Some days, I wonder why I even do this work...
 

Because I'm starting to feel like as the designer/developer, I'm the one who takes it in the pants. :(

Back-story:
A colleague asks me to design a site for him. Initial quote is about $1500, told him I do work hourly and for the scope of the project (at the time) it was on par. This last week was the final stretch of the development side which I finished last night at about 3AM. Yeah... I do this plus my day job :eek: Friday I had given my total hours (at that point) and reminded my colleague the rate at which I bill. Keep in mind for the last 2-3 weeks on this I hear "Don't worry about the money, you know I'm good for it." I believed it to be no issue.

Today I hear otherwise... Looks like he thought the original price was $1000 even (built to price). Now I feel totally sh**y over this. This colleague is a highly trusted resource and I do not want to sour this deal.

How do I make this guy happy, but not lose my butt in the process? I still gotta recoup for my time investment but I want to make sure he doesn't walk away feeling like he got the shaft.

Thanks!

If he feels the same about you as you feel about him then you'll meet in the middle.

Did you give him anything in writing that said $1500?

Can you lower your price a little bit and still make a little bit?

You have a day job. Take what you can get and move on.

If he is a great resource, he will eventually make it up to you.

I do freelance work too - if you told him $1500 - and you have it in writing, remind the client that this was the agreed upon price - however, if it is too much for him to pay, you would be willing to work with him on the price because he is a friend/colleague.

Your time has a very real value - sometimes people see freelancers who have a 'day job' as someone who doesn't really 'need' the money - so they will push on the price.

I hear ya gents... I'm trying to work on him with the price, looks like they'll stick to the original offer but considering I've got a guarantee for more work in the future, I'm going to write off the rest.

Just provide him with a final "paid" invoice with the real total, showing the N/C for the difference (over and above the original $1500).

Part of the danger in accepting the $1,000 is you set a pricepoint for future work of a similar nature/scope.

Saving the client never ends well.

Brando what's worth more to you.... the earnings on this job or what the client represents for your future work?

Flattbutt, most definitely the future. It's like a gateway drug err job... There's a lot more ($$$) in the pipeline after this. After discussing it with the "business manager" (aka woman) we figured it's worth it to let this one go for a hit and keep the long view in mind.

Learn from it, and add it to the list of things not to let happen in the future.

Clear, concise contracts, even in a simply worded letter, and a paper/email trail, go a LONG way when it comes time to have the accounts settled.

Even a polite followup email to verbal communication goes a long way.

I don't get it:

You quoted $1500
He heard $1000
Now you need more than $1500

Did you quote in writing? Then I'd get the $1500 and remind him that you work hourly - with the $1500 only an initial estimate. This time you'll let it slide.

I am sure people hear small numbers all the time - on purpose. Sounds to me like the guy may have been playing you. Just make sure you have your back in the future.

George

I'd guess that he quoted a "guesstimate" based on his hourly rate, assuming a time and materials job, whereas the client heard $1000, and assume a spec job.

We have the few jobs that the price gets changed at the end. We grit our teeth and do it. We make a note on their account and make sure to jack up every other little charge like shipping, and we add a few fees to their next few jobs. We always get our money back from the cheapskates.

+1

Given how this deal is shaking out, is this a client you want MORE business from?

It's Monday morning... I try to start monday by looking at the last week and seeing if there are any clients I need to ditch. Bad clients hog time (and income) from good ones.

I have 3 calls to make to "pass on" these clients to my competitors. Then I spend a couple hours calling my "A list" clients thanking them for their business and referrals over the past couple years. I get better clients that way than I do by selling myself short

I consider it a marketing cost, after all he's bringing you work. You are not out there hunting for the work which saves you a lot of time and money.

Then again, I'm not the best business guy, more talent than business brass.

He will keep doing this to you, when your bottom gets too sore just walk away and find a new better client.

Take cash, remainder over time.

I like this one and just bump up the price a bit on future work. The problem with this, is he may think you can always come down 33%.
Don't say anything now, but on future bids when he tries to bring you down on price. Just say no, I did that last time and now I have to charge full price.
If he likes your work he will pay it.

You'll get your money in the long run. Repeat customers and referrals from this repeat customer are how you make a living.

If you have to occasionally eat a few hundred bucks to keep a customer. It is better than eating a few hundred trying to find a new one.

The key words are ..IN WRITING..

Think of it as a learning experience...next time CYA..and put the price in writing...as in a quote..then there will be no mistakes.

If your "Client" trys to pull this again after you have put it in WRITING...your client ain't worth a fk..and is using you.

No quotes for business transactions unless on paper and you have a copy. I think emails count for informal commitments. But, the important part here is understanding how charges occur. You will never get more than the initial quoted figure unless you point out and get an agreement for anything beyond the initial quote.

You have to understand that a good deal of business relies on charges beyond quotes. It's how this is handled that creates happy relationships.

email certainly is a paper trail - its why I often refuse to discuss projects over the phone. We operate on FFP (firm fixed price) so what kills us is feature creep. The good idea fairy is alive and well on most of my projects so I try to limit the phone calls that start with, "wouldn't it be great if..."

Bottom line is you either bill hourly or fixed price. If the original deal was for a certain amount then the number of hours you spent doesn't matter - that's your problem. Often the most important parts of contract work are cost estimates and expectations management.

+1 on the paper trail. That is a definite next time.

Just wanted to let everyone know we got it resolved and worked out so everyone comes away from the job happy. Good to get this stuff resolved :)

Some of my best clients are the ones I gave to my competitors. ;)

Aside from selling parts at Pelican, I do remodeling work on the side. After getting nailed a couple of times (poor pun intended) what I always do now is get everything in writing, pad my estimate by 10-15% so there's room for any one of a number of things that may go wrong, and make it clear that if something changes/evolves/grows, then so does the bill.

If this is someone I want to do future work for after getting a feel for them and their future needs, sometimes I even give them a "good customer" discount, although never more than 10%. They feel like they are getting something above and beyond, and I'm not really losing because I planned on using that 10% for SOMETHING related to the customer/project anyways.

Is his name Simon by any chance?

"It's like twitter. Except we charge people to use it."