Latest / Freelance Careers with Fexingo: Independent Work, Consulting, and Self-Employment / Freelancers Use a One-Page Client Decision Memo
Transcript
- Lucas: Most freelancers send a proposal that is way too long. They write three pages of methodology, five case studies, a timeline, a pricing table — and the client reads the first paragraph, skims the price, and says 'let me think about it'. Luna: And then 'thinking about it' becomes two weeks of silence. Lucas: Exactly. So there is a better format. It's called a decision memo — one page, structured to help a client say yes or no in under three minutes. And it works for raising rates too, not just landing new work. Luna: I've seen decision memos in strategy consulting and in government. But for a solo freelancer? Doesn't that feel a little formal? Lucas: It does at first. But the formality is the point. It signals that you respect their time and that you've done the thinking for them. Let me walk through the template I used earlier this year with a B2B SaaS client when I wanted to renew at a higher retainer. Luna: Okay, lay it out. Lucas: The memo has five sections. No more. First: the context. Two sentences max. 'For the past six months, I've been managing your content calendar and producing four blog posts per month. The engagement has driven a 22 percent increase in organic traffic to your pricing page.' That's it. Luna: So you lead with results, not with what you want. Lucas: Right. Second section: the recommendation. One clear sentence. 'I recommend we continue the engagement at a rate of $6,000 per month, which represents a 20 percent increase from our current rate.' No hedging, no 'I was thinking maybe'. Luna: That's direct. But isn't there a risk they'll just say no? Lucas: They can say no. But if you've done your job in the next two sections, they'll say yes. Third section: the rationale. Three bullet points, each tied to a specific value they got. 'Organic traffic to the pricing page increased 22 percent. Two of those visits converted to enterprise demos. Average deal size from those demos was $18,000.' Luna: So you're showing that your work directly generated leads worth thirty-six grand. Lucas: Exactly. And my ask was twelve thousand over six months. So the math is obvious. Fourth section: alternatives. Two options. Option A: accept the new rate and lock in six months. Option B: keep the current rate but reduce scope to two posts per month instead of four. That way I'm not just presenting a take it or leave it. Luna: You're giving them a choice, but both choices are good for you. Option B still keeps you at a decent rate with less work. Lucas: Yes. And the fifth section is the ask. One sentence: 'Please reply with your preferred option by Friday so I can plan the next quarter's content calendar.' That creates urgency but in a helpful way. Luna: Did it work? Lucas: They picked Option A within 24 hours. The memo did the selling for me. I didn't have to pitch over a call or chase them for a decision. Luna: I love this. But I want to push back a little. I'm a freelance copywriter. My work is harder to tie to direct revenue. If I write a blog post, I can't always say it led to a specific deal. How does a designer or writer adapt this? Lucas: Fair point. So the rationale section needs a different kind of evidence. For a designer, you might say: 'The new landing page design reduced bounce rate by 15 percent and increased time on page by 30 seconds.' That's a metric. Or for a writer: 'The three white papers I produced were downloaded by 400 prospects, and the sales team said they were used in two closed-won deals last quarter.' If you don't have exact numbers, you can use estimates — but be honest. Luna: So you need to track your impact from day one. You can't write a good decision memo if you haven't been collecting data. Lucas: That's the hidden benefit of this approach. It forces you to build a case for your own value as you go. And if you can't find any numbers, that's a signal that you might need to start asking your client for feedback or metrics before you try to raise rates. Luna: Yeah, you want to have that conversation at the beginning of a project, not the day before renewal. Lucas: Exactly. Now, let's get into the actual formatting. This is a one-page document. Use a clean font, plenty of white space, and bold the recommendation and the ask. You can either send it as a PDF or paste it into the body of an email. I prefer PDF because it looks more official, but email works if you want to be less formal. Luna: What about the subject line? Lucas: Subject line: 'Decision memo: content partnership renewal — by.' Simple and clear. No 'quick question' or 'let's chat'. That gets ignored. Luna: Okay, so let's say I'm a freelance designer and I want to send one of these to a long-term client. I've been doing their social media graphics for a year at two grand a month. I want to raise it to twenty-five hundred. Walk me through the memo. Lucas: Sure. Context: 'For the past 12 months, I've designed an average of 15 social media graphics per month for your brand. During this period, your Instagram engagement rate increased from 1.2 percent to 2.1 percent.' Recommendation: 'I recommend we continue at $2,500 per month, a 25 percent increase.' Rationale: bullet one, engagement rate improvement. Bullet two, you've built a consistent visual style that's now recognizable. Bullet three, you've reduced the time you spend on revisions by half because you know their preferences. That's efficiency. Luna: The revision time one is smart. That's a value they don't always see. Lucas: Exactly. Then alternatives: Option A, the new rate. Option B, keep the current rate but reduce to 10 graphics per month. Ask: 'Please reply with your choice by next Wednesday so I can allocate time for next month.' Luna: That feels doable. I think my hesitation is that I don't want to come across as transactional. Like I'm just another vendor sending a price increase. Lucas: But here's the thing: the memo is actually less transactional than a standard email. Because you're showing the value first. You're not just saying 'I want more money.' You're saying 'Here's what I've delivered, here's why it's worth more, and here's how we can continue.' That's a partnership conversation, not a vendor demand. Luna: That's a good reframe. I also like that it gives the client a clear path to say yes. They don't have to figure out how to respond. You've given them two choices and a deadline. Lucas: Right. And if they say no, you've still learned something. Maybe they can't afford the increase, in which case you can negotiate scope. Or maybe they don't see the value, which means you need to communicate better going forward. The memo surfaces that. Luna: So it's also a diagnostic tool for your own business. Lucas: Exactly. You learn whether your client values what you do. And if they don't, that's useful information for deciding whether to keep working with them. Luna: That ties into something we've talked about a lot on this show: building a client base that respects your pricing. This memo is a way to test that. Lucas: It really is. And it's one page. It takes an hour to write, and it can save you weeks of back and forth. I honestly think it's the single most underused tool in a freelancer's toolkit. Luna: I'm going to try it. I have a client renewal coming up in August. I'm going to draft a memo this week. Lucas: Let me know how it goes. And if you want, I can share a template I use. It's just a Google Doc with those five sections. Luna: I'd love that. Actually, I think a lot of our listeners would. Is that something you could put together? Lucas: Sure. I'll put it in the show notes. But the key is to customize it for each client. Don't just copy and paste the same one. Each client needs their own evidence. Luna: Right. And that's the work, but it's worth it. Lucas: Before we wrap up, I want to loop back to something you said earlier about this feeling formal. It is a bit formal. But that formality signals professionalism. And when you're a solo operator, you don't have a brand name backing you. A well-structured memo becomes your brand. Luna: That's a great point. It shows you're organized, you're strategic, and you respect the client's time. Those are all reasons to hire you and to pay you more. Lucas: Exactly. And if we've helped you think through a career move or a pricing strategy, we're glad. This show stays ad-free because of listeners who find value in it. If you'd like to support the show, you can buy us a coffee at buy me a coffee dot com slash fexingo. It genuinely helps keep these episodes coming. Luna: Yeah, it's a small gesture that makes a big difference for us. We really appreciate it. Lucas: Alright, back to the memo. One more thing I want to highlight: the timing. Don't send a decision memo out of the blue. Ideally, you've already had a brief conversation: 'Hey, I'm going to put together a proposal for the renewal. Expect it by Friday.' Then the memo is the follow-through, not the first contact. Luna: So you warm them up. You don't just drop a PDF in their inbox. Lucas: Right. A quick heads-up makes it land better. They're expecting it. And then when they see the clean one-pager, they're impressed. Luna: I like that approach. It's respectful and strategic. Lucas: Alright, that's the decision memo. Try it out. Let us know if it works for you. Luna: Thanks, Lucas. And thanks to everyone listening. We'll be back next week with another episode. Lucas: Take care.