Your Scope Of Work Must Be Set In Concrete!

It’s not a good thing when your plans get stretched out of all proportion. It’s when a well meaning (or perhaps not) Client starts to ask for more than you agreed between you both. It happens when a project starts to take up more time and money than originally planned.

I am going to relate this to the development of a new website for a client. (However it can be applied to any Client Project you care to think about). It might happen if the project starts to include things that weren’t part of the original plan, and you end up doing more work for no extra money. Not a good thing.

Sometimes it happens because the client asks for extra things to be done that you may not have outlined in your contract. Other times, it happens because the designer didn’t explain things well enough at the beginning. Maybe they started the project before they had all the information they needed. Or maybe they promised too much to the client.

Did I hear someone say Contract? Yes… you must have a contract with everything to do with the design and deliverables, time frames, costs etc., detailed out, with no wiggle room.

Changes will always happen, but it’s important to make sure you redo the contract to include extras and then get paid for the work you do. If you don’t, you’ll end up losing money.

Here are some things to watch out for:

– If the client asks for something that wasn’t part of the original plan, make sure you get paid for it.
– If the client is late in giving you the information you need, make sure they know that it will cause delays and could cost them more money.
– Even small changes should be charged for. Don’t just throw in extra things for free.
– Don’t start a project until you have all the information you need and the client has signed off on everything.

To avoid things getting out of hand, it’s important to have a good plan in place and set it in concrete. This includes defining everything you need from the client and what you’ll provide to them. You should also work out how long the project will take and how much you’ll charge. Make sure you have a schedule with milestones, and a procedure for making changes. When the project is done, make sure the client signs off on everything before you go live.

To stop things from getting out of hand in my projects, I make sure I have a clear plan in place, a list of all the jobs I have promised and have been asked to do, with everything written down. I also ask for a deposit up front and set clear deadlines for payment.

It might seem like a lot of work, but it’s important to stick to the rules so that everyone is happy and you can make a profit.

I tend to have a generic template which I use and fill in the blanks to begin with, which gives me something to start with. Only because writing the contract from scratch will eat into your day and you don’t get paid any extra for this!

To your success!

HERE’S A BOOK YOU MIGHT LIKE TO READ:

DEVELOPING THE BUSINESS MINDSET >>