No Surprises.
What You Won't Expect from Me
Mismanaged Budgets
I'm your best budget steward. With hourly and project-based budget trackers that I manage and share with you monthly (or weekly, for shorter-term projects), I watch every dollar carefully.
These budgets are guided by a specific scope of work (SOW) that includes an estimated hourly budget multiplied by my hourly fee per project, or a flat fee structure if that's what we agree to.
SOWs are amendable when projects expand (and they should - it's a sign that we're doing great work together!). But, we'll agree to this amended budget amount before the work begins.
On the flip side, if I see that our original budget is in jeopardy of being expended - or spent at a faster rate than we envisioned - I'll flag it for you in real-time before putting billable time towards a new project until I have your written approval.
There are so many other elements that come into play that could require an increase in budget, which we'll discuss together as I anticipate them and as needs change, including:
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More internal reviews needed
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Change in the original "ask" requiring revisions to our strategy
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The addition of new tasks not originally scoped out in our first SOW
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Requests from other team members that go beyond our SOW
Poor Expectation Setting and Dishonesty
I won't tell you that I have the "utmost capability" to do something that I'm either not trained or qualified for.
What I will do is propose a solution that helps you get what you need - whether it's a pivot in our strategy, or a referral to a highly-qualified freelance specialist in my network.
I promise to always be honest with you in a respectful way that appreciates your decades upon decades off engagement in the industry you live and breathe in. Trust that if I counsel against a certain strategy, there is experience and rationale behind it.
I'll be drawing on trends in the digital/social media space, election cycle, drug pricing and Capitol Hill conversations, major news trends and more. What we initially planned, or envisioned, may need to change as the times change. That's also how I define a true partnership.
Infrequent and Irregular Communication that Makes you Nervous or Unsure
You tell me your preferred communication style. Does it comprise one or a mix of the following?
Weekly status update calls (one hour for complex projects where your detailed feedback may be needed on projects; thirty minutes to make the most effective use of your time).
Project status grids updated on a weekly, biweekly or as-demanded basis: These organize every single moving part on our plates. Once you see these (developed at the beginning of our work together), I find that we both feel even more at ease knowing our days are backed by a well-structured plan.
Once we're aligned on how and when you want to be updated on the project status, we'll agree to deadlines and I'll meet or exceed them. Every time.
Unless of course, the entire Internet grid gets wiped out, a tsunami takes out New York City or the world ends. Thankfully, I happen to always have a Plan B.
