Issued by: Freelancentral


If a client is giving you constant headaches, it might be worth cutting your losses and looking for a new, better quality client instead. Of course, if all of your clients are problematic, you may need to consider that the common denominator is actually you!

You might want to consider resigning a client if:

1. It takes more time to get money out of the client than it does to do the actual work. They're only clients if they actually pay you for your time and services. Get a deposit up front so that you don't end up empty-handed and implement milestone-based payments. Put robust terms and conditions in place. Include a cancellation fee. And don't feel shy about phoning to ask where your payment is - if you don't push for it, you may never get paid.
2. It takes longer to manage the client than it does the work. Chasing for feedback, sending constant reminders, repeatedly having to ask for content - all these take time and if you can't charge the client for these extra hours, you're running at a loss. Find a more organised, responsive client instead.
3. You're asked to do something unethical or illegal. Sounds a little dramatic? We're not talking capital offences here, but things like plagiarism and using photography or music without paying for licenses. Do the honourable thing.
4. The client constantly quibbles over your costs. Win a client on price and expect to lose that client on price too. Rather find clients who will see the value in what you do - and consider how you can communicate this better. If you are making next to no margin on a client's projects consistently, is it really worth continuing the relationship, or could you better spend that time looking for higher quality clients?
5. The work is mind-numbingly boring. Freelancers in particular will, at some stage or another, accept bread-and-butter jobs that are not particularly exciting. They help pay the bills. Work towards building a diverse portfolio of interesting clients and once you can jettison the dull ones, do it.
6. You've moved on. If the focus of your services has changed and you're only hanging on to a client because of a historical relationship, consider outsourcing the work to reliable freelance colleagues, rather than doing it yourself. Free yourself up to work on your core offering.
7. The client is stressful to deal with. They may pay well and on time, and the work can be stimulating, but if the client him/herself is unpleasant, has no respect for your expertise, is overly-demanding or constantly has ridiculous deadlines that erode any semblance of your social life, think about whether you want to continue the relationship. This one may be salvageable with open and honest communication and the re-setting of expectations.

If you want to ditch a client, well, there are ways and means of doing this, but your first consideration should be whether you're happy to burn bridges, or if you want to keep the door open for future potential work (you might feel differently if you have a few months' break from them!). Also consider that your industry might be small and you don't want to develop a bad reputation.

In all dealings with clients, politeness, respect and courtesy go a long way - as does honesty. If you're thinking of sacking one of your clients, these behaviours are all the more important.

Here is a selection of ways of letting a client go:

1. Drama, drama, drama. This involves shouting, swearing, slamming down phones and storming out of offices. Includes phrases like ‘never work for you again if you were the last client on earth'. Not recommended.
2. Stop returning calls. Don't respond to a client's voicemail and emails and eventually they'll get the message, right? Well, yes they will - but they'll also think you're extremely rude. Also not recommended!
3. Make yourself unavailable. You're so sorry, but you can't take on their project this week because you're reeeeally busy. Funnily enough, you'll be really busy next week too, and the week after... Effective, if you want to be passive-aggressive about it - and less offensive than not returning their calls. As cowardly as that guy you dated who stopped returning your calls.
4. Brutal honesty. Tell them you just don't want their business anymore - but also tell them why. Do it tactfully, unemotionally and, if you can, offer alternatives - like referring them to someone else.
5. The grown-up way. Be an adult and call a meeting with the client to explain that you're not happy with how things are working and to see if the situation can be resolved. The client might not be aware of the problem and might be quite amenable to changing if they truly value your contribution - and if you bring the matter up in a professional way. Possibly no sacking required after all.

If you've handled this sort of situation in the past - either well or poorly - do tell us about it in the comment area below.

Jo Duxbury is a freelance writer and editor - and the founder of Freelancentral, an online directory of over 3,300 freelancers in South Africa's creative and IT industries.

Visit our PRESS OFFICE: Find creative and IT talent online in South Africa's most popular online directory of freelancer portfolios: Freelancentral.co.za or brief our offline Placements team to find the right freelancer for you.- more....

[15 Oct 2008 10:21]

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