How to NOT Read a Client’s Mind
Getting to know my client’s sensibilities is possibly one of the most important aspects of my business. And its not just for some lofty reason, no not at all. Its practical, to the core. When I genuinely know the personality of my client, I can translate his or her vision that much better.
Here’s an example: a client comes to me and wants a new website but doesn’t have a clue what she likes or wants. “You choose. I don’t know anything about websites.” So I put my mind-reading cap on and my designer and I come up with a mock-up which we send to the client.
“Oh no, not that! That’s not what I want. I hate [fill in the blank] and prefer the color [fill in the blank]. And that font looks too small!
Suddenly they know exactly what they want. Unfortunately, a lot of time, energy (and money) has been wasted. The best way to get around this is during an initial interview where I asked dozens of annoying questions, so I can get a true-to-life idea of the business owner’s tastes before we embark on anything. I want their online presence to feel like them, not like me guessing at who they are.
Below, not me.