Mobile-Net

Is Your Client Costing You To Much Money?

PLEASE NOTE: this article does not reflect TRAJAN STUDIO LLC belief. This article is mean't to be an informative piece that could help business owners become more efficient and communicate better. This article is also based upon a group consensus.

All of us who have ever done business directly with clients, in any line of work, have run into a situation or two where the project at hand grew out of proportion to the income generated by the job. Sometimes, a client needs so much hand-holding that it demands all your time, so when you divide the estimate by the number of hours spent, you find that you're making minimum wage or less. You know something is amiss: someone was not realistic about expectations from the beginning.

Expectations apply to project scope; initial communication about goals for a project; time lines; what is or is not included; how much course change is or is not allowed, how much it should or should not cost; how clear the client is about his goals, and how clear you are about his goals.

We'll use an analogy: you're a custom car builder, and your client wants you to build a car to fit his wants and needs. Initially, you have no idea if that client wants a plain-Jane black or white four-banger with roll-up windows, steel wheels, manual seats and a radio, or a luxury SUV with alloy wheels, electric everything, a fancy paint job and a 16-speaker stereo with navigation. The latter takes more money and time to build, so your client has to let you know that is his preference. It is your job to find out if it is, and it is your job to make a list of all the options, estimate the time to build it, and price the job realistically.

Now, here is where it gets interesting: let's say the client wants a luxury ride on a plain-Jane budget. The outcome of this mismatch can take two directions: you spend some time up front adding up the options and the labor costs, thus educating the client into a more realistic set of expectations, or the client sends you on your way after you tell him you can't do it for that price. That client will find someone who will sell him that luxury ride for a low price and take a beating, or he will run into brick walls at every turn finding out on his own, that his expectations are not realistic.

Or, the client tells you he wants a product with fewer options, and in time, tries to con or bully you into providing them anyway, but for free. Typically, folks like this dangle a carrot: "I'll give you more business later," or they plead ignorance: "Oh, I thought the fancy stereo came with the electric seat package." All of it is meant to get something for nothing: you cannot afford to indulge their champagne taste on their beer budget, because you are trading time for money, and you have to make a decent living. Unpaid hours take you down to below minimum wage. Besides, give in once, and they think they can keep doing it to you forever.

Being clear from the start, about what he can expect for the agreed upon price, with no deviation, short-circuits this behavior, especially if it is in writing.

And then there is the client who keeps changing his mind. First, he wants his car red, but after you're halfway through painting it, he calls with a color change to blue. It takes extra time to do it over and you can no longer get it done by Friday, but he expects you to get it done by then, anyway. The customer may not call this sabotage, but that's exactly what it is: it damages your relationship with the client, along with your profits, and it has nothing to do with your ability to do the job.

If this is happening, it's time to request a face-to-face meeting. You need to make it clear that work will not proceed until the meeting is held and the issue is resolved. At the meeting, revisit the project details, agree to an end product and a deadline, and let your client know that no changes are allowed anymore. If a client persists with wanting changes later, tell him that it is a good idea for a future project, and when that happens, "We can test the idea" against the current project for effectiveness.

Sometimes clients, at first meeting, will present an idea or expectation that your experience tells you will work against them. Present your case, and give them the benefit of your experience, using case in point, to dissuade them from making a possible mistake. Despite precautions you may take at the onset of a project, course corrections are sometimes necessary. It is important that you not be defensive or lay blame. Neither should you absorb blame. Most often, a simple miscommunication caused the challenge at hand: communicating with your client that you are on the same team; that you too wish to bring the project to a satisfactory conclusion on time and on budget. Chances are, you won't find an argument there, and it keeps lines of communications open.

It is up to you to clarify intent and ask questions to clarify the client's intent for yourself so that you can give considered answers, letting him know you are on the same side, all the while finding out what he envisions as an end product. Be realistic with time allotment to do the job: you don't want to drive yourself into a corner. If you take on a new client and you have to divide your time into more slots, notify all your clients and let them know that your availability and your individual response time have changed: everyone needs to know what's up so that no one gets antsy.

Provide a phone number and a e-mail address, and define clearly to each client, what your business hours are: you do not want unlimited access, because it is both unprofessional and destructive to your well-being. If on-line work is what you do, the more time you spend up front and within the first thirty minutes, defining exactly what your client wants, including color, fonts, page elements, how it matches their offline campaign and "feel," what functionality they want, how they want to handle on-line sales, etc., the smoother it will go both designing the campaign and hitting your client's target without a lot of re-doing. Put it all in writing and copy your client with the list, recounting what is agreed upon up front, so you can refer to it if it veers off course later. Let your client know what is involved with putting a project together, so they can gain an appreciation for why it is taking money and time to achieve the goal they envision with your help.

 

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If this or her is happening, it's time to request a face-to-face meeting. You need to make it clear that work will not proceed until the meeting is held and the issue is resolved. At the meeting, revisit the project details, agree to an end product and a deadline, and let your client know that no changes are allowed anymore. If a client persists with wanting changes later, tell him that it is a good idea for a future project, and when that happens, "We can test the idea" against the current project for effectiveness.

Sometimes clients, at first meeting, will present an idea or expectation that your experience tells you will work against them. Present your case, and give them the benefit of your experience, using case in point, to dissuade them from making a possible mistake. Despite precautions you may take at the onset of a project, course corrections are sometimes necessary. It is important that you not be defensive or lay blame. Neither should you absorb blame. Most often, a simple miscommunication caused the challenge at hand: communicating with your client that you are on the same team; that you too wish to bring the project to a satisfactory conclusion on time and on budget. Chances are, you won't find an argument there, and it keeps lines of communications open.

It is up to you to clarify intent and ask questions to clarify the client's intent for yourself so that you can give considered answers, letting him know you are on the same side, all the while finding out what he envisions as an end product. Be realistic with time allotment to do the job: you don't want to drive yourself into a corner. If you take on a new client and you have to divide your time into more slots, notify all your clients and let them know that your availability and your individual response time have changed: everyone needs to know what's up so that no one gets antsy.

Provide a phone number and a e-mail address, and define clearly to each client, what your business hours are: you do not want unlimited access, because it is both unprofessional and destructive to your well-being. If on-line work is what you do, the more time you spend up front and within the first thirty minutes, defining exactly what your client wants, including color, fonts, page elements, how it matches their offline campaign and "feel," what functionality they want, how they want to handle on-line sales, etc., the smoother it will go both designing the campaign and hitting your client's target without a lot of re-doing. Put it all in writing and copy your client with the list, recounting what is agreed upon up front, so you can refer to it if it veers off course later. Let your client know what is involved with putting a project together, so they can gain an appreciation for why it is taking money and time to achieve the goal they envision with your help.

About the Author

Owner and Founder of TRAJAN STUDIO, Steven has an insatiable appetite for anything and everything web design & photography. His newly appointed nickname "Cyborg Steve", Steven admits "I like that name! It's easy to become a drone when you love what you do!"

Thin Client with SSD demonstration (Compact Flash to IDE SSD)

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