We Get (Client) Feedback About Following Instructions

I received the following feedback from an employer who posted a job ad on Freelance Writing Gigs.

I know we’ve talked about how important it is to follow the instructions in an ad and these comments underscore that fact:

I placed ads on several sites (ie, Craigslist and Fresho). The responses that came from FreelanceWritingGigs were the most thorough and professional in that most answered the questions I asked in the ad, which gave me the info I needed to make a decision quickly — and with confidence.

A lot of times when employers place an ad, many respondents will not send you what you need (ie, answer questions that you ask in the ad). This is the way I sort respondents — I immediately put the ones who don’t respond to my query properly in a holding box.

I read through the ones that do answer my questions and — if they’re qualified — I contact them. What this means is that I hardly ever have to go back through the other pile.

Just a little info you might want to pass on to gig seekers.

Information you need to know – straight from the client’s mouth.

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david

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Comments

5 responses
  1. Scribette Avatar
    Scribette

    Does anyone else find that its usually the lowest paying gigs that expect the most from writers? (not saying that this employer is a low paying one – just that it seems to be a general trend)

    Reply
  2. Andrea Avatar
    Andrea

    It seems like this is just common sense, but it’s great to have the feedback. I think this is true for just about anyone looking for anything–if they didn’t want the things, they wouldn’t ask for them. If I was posting for something and I got tons of responses, I certainly wouldn’t bother following up with anyone who didn’t include what I originally requested.

    Reply
  3. Jodee Avatar
    Jodee

    @ Scribette: I haven’t noticed that, actually. I would be curious to find out what other people’s experience is like.

    @ Andrea: It does seem like common sense, but it keeps coming up as an issue with people doing the hiring. If you follow instructions in your application, then it’s an indication that you can follow instructions if the employer decides to hire you – and that will make you a more attractive candidate.

    Reply
  4. Scribette Avatar
    Scribette

    Jodee – that has been my experience in many cases and I believe that I have read about other people encountering the same problem.

    With respect to following instructions, I tend to do always do that unless they want original samples and so on. I unfortunately just do not have the time to write an original sample.

    Reply
  5. Rupa Avatar
    Rupa

    I had one recent experience where the ad asked for several details to be included in the application, and the project turned out to be very low paying.
    In general I find that clients who ask for specifics are easier to work with as they know what they want and have reasonable and clear expectations from the writer.
    My way of following instructions to a T when there are many of them is simply to paste the entire ad into my email draft and then craft my application around the questions. This way I am always sure I have answered all of the client’s questions.

    Reply

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