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clientsfromhell.net
Client: Hey, loved the last draft you sent. I do
have a small problem. I’ve hit a bit of financial
trouble – could we renegotiate your fee?
Me: Sorry to hear you’re having problems, it
happens to us all! As I stated to you in our initial
meeting, I was already giving you quite a lot of
work for less than I would normally charge. I
can, however, put a hold on the work until your
financial situation improves.
I will say here that the client had added me as
a Facebook friend at the time. This will become
relevant shortly.
Client: Dude, do you even know what it’s like to
struggle without money? Just finish the work
and I’ll pay you as soon as I get sorted.
Me: As a freelance artist, I know only too well
what it’s like to struggle with limited funds. I
should also point out – you added me to
Facebook and I’ve seen all the photos of the new
BMW you bought this weekend.
The client blocked me on Facebook.
Client: What I do in my private life is my
business! If I want to buy a car I will!
Me: Your not paying me is my business.
Client: If you don’t want to continue with this job
give me the files so far and I’ll get someone else.
Me: Pay me for the work I’ve done and then I’ll
send you the work.
Client: I’ll just use these progress images. It’s a
shame, we could have had a strong relationship.
Me: I only gave you low-resolution screen grabs,
so good luck using those anywhere.
A few weeks later the client’s new website
was showing off some new designs. A quick
reverse image search showed the client had just
ripped off a bunch of designs from other sites.
The site then went down a week later and
never returned.WHEEL AND DEAL
CLIENTS FROM HELLExclusively for net: The latest in a series of
anonymous accounts of nightmare clientsChatbots have become an
increasingly popular way for
websites to communicate with
visitors. With the help of natural
language processing and keyword
matching tools, chatbots are
meant to aid the user experience
and ease frustrations, although
they don’t always succeed. To help
make chatbots engaging instead of
annoying, we asked @netmag’s
followers what web designers
should keep in mind when
implementing them.WORK BACKWARDS
Sometimes just identifying an
issue can make it a lot easier to
solve. It’s the same with making
useful chatbots. “Think about the
problem they’re trying to solve for
the end user first and work back
from there,” says @Foolproof_UX.KEEP IT REAL
Chatbots might be powered by
sophisticated software but that
doesn’t mean they’re going to pass
the Turing test any time soon. So
rather than resisting that hurdle,
@zevbrokeit advises that chatbots
lean into it: “Don’t try to be human.
It’s off-putting.”DON’T BE PUSHY
Eager chatbots can just become
another easily dismissed prompt,
so @Nickylewlew recommends
avoiding auto messages. “Could be
one of the most annoying features
of many chatbots. Allow the user
to interact with the bot first before
it sends messages.”MAKE CHATBOTS
ENGAGING INSTEAD
OF ANNOYING
HOW TO