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Most of us may not agree but being "USER-FRIENDLY" isn't always a good thing. Sometimes it could spell your doom. I feel that I couldn't have done a better article than the one based on my experience in my several years in the industry as a web/multimedia professional. Some can relate, some can not but I hope I will be able to impart the lessons I have learned.
Living in a world where technology evolves faster than you can say "what the …" could be a very daunting task to somebody. As technology changes, the skills of the people who handle it also change to keep up and never be left behind. As web professionals, we are challenged to be at par with the ever changing demands of technology and with it our clients also change, or do they?
KNOWING THE CLIENT. As a professional freelancer I have encountered every type of client from the flirty pretty ones, the business ethics professor, the ego tripper, the know-it-all wannabe, to the one who sounds like coming fresh from the gates of HADES itself (client from hell).
The latter is the most tricky to handle. You should be armed with more than a crucifix and a holy water to tame them. This type of client thinks that they know well everything about the web, what they don't realize is that they're not actually making any sense. They will jump at every chance to exploit your talent and you don't realize that you're becoming too"USER-FRIENDLY" because you're too busy on getting the project done.
Being USER-FRIENDLY has divulged from its original meaning in this article. I heard it once from a friend of mine who's a Creative Director from one of the top advertising agencies in the country. To quote what he said"Wag kang magpa-exploit just for the money, it's not worth it, don't be USER-FRIENDLY to everyone".
So how do you spot a client from hell? Good thing there are tell tale signs that can serve as a reference if you are dealing with an impossible client. Or when you're unknowingly continuosly feeding your brains with glutapose just to get you going. ;)
1. Clients who can't make up their mind. If you've done more than 15 design studies and more than 20 major revisions for them and they can't still decide on what design they really want, beware this client is a pain in the ass or they may be suffering from Alzheimer's disease or is schizophrenic, you figure it out. ;)
This client will usually exhaust the creative juices out of you and still can't decide on what he wants. And finally all they really want is a website with a text and blue background with a little rotating flower on the right corner (Ohh I can still feel my brain juices squirting out of my tear duct.).
2. Clients who think youÂ’re a magician. This type of client will ask for major revisions that are usually next to impossible on a very limited time frame. I don't think even David Blaine can do it. Consider the following example.
Excerpt from actual conversation with client:
Designer:The autocad file with complex patterns has already been flattened so it would already be difficult to manipulate.
Client: Extract the lines from the background then.
Designer: the flattened file has fine and complicated outlines it would be hard to extract, most will not be visible. Could be better if you have a vector copy so I can manipulate it better.
Client: find a way to extract them and send it to me before 3pm.
Designer: excuse me IÂ’m not a magician. It's already 1pm here.
3. Clients with perpetual deadlines. Clients who bargain for unlimited revisions with no additional charge don't have a definite deadline and will leave you rotting without just compensation. If your project is already a month behind your project deadline and still you're doing several revisions because the client changes his mind everyday, think again, your project could go on for months or even a year depleting your time and resources. Kinda' like you've been sentenced under house arrest. You should know that staying in front of your PC 24/7 is social suicide ;)
4. The Client-designer wannabe. This client thinks that they know the intricacies of web design and thinks that they can do it better. This type knows how to use an FTP and a Cpanel but freaks out when you show them a bunch of HTML tags or try to explain them how CSS works. They will usually insist that doing a revision is easy because they know the process but ends up they canÂ’t do it themselves.
I'm quite sure many web designers can relate to this experience, some may have remained silent and contented with being "USER-FRIENDLY" with their talents exploited and some had the courage to face the challenge and protect their rights. For those who have been an advocate of the latter, give me a buzz.
PREPARING FOR THE BATTLEFIELD. Consider yourself as a design warrior and like any other warrior you need to be prepared for the battlefield. Believe me, once you've encountered those types of client I have mentioned above, it would be one hell of a ride to deal with them, so it's best that you take several precautionary measures before actually dealing with any type of client.
1. The Project Contract Agreement. Whether you're a freelancer or not, itÂ’s best that you should develop a contract agreement with client and make every term clear with the client (some client would insist every single detail should be written). If your client is amenable with the agreement, have them sign the contract and send a copy to you. If they don't agree with your agreement, settle on a common ground where both of your can benefit and revise your agreement. Be sure that you both sign the contract or your contract would simply be null and void. Some designers deal with clients by verbal agreement alone, this may only be applicable to long term clients. You take the risk and when it comes to numerous major revisions, additional concept studies and enhancements, this could be a problem especially if you don't have an agreement covering specific details on extra cost if you live by verbal agreement alone.
On your contract, cover all necessary events that will incur extra cost for additional labor, clear definitions on minor and major revisions, ownership of the source files and outline an estimated time frame that will cover the completion of the proposed website.
I have a sample web contract HERE I have streamlined it through the years. It's the latest version that IÂ’ve been using. It's pretty useful so far. Some terms may not apply to you but you do the revisions ok. I'm experiencing Carpal Tunnel Syndrome already by just finishing this article.
2. The Web Design Survey. Some if not most of the clients aren't tech savvy, so it is better to give them a tool that will help you design their desired website. The web design survey IÂ’ve been using has been a great help and time saving tool I used in my projects. You can download a sample HERE.This also makes your client feel important that youÂ’ve custom made the questionnaires for them so you could help them understand the process better. Some clients donÂ’t have the time to answer this but at least give it a try. It saves a lot of time on your design phase.
3. Make the Design Process Clear. Explain your design process clearly to the client so you don't end up sounding like a politician who has lost an election trying to prick each others brain. Outline a time frame for each process and explain how you will go with it. Consider the example below:
Data Gathering (2 days)
Website Design Studies (2-3 days)
Design Approval and Revision (2 days)
Design/ Development Implementation (14 days)
Testing and Quality Assurance (4 days)
Final Revision and Uploading (2 days)
4. Educating Your Client. As professional Digital Artist it's always a best practice to educate the client in our field. You don't have to sound like someone who eats ActionScript for breakfast and utter something like a gibberish dead language or you will alienate your client more.
Just explain how you would go on the process of developing their website and also explain the technical restrictions on the web. That means not everything is possible on the web. There will be a lot of restrictions, but the challenge has been put to us designers, to produce a website in the most creative way possible given the restrictive boundaries of the web. I remember one time (in band camp) my client wants me to stream DVD video over the net which he wants to control on any pc. I totally freaked out. Lol
5. Protecting your Precious Work. Clients from hell would jump at any chance to get away with your work, so be sure that you protect your work especially if you have not been fully paid yet.
• Placing security watermarks. One good example is embedding watermarks on the images of your website. Make the text watermark discreet so you don’t destroy the design of the website. A one liner text like "This website has been uploaded for previewing purposes only and not for public viewing" embedded on the main graphic with a 10 px size with anti-aliasing turned off for text (so it always stays sharp). This works for me most of the time. This would especially more difficult for them to manipulate if the graphic has already been sliced with the watermark. See the example HERE. (Highlight the image using the mouse to see the slices). Be sure to save the original layered PSD so you'll not have any trouble once you remove the watermark.
Make it a practice to put watermarks even on your concept studies. Because some client just tell you that your study wasn't approve until you made more than 10 studies only to find out that your flattened JPEG study has already been sliced and is for sale on his template site. Poor you, you only get paid for one approved study.
Security Measures on Flash based websites. You trusted the client so much that you agreed to upload the website on its live location because the client told you that the final payment will be sent immediately after the website has been uploaded. Only to discover that the FTP has access has been changed after you have uploaded the complete website. Tsk..tsk... that is so mean.
Some clients would really want to outwit you and getaway with your precious masterpiece without you knowing it. They will change all access codes to the FTP and shut all possible entry point to the website.
Be vigilant, always prepare for something like this to happen. If you have a flash based design, it's always good to embed a hidden security measure that can only be triggered by a simple keyboard stroke. I used a simple invisible button that will open up a window with a warning that the website is being used illegally. This warning is triggered using a simple On (keypress) command in Flash in the invisible button. There are several methods available but this is the simplest one that works most of the time for me. Here is an EXAMPLE, click anywhere on the flash and hit the "HOME" button on the keyboard. YouÂ’ll see what I mean and oh, you can download the source HERE.
If everything else fails, just simply tell them that you're going to massacre their entire family if they don't payup. Sometimes it scares the hell out them (haha), especially if they've seen that you look like an ex-convict or a mad scientist in person or in a web cam smoking weed on the wee hours of the morning (lol joke).
The bottom line, there are good and bad clients but you should know how to filter the good ones that can be on the list of your long term relationships from the nuisance clients which will only cost you more than what you are getting from them. Don't be "USER-FRIENDLY" and don't let them exploit your talent.. ItÂ’s not all about the money. RESPECT yourself and the world will respect you.
There are no single fool proof methods to protect yourselves from this leering lions on the net. Find the best method that works for you. As web professionals, learn to protect your rights and learn to fight back if the situation calls for it but remember to always be fair to all concerned and learn the art of HUMILITY.
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