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How to Overcome Difficult Clients

How Deal With Client That Won’t Take Your Expert Advice

Have you ever had one of those clients that is just difficult to work with? It feels like they’re constantly questioning your expertise. They aren’t really easy to get along with and no matter what you produce for them, it seems like you’re not moving forward or it’s moving really slow.

In my experience, when I’ve had clients like this, I have to pause and ask myself “have I done a really clear job of setting the picture of what the steps are? Have I communicated exactly what the process is and helped them understand where they fit within it?”

I find when I’ve done a poor job of that, I get these clients that are almost trying to take control of the process themselves or inventing what should happen next.

Why Clients Want to Take Control Of A Project?

Here’s an interesting way to look at it. If you were driving down the highway in a bus and you recognized that the driver was suddenly not there, what’s the first thing you’d do? Well, I bet you’d run your butt straight to the front and grab control of that wheel so you knew the bus wasn’t going to crash! You would know exactly how to regain control of the bus.

The truth is this is what’s happening with the difficult client. They perceive, even subconsciously, that you’re not in control, that you’re not guiding them through. If you’re not confidently doing that, there’s a good chance they’re going to run to the front of your bus and grab that wheel.

A more appropriate analogy is probably an airplane. If you realized there was no pilot up front, you’d run to the front but if you’re not a trained pilot, the likelihood of you actually safely guiding the plane to a landing is unlikely.

What to do about an out of control project?

Our clients hire us because they’re looking for an expert. They’re not trained in this so the likelihood they are going to safely bring the project to a successful conclusion is pretty low. If you’re having this situation, if you have a client who is difficult to work with, I want you to consider it might be because you’ve not done a good job setting clear expectations, helping them understand there is a process, and helping them understand where they fit in it.

It’s never too late to have a conversation with a client about process so you’re both on the same page. They will stop trying to steer your bus or fly your airplane.

Want a Head Start?

We have put together a no-cost training that goes over how to design and frame your web design proposal document. We have refined our current process over the past 16 years after building thousands of websites for our customers. This training will help to establish the process and guidelines for your project so that you and your clients are firmly on the same page. In this training, we will show you what to include in your proposal as well as what to say to get your prospective clients to buy.

Mike Schmidt
Founder
AgencyCoach