I have had a bad run lately of clients pushing for cheaper pricing, aggressive messaging (even when I have said I am unavailable due to hospital appts receiving continuous calls asking for files I have already sent and given instruction on) and downright gaslighting claiming they have not said things in the brief and when I reshare the brief they don’t respond. I want to think its just bad clients and worse luck, but does anyone else feel like as a graphic designer you are treated poorly compared to other sectors?
Freelance graphic designer with 10 years in the field, 5 years as a freelancer and currently dealing with marketing agencies, thinking of quitting daily.
Charge an upfront non-refundable fee at the start that covers 66% of the work.
Then if they are being awkward, not respecting right to switch off (outside office hours), etc. then dump them.
As for claims about briefs etc. I always send first drafts with a PDF and then line by line of the brief with my comments underneath.
Brief Put in PINK I love pink it’s my favourite colour change logo to pink please thanks
You’re corporate colours and logo specs don’t specifiy pink - however, I have used the approved company logo and colour scheme throughout.
In my experience, chaos is the norm. I don’t have an expectation that clients will be organized, so it’s not a problem for me. If I didn’t do this job, I’d probably be one of those people that helps hoarders clean out their homes. I assume every project will come to me as a mess.
There are all sorts of resources online with negotiation strategies for instances when a client says they want cheaper pricing. Don’t assume it’s a comment on the quality of your work. Sometimes the budget for a deluxe product isn’t there.
I train my clients to respect my boundaries. They can email in the middle of the night or on weekends or holidays, but I only respond during business hours. Always. Because if I bend the boundary once they will come to expect that as a regular thing, and they will expect me to respond during off hours.
That’s been the norm for me. I have multiple clients whose policy is that emails should be deleted after 30 days so they don’t clog up their servers. So that happens, then they have to ask me to send stuff again. And they loose the conversations in the emails, so they forget the things we’ve discussed and agreed on. Not a problem for me, because I resend and bill that as hourly. It’s another income stream.
I generally find the smaller clients are the worst.
Big clients I deal with as part of my day job usually know how to go on, and what things cost, if not always how long they take. Yeah sometimes they ask for seemingly arbitrary changes, but that’s often the fault of their client having legal requirements that would make anyone dizzy.
Smaller clients (or individuals wanting a personal commission) want it now for peanuts, followed by all the changes their neighbour’s cat can think of. This is a mix of inexperience on their part, as well as overall budget constraints.
It’s tricky, cos while I would struggle to even get a “big” client in my spare time, and I’d like a few small commissions here and there to help pay the bills, when I get one I almost always regret it
I think where it’s gone wrong recently is the last couple of clients have treated me as a part time employee but none of the benefits, pay or respect. One large contract at the beginning then regular work so it’s hard to outline a budget/spec and when I do it’s challenged.
I have stopped all client relationships set up in this way now (let me tell you the last one was and UGLY breakup) and am purely focusing on one off, contract signed, outcomes and processes outlined, underlined and highlighted in pink.
For smaller clients it’s pay or go away. Especially questioning the price. I don’t even reply anymore. They asked for a price, they got a price, if they don’t like it it’s not a negotiation.
Yeah my most recent bite was a guy who wanted all 4 of the Ramones on stage.
4 characters. Playing instruments (a ballache to draw!) with a detailed background. Budget… $100, which translates to about £75. I tend to charge way more than that, though less for private individuals compared to commercial clients. It’s £75 I wouldn’t have had, but when you take the time into account it’s just not worth trying to fit in around a full time job and current hospital visits and other responsibilities.
I told him I wouldn’t be able to meet his deadline, 1 or 2 weeks. But when I only have a few hours spare a week to do a 10+ hour job… It just wasn’t worth the headache.
I don’t deal with “clients” per se, anymore.
My customers nowadays are only companies that deal with graphics on a daily basis and pay me on the spot with no issues.
