sheila, and Bruce, for the reminder to be proactive with our clients during the slow time. A couple of lines in the above conversation stood out to me:

  • "what can we get done before the end of the year in order to maximize this year's budget?" 
  • "how much should we put in the budget for next year?"

That's being proactive.

Belen Casado

I've come back to say: you were so right!!

Thank you very much for your advice. My sending of a "back to office" (we say "back to school" in Spain) message had all positive results: one client said that one project was validated and I could invoice it, one client said that next week they'll be sending some videos to add to a course that was stagnated, one client said that she had checked my last invoice to be paid sooner, and that she'll count on me in the near future...

New prospects gave affirmative answers to my proposals so I'm delivering more courses.

This is it, could it be better?

Thanks again!

Belen

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