No, I don't want that job
Sunday December 14, 2008
Perhaps it's just that I've been in the Web design industry for nearly 14 years now that makes me look at stories like Jeffrey Zeldman relates in 20 signs you don’t want that web design project and think "you're right, I'd never take that job." I don't feel the need to accept every job that is offered to me, and I feel obligated to set terms that I can live with as well as my clients can. Unfortunately, some of the signs he references came after the job was accepted (and in some cases, completed and finalized). Ugh! Some of the scenarios I've been a part of include:
- Client asks who designed your website. When you answer "I did" they respond, "okay, but who built it?"
- Client takes six months to respond to your proposal, but doesn’t change his due date.
- Companies getting bought out, client's getting fired, bosses changing, and "fully empowered" people being unempowered.
- Ironically, I think I was on the client side of this one "Client sends a 40-page RFP, including committee-approved flow diagrams created in Microsoft Art." (note: not to Zeldman, but to another design firm).
- Spouses acting as usability studies, marketing reps, managing editors, and website customers.
- Clients who want the best, but want to pay Walmart prices for it. What types of Web design jobs won't you accept any longer?
Comments
I don’t accept these: Redesigns with terrible source code, but customer wants “only small improvement” - for example “only to change the graphics, the functionality can stay as is”, or “only add this small function - it should be quick and cheap” - but the source code has 10MB and containts 2000 classes - customer never see time spended on learning huge amount of terrible code…
I don’t take the “I don’t know what I want but that isn’t it” type of client any more.
I’m a lot more comfortable working as a web designer than I am trying to be a psychic. (Or is that a psychotic? I get confused between the two terms sometimes.)
LOL! Amen to both of those. How about the clients who have redesigned the specs every time you meet/communicate/sneeze?
I am so here at this moment. I finally told my husband that if they aren’t willing to pay what my time and effort is worth (with a few volunteer exceptions) then they are going to have to negotiate with someone else.
Amen to this article.