Anyone that sees the title, if you're an African, you'd opt in for the international client 😂 I'm going to speak about the two clients in this post, follow me as I proceed.
Local clients are the clients close to you, if you do a good job, even if the pay is small😂 at least, you're still going to get referred to many people by the client.
I am a developer, just in case I'm going off at some point😂 you know, being a developer is different from being a fashion designer, and mind you, I'm not saying being a developer is better than being a fashion designer... But we both have different experiences when it comes to rendering our services to clients.
Local clients will stress you, frustrate you but at the long run, if and only if you deliver a good job, you get referred to many, even though the stress will double but at least, your pay is constant.
I got an opportunity earlier this year, I was to build a website for a tech company, this company sells home appliances, gadgets and more. I thought the CEO was well informed till I told him we would buy domain and hosting, his reply mussed me, he said "really?" I was wowed😂 and that was the moment I knew I was in for a draining conversation.
I gave him details about the project and explained why we needed the domain and hosting for the website. I was so humble, he's paying, even if it's a token, I'll accord him the same respect as a high paying client paying. After all my explanations, he was happy and satisfied, told me to give my price.
After I gave him all the prices with my own pay, he took a deep breath😂😂 inside me, I was like "God please, even this amount is small😭😭" I only wanted to help his business, he has a bright foresight, I loved his idea and plans for his business because we spoke at length.
You know Africans😂😂, he found his way around to reduce the price, I concurred. He clearly told me he needed a few contents to be uploaded but after customizing the website, I asked for his contents, he gave me 3 different brands, each brand had over 100 contents to upload. I placed a call immediately, he only gave me the list of contents to upload and I have to source for the images myself😂 , I said "sir, this was not what we discussed", he replied "I have paid 70% of the fee, find a way to get the job done" I was shocked, it was my first local job.
I had no choice, I did all, satisfied him, he even complained, I didn't mind, I just wanted to finish the job😂😂, it was after I concluded the job he came to apologize, he said he didn't know it was a lot of work. I let him know that even the pay isn't up to half of what I charge, he was surprised.
Now to international clients, these people don't want stress, especially the whites, they'd appreciate if you told them earlier that you can't get the job than waste their time😂, I have worked with some, very close to 20 now, it's quite easy to work with them, just that they want full details about how the project would run and they also have the exact way they want the job to run. If you're smart enough to explain the stress the job will give you, they will even pay for the stress, not all international clients are cool headed though😂
With the few that I have had the opportunity to work with, I noticed that if the job is really needed, they can pay more than enough to get the job done, you may have different experience, but from my own experience, this is what I have noticed, so far you've given them a guarantee that what they need, you'll deliver, they'll pay you to your satisfaction.
They love zoom meetings 😂😂 if you're in the tech space, countless meetings, and another thing I noticed is, if you've gotten close to the point that the client calls you "my friend" you've won his trust.
Going forward, both international and local clients are needed, imagine you're one sided and the side you've chosen isn't yielding enough? You'll definitely switch to the other. Working is not meant to be easy, the best you can do is to adapt😂 grow a thick skin, it's a lot☺️