Comments on: Ten things you hope the client never says

By: Mina 10 mest besökta blogginlägg | Mathias Amnell

Mina 10 mest besökta blogginlägg | Mathias Amnell — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 09:03:16 +0000

[...] som många råkar ut för, speciellt som småföretagare. Med inspiration från ett inlägg på DevLounge delade jag därför med mig av en lista på 10 saker du hoppas att kunden aldrig säger. Det här [...]

By: Website Development by Magic Answers

Website Development by Magic Answers — Sat, 03 Oct 2009 14:11:17 +0000

Of course there are tough customers out there, and there always will be.

However, you are running a BUSINESS. You need to do everything possible to protect your business. That means covering every base and being a professional.

If you come across as a backyard mechanic, you’ll be treated as such. If you come across as a top notch pro, you’ll gain more respect and courtesy, resulting in fewer problems overall.

Communication IS the key. If everything, and I mean everything, is laid out in advance and contracted accordingly, you should have no problems. It’s only when things are not clear that problems arise.

Never tell the client that one flat fee will suffice. No matter what they are developing, there will be ongoing costs. Hosting, maintenance, etc. Never tell them that it will be done when the initial development ends. Tell them what their long term costs are going to be, thoroughly. If you do it all correctly, you might just end up with a long term customer.

Focus on building long term client relationships and your company will flourish. Slam together quicky sales to make ends meet and you’ll end up trapped in never ending projects with little or no ongoing income.

The road splits at the beginning of the project, not the end. Get it all dialed in before you start and you’ll be just fine.

By: Steven

Steven — Fri, 31 Jul 2009 13:32:46 +0000

Due to number 10, when I develop Java, when I present the client with a sample project I also build in ways to disable the sample. Ive had clients take a ‘proof of concept’ and then pull number 10. Getting away with a very cheap (if not free) lesser version

By: Fred Campbell

Fred Campbell — Mon, 27 Jul 2009 09:59:21 +0000

Good grief, it’s good to know I’m not the only one – encountered just about all of these … in the last year. One you missed is company going bust – had two of these recently as well. Now I always take 20% deposit up-front. If clients don’t like, they’re not serious, so you’re only losing the trouble makers. Another thing I’ve noticed which is really consistent: it’s the clients that start off haggling about money that always cause the most trouble, coming back with extra additions at no extra cost.

By: Hari

Hari — Mon, 20 Jul 2009 13:16:13 +0000

8th One is the best . lol

By: sion

sion — Sun, 10 Jun 2007 15:48:32 +0000

Of course I had most of these happen to me because when I was 1st starting out I wanted to build my portfolio.
My first PHP site: I
accepted a project from a client that
1)is paying me in jewelry that I have yet to receive.
2)Keeps disappearing,popping back up and then disappearing again.
3) has changed his domain name 2x and is going to change it again!
Once because he lost the lease to his real store and the domain had “bad vibes”, and again because a client of his didn’t like what came up in Google when she Googled key words sort of related to the domain name but that she couldn’t remember exactly…
4)wanted a cms.I gave him a cms and so much instructions on how to use it is was like a small novel even though it was the simplest cms on the planet—and he doesn’t use it!
It’s a catalog and he wants to write the jewelry descriptions himself but he doesn’t.
I’m still working on this site 8 whole months after I started it.It’s a huge nightmare but he is a really nice guy so I don’t drop him.
I guess I am a little spineless but…the jewelry is nice at least,lol.
I’m probably the problem here,not the client!
Needless to say I am much more professional now with my other current clients.

By: 10 saker du hoppas att kunden aldrig säger » SemiCow

10 saker du hoppas att kunden aldrig säger » SemiCow — Fri, 18 May 2007 12:21:03 +0000

[...] är inspirerat av Jamie Huskinsson’s inlägg “Ten things you hope the client never says” på DevLounge, ett stort tack. (Thanks [...]

By: Phoenix Rizin

Phoenix Rizin — Wed, 04 Apr 2007 18:38:02 +0000

I’ve had all ten at one point or another. One word of advice to anyone who reads this article……CONTRACTS AND DEPOSITS!!! If a client says no to either, it almost always isn’t worth it.

By: Matt Keegan

Matt Keegan — Sun, 25 Mar 2007 13:10:07 +0000

I stumbled upon this article and I gave it a hearty thumbs up. Unfortunately, all too true and something I have mentioned on my site at http://www.thearticlewriter.com/blog

Somehow seeing it all collected together in writing seems to crystalize the importance of being diligent when working with clients.

By: NewkirAj

NewkirAj — Thu, 01 Mar 2007 22:46:14 +0000

Comment Removed at request of commenter.

By: Easterangel

Easterangel — Tue, 27 Feb 2007 01:51:57 +0000

Great post! I am picking this as the “Post of the Day!”

http://postawards.blogspot.com/

I am a freelancer myself and just starting to strike out in the work of contract work. One safe way to go around I say is to have the transaction done with Escrow Services but the problem there is that it costs money.

By: Paul

Paul — Mon, 26 Feb 2007 21:36:25 +0000

One thing I recommend to other freelancers is, always get a deposit before beginning any work. Many client can be skittish about laying out a deposit. Just do the same thing the ebayers do. Use an escrow service. The client can send the deposit (or the whole amount) to the escrow service, and you can both define the terms of the release of the money.
This eliminates 3, 5, 7, 8 and 10

Using an escrow service protects both you and the client.

As for 1 and 2 those are for newbies, and they are planing to work for little or nothing on their first few anyway. Once you get your first paying client, you never work for free again.