Rant: That one client who said 'just send me a rough draft in 2 hours'

I had a real estate agent in Austin text me at 10 PM asking for a 'quick rough draft' of their website copy, promising they'd give me a week for revisions. I stayed up til 2 AM cranking it out, and by 9 AM they had sent 47 email changes demanding I redo everything by noon. Has anyone else dealt with a client who treats 'rough draft' like a trap to get free rush work?

3 comments

3 Comments

shane_morgan10d ago

Ah, the old "rough draft" trick. I once had a client tell me they just wanted a "quick sketch" of their logo and then sent me a 12 page brand guide with specific hex codes and typeface requirements the next morning. My favorite part was when they said "you can just doodle something up, right?" while I was already three hours deep into the vector work. Made me feel like a circus performer trying to juggle with a blindfold on.

pat_harris10d ago

47 email changes is wild. I would have needed a stiff drink before I even opened that inbox. A rough draft is supposed to be a starting point, not a free license to rewrite the entire thing in four hours.

wyattramirez9d ago

Setting a hard limit on revision rounds saved my sanity with picky clients like that.