Why Do I Say “No” to Some Content Marketing Projects?

Over the past few years, I’ve been in the privileged position of being able to pick and choose my content marketing projects—at least to some extent. It’s been a nice progression from when I first launched my business, when I said “yes” to almost any project that came my way.

So how do I decide which projects to take on and which to decline? In this blog post, I describe the criteria I use to decide. And, not incidentally, these criteria work not only to my benefit but also to the benefit of my clients and prospects—even those I decline.

1. Deadlines Are Too Tight

I’m fortunate to have a solid book of ongoing client projects. And whenever I take on a new project, I always ask myself whether I can reasonably meet the demands of this new project without jeopardizing my commitments to existing clients.

And if I can’t, I’ll have to decline.

It takes time to develop solid working relationships. So I deeply value the clients I have. And I recognize that there’s nothing more frustrating for clients than to hand over their hard earned cash for services—only to feel that their project has been put on the backburner and the honeymoon period is over.

I never want my clients to feel that way. So I pick and choose new projects accordingly.

2. The Content Requires Highly Technical Knowledge

With proper research and preparation, I feel I can write on pretty much any topic. And, in fact, I have written on a broad range of subjects in a wide variety of industries.

Law? Yes. Finance? Yes. Software, property management, online advertising and construction? Yes, yes, yes and yes.

But sometimes a project comes across my desk that requires significant technical expertise in an unfamiliar field. And I realize it will take me a ton of time to get up to speed.

Fortunately, this doesn’t happen often. Most of the content I write on behalf of clients is directed a consumers or (more often) business decision makers, not techies.

But when a project does look highly technical, I’ll refer the prospect to a colleague who’s better versed in the subject matter than I am. It will take them less time to complete the project and, frankly, the end result will probably be better.

3. The Client Requires More Guidance Than I Can Provide

Projects come to me at different stages of development. Some clients have done their analysis, know exactly what they want and are bringing me in to write. And that works just fine.

Others are in the “we need to do something, but we’re not sure what” stage. And that’s fine too. But again, if I feel that the “figuring it out stage” is going to take a level of expertise I don’t have or if they’re going to need more support than I can reasonably give, then I’ll refer them to another marketer who’s a better fit.

4. We’re Unable to Agree on Pricing

This may seem obvious. I try to provide fair and reasonable pricing to all my clients. But truthfully, if the prospect balks at my initial pitch and wants to embark on heavy negotiating, then we’re probably not a good fit. After all, for me, accepting a cut-rate project usually means foregoing a higher rate project.

5. Gut Feel

Gut feel is harder to quantify but is still very much a factor. If I spend several nights worrying about a project or have a consistent sinking in my stomach every time I think about it, I’ll usually decline it.

I have no doubt that my gut has saved me (and some prospective clients) weeks of agony trying to make something work that just isn’t a good fit.

So if we talk about your project, and I ultimately decline it, please know it’s nothing personal. It’s simply part of my strategy of making sure I only take on clients where I know I can deliver the highest quality of work. And I will certainly do what I can to help you find someone who will be able to give you what you need.

And if, after we talk, you ultimately decide to go in a different direction, I will accept that too—with no hard feelings. And wish you only success with your business.