In hindsight, I should have known he would be a problematic client. A bad client, even. But no, I ignored all the red flags even as they waved in front of my nose. And then the you-know-what hit the fan.
My copy stank, apparently. So badly, it seems, that he wrote the entire copy himself, from scratch. So badly, apparently, that he refused the two revisions he was entitled to.
Never before had my copywriting skills been brought to as much doubt. Never before had I felt so incompetent and undeserving of the title, “copywriter.” Never before had a client cancelled a project because they weren’t satisfied with my work.
Ah, well, there’s always the first time.
Now that the dust has settled, and my self-esteem has recovered, I can blog about it. (Hah! Behind every cloud IS a silver lining.)
My freelancing friend, I don’t want you to go through the humiliation of having a client reject your work and question your capabilities. I know I can’t succeed 100%, but at the very least, I can share my experience with you so that you can learn from my mistakes.
You see, this client was a “bad” client from the start, but I was too hard-headed to admit it.
Signs You Should Pass On A Client
Here are some of the signs that I should have said no to this client:
1. He didn’t have a clear direction for his business.
After this client hired me, I waited for weeks to get started, because he was still figuring out exactly what to do. In fact, he told me to wait until after his consultation with a business coach.
2. His product was under development.
Even after this client had completed a business coaching session, his product was still pretty much unfinished. He couldn’t give me a lot of the details I needed to write the copy. He was also undecided about bonuses, guarantees, and how he would find leads and prospects–even after I suggested many options.
(That said, it is possible to write copy even if the product is still being completed. In fact, it can help to produce a better product than originally intended. However, this is not cool if the client is going to end up dissatisfied with the copy for his unfinished product.)
3. His market was outside my specialty.
This wasn’t a particularly crucial red flag, since I have written copy successfully for new markets and niches before. However, this may have added to the dissonance and conflict I experienced in this project. It’s also possible that I didn’t write as good a copy as I could have.
4. He had a string of complaints about previous or current service providers.
Previous service providers apparently gave the wrong advice, which caused him to spend more money than necessary, and to not get the results he wanted.
5. He was worried about the falling value of his currency.
This client always paid me on time and never negotiated my rates. However, as we got started in a bigger and more expensive project, he started saying things like “I have to watch my budget, especially with the value of (my currency) falling.” (He lives in Europe) Who knows? Maybe he cancelled our project, because he couldn’t afford to pay the rest of my fees anymore.
Those are the signs that should have told me to proceed with caution, if not refuse to work with this client altogether.
Could Have, Would Have, Should Have
So… what could I have done instead? Here are some ideas:
- I could have asked for feedback after each stage of the copywriting, instead of diving headlong into it and submitting a finished draft. For example, I could have told my client first what hook I was planning on using and then given the structure for the rest of the sales page. That way, I would have known of his disapproval way before I had poured many hours into writing the entire sales page.
- I could have refused to begin working until after ALL the details were provided.
- One thing I did do correctly was to ask for a 50% deposit upfront. This meant that the work I had completed didn’t go uncompensated.
What If This Happened To You?
If you do find yourself with a client who rejects your work, here’s my advice:
Take a deep breath and calm down before you respond to your client.
Your first reaction will probably be anger, and it’s not a good idea to communicate with ANYBODY when you’re angry. So acknowledge your anger, go and hit a pillow… do whatever it takes to get it out of your system. And then go back and respond.
Give your client the benefit of the doubt.
It is possible that you produced a dud. We’re not always at our best and sometimes we do make mistakes. Review your drafts and previous communications and see where you could have fallen short of the client’s expectations. Have an open mind about how you could have done better.
Give yourself the benefit of the doubt.
They say “the client is always right,” but the truth is, your client could be wrong! Don’t be too hard on yourself and beat yourself up about the situation. Even if you did make a mistake, remind yourself that you’re only human. The best you can do is to do your best. And if you can say that you have given the project your best effort, then nobody can blame you.
Offer to fix the situation.
Nobody likes it when a project falls through. Your client’s project is delayed, and money is wasted. Your income and reputation are at stake. So look at the situation from your client’s point of view and offer to do something to ameliorate the situation. At worst, give your client’s money back.
Look back on the experience, learn from it, and blog about it 
We’ll always experience bumps along our freelancing journey. The worst thing is when we don’t learn from our mistakes and keep making them. So take the time to reflect on your experiences. Blogging is a good way to process something in your mind, and share your learnings with others at the same time.
Do Share
Have you ever had a “bad” client before? What were the warning signs you should have seen, but didn’t? Any other advice you’d like to share with me and other freelancers?
Feel free to post them below.
PS: Go here to read about an earlier post I wrote, “7 Steps to Deal With An Unhappy Client.” (Ironically, I wrote that post before the experience I wrote about today. It came in really handy!)
Oh man, I feel for you! I have met these clients, and so far have been lucky enough to avoid them. But when they come along at just the right (or wrong) time and you really need the work, it can be hard to say No. Thanks for reminding us that sometimes it’s just not worth the pain.
.-= Cindy Bidar´s last blog ..Choosing a Domain Name – Clever Tricks to Avoid =-.
@Cindy – You got it, Cindy! The thing is, I stuck with this client because I really felt that I could help him out with all his problems. THAT’s another red flag right there. When we start feeling that we’re the one to save our client, we need to run fast, in the opposite direction!
@Erica – So sorry to hear that, Erica! Will your client agree to pay you in installments? Best of luck with that.
I’ve had this very same issue before. One recently was hurry up, hurry up, we are losing momentum on this project. Now I am sitting here with $1100 worth of work done and the client says ‘Oh, I can’t afford that. Why did you do so many?’
A. She told us to do 4 times as many as we did and we stopped the instant she told us to hold off.
B. She has been furious in the past if it takes me a few hours to respond to her emails but by goodness, she can take 10-14 days to respond to mine.
I hate to put a client into collections but I think this is where this one is headed.
.-= Erica Cosminsky´s last blog ..The Underwater Transcriptionist? =-.
Most of us have been there. It stinks how just one bad experience can leave you questioning your writing ability.
I’ve said “yes” to clients I knew in my gut I should have instead politely declined. And it’s always come back to bite me. I’m getting much better at recognizing the warning signs early on.
.-= Kimberly´s last blog ..Avoiding Deadbeat Clients =-.
@Kimberly – Oh yes, we should definitely listen to our instincts! Fortunately, as we get more experienced, our instincts get sharper and more accurate, too. The trick is learning when to “listen.”
@Marya – Thanks so much for sharing your own horror story! I am so relieved I’m not the only one. The experience was a big blow to my self-esteem initially, but I have recovered since then. I have enough clients — including some who are copywriters themselves — to keep me busy. I just felt really bad thinking this person would part ways with me thinking I was no good. But we can’t please everybody. By the way, Marya, my deposit is non-refundable and becomes the cancellation fee.
@Brandi – Yikes, you mean there’s more of them out there?!?! This client of mine took my increased rate as well, which was also part of the reason I wanted it to work. Well, we can only do our best, right?
@Hannah – We certainly should NOT take such abuse, no matter what.
I think any copywriter who’s been in business over a year has one of those. I’m no exception. Usually my copy is accepted with no (or occasionally the most minor revisions) – but in one case, I gave in and took on a micro-controller, who rejected everything I wrote in his sales letter, then told me how to write it. Followed his specs exactly for the revision, and he then turned around and went ballistic, in the rudest way, over the revision – for exactly the specific things he’d told me to do!
He was, of course, surprised and “stunned” when I turned him down cold, next time he blithely asked for more work.
Only thing I do differently from you is ask for a retainer rather than a deposit. Deposits are refundable; retainers are not. The client understands that they lose the retainer if they don’t like the work and refuse revisions, because the retainer pays for the time you commit and the space in your schedule you’ve slotted.
Cindy, I congratulate you for avoiding money-losing clients so far. Erica, that experience sounds like a total nightmare! DO put that client in collections, and don’t waste any more energy over them!
Thanks for sharing that experience, Lexi. I know what a great copywriter you are, and hearing that you’ve had that happen too makes me realize it’s just part and parcel of the freelance experience.
.-= Marya Miller´s last blog ..Mysteries of the Blogosphere =-.
Hi Lexi,
Actually so much of the same things happened to me, that I thought maybe we had the same difficult client. I think the lesson I learned in that scenario was to listen to my gut. I also had the feeling that this wasn’t a good fit. I tried to get myself out of it by increasing my rate, but he met it so I gave it my best shot. In the end, it was a difficult lesson to learn, but I got it! I’m not going to put myself through that again.
.-= Brandi´s last blog ..The Odd Ways I Found Jobs =-.
Many words of wisdom there, Lexi!
I once had a client that had all the warning signs you mentioned – constantly negotiating for a lower prices using emotive arguments, dodgy domain-parking business and no clear idea of what he actually wanted from me. I didn’t enjoy working for him but put up with it because I told myself I needed the money. After I finally stood my ground about better pay, he told me that my latest piece of work was ‘a piece of utter c***’ and ‘you must have been drunk or stoned when you wrote it’ (this was coming from a guy whose spelling and grammar was atrocious). Needless to say, his email was blocked and I learnt my lesson – no amount of money is worth that kind of abuse.
Thanks for a great article!
I’ve been fortunate thus far but these are great cautionary stories.
Great post – this hits on a topic that I seem to have trouble with at times. Good lessons and points to considers – thanks for sharing!
It’s brave of you to share your story, Lexi. I met someone a few months ago who asked ‘What if I don’t like what you write?’ That was a big warning bell. Luckily he was a start up (my rule of thumb – don’t work for start ups) and he didn’t have any budget to pay for copywriting. Mmm, I wonder why he got in touch in the first place??
.-= Carole Seawert´s last blog ..Procrastination – the great time stealer =-.
Hi Carole, I wouldn’t disregard startups altogether. I think there are some startup entrepreneurs who have integrity. What I see is that prospect of yours was afraid of risking his money and time, which is a reasonable fear to have. Our job as freelancers is to minimize the risk to our clients, as well as to ourselves. I still do believe that it’s possible for all parties to be happy in the end
I’ve been an architect for longer than I care to remember and I have had a number of projects head south over the years and the war stories here sound a lot like some of my experiences.
If I’m totally honest with myself though, I should have seen every single bad job one coming a mile away. My advice: trust your gut, it’s usually right. If the job doesn’t feel right at the first or second interview, it’s not likely to get better further on.
Why did I take what I knew in my heart of heart would be losers when I knew better (and still do once in a while)?
1. Inexperience when I first started out.
2. Ego. ( I can do this despite…….)
3. Rescue (These poor folks need me to save their project)
4. Falling for charm (He’s such a nice guy….)
5. Challenge (I really want this job for the challenge it poses)
6. Need the money ( I would have been better off writing the client a check for the fee instead and walking away)
Some of the red flags that should indicate absolute no-goes
1. undercapitalization
2. unrealistic expectations by the client
3. no clear objective
4. unwillingness to communicate openly
5. being more interested in the amount of insurance you carry than in your work (run away, don’t walk). A biggie for architects
Wolff, everything’s always clearer in hindsight
Thanks for sharing your wisdom!
Wow, great post Lexi. I was not entirely surprised by your experience – there are many alike out there. I would be lying if I said I have not also experienced this on one occasion.
Thanks for sharing, it’s a very valuable lesson that cannot be taught enough.
I especially agree with the “he didn’t have a clear direction for his business”. Bravo, you hit the nail on the head in solving most client-provider communication issues.
@clementyeung´s last [type] ..20 Website Conversion Optimization Tips For Your Business Website
@Clementyeung – Thanks, Clement, it really helps to know I’m not the only one