No one starts a creative business to work with annoying clients. But at some point, you’ll work with at least one of them.

I’ve been a lawyer for more than a decade, so I’ve had my fair share of client relationships that I’d rather never repeat.

I think the worst example was a client who was also a friend. And because of my friendship, I ignored my gut (and dozens of red flags) and took him on as a client.

Our few months of working together were a total disaster. A couple of highlights (or maybe lowlights) included…

He repeatedly ignored my requests to email, not text, about his project. He’d text, and then if I didn’t respond within minutes, I’d get a string of texts asking where I was. He was constantly upset that I wouldn’t drop everything and work on his projects. Which always seemed to be due “yesterday”, even though he’d never mentioned them before.

He asked me to write a contract for his business. And then once my draft was done, he forwarded it to his friend to edit. This friend was an attorney but didn’t have any experience with these kinds of contracts. I then had to justify to both of them the decisions I’d made (most of which were the industry standard) because his friend didn’t understand what was typical.

He asked me to create a document that was likely illegal (and if it was legal, was not ethical). This one was the final straw and resulted not only in the end of our working relationship but our friendship.

You can’t avoid every difficult client, but there are things you can do to start your relationship off right. And to make sure that your client doesn’t result in a spiral that makes you feel taken advantage of and resentful.

My five steps to dealing with difficult clients are:

• outlining the process up front (with timelines) so the client knows what to expect
• setting ground rules for things like contact method and response time
• being upfront and transparent when hiccups arise, rather than ignoring requests
• picking up the phone, video conferencing, or sending a voice memo, rather than sending an email for complicated responses
• handing over a contract that outlines what our relationship will look like

Step #1: Give them a roadmap

When you can outline your process up front and give your client a timeline, they’ll have a roadmap to follow and are less likely to bug you.

Clients come to us to get our professional expertise and skills. And to us, our process is second nature. But it’s a mystery to our clients.

Sometimes this disconnect is what creates problem clients. Because they feel in the dark and want to know what’s happening. So they send you emails asking for updates, because they don’t know what to expect.

But this has an easy fix: giving them a roadmap.

You can explain to them your process, the timeline, and why they might not hear from you for a few weeks.

For example, when I file a trademark for a client, it’s taking 6-8 months before we get ANY word from the USPTO. And so, as soon as I submit their application, I send this canned response:

Why this works:

A roadmap makes the process transparent and sets expectations about what is normal.

It prevents them from bugging you because it helps them understand what the process will look like and when silence means things are still progressing.

Step #2: Set ground rules

Another step to dealing with problem clients is laying out ground rules up front for things like:

• your business hours
• how you respond to emails
• when you respond to emails
• if calling/texting is appropriate

But the challenge in laying these out is sticking to them. Because if you don’t, your clients won’t respect them and get upset when you randomly try to enforce them.

My friend Corey Egan told me something that I remind people of all the time: that clients are emailing her when it’s convenient for them.

(This is so true if you work B2C.)

In her case, many of her brides are doing wedding tasks in the evenings and on the weekends. So that’s when they email her. She reminds herself that they are emailing then because that’s the time that works for them. They don’t need an immediate response, and she can email them at a time that works for her.

One easy way to do this is with an auto-reply that goes out to everyone who emails you. Another option would be to create a page in your welcome packet that outlines these ground rules.

What to keep in mind:

The challenge with this one is making sure you hold these boundaries. Because if you don’t, then your clients will get confused when you try to randomly enforce them.

This is where a canned response or auto-reply is your best friend because you can copy and paste it even when you are in a rage spiral.

Step #3: Notify when hiccups happen

The easiest way to turn a so-so client into a problem client is by ignoring and/or not telling them upfront when hiccups arise.

Technical snafus, health issues, family problems, or mistakes will happen at the worst times. But being transparent and telling your client as soon as it happens is the best way to prevent the situation from spiraling out of control.

Ignoring your client’s requests or hiding that something went wrong is the easiest way to upset your client. (If you don’t believe me, check out this story from Meighan O’Toole.)

So step up, admit something happened, and let them know your plan to fix the problem.

Why this works:

We all have bad days. And our clients get that. But hiding the problem or ignoring it only makes things worse.

Being proactive when delays, hiccups, or mistakes happen keeps the process transparent. And that’s exactly what clients crave.

Step #4: Pick the right communication method

Email is a very convenient way to communicate with your clients.

You don’t need to hash out schedules.

All you need to do is hit send at any time of the day or night. And the other person doesn’t have to deal with it until it’s a good time to respond. (Like Corey’s story above reminds us!)

Email is great to ask quick questions, provide statements, or give short answers. Anything that can be clearly articulated in 5 sentences or fewer.

When you’ve got something that can’t be boiled down to a few sentences or that will raise questions, email isn’t the best.

In these situations, you’ll save yourself time and headaches by scheduling a chat.

Yes, you’ll have to find a time that works for both of you, but in the long run, it will save you time. Because you’ll be able to address all of their questions and resolve any misunderstandings in a single call.

Which means that choosing the best method for your message helps prevent client problems.

What to keep in mind:

It’s important to understand if a phone call, voice memo, or video conference is best for you and your client. 

Zoom calls can be hard for many people for many reasons. I didn’t host a Zoom call with a client in the past few weeks because:

• she’s got young kids and chatted with me while playing with them on the floor
• she’s autistic and Zoom calls give her anxiety
• she works a 9-5 and already spends too much of her day on Zoom

So, based on your preferences, you’ll offer some suggestions to your clients and let them pick the one that works best for them.

I default with Zoom, because I enjoy seeing my clients’ faces and catching up, but for several of my clients, I know that they prefer a different method, so I accommodate their preference.

Step #5: Give them a contract

The final step for dealing with problem clients is my favorite. Handing over a contract that outlines what your relationship will look like.

Contracts get a bad rap. But really, they are just there to make sure that both of you are on the same page. They outline what you need and what you can expect from each other.

And best of all, contracts don’t have to be stuffed with legal jargon to be valid. They only need three things:

• an offer (I’ll photograph your products on a whiteboard and provide you with 10 high-resolution images for $200)
• agreement on the exact offer (Yes, I’ll pay you $200 to give me 10 high-resolution images of my products on a whiteboard)
• exchange of things of value (handing over the 10 photographs and the $200)

A caveat…the exchange above forms a valid contract. But that doesn’t mean that you wouldn’t want to include a few more details. You’d probably want to cover things like:

• when and how payment happens
• what rights does the client have over the photographs
• timeline

Why this works:

Contracts exist to get everyone on the same page, by literally getting everyone on the same page.

They also make sure that neither one of you unintentionally disappoints the other. 

And when you think about contracts that way, they are a kindness that you give to those that you work with.

And for bonus points, a contract can incorporate almost every step we discussed above in it!

Key Takeaways

You will never be able to avoid all problem clients. But these five steps will go a long way to preventing problem clients. And make sure that they stay happy, respectful, and grateful clients.

Now, it’s time to implement one of these steps into your client workflow.

Need help with setting ground rules and notifying them when hiccups occur? I’m hosting a challenge starting June 2nd that will help you create five copy-and-paste scripts you can use when clients are annoying you. Sign up below.