Feature Illustration by Darren Shaddick

Welcome to part two of our Disaster Artist series.

In part one, we traded cautionary tales with eight battle-tested creatives about the client catastrophes that nearly broke them, and the hard-won wisdom that got them through. 

Now it's time to get practical. Because let’s be real: if you've freelanced for more than five minutes, you've already experienced at least three of the disasters on this list.  From scope creep to stakeholder quagmires, consider this your survival guide to navigating client work without losing your mind (or your shirt).

 

1. The Scope Creep Shuffle:

What started as "a simple logo" is now a complete brand identity, illustration library, website prototype, and social media style guide; all for the same price.

Scrope creep is one of the most important reasons to have a contract in place before commencing any client project. It’s important to define not only the scope of a project but also what happens if the scope changes. Don’t assume the client understands that a logo is just a logo. You should always outline how increased scope affects the timeline and budget. Even if you’re certain of the scope, identifying your hourly rate for overruns or extras is a good fail-safe. Experienced creatives have a sixth sense for determining when a client will need more than “just a logo” and build add-ons into their pricing structure to turn small projects into long-term partnerships. 

2. The Infinite Revision Loop:

The client continually asks for "just one more tiny change," which results in an endless chain of soul-sucking amendments that break your spirit and budget. 

Again, this shouldn’t be a problem if your contract is tight. Clearly defined deliverables and timelines in your proposals are the best prevention for infinite feedback loops. As frustrating as it can be, there’s no rule against clients wasting your time with thought bubbles and stream-of-consciousness feedback as long as they are prepared to pay for it. If you don’t have a clause defining the number of rounds to be delivered and the cost of additional rounds, you’re inviting disaster. 

3. The Ghost Client:

The project starts, and then there is radio silence for weeks. Now, they suddenly resurface and want everything yesterday, while you’re under pressure not to hold up the project.

Three words: Project Restart Fee. Set clear timeline benchmarks in your contracts and proposals so everyone knows what’s expected of them. If a client isn’t providing feedback promptly or disappears while you twiddle your thumbs, they go to the back of the line when they resurface or incur rush fees to compensate you for dropping everything to deliver their work on time. It goes without saying that you should always be conscious of doing no more work than the deposit covers. For this reason, I like to get 50% up-front, 25% mid-project, and 25% on delivery. 

4. The "My Cousin Does Design" diss:

The client evaluates your work against the fruits of their amateur relative's hobby, or worse, asks you to jump on a call with them. 

You get a feel for these clients, so this type of nonsense should be filtered out before you finish your first Zoom call. But if such a situation still arises, communication is key. Politely asking why said cousin has not been engaged on the project is a great place to start, and the questions usually answer themselves (hint: they are a media-studies student who made a flyer for their friend's band in Canva once).

Keep your cool and don't let ego lead the way. If they are referencing anything specific about their relative/friend's work, try to get to the bottom of what they're actually vibing with. It's often something inconsequential, or they just want to show you that they have an opinion. However, if the client insists on undermining your expertise, your contract is your leverage. In the worst-case scenario, you invoke your kill fee clause and resign the client to enjoy their new ‘cousin-based’ design approach. 

5. The Totally Preventable File Corruption Fuckup:

Your hard drive corrupts, cloud sync fails, or you accidentally save over the final approved file right before deadline.

This one’s on you, kid. No data-loss disclaimer in your contract can save you now. Prevention is better than cure, and having anything less than two backups (one physical and one cloud-based) is non-negotiable in this game. If you can’t afford a spare backup drive and a subscription to Backblaze (not sponsored), you’re doing it wrong.

Look after your tools like they are your firstborn child. Keep your software up to date, regularly manage your iPad’s storage, don’t overload Photoshop with thousands of brushes or fonts you’re not using regularly, and update your drawing display’s firmware when prompted. Above all else, save regularly and keep two backups.

But if you find yourself in this particular spicy situation, it’s best to come clean with the client ASAP and be ready to work around the clock to rebuild their files from scratch. This is a no-win situation. Godspeed, soldier!

6. The "Can You Make It Pop?" Paradox:

The more vague the feedback they give, the less you understand what they actually want.

This issue most often stems from clients not having the language to articulate what they want clearly. It’s your job to help them.

Defining and refining the brief from the start prevents clients from going rogue with empty feedback that can’t fix the real problem. Ensure you know who is in charge on the client-side and have them sign off on the brief and any mood boards that help define the direction to be explored. Finally, set boundaries for how feedback should be delivered and by whom. There’s nothing more unhelpful than contradictory feedback coming from multiple sources in an email chain that just won’t quit.

If they still manage to deliver unhelpful or vague feedback, get on a call to hash it out face-to-face, then follow up with an email to get everything in writing once everyone is on the same page. 

7. The Payment Parasite:

You delivered your work on time, but now the invoice sits on an accountant's desk for months “in processing." Meanwhile, your client is pushing for new work to be delivered yesterday. 

No payment, no files. It’s that simple. Until clients can prove they can pay on time, their work should be supplied on a ‘full payment before delivery’ basis only. Things get a little tricky when dealing with multi-national organizations that typically pay suppliers on a 90 or even 180-day cycle (WTF?). In such cases, you should know what you’re signing up for and budget accordingly. Chances are, the New York Times will pay your invoice eventually, but you should weigh up the opportunity against how quickly you’ll see the cash in your account.

8. The Desperation = Disaster Principle

Your rent isn't gonna pay itself, so you accept a potentially sketchy project because you desperately need the money. Everything that can go wrong does go wrong. 

This might sound like some serious woo-woo shit, but the creative universe can smell desperation. Nothing will make a project go sideways faster than taking on work just to get paid ASAP. Do not ever give off that stank or let it cloud your judgment.

To look at it less esoterically, the moment you need cash and need it fast, you inevitably throw caution to the wind and take your eyes off the ball, inviting every disaster imaginable.

You:

• Convince yourself that those red flags are green lights.
• Rush to get started without asking the right questions.
• Make assumptions that are wrong.
• Fail to define the scope and timeline of the project properly.
• Miss essential steps in your contract or rely on loose verbal agreements.
• Race through the creative process to get the job done quickly.

As your career grows, you’ll learn to manage your budget and cash flow so you don’t have to take every job that comes along. But in the meantime, try to be mindful of your motivations and take extra care to minimise the risks of rushing in.

9. The Last-Minute Pivot:

You're 95% done when the client reveals their boss/mentor/investor hates the entire direction and wants to start over.

This is a no-brainer if your contract is tight with clearly defined kill-fees and progress payments. Invoice the work to date and send through a proposal with a new budget for the next project. It might be a bummer that they didn’t sign off on the direction you loved, but you can’t win 'em all. They’ll be forced to either re-evaluate the importance of the aforementioned boss/mentor/investor’s opinion and sign off on the original work, or you get paid for a new project. Win-win.

10. The Stakeholder Quagmire:

Seven stakeholders with seven different visions, all with equal authority and zero alignment.

Unless you spent the first 9 months of your life inside one of these stakeholders, do not allow yourself to be lured into this kind of project under any circumstances. It is a bottomless pit of despair that you may never emerge from. Zero stars. Would not recommend.

Read Part One Here

Real talk from industry-leading creatives, including James Martin, Aaron Draplin, Goodtype, Jacky Winter + more.