A flat fee project turned into endless unpaid revisions

I agreed to design a brochure for a set price with a new client. They seemed nice at first, so I did not push for a detailed contract. After submitting the initial draft, they asked for a few tweaks, which I did. Then came more changes, and then a complete redesign of two sections. I spent triple the time we originally discussed. My mistake was not having a clear limit on revisions in writing. Now, I always specify the number of included changes upfront, usually two or three. If they want more, it triggers a new agreement and an extra charge. This small change has saved my sanity and my income on several jobs since.

3 comments

3 Comments

ramirez.tara1mo ago

Seriously, those clear boundaries show clients you value your work and expect them to as well.

perez.barbara23d ago

Honestly @ramirez.tara, they really think "final" means they can still ask for free changes? Tbh that's wild.

terryscott1mo ago

Tell me about it, clients act like the word "final" is just a suggestion. Learned that lesson the hard way too.