I recently had a meeting with a potential client who wants to get an e-commerce business started and was under the awe of mobile apps (Yes, awe. He wanted a mobile app irrespective whether it is needed or not) and I steered him away from it because it was not the right approach for the business. You see what I did? Even before he was my client, he came Under My Protection. I could easily have sold him a mobile app even though I knew he does not need it at the starting phase of the business. I took a hit on my income and I worked as a partner.
But he wants a discount on the amount I quoted and also wants me to do all the work like upload products, find photos (eh!!!) and edit them without paying me the cost of effort. What?! You want me to do all the running around for YOUR business and you don’t want to pay for it? Sadly this is the truth. This is how most of the prospective clients behave. They want everything for free.
The above incidence made me say NO to him. I thanked him and left the meeting without further wasting my time.
Was it right on my part to walk away? Yes, it was. Now, I have more time to give better service to my existing clients.
Tips for becoming a good client:

  1. Know what you want. Come to the point directly without beating around the bush.
  2. If you don’t know what you want, state in the very begninning so that the developer is ready with the research and answers.
  3. Know your competitors. Your developer will not do business research for you.
  4. Don’t ask your developer to do data entry. Developers hate it and if they do take it up, they want money for it.
  5. Don’t ask for discounts on quotes but ask for fewer features.
  6. Pay for effort. You see yourself working for free?
  7. Pay promptly. Your developer will give you better service and will be happy to do your work on priority