What's hardest about working with your clients?As a creative freelancer, what do you struggle with the most when dealing with your clients at any point in the process?
hey,
the hardest part is a client not willing to pay when the work is done.
clients not used to working with freelancers working in design don´t understand, naturally, the process and work put into the job on our part.
so there will be endless request to make corrections if any money is to be paid. and that´s
1. not possible as it is a time issue, and
2. it´s not lucrative and financially rewarding.
That is a hard one, Timo. Once you're in the position of chasing after payment, it becomes very stressful.
And you're right, most clients don't understand how much work can go into something creative that looks simple in the delivered result. Then again, they don't need to understand those details to appreciate that you need to be paid. They're paying for results anyway. :)
One thing I do before I start working on every project is define (in a contract) exactly what kind and how many (or number of hours of) revisions will be included in the total.
That way it's clear up front. If there are any disagreements about payment later, we've both got it spelled out "on paper" to clear things up.
Beyond that, if a client refuses to pay despite having understood what was included, you shouldn't do any more work until that's rectified.
Hopefully, you've also only shown proofs with a watermark up to that point, so your client can't use anything until they've paid for it.
If you've got a client who balks at these parameters up front, then you know you're probably headed for trouble.
you hit some points there.
I definately agree with having a contract or letter of agreement to avoid misunderstandings prior to begin any work.
I just had a client with whom I didn´t make a contract, and it led to a lot if stress on my part, so: If you´re out there and wonder if you should insist on working with a contract or not, do it! you don´t chase away anyone doing so, just the ones who would hesitate to pay anyway.
Thanks David, for your opinions :)
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