Business Etiquette 101 for Authors and Editors
A little courtesy goes a long way
Image credit: Torsten Dettlaff on Pexels
Most advice on how to present yourself as a professional when interacting digitally seems to focus on the structure of an email: use the proper greetings, keep your tone professional, use good grammar and appropriate punctuation, the usual. But there’s not much out there that addresses the interaction itself and what comes after that initial contact.
It seems to me there’s always been a sort of unwritten code regarding business transactions: if someone has put time and effort into responding to a query or otherwise helping you, it’s polite—good form, even—to thank them for that time and effort, even if you choose to do business elsewhere.
Granted, there are certain exceptions I consider to be reasonable. If you post on a job board seeking a professional to do something for you, and dozens or even hundreds of people respond, then I’m fairly sure the responders don’t expect a personal acknowledgment if they’re not chosen.
General job postings don’t require individual responses
Job postings in one of the professional editing groups I belong to can get an overwhelming number of responses, depending on the job itself, the pay rate, and the type of work involved. Over the years, I’ve responded to dozens of postings that fit my skill set and availability. I’ve gotten a few clients here and there, but only three times have I gotten a response when the OP made the choice to hire another editor. Everyone else simply doesn’t respond. In fact, if my email tracker is to be believed, many of the responses to the posting aren’t opened at all.
In that case, I get it. A writer posts what they need. I can respond to it if I choose. They get hundreds of replies but can’t keep up with the sheer number of responses, so they end up choosing someone from the first wave of responders and ignore the rest. Expecting a reply is unrealistic, in my opinion.
Specific job inquiries always warrant a reply
On my website, I have a contact form. I designed it so I could get as much information as possible in someone’s initial email: genre, word count, type of editing needed, history with other editors, preferred start date/deadline, and more.
If someone contacts me through my website, it is implied that they have looked through my editing packages and have seen the services I provide and what those services will cost. I’m pretty up front about what I charge, and I’ve found that kind of transparency to be helpful in weeding out those whose budgets require a lower rate, or helping newer authors to know what to expect.
In short, if an author contacts me through my website (contact form or domain email), they are reaching out to me, specifically, not broadcasting to a large group on Facebook or a professional association. I will always reply to inquiries that come to my inbox, even if I can tell at a glance that the job isn’t something I’d want, or that wouldn’t fit on my calendar.
To contact any professional through their website and not receive any kind of reply is bad business. And if you are a professional with a website that generates an autoresponse, make sure you follow up within the time frame stated in the autoresponse.
I cannot stress this enough: Even if you don’t have the time to take on another client, or you can see immediately that the job isn’t for you, when someone takes the time to contact YOU, they deserve the courtesy of a reply.
The cost of doing business
Many business owners provide some type of free service for a potential client: a contractor will come to your home to give a free estimate of the cost for your project, a designer may provide a mockup of the types of changes they can make to a room in your home. I and many other editors provide a free sample edit for a potential client.
The sample edit serves two purposes: first, I can get a feel for the quality of the writing so I’m able to give an accurate estimate on the price of the job. Second, I can show the author exactly what I can do to polish their work and get it ready for publication.
Doing a sample edit for someone typically takes about an hour of my time, sometimes more, depending on what needs to be mentioned to the author in the email that gives an overview of the work, the cost, and the timeframe involved. This is an hour of my business day that may yield me a new client, or it may yield me nothing.
It’s the cost of doing business. We take the chance that our efforts will be seen as valuable, that our pricing will fit in someone’s budget, and that the hour of labor will pay off with a long-term client. Giving a little something for free is an investment that most often turns out well.
Ghosting is for Tinder, not business
Ghosting can go both ways, and there’s never a situation where it’s appropriate in business. Unless someone is harassing you and you’re forced to block them—and those are rare cases—it’s proper business etiquette to respond until the business is concluded or the decision to terminate is made.
As mentioned in the above section, I offer a sample edit if someone is considering hiring me. This involves skimming through the MS, doing an edit on a section of it, calculating the cost, and providing recommendations on the next step, whether the MS needs something more or simply planning where it will fit in my calendar and with the client’s time frame. All nonbillable time, all reasonable and expected in the day-to-day.
It’s not frequent, but I’m astounded at how regularly authors don’t respond after this step. Yes, there are probably those who think they’ll “free sample” their way through a complete book edit, one editor at a time (we call it a Frankenedit, and yep, the book will turn out every bit as awful as that sounds), but for the most part, I believe these people are writers who don’t have a good sense of common courtesy.
Every email doesn’t have to be a formal greeting, body, and closing, but a simple “thank you; I’ll be in touch” is really all that’s needed. When someone doesn’t respond after I’ve done a sample for them, I’ll typically wait a week and then contact them to follow up and see if they’ve read through it and/or if they’ve made a decision.
Yes, I assume they’re contacting multiple editors to compare results. I think that’s wise, unless you’re already sure you want a particular editor who’s been recommended to you. And I can clearly see when the recipient has read the email I’ve sent. And that’s what puzzles me the most: when you’ve made the effort to contact a professional, why would you not reply when they’ve responded to your initial inquiry?
Best Practices Tips
If you want to be taken seriously, then prompt, polite email communication is an easy start. It shows professionalism and respect for others and their time, and it also demonstrates your own commitment to the future working relationship.
Keep it simple—”I haven’t made a decision yet, but I’ll let you know when I do” is enough—but keep those lines of communication open.
Budget not big enough? Relay that information immediately. It’s okay to say, “I can’t afford you.” There’s an editor out there who fits your budget, and some are willing to work with you to provide the best work for what you can afford, but you’ll never know until you speak up.
Life happens. If you thought now was the time for this project and suddenly it needs to wait, just say so. “I have to put this off for a few months” is more common than you’d think.
If you’ve chosen another editor, you’re not hurting our feelings. There are enough writers out there to keep us busy, and honestly, if you click well with someone, that’s the ultimate goal. We’re happy for you!
