Web designers aren’t much different from other working people. We talk about our clients and projects. Not in specific terms, mind you, but certainly in general ones. When we get together, we can’t help learning from each others’ mistakes and sharing our own hard-earned lessons.

One of the more thorny issues we face is how to deal with “the Client from Hell.”

This is the client who’s particularly difficult. Perhaps they just want to move a graphic element to the left two centimeters. Or maybe they have no clue why they want to set up a Web page in the first place. Or maybe they don’t know what they like even when they see it, don’t have any materials with which to build Web pages, tend to waver indefinitely at every stage of the project, and worst of all, refuse to pay on time.

You expect a lot from your designer; your designer expects something from you. Follow our 10-step guide and avoid being the type of client that designers talk about in less-than-glowing terms.

1)      Educate yourself. Find out what coding is involved in setting up a Web page. Find out how long it can take to re-code, even something that, to you, might seem easy (like moving that graphic). The Internet is a different medium than brochures or ad slicks; if costs are at all important to you, work with your designer in keeping the costs down.

2)      Do some preliminary legwork. Before you meet with your designer the first time, gather in a folder the materials that designer will need – things like business cards, menus, catalogs of products, current logos, and photos of your staff or building. It’s also a good idea to bring your thoughts for a domain name if this is to be a new Web site (or information on your current domain and hosting arrangement if this is a redesign), as well as anything else that might help showcase your business in the best possible light.

3)      Be upfront. You’ll have to share often-sensitive information with your designer, things you wouldn’t necessarily divulge to just anyone. In most cases, your designer has no surreptitious plans to steal secrets and wreck your business. Far from it. Your designer is interested in seeing your business thrive. Besides hoping you’ll remain a client with regular maintenance he/she can perform on your Web site, the designer is a resident of your community; no one wants to live in a dying town with no businesses.

4)      Ask for a contract. Chances are, your designer will ask you to sign a contract. This document will spell out what you can expect of your designer and what your designer expects in return from you. Contracts are designed to protect both parties and waylay problems down the road. While verbal contracts are generally binding, things become less messy when they’re written down. And who needs bad feelings?

5)      Be upfront about your budget. Your Web site is a tax-deductible business expense, same as any advertising or marketing effort. Don’t imply to your designer the sky’s the limit if you’re unwilling to pay more than $500. And don’t nickel-and-dime your designer, either. Self-employed people have to pay for their own continuing education, hardware and software, office expenses, insurance, etc., and those costs are spread among their various clients. It’s pretty obvious that your designer is working; shouldn’t it be equally obvious that a worker is owed his wages?

6)      Take some responsibility. This is your Web site. It represents your company. No one knows your company better than you. Your designer will help you convey the message you’re trying to get across in the most favorable manner, but it’s up to you to make sure what’s said and presented online does what it’s supposed to. Be available to answer questions, view the progress of your pages, and offer input.

7)      Don’t drag your feet. Projects very often tend to stall midway through. Some clients just need time to look over the proposed design; others get busy running their business and fail to set aside time for anything else. It’s annoying (and time-consuming) to your designer to have to get back “up to speed” after weeks (or months) off. It’s also hard to recapture the initial enthusiasm for the project. A much better course of action is to work with your designer to keep the project moving forward at a steady pace.

8)      Get involved. Your designer will help as much as possible, but, as has been said before, this is your Web site. You hold the final decision on things like colors, graphics, navigation style, and content. Of course, you can simply dump all the choices on your designer, but don’t be surprised when the costs of the project climb (and your site doesn’t look at all the way you’d envisioned).

9)      Accept limitations. Until somebody fixes the situation, Internet browsers will continue to display pages in different ways. That’s a given. Your designer will do everything possible to make pages look attractive and functional, but beyond that, it’s something of a roulette wheel. So, realize that what you’re looking at might not be what your designer sees; and, even if it is, know that somewhere in the world a computer is displaying it differently (and neither you nor your designer can do much about it).

10)  Pay on time. Your designer expects payment when services are rendered, just like your dentist, attorney, plumber, and a host of other working professionals. Don’t make your designer beg for what’s rightfully his/hers. You agreed on a fee at your initial meeting; if you’d wanted the work done for free, you’d have hired an amateur or a hobbyist.

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