How to Handle Difficult Clients: Strategies for Freelancers | SOWT #3
This week, I had to deal with a difficult client. Instead of becoming angry and petty about it, I decided to write about how to handle difficult clients for my fellow freelance artists. No matter what kind of freelance business you're in, whether it's film, carpentry, plumbing, or sculpting, you will eventually have to deal with difficult clients. It's not that you have some kind of bad omen and only you get difficult clients; everyone has to deal with them once in a while. It's just the cost of doing business. Let me elaborate on my story…
STORY OF MISTAKES
(Skip to AVOID THEM for strategies, however the story will give you context to what I did wrong)
Film and art work, in general, are highly seasonal. You don't have much time to breathe during the summer, while you may only get two jobs over the course of four months in the winter. That's just the way it is. As someone who has been working in this field for over 7 years, I plan my finances around this seasonal nature of work. However, this winter has been more difficult than any other I have experienced before. Part of this is due to my recent move to a new place, and partly because businesses are afraid of the looming threat of a recession and are hesitant to spend money. In the month of February, I only had two clients: Client G (a good client) and Client D (a difficult client)
CLIENT G - A GOOD CLIENT
I had a 20-minute video chat with Client G about the project, and we quickly set up shoot dates. We were able to shoot everything in two days without any issues, and everyone involved (including the director, producer, and main company) was happy with the result. I charged my full day rate as a Director of Photography ($700/day, including equipment), and I was paid promptly within a week. Although I forgot to mention that I needed to rent a few additional items for the shoot in my initial estimate, I informed the producer after the shoot, and she kindly covered the extra costs without asking any questions. This is the kind of positive experience I have with most of my clients.
CLIENT D - A DIFFICULT CLIENT
Now, let me tell you about Client D, for whom I shot a week prior to working with Client G. Right from the start, I had a bad gut feeling about the project, but I went ahead with it anyway because it was low season and the client had the prospect of other upcoming projects that I could work on. The shoot was supposed to take place in January, but unfortunately, a tragic event occurred halfway through, and we had to cancel. These things happen, and sometimes they're out of our control (more on how to protect yourself below). However, the rental house didn't care, so I had to pay the equipment rental fee out of my own pocket. The client was willing to cover the rental fee, which was very nice, but I had to provide materials from what little payment I received. The rental fee came out to around $158, and I was only paid $200 for my work, which included providing 10+ edited images and 1 behind-the-scenes video ($200-$158= $42-%30 Tax = $29.4 - $12 parking - Gas - Picking up and dropping rentals, you get the point, basically I worked for free)
Client D had set up a new date for the shoot a month later but was only willing to pay $600, which meant that I had to pay for rentals, parking, gas, and everything else again. Additionally, they wanted me to cover the whole event again, even the part I had already covered before and provided materials for. I decided to go ahead with it, hoping that future prospects would pay for it in the long run. I filmed the show and started editing, and provided the first rough cut, 10+ edited pictures, and a new BTS video on the exact date mentioned on our contract. Then the difficulties began….
I received a text a few days later asking for all my raw photos and videos, which is not common practice unless mentioned in the contract (which it wasn’t). I had over 80+ raw images and out of those I chose the 15 best ones to edit and provide. I replied that I couldn't provide the raw files, but the client kept insisting it was common for their company. Eventually, I gave in (mistake) and provided the raw files, which took me over two hours to curate and upload (did not charge the client for it).
Then, a few days later, the client called to say they couldn't provide feedback on the agreed-upon date because they were busy. Against my better judgment and the contract, I gave them an extra week (mistake) because they were a small business. My contract outlines that any delay by the client to the agreed-upon timeline will incur an additional cost of at least $150 and $35/hr after that, which I waived for Client D.
One week had passed since I submitted the rough cut to Client D for their feedback. They finally provided me with their feedback on the last possible day. I worked as fast as possible to make the modifications and sent back the second rough cut. I continued to receive more feedback and worked on fixing all the issues except one, which was within the two revisions that were included in the contract. After completing the revisions, I provided them with the final rough cut before exporting. However, Client D continued to ask me over text (mistake) to fix that one single issue in the video, even though I had already explained to them that it was not possible within the given timeline. Now, the question arises whether it was possible to fix the issue or not. Of course, anything is possible in film, as James Cameron's created blue fish people out of actors wearing a chromakey bodysuit. However, given the allocated estimated amount of time for each project and the inability to veer off too much from the budget, it was not viable for me to fix the issue
Client D waited until the very last minute and did not provide feedback. So, I gave them an extra hour (unfortunately, another mistake) without charging extra costs as mentioned in the contract. Instead of appreciating this gesture, the client became passive-aggressive with me over text about the hard deadline. I finally realized what kind of client they were (a bit too late, unfortunately) and knew that I never wanted to work with them again. I texted them that they would be charged a minimum of $150 and $35/hour after that. For which I received a call 30min later from an angry, passive aggressive, unprofessional client, who not only did not see my kind guesters but blamed me for everything. I stayed on the line (which I shouldn’t have) and listened to an angry client sounding like school vice principal scolding their students for something they did lol. It was one of the most unprofessional conversation I had in my career. But I did not break and stayed professional and kept trying to resolve the issue. The Client told me all sorts of stuff including the classics “You will never make it in this industry” “This is not how you do business” “I have never worked with anyone like you”. Whenever I mentioned all the things I did despite not being mentioned in the contract the client would brush it off, get stuck, and divert the conversation by attacking me personally and my work (they loved my work few hours earlier but somehow it became bad within the span of few hours). I knew this was going nowhere and ended the conversation as soon as possible (they still managed to keep me on the phone for 25min).
So, let me recap the project. For $800, I provided the client with:
25+ edited photos
2 BTS videos
13 minutes edited videos (shot on two 4K cameras)
Raw videos and Raw photos
Taking $316 for rentals out of that, along with 30% tax, gas, and parking costs, I am left with around $280 for a project that took over 32 hours, including pre-production, travel, editing, and dealing with the client. That's $8.75 per hour for the service of a professional with 7+ years of experience. The minimum wage in BC is $15.65, and even working at McDonald's would provide health insurance. I could have avoided rental expenses by using a low-quality GoPro and gear I already owned, but I wanted to provide the best quality for the client, as I believe good work will pay dividends in the future...not all the time I guess haha
Now let me tell you how to avoid situations like this so you don’t have to go through this yourself.
AVOID THEM
The best way to deal with difficult clients is to try to avoid them in the first place. It's like they say, the best form of self-defense in a fight is to walk or run away from the situation. You don't want to be in a situation where you have to fight and defend yourself; that's the worst-case scenario. But here are a few ways to sniff them out.
ITS A GUT FEELING
This one comes with time and bad experience. Making mistakes in your professional (or personal) life is not a problem; they can be your best teacher. But not learning from them can become an issue. Over time, as you work, you will start having a natural gut feeling about how a client is going to be, even before you start working for them. I can't mention specific things to look out for because I want this to be accessible to freelancers across the board. You just have to be observant of certain traits of the client and sniff them out. However, one thing I can be specific about is to look out for the pay.
CHEAP CLIENTS COST MORE
When I started my freelance career, a veteran gaffer told me, “Your cheapest customers will be your most expensive ones.” I did not understand what he was trying to explain at that moment, but after 7+ years of working, I understand now. One very easy way to sniff out a difficult client is that they will most likely be very cheap. They count their pennies. If you have ongoing clients, try to remove the cheapest 20% every year, or in other cases, raise the minimum amount for your work every year. For example, I used to charge $100-$150 per day when I started, but every year I raise it as I gain more experience and equipment. Now I set my cutoff at $400 per day for my work. I only accept rates below this if the project is something I can use to leverage future work, if it's just for fun, or if it's a long block of work (let's say $250 per day, but for 3 weeks straight). I know for sure that if I accept any work below this rate, the client will most likely be a pain in the ass and cause me more headaches than it's worth. Cheap clients will pay nothing and expect everything. This takes me to the next most important thing you should do before accepting any sort of jobs.
SET EXPECTATIONS BEFORE SAYING YES
Anything and everything can be done with the proper budget, people, and time. But can it be done with a limited budget, people, and time? Before saying yes to a project, talk to the client and make sure they know what they will be getting for what they are paying. If they expect the world for $500, bring them down and explain that they will get a $500 product for $500. If they are not happy with the $500 product, walk away. You don’t want to be in a position where you build a $500 product but the client expects a $5000 product. You get what you pay for! I used to go above and beyond what I was paid for because I was so passionate about my work, but I realized this is not viable in the long run from a business point of view. As a creative, you want to create and put out the best product possible under your name, but you also have to balance it with the business side of things. If you don’t, you won’t be able to do this for very long. A veteran gaffer told me this on a film set: “Care as much as your head of department cares, not more, not less.” If the director is happy with the product, it's time to move on even if you don’t like it 100%. The best product is a completed product.
PROTECT YOUR SELF FIRST
Whether you're dealing with good clients, bad clients, long-term clients, big clients, or small clients, your first order of business should be to protect yourself. Clients will come and go, but you have to keep working. Protecting yourself is of utmost importance. You will not survive financially, physically, or mentally if you do not prioritize self-protection. Let me show you how to protect yourself as a freelancer.
CONTRACTS
Regardless of the size of the client, always write up a legally binding contract. If you don’t have one already, hire someone to write it or find online resources. This will be the best money you spend in your professional career. Make sure your contract includes specific details (there's no such thing as being too specific) and has quantitative elements to it. For example, instead of “Provide edited pictures to the client”, it could be more like “Provide 15 edited pictures to the client”. Make sure you provide a deadline to sign the contract and don’t leave it till the last minute. I could go on and on about the contract (or make a whole post about it) but the most important thing to remember is to NEVER EVER SWAY AWAY from what's written in the contract. LIKE NEVER! If you give them an inch, they will take a mile. Once you bend, they will keep pushing. Even if they promise you the world, DO NOT under any circumstances sway away from your contract. You can always add to the contract, but do not work outside it. The hassle of adding an extra section and getting it signed by both parties will prevent pushy clients from keeping on pushing. Good clients will rarely sway away from the contract because they not only respect you but also respect themselves by sticking to what they agreed upon.
NO TEXTING
NEVER EVER text your clients or answer texts from your clients. Texting gives the illusion to the clients that this is a personal relationship, as they may use text to communicate with friends and family, but it's not. This is a professional relationship, so always use email. I have had clients text me things they would never email. Also, this is a very telling sign that the client is unprofessional. I have never had good professional clients text me, only the cheap, difficult ones text. It's not a universal rule, but a very good indicator. If the client wants to get hold of you right away, tell them to call instead. People will rarely be rude or unprofessional in person or through a call, as there is a level of human connection. If they are rude over the phone, you already have your answer to what kind of person they are.
NOT YOUR BITCH!
Just because someone has paid you doesn't mean you are their bitch! This applies both ways - just because you paid for a coffee at a shop doesn't mean the barista is your bitch. Difficult clients often have the idea that because they paid you, you have to do whatever they say. But that's not true. They paid you for your service in exchange for money and that's it. A good professional client will respect your time and skills, but a bad client will act like they own you because they paid you $500. If they start pushing you, just say NO (I will talk about the power of NO in another post). If they continue to push, draw a line and don't cross it. And if they keep pushing, walk away.
STAYING PROFESSIONAL
One last thing I can recommend is to ALWAYS STAY PROFESSIONAL, no matter what the situation is. Don’t get petty over it; it's not worth your time. If a client yells, don’t yell back, just walk away or hang up. Difficult clients sleep at night thinking they are smarter and cooler than you because they saved $16.35 on a product. Don’t stoop to their level; then we have two unprofessionals instead of one. If it does not impact your bottom line, make them think they are right, get your money, and walk away. If it does impact your bottom line, see how much it impacts and calculate if it's worth the hassle of chasing it. I usually let go of things if the margin of loss is 10-25%; it's just the cost of doing business. Losses happen, nothing personal.
THE MOST IMPORTANT
You have to remember that at the end of the day, if you want to continue doing creative freelance work, you have to take care of yourself first. Taking care of yourself is the most important aspect of your business if you want to do this for 30 or 40+ years. Clients will come and go, but you will remain. No client is too big for you to break yourself for. If you keep this in mind and respect your own rules, you will position yourself in a place where no one client can make or break you. You won’t become rich overnight, but you also won’t burn out and lose your business overnight. Longevity is way more important than short-term success.
This week, I finished a cool piece of art that I believe is simple yet effective. I used very simple colors and assets. I am happy with how it turned out!
You can visit my website for the full high quality version - AL AMIN: AK47 - SLAVE OF GOD
I would consider bending and breaking my own rules for Client D a major L for myself. However, I believe it's better to make mistakes like this on small projects and learn from them, rather than messing up on a large project. It is what it is, fuck up, learn, move on!
Finally found something on Netflix worth watching. Check this documentary out by Emma Sullivan, great story teller.
Unfortunately, I did not have time to take photos this week, so here is an old photo I took last month.
Thank you so much for taking the time to read this. I felt like this weeks post was a bit too long but its hard cramming complicated topics into a small paragraph. I hope you got something beneficial out of this stack.
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