Changes made to projects

[marius e]

I accept that changes are part of the game, but to what extent and how to deal with the clients.

 

What is your company's agreement on changes to 3d's? I try to do changes as swift as possible, but once I have done some changes free of charge I will then charge for any above the 'free' changes. Changing a couple of colours etc isnt a hassle and is fine but changing a parking layout for instance one charges for.

 

Problems for instance: Quote sent on changes, excepted, and then clients wants more done, but not quoted for, or changing the colours etc, and then the client wants to see more different options. Im sure we all have that and understand what Im getting at.

 

Any suggestions on how to deal with that, and keep the client happy?

[Joel Gray]

Give them a flat fee for the work and allow one minor revision as part of the approval process (which also allows you the opportunity fix your own mistakes if any), then either go hourly or at a flat day rate for requested revisions and changes beyond the scope of work. I also have a clause in my contracts that the attorney suggested, "On occasion, certain fees for services may be waived at the discretion of [your company name here]. Client agrees that any waiver of fees will not constitute a continuing waiver." In other words, you may decide to throw in a few changes for free, but your client shouldn't expect you to continue working for free. Also, be careful that you're not doing a lot of small changes for free over a long period of time, it can really add up and is not a good way for you to work efficiently or to support your business. Depending on how well you know your client, you may want to hold on any changes they have made - just for a short while - to make sure you're not working on something that is still a moving target and will change again and again.

[Arnold Sher]

I accept that changes are part of the game, but to what extent and how to deal with the clients.

 

What is your company's agreement on changes to 3d's? I try to do changes as swift as possible, but once I have done some changes free of charge I will then charge for any above the 'free' changes. Changing a couple of colours etc isnt a hassle and is fine but changing a parking layout for instance one charges for.

 

Problems for instance: Quote sent on changes, excepted, and then clients wants more done, but not quoted for, or changing the colours etc, and then the client wants to see more different options. Im sure we all have that and understand what Im getting at.

 

Any suggestions on how to deal with that, and keep the client happy?

 

Hi Marius,

 

I have to say that we are all in the same boat when it comes to that as it is just not possible to apply the same rule for everyone. We have clients that we have worked with for 10 years and there is a relationship there and therefore we allow a lot flexibility when it comes to these kind of things and then there are guys that we do one of jobs,for one view that will try and change something just for the sake of changing. We always try and apply reason with understanding that we might win on one job and loose a bit of time on another. We think it all evens out in the end as long as the changes are within reason we usually don't through a fuss. It is all part of the game. However if we feel the project has changed substantialy we inform the client that there will be cost implications and charge hourly for it. Hope that helps...

[marius e]

Thanks guys. Just sometimes feel like we are being exploited, so much effort gets put into keeping clients happy, yet it feels like I am sometimes at the short end of the stick.

 

I think whats bothering me is the fact that a client might think its a small change, and it is, but it takes a long time to change and eats up hours, and to explain that is not worth it.

 

 

Thanks

[Scott Schroeder]

Thanks guys. Just sometimes feel like we are being exploited, so much effort gets put into keeping clients happy, yet it feels like I am sometimes at the short end of the stick.

 

I think whats bothering me is the fact that a client might think its a small change, and it is, but it takes a long time to change and eats up hours, and to explain that is not worth it.

 

 

Thanks

 

I have to disagree with explaining it to the client isn't worth it. Though, you want to make sure you do this up front with a new client so they know. With all of my new clients, I walk them through the typical process so the understand what I do. This way they understand that while I'd be happy to make a simple change, like a wall color, the rendering process is what will take a while. I also have them sign off a specific line in the contract that any changes outside the scope of the original project will incur extra charges. Typically it's a flat rate unless it's a major design change or modeling change. Textures, colors, moving furniture around that's what I'd consider in a flat rate.

 

Again, if it's just as simple as changing one thing then I usually let that one go for free. However, that also puts the client into the mindset that they can make changes for free. It's a very tough spot to deal with and I think everyone will deal with it a little differently. Just make sure you aren't working too much for free.

 

Talking to and educating your clients is never a waste of time. I've always loved this quote from the two partners of MIR:

 

"Most people forget that images are an emotional media, and there are limits to how much intellectual ideas you can communicate. It is very common that our clients say “Ahh, I love this image… but can you move the camera up a bit so that we see the space in front, and remove the clouds and put some lights inside…”. They forget the reason they loved the image in the first place was that we didn’t do those things they ask.

 

I think that if we don’t get enough freedom, it comes down to our lack of communicating with our clients."

[Devin Johnston]

I like what you said Scott and I agree that you have to tell the client what to expect otherwise they will expect you to do anything they ask. Every project I've done has had some level of changes before the final product is delivered but sometimes it can get excessive to the point where I don't even want to finish. Most of the time it happens when a project is still in the development stages and the design is still in flux. I too have a line in my contract that says any excessive changes will have to be billed separately under additional services but so far I've never used it.

[marius e]

Scott, yes you have hitt the nail on the head! But I have to ad, even though one explains it, you always find yourself with the same difficulties. But all points taken, thank you.

[Matt Sugden]

Changes can be grim, some of my clients use me as a design service I'm sure of it. Those clients however get charged for their changes as soon as I start to feel as though liberties are being taken. The best thing I think you can do, is always make a note of the changes and how long they took you to implement, so if you decide to charge a client extra (or at least ask for more money) you can then explain to them the quantity of changes and how much time it has taken you to do them. I also have a naming convention for images, I add a letter after each change, once you're getting into the 'g' and 'h' categories, even the client should be aware that you've done the same image a lot of times, if they are not, you can politely explain your naming convention to them and explain that they only paid for one image!!

 

I know what you mean though about getting sick of the site of the same image though. the last draft never has the same passion as the first.

[ronll]

As I mentioned in another thread, I am careful about my wording when sending proofs for review, and email helps to have it on the record. I ask them to check it for "errors and omissions" not "what needs to be changed".

[marius e]

Good point Ron, now that you mention it; I dont the same but only now that you mention it I realise the importance of the wording and how it could influence the outcome.