October 27, 2011
5:25 am
Member
Forum Posts: 14
Member Since:
October 17, 2011
What is the total number of clients you will work with at one time?
Do you keep a wait list and if so, how do you structure it?
Have you found that you lost a client who did not wish to wait?
For me, I prefer to work with only 2 or 3 clients at one time as any more than that becomes too stressful. But from time to time, I have worked with as much as 6 clients due to my financial needs. The only times I utilize a wait list is when I am on vacation or once my current client list has reached 6. I am not certain if I have ever lost a client due to wait time, but I know I have gained a few – they told me the designer they were originally going to use had too long of a wait.
October 27, 2011
11:27 pm
Admin
Forum Posts: 23
Member Since:
October 27, 2011
DBSdesigns said:
What is the total number of clients you will work with at one time?
Do you keep a wait list and if so, how do you structure it?
Have you found that you lost a client who did not wish to wait?
For me, I prefer to work with only 2 or 3 clients at one time as any more than that becomes too stressful. But from time to time, I have worked with as much as 6 clients due to my financial needs. The only times I utilize a wait list is when I am on vacation or once my current client list has reached 6. I am not certain if I have ever lost a client due to wait time, but I know I have gained a few – they told me the designer they were originally going to use had too long of a wait.
DBSDesigns:
I’m am learning that I work better (less frazzled when I have 2-3 clients a month as well). The most I had in one month were 5 clients- it was crazy and it left me feeling frazzled and like I was forgetting something along the way.
My sanity is priceless to me so right now I schedule no more than 3 clients per month.
I have 2 little ones at home so I have to make them & my hubby priority over designing when push comes to shove.
I keep a wait list right now on my design site and have about 2 opening for the month of December left. I usually keep track of clients on my wait list in my email folders and I label it for example: “December 2011 Wait List”
-Liz
I have lost potential clients due to having a wait list but that’s ok by me.
October 28, 2011
12:01 am
April
Guest
Ever since I started 3 years ago I’ve always had a wait list. I can’t seem to escape it! Mine usually are 1 month to 4-5 months…depending on demand. I’ve had it up to 6 months before. I don’t like having a long waiting list, and I’m sure that it has turned people away…but the fact that I DO have a waiting list proves that it hasn’t taken a toll on business. It has been a good marketing tool to have a wait list for me, because it shows potential clients that I’m in demand, and therefore they tend to want it more. It’s a weird marketing thing…but when I see that a designer has a waiting list, it means that they’re good enough at what they do to be in demand. Alternatively, I know EXCELLENT designers who can complete a design in a single day…yet hardly get any business. So I’m not sure what happy medium there is – if any.
October 28, 2011
4:55 am
Member
Forum Posts: 14
Member Since:
October 17, 2011
April said:
Ever since I started 3 years ago I’ve always had a wait list. I can’t seem to escape it! Mine usually are 1 month to 4-5 months…depending on demand. I’ve had it up to 6 months before. I don’t like having a long waiting list, and I’m sure that it has turned people away…but the fact that I DO have a waiting list proves that it hasn’t taken a toll on business. It has been a good marketing tool to have a wait list for me, because it shows potential clients that I’m in demand, and therefore they tend to want it more. It’s a weird marketing thing…but when I see that a designer has a waiting list, it means that they’re good enough at what they do to be in demand. Alternatively, I know EXCELLENT designers who can complete a design in a single day…yet hardly get any business. So I’m not sure what happy medium there is – if any.
When I have had my wait list, it has just been on the legal pad where I track my progress with the designs I am working on. If you are posting it on your site, do you include only those who are waiting and not those you are currently working with?
October 30, 2011
11:53 pm
Las Vegas
Member
Forum Posts: 12
Member Since:
October 30, 2011
What I wouldn’t give to have a wait list. I’m getting back into the swing of things after coming out of hiatus, so I guess patience is a virtue. I’d like to know (especially from you, April) how you build buzz around your business so that you can have your pick of clients. Perhaps that’s for another thread…?
Anyway, I can only work with 2-3 clients at a time too. I always wondered why anyone would want to wait more than a month. That would be my threshold if I were the client, but I guess everyone’s different in when they’d like to see their site go live.
Actually, when you think about it, that gives the client plenty of time in advance to write blog articles, get their social networking accounts started, etc. I suppose if you’re ever faced with the possibility of losing a client because they didn’t want to wait, you can frame it to them in those terms. There’s always a TON of stuff that a client should have in place before you start on their design.
Speaking of wait lists, I’ve wondered about how other designers handle overlap…
For example, I have clients who take their sweet time in getting me the info/files that I need to complete their project. By the time they get around to sending me their info, I’ve acquired another client. That’s when things get hectic because now I have more clients than I anticipated within a certain time frame and it’s frustrating.
Plus, how do you prevent people from moving on to another designer while they’re still on your wait list? Is that where obtaining a deposit helps?
Just curious. 
November 2, 2011
6:38 am
Member
Forum Posts: 14
Member Since:
October 17, 2011
I too have the issue of overlap – clients who are slow to making decisions or responding to emails. That is one of the reasons I have not been very good about a wait list. While I am waiting for a reply from a client, I could be working on a different project.
November 3, 2011
3:26 am
April
Guest
Overlap is HUGE for me…it’s the reason I can only take on (ideally) 5-10 clients (MAX) per month. I may be able to complete a design and install it in a few hours, but with tweaks, e-mails back and forth, edits, changes, lags in response time, etc… it all piles up and that’s why designs can end up taking weeks or even months to complete. So that’s why I had to take on much less work.
I usually like to post my waiting list and schedule so that clients know where they are in my line-up, how long they have to wait, and if I’m working on their site this week. I’ve found that this only works if you’re ON schedule, not behind. LOL! Otherwise clients get testy, and I get stressed. So it’s hit and miss. You of course ALWAYS want to be on time, but the important thing is to quickly rebound after a setback. (I’ve had a lot of BIG family emergencies that set me back MONTHS…and it did NOT bode well for me because I just didn’t know how to handle it at the time.) Hindsight is 20/20 right? Ha!
With regard to creating “buzz”… well, it’s a combination of a lot of things. Word of mouth, Google, referring sites, social media, blog posts, etc… Most of my traffic that comes from a SINGLE source is Google. So you need to know your SEO, have people blog about you, have things worth searching for on your site, etc… Next is social media. Be on Facebook, Twitter, and now Pinterest is a big one. But don’t just start an account and let it sit. Build, network, talk, chat, (doesn’t always have to be business related.) Make online friends…get your name out there. Get the word out that you DO blog and web design. Give away free headers. (That’s how I started.) Do a few free designs for big bloggers. Or even small bloggers. The links on their sites, plus the word of mouth, is great for business.
Ok I could go on all day! But hopefully that’s a good start.
November 3, 2011
4:09 pm
Las Vegas
Member
Forum Posts: 12
Member Since:
October 30, 2011
Thanks so much for the detailed reply, April. I truly appreciate it. 
Funny how you mention emails…I think back-and-forth emails are the biggest time-consuming task I face because my price point is low and I get a lot of new small businesses who haven’t a clue where to start. I could print an encyclopedia with all of the emails I’ve written just to get someone up to speed. Lol My goal is to put tutorials & how-to’s on my site to alleviate some of this. Anyone who has ideas, feel free to chime in. Maybe on a different thread, so as not to veer off-topic. 🙂
I also appreciate your advice to maintain active social accounts. I recently attended a panel discussion on social media and the biggest thing I remember somebody saying was that you have to treat your social networking accounts like you would feed your dog. In other words, it’s a daily thing you should build into your routine. Makes total sense.
Love the free header idea. I’ve been spinning my wheels for a while on what to do as a giveaway. Thanks!
November 5, 2011
8:11 pm
Admin
Forum Posts: 23
Member Since:
February 4, 2011
Hey! I love that bit of advice about treating social media like you would feed your dog! LOL! AWESOME! Yeah, we should come up with some ideas on tutorials that designers need for their clients. Like editing your menu bar, editing sidebar items, and other basic stuff that bloggers just need to know so you don’t have to write it out over and over. Or maybe the BDN can have a series of tutorials specifically FOR the clients of designers that you can just link to when they ask? I know I wanted to do that on my site
November 6, 2011
12:10 am
Las Vegas
Member
Forum Posts: 12
Member Since:
October 30, 2011
Ha ha, you read my mind.
I was thinking the other day that instead of writing each step-by-step myself, I could simply ‘curate’ some useful content from around the web and include all of the links in a how-to page or post. My inner debate is whether that is a good move from an SEO standpoint (put everything in one article and link out to other sites vs. write each how-to post myself).
I don’t want to reinvent the wheel either, so a ready resource to pull from might be just what I need.
If I were to post how-to content myself, I’d like to do something similar to what Chris Coyier does with his video tutorials. Long dissertations via email can overwhelm a client.
I’ve even heard of some designers who give their clients a Welcome Package. If I ever got around to doing something similar, I’d include a how-to page within my clients’ welcome packet.
If the BDN can help designers to streamline their workflow, that’s always good. 
November 6, 2011
11:43 pm
Las Vegas
Member
Forum Posts: 12
Member Since:
October 30, 2011
The Blog Designer Network said:
Hey! I love that bit of advice about treating social media like you would feed your dog! LOL! AWESOME! Yeah, we should come up with some ideas on tutorials that designers need for their clients. Like editing your menu bar, editing sidebar items, and other basic stuff that bloggers just need to know so you don’t have to write it out over and over. Or maybe the BDN can have a series of tutorials specifically FOR the clients of designers that you can just link to when they ask? I know I wanted to do that on my site
So I was looking through my notes today and found the actual quote…treat social media like you would treat a puppy. That sounds a lot better than the first version I gave.
November 10, 2011
1:38 am
April
Guest
Have you heard of WP101? It’s a series of videos you can install like a plugin on WordPress and it teaches your clients how to use WP. Pretty neat!
Also, I do think it’s easier to link to articles from around the web, but if you have the time then you should write them. 😀 It’s better for SEO!
April 7, 2012
12:34 pm
Utah
New Member
Forum Posts: 2
Member Since:
October 17, 2011
What is the total number of clients you will work with at one time?
I try to work on 2, but lately I have had a lot of customers who are “now, NoW, NOW!!” types, and only have been able to work on 1. It’s frustrating for everyone (except the 1 customer) involved…
Do you keep a wait list and if so, how do you structure it?
I do keep a wait list, and have a lot that I “closed” the list. People still ask to be put on it. Which is good, but overwhelming at the same time.
Have you found that you lost a client who did not wish to wait?
Yes, I recently had someone decide to find someone else to design for them. Kind of pokes at your ego a little, but I’m trying the best I can to move through the list so I can please everyone, so I just have to remind myself that I am only one person and I am trying my best.
September 13, 2012
8:53 pm
s
Guest
14
Awaiting Moderation
You know how we feel about the color block trend (Polo Ralph Lauren Outlet obsession) so this is a way to infuse it into your wardrobe every night. The prada outlet is choosing which color.I already have Ralph Lauren Outlet in two colors and I wear them at least once a week, so clearly I’m a huge fan! They fit great, they look great and at around $30 a prada shoes, this is a trend you can afford to indulge in!Ever found yourself staring at a gray-carpeted Louis Vuitton UK and thought, “this isn’t for me?” That’s why we decided to let you know about ralph lauren polo available right now on Discount Juicy Couture. With any fragrance or fashion Michael Kors Outlet purchase.We all have important Michael Kors Watches we need to take care of on our Ray Ban: Returning e-mails while out of the office, sending outfit pics to our prada bags, getting directions to the nearest burger joint…. it chronicles and celebrates a fashion movement that was so huge, so revolutionary, and so significant, that coach factory said it “broke all the rules when it came to fashion.You can now end your search for fall boots. Soft, supple leather? Check. coach outlet? Check. Intricate floral detailing?It’s the final day of outfits but we’ve still got show http://coachfactoryusaoutlet.webs.com/ coach factory outlet reviews ready for you to check out.
October 15, 2012
2:14 am
s
Guest
15
Awaiting Moderation
As the market economic development, technology constantly improve,after several years of development, our company has abundant capital, technology and market capacity,so our company develop quite better than others.timberland mens 6-Inch is one of our products,you should believe our brand power,our timberland won’t let you down.
About 85% of the business stores in the market have new products, boosting market deal day by day,so our company under huge pressure,in the development of new products and research excellence for enterprise development are the direction of our efforts,i believe our company will have a good development prospect,Timberland Womens Hiking Boots belong to our company,you can have a try. http://www.timberlandshoes-onsale.org
With time development,Timberland shoes now becoming more and more popular all over the world. Cheapest price,high quality and bigger discount are waitting for you,why not choose cheap timberland boots for yourself?Really worth!timberland boots with wonderful quality and no miss out of fashion. http://www.timberlandshoes-onsale.org
Timberland Mens Outdoor Classic Boat Shoes really suitable for you.This kind of Cheap Timberland boots loved by so many people for its stylish style. Men can enjoy the funny of buying our Timberlands for men which would made you look trendy and fashion.
Timberland Roll-top Boots In Coffee with comfortable style favored by a new generation of young people’s favorite.its special style must can make you wear out your own taste.if you want to know more features about Timberland Roll-top Boots,you can log in our website at any time.
October 15, 2012
2:18 am
s
Guest
16
Awaiting Moderation
In order to expand the market size,increase market coverage,we put into the big numbers of advertising and have the desired effect,so our Cheap Christian Louboutin is gaining in popularity.its red sole can make you become more sexy and beautiful,i believe our Christian Louboutin can make you experience difference feeling,what are hesitating about?
Christian Louboutin Simple Botta Leather Boots hot sale in this season,most of women like wear it to show their sexy body,match with small solid materials suits, fine tailoring, wave point clouds, very elegant, ultra mix sheds is fine. There are many new style Louboutin for your choice,i hope you can buy your satisfied one.i strongly recommend. http://www.louboutinsshoes-dis…..ounted.com
Christian louboutin boots is very famous all over the world.Christian Louboutin Tuba 70 Leather Boots is a simple and fashion style for you .no so high heel make you walk more confortable .Buy Cheap Louboutin Shoes on our discounted christian louboutin shoes store .free shipping all over the world. http://www.louboutinsshoes-dis…..ounted.com
Discount Christian Louboutin Daf 160 Suede Ankle Boots with a fashion appearance,wear it can improve your glamour index.Matching with leopard bat sleeve short jacket, a unique type of watered down version of Leopard’s unique wild is a fashion collocation.
October 15, 2012
2:30 am
s
Guest
17
Awaiting Moderation
When you wear Moncler Messina Women Down Coats,you will know that cheap monclers online store to give to comfortable and good quality clothes. the fur design make the shoes see more much high level.welcome to our online store to check the series styles and colors. low price with high quality and free shipping for you .moncler women coats sale online with big discount ,act quickly to check.
When you put on Moncler Down Jackets Women in your favorite color, you would never forget thatmoment in which people would be watching your jacket over and again. So cheerful.welcome to our online store to check ,so many latest new style for you to choose. also ,big discount are waiting for you . http://www.cheapmonclers-onsale.org
This unique Moncler Jura Down Coat Long Black is of the latest popular style and top quality,Moncler coats women it will give you a warm and pleasant winter.Our online shop cheap sale Moncler Coats with high quality and best service to our new customers.With the winter coming,Moncler Outlet is an essential item in the cold season, Moncler Sauvage Women Long Coats Brown is the new arrival on our discounted moncler Outlet store.The elasticated hem and cuff can keep you warm. A two-way front zip closure on the front is unique.All of these make this kind of Moncler Women Jackets more elegant. http://www.cheapmonclers-onsale.org
Moncler Himalaya Multiple Logo Kids Down Jacket Black hotsale online.make you don’t worry about them at all. Excellent and Cheap Moncler Jackets waiting for you to choose! Don’t miss it!big discount is avaialble on our store,act quickly to check.
October 15, 2012
2:35 am
s
Guest
18
Awaiting Moderation
Discount Louboutin Shoes just like air injected into our blood,we can’t without having it.for the sake of enlargement our brand Louboutin Shoe’s popularity,we spend countless money on advertising,no matter where you go,you all can see our advertising,Louboutin Shoes is your indispensable equipment.besides our onlie store open for 24 hours,welcome to our store at your convenience.
discount Christian Louboutin 4A Python-Suede 160mm Booties become new generation of fashionable young people’s new favourites,it with attractive style,match with small broken flower dress cute little woman with some small broken flower point with dress quite nice. http://www.discountlouboutin-store.com
The Christian Louboutin Lady Gres 160mm Leather Pumps Beige will definitely do well on one’s personality while keeping you fashionable in a refined manner. Yes, the red sole is the symbol of Christian Louboutin, as well as give you confidence for christian louboutin letting you look more gorgeous, melting, and more sexy to gain much attention. Meanwhile, women will all agree with that high heels give people a better looking. http://www.discountlouboutin-store.com
Discount louboutins attract more and more people all over the world. welcome to our online store to check the styles and colors.high heel shoes for a fashion women is needed ,it can add your sexy and charimg .christian louboutin shoes is your first choice of high heel shoes . before may the high price stop you ,but now big discount supply you with all the louboutin shoes, really worth ,pick up your favorite items. http://www.discountlouboutin-store.com
Our company always insisted that customer-oriented service as the fundamental, so that customers buy the rest assured that with the comfortable, truly “value for money.besides we think highly of our company’s image,so our Christian Louboutin Clearance is very popular on the market.besides our products sale throughout the world,which has become a fashion label.