Category: Designers Working With
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With the first question in the Designers WW series, I asked, “As a professional designer, what are the main points you want clients (potential and present) to know before contacting you about a project?”
The next logical step was to ask about client problems, if any, with “When working with clients, what do you see as the top problem areas?”
Adrian suggests poor communication
The projects that I have worked on that “blew up” seem to all suffer from poor communication between me and the client. It can be difficult for a non-design person to understand what you are doing, and if you aren’t communicating well, disaster is inevitable. I think many good designs never get off the ground because the designer assumes that the client is sensitive enough to recognize a good idea when they see one. Part of our jobs as designers is to educate our clients.
Adrian E. Hanft | Art Director | Photographer
Be A Design Group | Found Photography | Adrian3
Andy says it’s unrealistic or inflated expectations
The two main client issues I see occurring on a regular basis are unrealistic or inflated expectations, and the tendency to offer solutions rather than outline problems.
The majority of clients have little or no experience in building a website which is why they come to design professionals for help. There is a popular misconception that web design is easy, and this is something that has been propagated by tools manufacturers and educators over the years. Because of this, many clients have unrealistic expectations when it comes to budget, timeframe and features.
As web professionals, it is our job to manage our clients’ expectations and make sure they understand exactly what they will be getting as a result of the design process. Unfortunately in the rush to sell services and win pitches, agencies often over promise and under deliver. This may win clients in the short term, but in the long term they will be left feeling short changed. I think it is much wiser to under promise and over deliver. That way clients will always be delighted with the work you produce.
Good communication at the start of the project is vital as it allows you to manage client expectations. It is also an opportunity to set some ground rules and explain to clients exactly how the design process will work.
Design is all about creative problem solving. In an ideal world your clients will define the problems they are facing, and then you will come up with the best solution to solve those problems. However people are naturally helpful and clients really enjoy getting involved with design projects. As such, rather than coming to you with a problem to fix, clients will often come to you with one of several possible solutions and ask you to implement them. Examples of this could be anything from a client suggesting that a button needs to be made bigger, through to recommending functionality like a blog or a forum. In these situations, it is important to understand that the client recommendation is just one possible solution to a much deeper problem, and it is your job to examine what that problem is, look at all of the available solutions, and then suggest the best one for the job.
To avoid these situations, it is important to explain the design process up front and make sure your client is explaining what the problems are rather than simply offering one of several solutions. That way your client will get the most out of your design knowledge and the project has a much higher chance of success.
Andy Budd | Managing Director | Web Designer | Author
Andy Budd::Blogography | CSS Mastery
Brian offers a list
- Proofing. Clients just
don’t proof their copy.- Unreasonable expectations: yes it can be done, but are you willing to pay for it?
- Clients don’t always understand that our expertise is valuable, and that our time is therefore billable. If you want to ask for our opinion or input, you must therefore value it. Please be willing to pay for it.
- Clients who claim expertise because they have experience in some sort of marketing. More and more, if a client contact isn’t a communications professional, then I anticipate that the project may not go smoothly, and there will be frustration on both sides.
Brian Sooy | Design Consultant
Brian Sooy & Co | Altered Ego Fonts
Chris doesn’t design on a dime
I have to go back to price again. Whether I’m proposing a website or a business card, there’s always a client who says “Well, I can get it 10x cheaper at We Do Cheap Design.com” And they’re right, they can, but where will that company be when the client needs something ASAP? Will they answer their emails right away or just sound out a blank response telling the client that they’ll get back to them very soon?
Not knowing exactly what they want before approaching a designer. I’ve had clients unsure about the color scheme or metaphor of their website, to the client who is not sure how many business cards s/he even needs or wants. I’m not saying designers shouldn’t do a bit of leg work and research, but feedback from the client _prior_ to developing the product/project is very important.
I’m not going to design on a dime. And I mean this as in Spec work. As a “noob”, it’s tempting for me to do whatever I can to help a client get their product. But when asked to sketch out ideas or present some comps with little or no information, I’m not going to do it. I have a customer right now who wants some refrigerator magnets for his annual event. He’s not real sure what he wants, how many, what colors or even the content he wants to include. He asked that I come up with 2-3 ideas and then we can meet and figure it out. I told him no and asked that we have more information before we design/develop anything.
Chris Tomlinson | Communication Designer | Printer
Gonink | Gonink blog
Daniel feels clients are not clear
The two most common, frustrating and damaging problems is that clients have preconceived notions that are actually at odds with what they want to accomplish, and the fact that they aren’t clear about what they want to accomplish.
- Preconceived notions. Clients want a logo or web site that looks like someone else’s or even looks like something they have in their head–it’s blue and it has circles and over here there’s a picture of a donkey wearing a crown… I have to disabuse them of these notions, because the look of something should only come after it’s really clean to them, and everyone else, what they want to say. Which leads to point 2.
- Clients hand you lemons and expect you to make wine. Creatives need something to work from. The more specific, concise and focused the client is about their needs, the more creatives can meet them. These have to be specific, and within reason.
- Creating graphics for themselves instead of their clients and potential clients. Design may be about you, but it’s for your potential and current customers. Customers want to know, “What’s in it for me, and why am I bothering with you?” as quickly and clearly as possible. It’s more important what your target market thinks–than whether you, or your 13 year old like it (unless the target market is you or your 13 year old son).
- Unrealistic expectations, deadlines and budgets. Time. Money. Results. You’ve got to be clear about all three up-front, and if your client is unrealistic, it’s your job to to set them straight now, or they’re just be angry or disappointed later.
Tell them a reasonable timeframe, and if they need it much faster, make sure they know the additional cost.
Explain that “It’s not reasonable to expect your new logo, as fabulous as it is, to turn you into IBM overnight. A good logo is a vital building block, but you have to market it so it becomes familiar and this takes time and money.”
Or, “Yes, the new web site is utter and complete genius, but it still may take 3-6 months of marketing and promotion before people start finding it, unless you want to buy tattoo space on Britney Spears (that real estate value has gone down in recent months) in which case you’ll get a lot of traffic, but maybe not the kind you’re looking for.”
Or, “Yes, it would be great to have Norman Rockwell design those icons but 1) he’s dead, and 2) if he weren’t he’d be outside your budget.
I wrote How to, and not to work with a designer for clients everywhere, and designers everywhere are sending it to their clients. You can read it, and point your clients to it.
Daniel Will-Harris | Communication Designer
Will-Harris House | Schmoozeletter
Danita sees a lack
- Lack of understanding the value of design.
- Lack of understanding the process.
- Lack of consistency and importance of Branding.
Danita Reynolds | Communication Designer
Creative Expertise | Creative Expertise blog
Dan says less is more
Generally I have better success with more experienced clients. With a less experienced client I spend more time managing the expectations of the project, where as the more experienced client the expectations are closer to reality, and easier to meet or exceed.
Dan Sturdivant | Communication Designer | Editor
TexasDesign.com
Dawn went for client education
While I don’t have a problem justifying the value of design to clients now, I can certainly remember when it was a challenge for me, because I used to look at it as “client education” when instead all it really is is a sales presentation. Once I looked at it that way, it was much easier to sell. I can see where design/dollar justification is a huge concern to newer designers entering the market. How do they compete with the “cheapo design online” when they haven’t been able to cultivate their business/presentation skills? We’re never going to get rid of the lowballers, so designers better know how to SELL themselves. (Sidenote: If a designer doesn’t know how to sell then how can they be effective? It’s the business we’re in, we sell our clients’ products or services everyday, don’t we?)
Clients who don’t understand the importance of consistency—even after I’ve tried to educate them. I have clients who will hire me to manage their brand/message, then do things on their own that completely go against it. It creates customer confusion and an overall weakening of the brand. Why hire me if you’re going to go against my advice?
Clients who can’t make up their mind. Let’s get a gameplan together, and stick to it. Quit second-guessing every little thing and then change the focus mid-stream, it just muddies the original intent and increases the chances for failure.
Clients who don’t offer up information. (As designers we need to ask the leading questions to get the answers we need.) I have problems with long-time clients who just want to send me something and say “work it up” because they think I should instinctively know what they want by now, and I in turn think they should know what I need by now. Catch-22. :)
Dawn Burgess | Communication Designer
abdfla.com
Metin needs trust
I dislike clients who give me the feeling that they don’t have enough trust in my capabilities, by continually trying to guide me and constantly checking out what I have done so far. Also, clients who have the biggest mouths are usually the worst payers.
Metin Seven | Communication Designer
Seven’s Heaven - design and illustration
Neil wants a clear picture
Changes, at or near the end of a project, can be very problematic. They often require work outside of the scope of the original specs, resulting in increased costs for the client.
Not having a clear vision of what they’re trying to accomplish is another problem and often results in changes mentioned above.
Another problem can be a client who isn’t willing to go through the process. Some seem to think we pull this stuff out of the air. Although a winning design can come in a flash of inspiration, more often than not, it takes time to explore potential solutions.
One more problem can be dropping the ball in the middle of a gig. Both clients and designers can be guilty of this. At the onset, there a lot of energy, but somewhere in the middle people get busy, fires crop up that need to be put out and life, in general, happens. The problem part is not communicating to the other party that there’s going to be a delay. When that happens trust may begin to fall apart. Trust is critical to the client/designer relationship.
Neil (nt) Tortorella | Marketing Manager
Tortorella Design | The Marketing Mind | Creative Latitude | BoDo Team | Marketing Minute
Nigel says clients don’t read
I’ve been told many times by clients that my project briefs are the most professional that they’ve ever seen. By this, I think they mean that they like the font I used or the way I laid out the headings, because I’m constantly amazed by how few clients have actually read the content. I keep having to point out that the number of changes allowed for within this budget are stipulated within the brief, or that images and copywriting is not included.
Other things:
- The deadline for payment is not a suggestion.
- And, no, I won’t assume that the deposit is in the mail and begin working anyway.
- I don’t spend all day sitting in front of my computer, watching it execute designs; I do actually have some input.
Nigel Gordijk | Web Designer | Consultant
Common Sense Design | Common Sense Small Business Toolkit | Creative Latitude
Roger wants clients to focus on marketing issues
One of the biggest problems is that clients tent to approach design issues from an aesthetic, rather than a marketing point of view. They’re more concerned with colors, typefaces, and “fitting everything in,” rather than marketing issues like “What is the message?” and “Why should they care?”
Lack of organization can be another major roadblock to a smooth client relationship. Often, projects are assigned before the copy is written and approved, leading to frustrating delays and wasted effort. Depending on the terms of the project, this lack of organization will either result in higher feeds, or the designer losing money (and sleep!) on the project.
Projects proceed smoothly where a single individual has received delegated authority to speak on the client’s behalf, and the client has reasonable expectations for reasonable design and production costs.
Closed minds are another significant hindrance to successful relationships. An unwillingness to listen to new ideas signals trouble ahead. It reduces the designer’s role to simple production, rather than a creative search for solutions to satisfy the client’s needs.
Unreasonable expectations and the “last bullet” scenario are clues to client problems in the making. If a client leads me to think that their entire survival depends on project’s success, it’s probably not a project I want to get involved with. No matter how good the project performs, it probably will not be enough to pay off all the client’s outstanding bills and provide a launch pad for future success. There’s no substitute for due diligence and careful listening to clues to the client’s financial situation.
Roger C Parker | Designer | Writer | Marketing Consultant
Design To Sell Online | Roger C. Parker Design to Sell Blog | Design to Sell
Scott is crystal clear
Communication and responsiveness.
Communication is a key principle in design in the first place and presenting ideas, concepts and designs to clients can be challenging at times, especially when clients have a preconceived notion of what they think they need. A related problem is the client wanting something in terms of the design or functionality (in the case of web site/application) because they don’t like it. They forget or misunderstand who the real people things should be geared towards — the final end-user/audience.
While I feel that it’s important the client is happy with the work, it’s more important that it is appealing to the target audience. Being mostly focused on the web, this is a harsh reality that some clients have a hard time grasping and a harder time letting go of. As a designer, I feel it’s my job to advocate for the user, for the people who will actually interact with a website, application or print ad. It comes down to the client hiring you because you’re the expert. But everyone wants to art direct. It comes down to knowing which battles are worth fighting and knowing when to just play along.
Scott Boms | Communication Designer
Wishingline DS
Stefan sees a need for education
Some of our top problem areas when working with clients begins with many clients not understanding the value of great design. That by enhancing the image of their company using great design they will receive a very high return on investment. Too many clients are worried about the cost of design even though the return they receive from it will be ten fold. We also run into the problem of clients who want too much control. In those cases, if they can’t stand back and let us do our job, then we won’t work with them. They have to trust us to have their best interests in mind.
Also, we run into many clients who fail to come to us with a serious budget. Often times they put great design at the bottom of their budgets at the beginning of the year and are forced to try to get cheap design. Cheap and design really should never exist in the same sentence.
Appropriate timelines can also become a problem. Many clients do not understand that great design takes time, thought, and many versions before the final idea is selected for presentation. Plus, printing itself and/or the implementation of that design can take weeks.
There is often a great need for serious education about how we work in order for clients and designers to work in harmony. This kind of educating often ads time to every project because clients aren’t familiar with the process.
Stefan Bean | President/Creative Director
Pulse Creative Partners, Inc. | BoDo Author | Bean’s Biz
Tamar touches on lack of information and lost deadlines
Lack of information. Many clients appear to know just enough to be difficult. They think that what looks good online will look fine in print. They don’t understand that good, effective design takes much more than a few mouse clicks. And they think nothing of pointing to something that already exists, and saying, “I want that.” Copyright infringement never enters their mind.
Not adhering to deadlines. They think that even if they get their information to me late that I’ll work double time to stick to the original deadline. Again, we’re designers, not magicians. If the client makes me wait on something for a week, chances are the whole project will be delayed by a week.
Nickel and diming. It clearly states in my contract that the prices are an estimate only, and anything over 10% of the original estimate will require approval from the client. So why get in a huff over $10 or $20 (even though I get approval for EVERY charge over the original estimate)?
Not knowing what they want…but knowing that they’ll “know it when they see it.” We are designers, not mind-readers. If you can’t, or aren’t willing to share your ideas/thoughts/concerns, etc., then we can not effectively do our job, and we’re just wasting each other’s time.
Tamar Wallace | Communication Designer
Tamar Graphics | Tamar Graphics blog
Von’s answer is short and sweet
- Communication
- Reliance on tools rather then creativity
Von R. Glitschka | Illustrator
Glitschka Studios | IllustrationClass.com | Art Backwash | Three Thumbs Up Award
Summary
What do you do with the client who has unrealistic or inflated or unreasonable expectations, unrealistic deadlines and budgets, doesn’t adhere to deadlines, believes the deadline for payment is a suggestion, thinks the sentence ‘the deposit is in the mail’ actually means something, has a lack of understanding when it comes to the value of design, nickel and dimes, drops the ball in the middle of a gig, doesn’t offer information, has poor communication skills, does not have a clear vision, doesn’t know what they want, has preconceived notions, can’t make up their mind, doesn’t understand the importance of consistency, doesn’t understand the process, has an unwillingness to listen to new ideas, approaches design issues from an aesthetic (rather than a marketing) point of view, designs by committee, lacks organization, isn’t willing to share ideas/thoughts/concerns, offers solutions rather than outlines problems, wants too much control, lacks consistency and importance of Branding, hands lemons and expects wine, is unwilling to go through the process, relies on tools rather then creativity, doesn’t proof copy and misunderstands copyright infringement?
Sometimes you run. Sometimes you educate. It’s all in the degree of the problem really. Mostly, you are patient and understanding. You educate. You communicate. And sometimes, you slap them with a PITA charge.
If you are at the end of your rope with nowhere to go but out of the working relationship, you could send them the Clients Guide to Professional Conduct in the Design Industry. But that’s not even a ‘don’t try this at home’ suggestion as we’ve never done it ourselves. It sure has been tempting though.
In the coming posts we’ll tackle solutions to basic client problems. But if you have specific questions on dealing with problem clients, our very own Jay will field all at Ask jay. In case you weren’t watching, just this past Thursday she posted a timely Four steps to a client contact policy.
until the next
Designers WW,
cat
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