How to Lose a Client in 10 Ways: Mistakes to Avoid as a Professional Web Designer
The web design industry is always evolving. But despite constant technological innovations and ever-changing trends, one thing remains certain: fostering client relationships is essential to long term success.
Your role as a web designer goes beyond designing beautiful websites and helping clients grow their brands. You are a business owner whose ability to maintain healthy relationships with clients is equal—if not paramount—to delivering exceptional work. Satisfied clients become brand ambassadors, choosing to work with you again in the future and referring you to their networks.
To unlock the key to building and nurturing positive client relationships, we interviewed successful members of Circle, Squarespace’s partner program and professional community of web designers, developers, entrepreneurs, and other freelance creators. In addition to their roles as Circle members, they are Community Leaders, an opportunity that recognizes members who have made significant contributions to the community.
Katy Carlisle, Allie Astell, and Kelsey Gilbert-Kreiling know how to maintain strong client-designer relationships. They also know what not to do. Ahead are 10 mistakes to avoid making as a professional web designer.
Overpromising
Clients rely on you to implement your expertise and guide them through the process of establishing an online presence. When you overpromise on what you can deliver, you ultimately set unrealistic expectations, which compromises your credibility and your client’s trust. Setting unrealistic expectations can include agreeing to quick turnaround times, committing to difficult design elements, or promising improbable results.
Kelsey Gilbert-Kreiling: When clients come to us, they've seen a lot of things on the internet, but while professional designers are familiar with the technical needs of these requests, clients often don't even know what they're asking for. It's easy to get excited about a feature you'd like to try to implement, but we always coach our team not to overpromise before doing the research into how that feature works.
Not being yourself online
Human connection has become critical in the digital age. As an entrepreneur and business owner, it’s important that you operate with authenticity, especially when you’re working with clients. When you assume an online persona that is void of personality and genuineness, you threaten your client’s ability to trust you both personally and professionally. Rather than hiding behind the screen, showcase your true personality, values, and vision in each encounter.
Katy Carlisle: A lot of people fall into the trap of wanting to appear ‘professional,’ and this can lead to people diluting their personality or writing copy that doesn’t reflect how they are in the real world. I definitely did this at the start. Ten years ago, my website said, ‘We do XYZ,’ when it was just me! I’d also gone for a monochrome color scheme, but then when [clients] met me in person, I’d be this cheerful person wearing bright colors. There was just a massive disconnect between the experience of meeting me online versus in person.
Not setting clear expectations
The success of a project hinges on clear and transparent communication. Not setting clear expectations from the outset can lead to misunderstandings, frustrations, and, in some cases, a suboptimal result. Before diving into a project, it’s important to define specific guidelines, outlining the project scope, deliverables, timeline, budget, and client-designer relationship.
Kelsey: Clear communication is the key to preventing and maneuvering these moments of tension. At the beginning of projects, we try to make sure that our process is clear, the project scope is agreed upon, and, most importantly, the process for making adjustments to both of those things is understood. When everyone knows how things will go and what will happen if things don't go as planned, you can breathe deeply and make the decisions that are needed during the project.
Not knowing your value (and sticking to it)
Regardless of experience or skill level, many designers underestimate their worth in order to appear more appealing or attractive to potential clients. Undervaluing your work not only threatens your financial stability, but it impacts how your clients appreciate and trust your expertise. By not asserting your value, you risk falling into a cycle of undercharging for your services and undermining the perceived value of your work in the eyes of clients.
Allie Astell: Don’t let a client knock down your price too much, if at all. You could end up feeling bitter and undervalued if you go too low and end up working round the clock to get their work complete. You’re being paid for years of experience rather than minutes and hours of your time!
Not trusting yourself
Self-trust is essential as both a web designer and business owner. When you second-guess your decisions, you risk both hindering professional growth and diminishing client satisfaction. Affirm your skills, knowledge, and experience by trusting yourself and your creative process. You may even find that your creativity thrives when you give yourself the freedom and self-assurance to let it.
Katy: Something to avoid is always taking what clients ask for at face value. They aren’t experts in the website building process, but they might have read something online (just like we sometimes search our symptoms before we see a doctor) or received advice from a friend. When clients make a request, sometimes what they actually mean is that they want a particular outcome, and this is how they think it would be achieved. But it might not be the best way, so it’s okay to ask more questions and suggest an alternative approach.
Not being organized from the start
Lack of organization can be detrimental to the success of a project. Without a clear plan, timeline, and task management system in place, you may struggle to prioritize your work or allocate sufficient time for each task. If you have multiple projects in motion, lack of organization can lead to unanticipated costs and diminished productivity, causing delays, misunderstandings, and mistakes. Proper organization can be applied to every stage of a project and can ultimately help you scale your business, take on larger projects, and give you room to let your creativity thrive.
Allie: Firstly, don’t forget to thoroughly brief the project. There could be costly additions that you didn’t know about when you quoted for the work.
Not setting boundaries
Establishing clear boundaries is a staple of healthy client-designer relationships. Without them, clients may request additional services, features, changes, and revisions that go beyond the initial project scope. This can lead to sacrificing personal time to meet excessive client demands or lead to financial implications from the reallocation of your time and resources. By setting boundaries, you can maintain work-life balance, ensure project success, and protect the longevity of your business.
Kelsey: When you're starting out, it is so easy to want to be everything for your clients. You want them to be happy, you want the project to go smoothly, and you want to build something you're proud of. Every designer has that project they look back on with regret—the nights you spent trying to just figure out that one thing. The extra list of changes the client sent at the last minute. The ‘emergency’ they dropped everything to handle. As a designer, knowing your boundaries and being confident as you assert them will help your clients feel like you're a strong leader for the project. If they push back, you can choose how to react to their response, but if you don't give them any guidelines, they won't know for sure.
Learn more about setting boundaries with clients.
Neglecting customer service
As a solopreneur, your attention is constantly being pulled in the many directions of running a business. However, it’s important to not let customer service fall to the wayside. Good customer service ensures client satisfaction throughout the web design process, builds strong client relationships, and fosters trust. It also promotes communication and collaboration.
Allie: Client service is everything! You must make sure that you’re professional, friendly, communicative, and punctual.
Not asking enough questions
Thoroughly understanding your client’s needs, goals, and preferences is essential for delivering a successful web design project. When you don’t ask enough questions, you may end up misinterpreting parts of the project, resulting in multiple revisions and additional work that falls outside of the original scope. Don’t be afraid to ask questions to gather comprehensive information or clarify expectations. Doing so demonstrates your commitment to your client’s vision.
Kelsey: I always try to ask a lot of questions so I fully understand the project and the client to make sure we're a good fit for each other. We've become quite particular about what projects we take on, because we want to give the best possible service to our clients, and we can't do that if we're a scope or personality mismatch.
Forgetting to be empathetic
As a fellow business owner, you understand the unique challenges your clients face both professionally and personally. Your ability to empathize with them is crucial, as it relates to the client-designer relationship and project success. When you understand your client and their goals and establish a meaningful connection, your work becomes even more effective. Additionally, you offer the opportunity for open communication.
Katy: I also take an interest in my clients' lives beyond their work, so I’ll ask about their family or hobbies or any life changes they’ve mentioned. But I’m able to do this because I’m still professional; I do the work and meet deadlines.
[I] try as much as possible to have empathy for my clients' situations and to see the world through their eyes. Doing this can turn a ‘difficult’ client into a great relationship, and sometimes just acknowledging what’s going on for them can make a big difference!
Client relationships will always be an important part of running a web design business. They are also a true measure of success and can drive referrals, business connections, or additional projects.
A special thanks to our interviewees for sharing their expertise.
Katy Carlisle is the founder of SQSP Queen and works with freelancers and non-profits, offering web design and training. She loves talking about all things Squarespace, which she has been using since starting her business in 2013.
Kelsey Gilbert-Kreiling is the co-founder of Week of the Website. She is a speaker, moderator, writer, and designer. In addition to helping run Week of the Website, she is the author of “Squarespace from Signup to Launch,” available fall 2023.
Allie Astell founded Manage My Website in 2009. The executive director works with clients to build stunning Squarespace websites, trains people how to use Squarespace, and advises on online marketing strategies.
Want more?
Check out Squarespace Circle, Squarespace’s program for professional designers. Along with exclusive content, discounts, and other perks, Circle brings professionals together from all across the globe to exchange advice while connecting with new clients and collaborators.
