Hot take: Most freelancers overthink the welcome email

I sent out a 3 sentence welcome email last week to a new client after they pushed my deadline up 4 days and they replied 'finally someone who gets it' with zero confusion. Why do people send paragraphs of fine print that just scare clients before the work even starts?

3 comments

3 Comments

zaranelson8d ago

A buddy of mine runs a small design business and used to send these massive welcome packets with terms, disclaimers, and a full page on revision policies. Last month he was swamped and accidentally sent a new client just a two line email that said "Hey, got your info, start date is Tuesday, here's my number." The client wrote back within an hour saying it was the most straightforward experience they'd had with a freelancer all year. He told me he felt stupid for wasting years on overexplaining stuff nobody reads anyway. Now he keeps everything short and says his clients actually seem less anxious about the work. It's wild how much of that welcome email stuff is just for our own peace of mind, not theirs.

owens.laura8d ago

Look, I get the appeal of going short @zaranelson, but I'm not convinced it's that deep. Your buddy got lucky with one client who happened to appreciate brevity, but that doesn't mean every client is like that. Some people actually like having things spelled out so they don't have to ask a million follow up questions later. A short email works great until the client decides your two line agreement doesn't cover what they thought it did. The real problem is probably that most people don't tailor their communication to the client in front of them right now. One size fits all paperwork is dumb, but so is one line fits all.

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rivera.hannah8d ago

Short emails work great when everything goes smoothly, but skipping the fine print is how you end up with a client who thinks your two included revisions means they can ask for twenty. A little structure upfront saves headaches later, even if nobody throws you a party for it.