I’ve been fortunate enough thus far in my career not to have experienced a serious trust-issue with a client. (Full disclosure: but there have been some trying times). When I was just starting out in my design career (oh so many many years ago) I did try to assert my still-minty-fresh 4-year degree. It felt like the proverbial uphill battle; I was trying to prove myself and doubtless made clients feel like I was being a pushy, bossy up-start know-it-all.

Fortunately I had mentors and co-workers that offered excellent advice and demonstrated professional client relations in every aspect of their work. As a result, I quickly learned that while excellent work is important, so are the relationships that I’d form with clients. The key lesson (that, fortunately I learned in a pain-free way) was that establishing a trust-based working relationship was critical. If a client didn’t trust me, then it didn’t matter if I was a design genius (which I’m not, but I do like to think of myself as being solid) because I’d be just another bozo.

This article on HOW Design is a fantastic (and short) collection of tips on creating better collaborative and trust-based working relationships with clients. The best part is that these tips serve not just designers, but also clients. And they can apply to almost any industry!

http://www.howdesign.com/design-business/empathic-designer/

Leave a comment and share some of your tips or experiences, no matter which side of the table you’re on.