I ate the cost when they added tasks after we shook hands

We agreed on a set list of tasks for a flat fee, but after starting, they asked for extra work. I did it to keep them happy, but they didn't pay more. How do you set limits on project changes?

4 comments

4 Comments

jamesc791mo ago

Sometimes keeping clients happy pays off later.

rayc941mo ago

That's actually how you lose good clients by setting bad expectations. Clear change orders protect both of you, and serious clients respect professional boundaries. Doing free work just attracts people who want free work.

ivan4621mo ago

Man, my friend had a rough lesson with this. He designed a site for a client and threw in some free updates. The requests slowly grew into full feature adds without extra pay. He never wrote up a change order or set new terms. After months of free work, the client just ghosted him for a cheaper guy. Good clients actually want clear rules so everyone knows what's up.

lucashenderson17d ago

Remember that time I thought being the "nice guy" meant more work would come my way? Turns out I just got really good at doing free work for people who were happy to let me. Learned the hard way that clear rules don't scare off the good ones, they just filter out the folks who think your time is a free sample. Now my change orders are so detailed they could bore a brick wall, and honestly, it's saved my sanity.