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Mentioned in todayâs edition: global advertising, social media as sales tools, and Lensa AI. Plus the #1 most high-stakes aspect of working with clients, the importance of reviewing your ABCs, and why taking notes on meetings is for suckers.
Read time: 3 minutes and 47 seconds
Making the Rounds
- Global advertising growth in 2023 will be slower than previously predicted. Major advertising forecasting firms are in agreement that the ad market will continue to slow in 2023 right along with the economy as a whole. Thankfully those predictions are accompanied by expectations of an eventual stabilization in the market, not a crash.
- Social Media is overhyped as a sales tool says a new report from Forrester Research. After a decade-long expansion of social media advertising are people actually making purchases through their favorite apps? Depends on their age range, says the study, as the 25 and under crowd are completing their checkouts while the older generations tend to leave those carts sitting full.
- Lensa AI claims the top spot in the iOS App Storeâs ulta-competitive âPhoto & Videoâ chart. Have all your friends recently changed profile pictures to artistic renditions of themselves that seem straight out of the worldâs most beautiful comic? Thatâs Lensa AIâs new âmagic avatarâ feature in action. For less than the cost of a blue check you can have their AI robot glam you up too!
Working With Clients
Is Your Onboarding Process Making New Clients Seasick?
Whatâs the most high-stakes aspect of working with clients?
A) The sales process
B) Submitting your work for approval
C) Seeing how your work performs
D) Getting paid
Answer:
None of the above.
The most high-stakes aspect of working with clients is the onboarding process.
Thatâs because the onboarding process sets the tone for the rest of your work together, including what expectations they have, and how they perceive your work.
In fact, according to ZenDesk, 62% of B2B customers buy again after a good customer service experience.
But unfortunately, most freelancers donât have a structured onboarding process in place.
So new clients are stuck feeling like theyâre prepping to cross the Atlantic in a rubber dinghyâŚ
Instead of a $40M yacht that will get them safely and smoothly to their final destination.
If you want to give your clients clarity and confidence that the project is going to be a smashing success, develop a rock-solid onboarding process.
This should include:
- Signing an official agreement
- Filling out any worksheets + background docs you need to start the project
- Getting access to any software tools, ad accounts, shared folders, etc
- Discussion of timeline, budget, project expectations
- A kickoff call to review and make sure everything is in order before you begin
If your onboarding process could do with a little bulking up, share the newsletter with just 3 friends and weâll send you the Digital Marketerâs Template Toolkit â a bundle of worksheets for new clients to fill out so you can extract all the information you need to knock the project out of the park.
Working For Yourself
Donât Forget Your ABCs
If youâre a freelance service providerâŚ
Learning new things is essential to staying competitive:
- New marketing strategies
- New ad platforms
- New skills
- Etc
But donât let shiny objects distract you too muchâŚ
Make sure to review the basics of your profession at least once per year.
Weâre willing to bet youâll be surprised at just how much youâve forgotten.
And while marketing and advertising are two dynamic industries in constant fluxâŚ
The fundamental principles still apply.
So if itâs been a while since you re-read Breakthrough Advertising, The Ultimate Sales Letter, or any of the other classics, carve out some time this month to review them.
Tools We Love
Why Taking Notes on Meetings is For Suckers
Taking notes on a Zoom call can be a major pain.
Listening and typing quickly at the same time is no small featâŚâŚ
Meanwhile, everyone else is forced to listen in as you hammer away on the keys as fast as you can.
And sure, you can record the call..
But if youâve got to go back to review something someone saidâŚ
Youâre often stuck skipping around trying to find the exact moment where it was discussed.
(Or worse, trying to remember what they said if you forgot to record it.)
Thatâs where Fireflies.AI comes in.
Itâs an AI assistant that lets you record, transcribe, and search across all your voice conversations.
Once you sign up for free, all you have to do is invite Fireflies (aka Fred) into your meeting.
Then he takes care of the rest.
After the meeting is finished, youâll have a searchable transcript so you donât have to worry about taking notes.
Try Fireflies.AI for free today.
Gig Alerts
Looking for clients? These freelance jobs were posted on Upwork in the last 24 hours:
- Google Ads campaigns expert
- Facebook Ad specialist needed for tech product launch
- WordPress Landing Pages
- Website Rewriting
- Need a Professional Business Card designed ASAP
- Looking For Talented Freelance Graphic Designer
Featured Newsletter
Most news outlets just report on problems, but the Goodnewsletter only reports on solutions.
Every day, thousands of world-changers wake up to the best good news stories in their email inboxes.
The Goodnewsletter will leave you feeling more hopeful about the state of the world.
Quote of the Day
“The activities you are most afraid of are the activities that can cause a breakthrough in your success. Step into them.”
â Darren Hardy
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