The biggest hurdle I have when getting distance jobs is proving my reliability and accountability. I believe that most people feel uncomfortable or worried when hiring someone without meeting that person face to face. How do we, as distance workers, address their concerns and project a feeling of accountability and reliability?

To balance out a client’s fears I do the following:

• In my initial communications with a potential client, I explain the entire design process and payment stages.
• I give them my cell number.
• After the work has started I try to be as responsive as possible and make sure to hit my deadlines.
• Provide References

Beyond those bullet points, I think its important to develop a relationship with the client. Keeping everything professional 24-7 is boring, and by taking that relationship just a tiny step further you can increase trust.

My roommate is the client for a marketing company in downtown Chicago. Members of that company have made it a point to get to know him personally, even to the point of meeting him for non-work-related dinner and drinks. After dinner and drinks, their relationship has become more comfortable and trustworthy in a professional setting.

Client Accountability

The need for accountability and reliability goes both ways. How can a designer be sure that his client is going to provide content on time, make payments, etc?

Money is the greatest motivator here, by taking a percentage of the payment up front, and at specific stages of the project you are ensuring that you don’t get screwed and they payment stages present nice milestones for the project.

Getting Paid for Distance Design Work

In general it takes a long time to get paid. If you’re freelancing don’t expect to be getting checks bi-weekly or even on a monthly basis. Two methods that I’ve used to get paid

• Checks

  You have to wait for checks to get mailed and then you have to wait for them to clear. This can be a problem if you’re getting paid in stages and can delay the project while you wait to receive the check and then for it to clear.

• Paypal

  In college I used paypal once a month to receive money from my parents and had no problems. Paypal took out a small percentage of the payment, but I was willing to pay that in order for the convenience. However, recently my accounts have been hacked and I lost some money, basically ending my relationship with paypal for good.

  This is a fantastic article about one designers paypal experiences

Working long distance isn’t all that difficult as long as you’re prepared to deal with the special issue and needs it requires.

In case you missed it, Click here for part 1