I was helping out with a social media campaign for a camping equipment company; they hire and sell new and used equipment and run a neat little Facebook group connected to their main page.
Client: We need to update the buyer’s guide on our website for this item, it’s a bit out of date – maybe create a post in the group asking what we should include?
Same client, a week later: Why did you put that post up asking about the buyer’s guide? I had to delete it – it makes us look clueless!
I’m a wedding videographer. I get all sorts of interesting requests, but one in particular had me baffled.
Client: So this package option does not include editing?
Me: Oh no, it does include editing. That’s why the end result is a film.
Client: But this video on your site, was that edited?
Me: …yes, all of the films on our site have been edited.
Client: Even this one I’m looking at?
Me: Yes. The background music wasn’t playing live, haha.
A few minutes later:
Client: So the packages don’t include any editing.
Me: …they all include editing.
Client: Will my video be edited?
Needless to say, she did not hire us. I still have no idea if she knows what editing means.
Strap yourselves in, this is a client and agency from hell..
A few years ago, I was working for a creative agency, and a job came in from one of our biggest clients. They wanted a very high end brochure designed and printed for an exhibition on the other side of the world.
This job came in via my then boss and the account director, who told me everything was good to go, all agreed, budget set aside, ways of working signed etc. It was not my job to get involved in that, that was client services' responsibility, so I had no reason to question it.
I met with the clients and we scoped out what was needed. They wanted every print finish under the sun, and it worked out needing a four week print scheduled, and a further two weeks delivery to ensure it went through customs in time. I drew up a watertight plan with key milestones, review dates etc, everything they would need, and explained the risks of missing these dates, of not being able to do proper QA if time is restricted, all the usual. They said fine, they agreed to everything, off we went.
Of course, the client then chose to completely ignore that. Emails were unanswered, phone calls and voicemails ignored. We even turned up at her office frequently with bundles of proofs for her to check, only to be told 'she's out for the day'. On one occasion, a member of the project team had to wait in reception for three hours before the client left a meeting and finally gave her some time, and she was annoyed at us for "distracting her."
I raised concerns with my boss, saying this was getting out of hand and it needs intervention, or the project scrapping as it was now getting too risky.
I was told it would be fine.
The four week print production ended up being two weeks owing to the client constantly ignoring requests to review/sign off. This also meant the entire day set aside for proofreading/QA (there was a lot of technical spec in the brochure) ended up being 30 minutes. We could check hardly anything and just had to go with what we had.
As a failsafe, I had a number of brochures sent directly to the client's house in case the main consignment was held at customs she could take them in her luggage so they at least had something. I told her the printer would deliver them personally between 12:00 and 13:00 and she said great. I then had a call from the printer to say no one was in. I subsequently discovered she decided to pop out for a haircut during the agreed delivery time.
The brochures got delivered on time, after many late nights and pushing the printer to the limit to get it done. A few days later, we received a very angry email from the client. There was a mistake in the brochure, something we would have easily spotted if able to do proper QA. We all got on the phone and I suggested we get a local printer to print a card of the erroneous page so they at least have that page of correct tech spex, not ideal but better than not having it. She then informed us that as she was so angry at this, she had ordered all of the brochures to be destroyed.
I told her there was nothing we could do in that case, you have destroyed the product that took months to produce, we can't get more done in a few days, so she wanted a refund on the printing.
We had an internal meeting shortly after and I said there is no way we should even entertain refunding this. We gave them a solid plan and they ignored it, we tried to contact them so many times and were ignored, all the risks were ignored, they didn't listen to a thing we said and to top it off, pulped the brochures before even talking to us about a solution. I noticed the account director was being quiet and asked for her thoughts. She told us she had already emailed the client, agreed to the refund, said we would take full responsibility and that we would review out own practices as clearly we were in the wrong.
It took a good minute before I was able to speak again to ask why the hell had she done that. I was told it put us in a good place for future business. I also then discovered that all of this was agreed over a boozy dinner one night. Nothing had been contractually agreed at all, it was all say-so.
You know what? They never worked with them again.
And neither did I.
I agreed to help redesign a brochure and business cards for a company and asked my client to send me the most recent design files because they wanted a similar design in the redesign.
I got a forwarded email from my client that included the files AND a bonus conversation with the company’s previous designer:
Client: Hey homes. Sorry to be such a pain in the a but can you send me the brochure and the business cards files you made for us so I can forward them on to a less talented designer to do some modifications and redesigns for us?
I couldn’t wait to get started!
After three re-designs of his web site, I asked the client for pictures he’d like to have on the front page because I wasn’t selecting appropriate stock images.
Client: The plane on the front page doesn’t work.
Me: That’s one of the images you sent.
Client: That plane is an X47575793 [or something]. That’s a newer plane. I need an older plane to be the main image. A plane from the Cold War.
Me: …
Client: I think we need to find a different rocket as well.
Good thing I studied the Cold War so thoroughly. /s
Note to clients: if you're the expert on your content, don't expect your designer to be. Just give them the correct #$%&ing material from the beginning!
The client requested a 33-year anniversary logo for the company. After some back and forth he selected one route that suited the Board of Directors but he wanted to tweak it a bit.
Client: Just connect the 3 to make it look like a heart.
Revision 01. add line to show 'heart shape.’
Client: It doesn’t work, split it so it looks more 33 and easier to read.
Revision 02. add wider space in between so it could be easily read as 33.
Client: Make the line skinnier.
Me: But won’t that just make it look like the original logo, before revisions?
Client: Just do it and let’s see.
Revision 03. submit the original logo.
Client: This is perfect.
Years ago, I was hired to do design a website. The budget was already modest, but I agreed to do it because it was an interesting topic, and we agreed for it to be a very minimal one-pager.
After I designed and delivered the website to the client (sent them html/css project folder and graphics), I found myself involved in this uncomfortable situation:
Client: My website isn't there.
Me: As I told you, you have to register domain and pay hosting.
Client: I told you I have only budget for this project. That means I need to subtract those costs from your payment. I wanted a website design, and you've only given me a design, no website. That is on you. You'll have to return a percentage of your fee in order for me to buy domain and hosting.
Me: ...
Me: No.
I worked on some motion graphics for a client that wanted to make a product pitch. After working on it for 3 weeks, and redoing it for five times (they were always promising it's THE LAST LITTLE THING - spoiler alert: it never was, it was a complete new idea/direction I'd have to implement), the following happened.
Me: This is the latest version of the video, with all the final changes you have asked for.
Client: Um, no. It's not all of it.
Me: How come? Everything that we that we agreed in written is delivered.
Client: The xxxxxxxx graph is missing, and it is crucial for understanding our product!
Me: But, I don't have any info on that in your documents.
Client: No, you don't! It is a top secret project that we need hidden in order to protect our product!
Me: So, you expect me to design something that you never told me about exists?
Client: You just had to ask for it! Next time, don't hesitate!
I was once hired by a marketing agency whose client was opening a new restaurant and needed a full branding package. We worked out color palettes and brand fonts, and as part of that process, I used a sample AI file that came with one of the fonts to show an example of the type and colors with their name.
When we got to the logo design phase, the client rejected every option presented. When we tried to pin down what the objections were, he just kept going back to the sample file saying "I want that."
We both tried to explain to him repeatedly that a) it wasn't a logo, and b) was a sample file that came with the font. He refused to listen or consider anything else. He asked us to add a few elements to it and insisted that was what he wanted.
It came to a choice between the marketing agency losing the restaurateur client entirely and ruining my relationship with the marketing agency, only to have him just hand the image to someone else to have them reproduce it, or giving him what he asked for. The project manager and I eventually relented.
Months later, after all of the signage and collateral materials were printed, he came across the font package and the sample image online, and proceeded to tell people that I had passed off someone else's work as my own.
We should have just walked away.
On our local photography page a woman posted about needing a photographer for a pin-up event in a few months. I do primarily boudoir and pin up so I was quick to shoot her a message and quote hoping to book with her.
Client: If you want space at the event, it is $X but if you offered your services for free to the girls we wouldn’t charge you to be there.
Me: I don’t mean to be rude but usually events hire a photographer for their services. That’s like asking a caterer to pay you to serve food to you.
Client: this is a very big event!