Client of the Day
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- monospaced0
Looking for some advice. Classic situation, but one I haven't had to deal with in forever.
Background: (re)designed a few instruction sheets for a medical testing company, with a few rounds of edits.
Situation: client is now asking to have the native Indesign files so that they can make minor changes on their own. They say they will have me make any major updates moving forward.
Question(s): How do you all handle this situation? If you do charge for handing off native files, how do you determine their worth?
I could use some advice. Thanks, QBN.
- if you're not an employee you could charge a handling fee or license fee, but they paid you to design them, so probably don't expect you to question it.omahadesigns
- I'd hand the files off.stoplying
- Better to be "big" about it in hopes of maintaining a relationship. Also give them enough rope to hang themselves.ETM
- Interesting. They feel they own the native files even though all they technically paid for was the print files.monospaced
- Outline everything, save, send. "Good luck!"noneck
- Do you have a contract? They paid you to make the files, give it to them.freedom
- Contract doesn't specify anything beyond print files, unfortunately. If they have the files then anyone can make edits and I wouldn't be paid.monospaced
- Who said you have the right to that file forever? Ever designed a template for someone?bainbridge
- What'd you end up doing.bklyndroobeki
- Copyrights state that the original working files are owned by those who create them. Usually I only sell the final product. Templates are obv different.monospaced
- I ended up sending him the files, and now we're woriing up a contract to outline an actual set of templates for them.monospaced
- Good on you, so more work...bklyndroobeki
- Yeah, we all knew (inc. you) that you owned them, a good reminder to add this into my contracts as well -- although it's something the designer understands.bklyndroobeki
- it's technically out of scope, so bill appropriately if he really wants it and explain he's purchasing the copyright.doesnotexist
- Make sure to use fonts they don't have installed.section_014
- I wanted to doesnotexist, but they simply couldn't accept that it was "out of scope" and I could hear the anxiety. We'll scope out future templates. THanks all!monospaced
- @section_014, totally... all the illustrations are going to be compounded, the fonts I won't just give away, and they can struggle with that.monospaced
- they probably need to buy those font license anyway.bklyndroobeki
- pango0
"A client emailed me wanting corporate photo headshots. I sent back a quote.
CLIENT: I have never come across a photographer that charges a fee - as generally they want to use the photos for a magazine, portfolio, etc. Do you not submit the photos for publication? Or are you not a professional?"
lol go fuck your self.
- bahahahaJG_LB
- lolsine
- What a tooleoin
- Share the email addressalbums
- Funny. Probably just a guy who never thought about it before. Bit stupid.nb
- hahahaha. are you not a professional!!!!!!!capn_ron
- They are a current client?bainbridge
- O__oohhhhhsnap
- Have them all sign releases then put their headshots up on iStock.i_monk
- He just wants his photo in a magazine?freedom
- BusterBoy3
Had a client call me on Friday saying they were switching to another Agency that is in their own city...and he felt were technically superior and had a better grasp on technology than my firm does.
Fair enough. Your call.
Get an email from their new "super Agency" asking me what a nameserver is.
Seriously felt like getting on the phone to these cunts and the client and telling them to BOTH get fucked.
New site is this pissy little Wordpress themed site that I know has just been urchased from Themeforest. Have seen it before.
Cocks.
- technically superior =cheaperpablo28
- ^ sorry, they're bitching you... Don't waste time with them, heal wounds and go aheadOBBTKN
- Probably an uninformed opinion based on their customer experience. If clients can't see the value or take your advice, not worth wasting the time as OBB says.monoboy
- Most clients want easy, simple, no hassle. Even when they're wrong. Push back with an informed opinion can be taken badly. Some(most)times you have to baby sit.monoboy
- "I want X done by X" Not a good long-term idea, X will be a problem, do Y. "Don't care, do X." OK. "This has happened, it doesn't work, this your fault." etc.monoboy
- Yeh I would never vent my true feelings to a client unless extreme circumstances.BusterBoy
- It's a weird feeling when you lose a client to a new firm and they're kind of incompetent.noneck
- You're a little miffed that the client chose them, but it kinda feels good to have confirmation that the client is wrong.noneck
- feel free to ignore their calls, considering you're inferior to them technically and technologically.monospaced
- _niko2
Bidding on work drives me crazy.
You give an estimate that is fair for your time, energy expertise etc and the client balks at it saying it's way too high.
after losing a few of these you start questioning your rates, so you come down a bit and you send an estimate to another client that's a bit lower so you don't lose another gig and they come back like you're too low and they would have paid much more.
FFS.
- Ya, that’s a bitch. One of the first things I ask is for them to give me an idea what their budget is. Surprisingly they will often chime in with a vague numberGnash
- Yeah I try to ask as well but more often than not they'll say not sure just tell us what it'll cost. But other industries like home-building or renovations..._niko
- client has no problem leading with their budget. Sometimes I find giving them 3 options of increasing complexity and costs helps. Ferrari, Audi, Toyota._niko
- Ya, the problem with the 3-quote approach is that you have to remove deliverables from the each quote so that it makes sense.Gnash
- I don’t have the answer, though. I kinda wing it each time.Gnash
- Did it for over a decade.
Get employed.
Work 9-5.
Engineer personal contentment.ideaist - Give them a quote in an obscure crypto currency, just for giggles.shapesalad
- 1, Give price: they baulk
2. Say "well what is your budget?"
3. They respond
4. Say "I can do that if I remove X,Y,Z from quote"Centigrade - Raise your rates so you don't have to deal with shitty clients. Rich clients don't care about rates, they just trust you and pay fastgrafician
- I agree with all points, done a bit of each in the past, except the obscure crypto lol_niko
- hotroddy0
If you told your client to meet 'next' monday on a tuesday--- would you interpret it as this coming monday? or following monday in 13 days?
- I would clarify but it sounds like next Monday 7 dayssofakingback
- The following Monday. Not 13 days...MrT
- Ya, this coming Monday. Although, if I was your client I'd email you back asking for clarity, "you mean the 24th or the 31st?"Gnash
- ok. thanks guyshotroddy
- 'Next whatever day' is the next occurence of that day.
'Whatever day week' is not the next occurence, but the one after that.BusterBoy - Clarify the day like Gnash saidOBBTKN
- Obviously the exact "next" Monday.freedom
- This monday is the following one. Next monday is the one after.set
- Your client speaks proper Englishset
- There's no need to ever say next monday for the following one. You just say on monday, or this monday. Next monday means the one AFTER the following monday.set
- The next one along, not this one just coming.set
- Set's English lesson for the day.set
- rodzilla0
Best comment this week.
"Make it full bleed, but keep everything away from the edges."
- noiceCALLES
- maybe they wanted the BG color to bleed?scarabin
- but not the contentscarabin
- dunno.. makes perfect sense to me. unless you take it 100% literally..Projectile
- it does make sense, the source it came from made me take it very literally. ha, wasn't as good as I thought I guess.rodzilla
- maybe they wnated your eyes/brain to bleedmaikel
- http://www.amazon.co…vaxorcist
- Dumbass.404NotFound
- I did that 10 years ago for homework, with my eXacto knife.stanislav
- ^ been there, had to go to the hospital, cut part of the tip off. horrible manager docked me from not coming in with a 1000 lbs headache in my fingercanoe
- sted3
Brand new client with a nice project what looks like a long term gig for 3-4 people. Got me awesome super excited really quick, after some nice talks we understand each other, everything is alright.
I asked for a skype contact, got an invite.
Nickname includes "trump".
A world collapsed in me, right now all I can think about is when is it going to go crazy...
- whatthefunk3
- sounds like a Hayoth requestutopian
- lol... probably genuine.shapesalad
- whatthefunk?canoe
- Conflicted. Tell them they’re a moron or take up the challenge to make it happen. Like every client request_niko
- sofakingback2
Today I received the best client email of my 15 years as a designer, its so hilarious Im considering framing it.
So long story short, the ex owner of an agency I worked for wanted a logo for his new angle investment company. He's one over in a group of owners.
They wanted it spec and I said hell no. He said Ok, I'll pay.
The initial direction was lame, I tried guiding them a better direction, blah blah blah, story is as old as time. You know how it goes. We finally settled on a logo and then he went dark for a month or so...
Then this new guy hits me up and says he's gonna take over the project, he seemed fairly easy going picked a different version of the logo and went off to create stuff with it.
I was waiting on the check to arrive and then I get this email from him:
------
"Jorge -
One of our partners just pointed out something in the logo that's kind of messing it up for us. If you look at it a certain way, it looks like a vagina. Is there anything you can do to the bug to make it less so?
Also the font choice is perhaps a little mixed up considering our branding focus to be more approachable and less bullshitty. Can you check out our site and see if you get inspired for a different font for the logo?
Also we have budget now and I'm happy to report that we can pay you for your time. So let me know about that.
Thanks,
K"------
I don't even know how to respond because theres so much win in this email...
before you ask the typeface I used was Helvetica Rounded. The logo has a seed icon because its a seed company... I highly, HIGHLY advised against the seed! lol
- "No, people like vaginas and sex sells."freedom
- "It's perfect because when I met you I thought, cunt."MrT
- epic.sted
- get paid for what you've done and thus far - then make it look more like a vaginaFax_Benson
- I got paid. sent an email trying to make sense of his email. Never heard back from them. They're now using a letter-mark logo, like I originally suggested. •_•sofakingback
- That bloody hilariouswheelBoy
- Sellies2
CLIENT:
Can we add a QR Code to the end frame of the TVCCREATIVE:
Why on earth do you want to do that.CLIENT:
We saw someone else do it. I think it's a great idea.CREATIVE:
Really!?!?CLIENT:
Oh and can you also add them to the Digital banners.- QR code creation: $5000
QR code TV integration: $2500
Still want it?zarkonite - Fantastic idea! Do it!grafician
- < had the same thing with digi banners and QR codes a few years ago. "Let me get this straight, you want people to scan the web banner on their computer with...thumb_screws
- ...their phone to take them to the website on their mobile device instead of clicking through"?
Yes
"Ok so what happens if the banner gets served up...thumb_screws - ...on their device, do they need a another phone to scan that QR code on their phone?"
Don't be silly.thumb_screws - It does my head in sometimes.Sellies
- I'm just trying to imagine the viewer who waits for the ad what has a max. 3 sec window for a QR code.sted
- @thumb_screws hehh so what if the client wants to skip the landing page, but u have to get people an app installed on their phone?sted
- That would rupture the space time continuum.thumb_screws
- QR code creation: $5000
- MrT1
Printed magazines need a total page count that's divisible by four.
Why is this concept so difficult for people, particularly those in the marketing/comms division of a large Japanese company that makes printers and cameras, to understand?
- every fucking timethumb_screws
- Can'ton?grafician
- ... possibly!MrT
- Centrefolds is the solution.
Or the absolute chaos.Longcopylover - what about those magazines that have a sneak single page insert?shapesalad
- @shape yeah I know, throw out covers, inserts etc but basic pagination is already beyond them...MrT
- Pagination II: Die Harder – revised doc came back, look we made it 44 pages! Except it's 44 numbered pages + F/B covers. 46. FML.MrT
- Front and back covers are also four pages total.monospaced
- I know you all want to catch me out, but I'm right damnit!MrT
- They counted covers as 2pp. Rockets polishers, all of ‘em.MrT
- monoboy3
'We'd like to enhance our digital marketing, I want more sales.'
Great, lets do a review and make some plans.
'Great, but we don't have much budget'
OK.
Your priority issues are; weak website content and a really bad online ticketing system. The drop off is horrendous. It's actually a barrier to sales.
I'd invest in a new system that you can integrate with marketing campaigns like a sales funnel. I'd also update your website to clarify your offer, get better messaging out.
'Sounds costly'.
It's an investment that'll pay for itself.
'We've decided to spend £15K on a TripAdvisor campaign instead.'
Traffic isn't the issue, it's the drop off.
'I'm keen to try it'.
OK.
12 months later.
'We need to fix our ticketing system but we don't have much budget.'
- ShaneHolley5
A while back an account director said:
Her
"Can we have vertical stripes on it, but have them going horizontally"Me
" you mean horizontal stripes?"Her
"No. They are vertical but on their side."I used horizontal stripes in said visual and she was very happy. Lovely.
- vertizontal stripes are so hot right nowFax_Benson
- I had a guy tell me lines were so last year. I asked, oh whats "in" this year?
Dotted lines. *blank staresofakingback
- BusterBoy0
A guy I have known for a long time asks me to build him a website. So I hire a contractor who does all the work...project takes about a month to complete and probably 40 hours dev work so not huge.
Waiting for him to setup FTP. Waiting. Waiting.
Get an email today.
"Sorry mate...there's a girl I know who read about Spotify on the weekend. She's going to be doing all my Facebook & Twitter stuff, and she said she could set me up with Spotify as well."
Oh, you mean Shopify you daft cunt?
I reply "No problems...good luck mate. Here's my invoice for the full completed site. Good luck with your Spotify".
Haven't heard back as yet!
- Money up-front... any?PonyBoy
- Lol daft coutpango
- So you sub-contracted a guy and had him build a site with no approvals or meetings with actual client?freedom
- Facepalmdnb4lyfe
- He's a neighbour. Have done a fair bit of work for him before on a handshake. He'll pay...he's just a cock.BusterBoy
- One BJ from a 'social media expert' and he was sold no doubt.BusterBoy
- cuntpango
- Cant let your financial guard down. its usually the ones that know you most it seems to be the trend.yurimon
- We just sent a client to collections and they're business is next door to us. Go figure.Mattjanz3n
- grafician3
What if...
- blue sky = hope future.... such a genuine 'client' level amend.shapesalad
- "try with a happier picture" lolmaquito
- There's an ongoing joke between friends, "I'm the God Damn Designer". Luckily Milton Glaser never had to deal with worrying about standing up for our part.canoe
- designquestions0
Design firm emails you out of the blue because someone recommended you and asks if you can send them your portfolio because they might have some work for you.
You send it and then don't hear back.
Do you:
Follow up in a week
Follow up in a month
Move on
Other- Also the person who recommended is kind of a stranger.designquestions
- This was easier in the days of physical portfolio as you had to pick them up.Gnash
- Move on - its like calling for 3 quotes when you need a plumber. Happens often. If you are really needing work, could be worth dropping a note along the linesrabbit
- of perhaps not this time hope to help you next time :)rabbit
- Tell them you need them to email your portfolio back because you have a new potential client you want to show it to.ORAZAL
- ^ Clearly This! Works every time.ETM
- That is not the spider I drew, that spider only has 3 legs. My spider would always have 4 legsHayoth
- ^ lolGnash
- I always email them back within 3 days, most of the time they said they were waiting on others. I've been given work since noone replied sooner :)designfreak
- ^ email them back after you didn't hear back?designquestions
- nb4
“client not paying your invoice? lower the opacity by 1% every day until their design slowly fades away ✨”
- Daryl Ginn
Imagine this as a plug-in connected to your invoicing software hahah
- Probably possible with a crypto smart contract.shapesalad
- This is classic pun and it was actually about their website.
Here is the actual code to make it happen:
https://github.com/j…grafician
- Nairn1
At 20:54 I just took a call from someone asking how much my hourly rates were (clearly stated on my site) and upon response asked "how many 2p-sized cuts [in random material] could I get for that?". On the phone. AT nearly 9pm.
I wasn't rude, but I sure as fuck wasn't exhibiting American-levels of customer service.
I only answered 'cos I'm working late and someone's popping over to pick something up, so thought it might be them.
Who the fuck thinks they're going to get useful customer service from a small business at 9pm?
- Oh, and upon asking for my email (again, clearly stated on site) quickly jabbered it back in NATO phonetics to check, in a strong accent, like.. dude.Nairn
- Your pricing is not very clear at all mate.
No wonder client called at 9PM for a quotegrafician - not to mention white text on black background is hard to read...grafician
- But my price is in mint green on black.Nairn
- And I only have my headings in white. All other text is in off-white, light grey. And I don't use black, but off-black.Nairn
- Whatever, that still doesn't excuse someone from phoning at near 9pm.Nairn
- LOL @ graficianoey_oey
- Maybe don't use comic-sans for your website font? Just a thought.shapesalad
- These clowns know your small business website?monospaced
