I haven't had it too often. I think it depends entirely on the client and scope. The start-up/new businesses have been the iffiest, although it did take forever to get the last payment from one client who entirely changed what he wanted over and over.
Kaylee: H-how did you... g-get on...? Early: Strains the mind a bit, don't it? You think you're all alone. Maybe I come down the chimney, Kaylee. Bring presents to the good girls and boys.
'Objects In Space'
Buffista Business Talk: I wanted simple, I wanted in-and-out, I wanted easy money.
A virtual watercooler where Buffistas in business can talk, share, exchange, bemoan, exult and assorted other power verbs associated with all areas of running/starting up a business. For existing or potential Buffista business owners of all types. Spamming is NOT ON. A list of our Buffista owned businesses is on our links page.
Ginger - Jun 05, 2011 6:32:25 am PDT #59 of 1416
"It didn't taste good. It tasted soooo horrible. It tasted like....a vodka martini." - Matilda
Strix - Jun 05, 2011 6:36:25 am PDT #60 of 1416
A dress should be tight enough to show you're a woman but loose enough to flee from zombies. — Ginger
I'm gonna include rewrites in my contracts, although I'm sure I'll have a few learning experiences down the road.
(Can I just say this thread is saving my freaking sanity! LOVES.)
beekaytee - Jun 05, 2011 7:17:21 am PDT #61 of 1416
Compassionately intolerant
Erin, I'm a bit pressed at the mo, so I don't have time to sift down through the text of your rates page, but I wanted to say that I really like the look of the site. And 'wordslinger' awesome.
Two comments: It may just be my browser, and my aging eyes, but the text showed up super small. The grey is great (I use it as my text color as well), but the bulk of the extensive text is blurring together for me.
You could create some breaks by bolding important phrases and/or putting those lovely, big quote marks in a different color. Perhaps the fuschia of the testimonials tag.
This is important...you have two pages that talk about you and your background/abilities, which is critical, of course...but I don't immediately see why _I_ should put those abilities to use. For instance, am a harried coach who freezes when it comes to publishing my ideas? (why, yes, I am!) Could I use your help as a 'back-stop' to ensure accuracy and clarity in my web copy? (I bet I could).
It may be different in the editing/writing world, so others may have better wisdom, but landing on the first page, I would want your potential customers to know exactly why they should be your customers...and sadly, that has little to do with your background.
You could accomplish this with snappy case studies, (I did it for them, I can do it for YOU), top 5 things to look for in a great 'ghost', (you'll look great and they won't even seem me on your page), 5 mistakes non-writers make (play to their pain because we've all made those mistakes and are willing to pay to avoid them in future).
That sort of thing.
Strix - Jun 05, 2011 7:53:02 am PDT #62 of 1416
A dress should be tight enough to show you're a woman but loose enough to flee from zombies. — Ginger
No, that's a good point, and I am still heavily working on those pages. I actually think I am going to transfer my first blog post on there to be the bulk of my home page, with a little tweaking.
This is exactly the type of feedback I need; thanks, bonny!
Vortex - Jun 05, 2011 9:20:02 am PDT #63 of 1416
"Cry havoc and let slip the boobs of war!" -- Miracleman
Ok, I re-worked the services and rates section. Take a gander, if you would, and let me know if what I have now id better, too much, just right. [link]
I love your descriptions of the services, it's very clear and will be helpful to customers who don't know quite what they want.
I notice that the text was a little small as well, but overall, I love it.
beekaytee - Jun 05, 2011 9:44:14 am PDT #64 of 1416
Compassionately intolerant
I actually think I am going to transfer my first blog post on there to be the bulk of my home page
My web person suggested this too. I've done it, and feel that it's good to have the fresh material...but I don't keep it fresh enough!
Must get on an effective schedule somehow.
Strix - Jun 05, 2011 10:43:45 am PDT #65 of 1416
A dress should be tight enough to show you're a woman but loose enough to flee from zombies. — Ginger
Right now, I don't know if I can adjust text size or color of quote marks.
I probably could code it...but I could PROBABLY decode a bomb with a handbook too. That's something that will have to come in a bit, I think. Coding scares me, and I know almost nothing about it so far.
Vortex, thanks! I'm glad it was navigable and understandable.
Bonny, I'm going to try to be blogging at least once a week; the home page I plan on keeping static, but having an active blog not only keeps you more searchable, it pings people who have a RSS feed or are subscribed to your site.
For me, it will also be where I can showcase my writing skills in addition to the portfolio.
javachik - Jun 05, 2011 11:48:34 am PDT #66 of 1416
Our wings are not tired.
Erin, if you're willing to have Paypal keep a small percentage, a pro account with them (which I think is required for a business using Paypal anyway) will allow people to pay you using their credit cards.
Strix - Jun 05, 2011 12:33:39 pm PDT #67 of 1416
A dress should be tight enough to show you're a woman but loose enough to flee from zombies. — Ginger
I will have to look more into that. I thought I might need to do so; well, I will have to get the 2nd bank account set up, then.
amych - Jun 05, 2011 12:38:15 pm PDT #68 of 1416
Now let us crush something soft and watch it fountain blood. That is a girlish thing to want to do, yes?
Not a bad idea anyway - it doesn't even have to be formally a "business account" (which may have extra setup requirements and a different set of fees). Mine is a free one at one of the online banks. But knowing that I have one account, with its own debit card, through which all my biz $$$ goes, and connected to my PayPal is in-freakin'-valuable for my sanity and simplicity.