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It’s an incredible feeling to land a new writing client! You found someone who recognizes the value of your service, and who wants you to use your wordsmithing skills to create content.

While there are some fabulous writing clients out there, there are also some bad ones.

Those are the clients you don’t want to hang onto. They’ll cause more grief than they’re worth in the long run.

Here are five red flags to watch for as you work with a new client. They’ll help you decide if it’s a client worth keeping, or one you should walk away from.

Unsure of Purpose

Sometimes your new client may not know exactly what they want. That’s okay! You can use their input and guide them into a content plan.

But, sometimes you come across clients who have no idea:

• What type of content they’re looking for
• Who their ideal audience is
• What they hope to accomplish with content

These clients need to spend a bit more time figuring out the heart of their business before buying content. They might turn out to be GREAT clients at some point down the road, but they aren’t there yet.

Unspoken Vision

Another red flag is when clients aren’t exactly sure how to communicate what they’re looking for. They know what they want, but they don’t do a good job communicating their desires to you.

Often these clients have the attitude of I’ll know what I want when I see it.

Unfortunately for you, what you write won’t line up with the idea in their head. You may end up in a never-ending spiral of revisions because of this unspoken vision.

Uncommunicative

Crickets aren’t what you want to hear from your new client. Of course, sometimes emergencies come up and clients are legitimately unable to communicate for a few days. But if they’re constantly unresponsive to your requests for information, that’s a definite problem.

Communication between client and freelancer is essential. After a few attempts at following up, you’ll have to decide if it’s worth your time and energy to continue.

Boundary Stretching

Healthy boundaries are essential for freelancers. You’ve got to set your boundaries, and then stick to them.

Politely let your clients know these boundaries up front with a welcome letter. Yours might include:

• Your work hours
• How to get in touch with you
• The typical timeline for your draft
• How many rounds of edits are included
• Payment details and expectations

Most clients understand your need for boundaries. But some constantly push to see how far you’ll stretch.

They call constantly. Or expect you to email them back within minutes, no matter what time it is.

These clients are a headache! You need to stand firm, because if you don’t respect your boundaries, your clients won’t either.

Payment Dodging

Sometimes, you won’t realize a client is a bad one until it comes time to collect payment. Then it’s one excuse after another.

That’s why it’s so important to have a contract in place for your writing. Have the details in writing before you begin.

Detailed payment terms are an essential part of this contract. You want to make sure you’re both on the same page.

Also, consider adding a late fee clause to future contracts to ensure there’s some deterrent to keep your client from paying too late.

What to Do with Problematic Writing Clients

Did you recognize any red flags in some of your current clients? If so, you’ve got to decide what to do next.

Sometimes, the money you’re receiving is worth the headache. It may be worth your time to keep training these clients and dealing with whatever problems arise.

On the other hand, you may decide to take your time and energy and throw it wholeheartedly into finding better clients. Your income will go down temporarily while you search, but that’s a price many freelancers are willing to pay.

Only you can decide what route is best for you, so analyze your options and go from there.