Business Owners + Freelancers Beware: 6 Red Flags to Watch for in Clients + When It's Time to Cut Ties
by Tiffany Walking Eagle | 5-minute read
Being a business owner or working as a freelancer is such a privilege, and building relationships with great clients is beyond rewarding.
However, just like there are bad bosses, there unfortunately less-than-ideal clients too.
Some are simply forgetful, some are bad communicators, and some are just plain cheapskates.
And for the health of your business and your own sanity, it’s important to learn how to identify problem clients and when it’s time to cut ties.
(If you’re like me and you struggle with people-pleasing, then you definitely need to know how to set boundaries with clients!)
1. Not respecting deadlines.
If you and your client agree on a deadline, and then they start pressing you and asking where the job/project is before it’s actually due, that’s a red flag for a couple of reasons.
One, it shows they may not respect your time. You have other clients and a life outside of work, so expecting you to crank out work before it’s due is not acceptable.
Two, if they agree on a deadline and then turn around and pressure you to get the work done early, they might be trying to take advantage of you because you can and should be charging more for faster turnaround times! If they’re bugging you for the work early and not offering to pay any extra, big red flag that they’re trying to take advantage of you.
Related post: 17 Foolproof Ways to Stay Sane When You Work from Home
2. Trying to low-ball or negotiate your rates.
If a potential client is trying to low-ball your rates right off the bat, or they try to negotiate with you after you’ve sent their bill (how convenient)...big no-no.
Sure, it may be tempting to take any work that comes your way, but try to fight that temptation.
You need to understand your worth as a professional and the value that you’re providing. If you’re always giving in to cheaper rates, you’re using valuable time for low pay that could be better spent on well-paying gigs.
Excellent clients will understand your value, and they will want to pay you well! So avoid the low-ballers at all costs.
3. Mentioning having a bad experience with previous people they’ve worked with.
Early on in my proofreading career, one of my first clients mentioned to me that she was “in a fight” with her previous proofreader because that proofreader charged her extremely high rates.
HUGE RED FLAG that I totally missed. I believed her when she said she’d been taken advantage of. She was so kind and complimentary of my work, and I fell for it.
Welllllll, as we started working together, I realized her work was an absolute mess. I was basically cleaning up word trash on every page, and her jobs took me extra time because it was so messy. That proofreader likely charged “outrageous” rates because of the terrible quality of the work.
Not only that, but this client always insisted on paying for regular turnaround but would then start bugging me for the job a day or two before it was due.
Don’t ignore those red flags as I did! If someone starts complaining about having a bad experience before you, it’s doesn’t *always* mean they’re a bad client, but it is generally considered unprofessional, and you might figure out real quick that that bad experience happened to them for a reason. Tread with caution.
4. Expecting you to clean up their messes or put in extra time for free.
The messiness aspect will vary based on what line of work you’re in, but basically, clients shouldn’t be sending you total trash work or a project that entails a ton of extra time and effort for you without being will to pay for that extra time and effort
As a business owner, your time is literally money, so don’t let someone guilt you into cleaning up their mess for an ultra-cheap price.
5. Taking their time to pay.
Watch out for the slow payers. If you’re having to chase down a client for payment repeatedly, it might be time to consider whether or not working with them is worth it.
You wouldn’t accept that kind of treatment from a corporate job, so don’t put up with it from your own clients.
6. Failing to communicate.
While it’s normal to have some back and forth communication with clients at the start of your relationship (or depending on what you do for work--there’s lots of back and forth in my resume writing business, and that’s normal) some clients are terrible communicators.
If it takes multiple emails to figure out things like deadlines, expectations, rates...all that back and forth is wasted time.
Or, if you try to contact them for clarification on something and they take days or weeks to get back to you, that’s also not a good sign!
Communication is a vital part of a business relationship, so definitely watch out for folks who don’t seem to prioritize it.
You may also like: How to Deal with a Job You Hate
When to Cut Ties
Honestly, even if you watch out for all these red flags, you’re still going to likely work with some bad clients in your career. That’s just life.
However, the important thing is to know when to cut ties.
You’ll work with some quirky clients, forgetful clients, and clients who don’t quite know what they want.
But you have to evaluate for yourself if it’s worth your time and effort to keep working with them.
Here’s some questions to honestly ask yourself:
Is it worth the money?
Is it worth your time?
Is it worth the effort?
Are your stress levels increasing to unhealthy levels because of this client?
Are you sacrificing too much for this business relationship? (Time with family/friends, time working with better clients, your sanity, etc. ;) )
Every time you find yourself questioning if you should continue the relationship(s), come back to these questions and answer them honestly.
There are some client relationships that have an adjustment period, so I don’t necessarily recommend just dropping people in an instant.
There’s a level discernment you’ll have to use when evaluating whether it’s worth it to work with someone, because every client relationship will be different.
And I’m hoping this post at least makes identifying problem clients a little easier.
Bottom line, look out for yourself and your business! And with experience, you’ll get better at identifying problem clients versus great clients.
Any stories you’d like to share? Drop them in the comments below! As always, thanks for reading. <3
Like this post? Check out Snag the Job You Want: How to Write a Resume That Stands Out