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My buddy's guarantee advice backfired hard on a $3k project

So my friend Mark, who's been freelancing way longer than me, told me I should offer a "100% satisfaction or your money back" guarantee in every proposal. Said it would make me look confident and win more gigs. I tried it on a big web dev project for a local restaurant chain in Denver. Client loved the idea, signed right away. Fast forward 6 weeks and they nitpicked everything from font sizes to menu images. They ended up asking for a full refund claiming they weren't satisfied. I ate $3k in labor and learned that guarantee only works if you define what satisfied means upfront. Anyone else ever get burned by generic advice from well-meaning pals?

3 comments

3 Comments

the_john8d agoTop Commenter

Define success in writing before you ever take their money.

jennybailey8d ago

Oh yeah, been there. I offered a similar guarantee on a logo design job once and the client kept asking for revisions until I basically redid the whole thing from scratch. Now I make sure to write out exactly what "satisfied" means with a checklist before I start anything.

white.keith4d ago

I mean, I kinda get what you're saying but honestly I think that checklist approach can backfire too. You spell out exactly what satisfied means and now the client has a roadmap to game the system. They'll nitpick every single checkbox item and demand perfection on things they never wouldve cared about otherwise. I've seen people get way more demanding once they have a written guarantee to point at. Plus it kills the trust a little bit, makes it feel like you're already expecting problems before you even start.