Spotting Shitty Clients — Part 1 — The “Send Option Only” Clients

If you hate one-way communication, then these clients are not for you. The “Send Option” Only clients are an odd bunch. All they do is send emails, forward them, or reply with options like “Yes/ Sure/ Correct/ Understood/ Acknowledged.” The biggest sin is that they don’t either read the emails addressed to them or the ones they forward.

Now, I had this one client, and here’s how my email trail with them went.

Sep 4 — A friend sent me a link to a freelance job posting. I sent an introductory email along with my rate card, portfolio, and work links.
Sep 4 — I got a reply saying thanks; could you please share portfolio and work links? This is the earliest sign you get about such clients. They ask you to send you things you already have in previous emails.
Sep 4 — I send a reply saying, here’s the link and my portfolio — again.

Sep 5 (evening) — I send a message to see what the next steps are.

Sep 6 (morning) — They send a test. Two ad copy samples for each funnel. Timeline: Oct 7 noon. Meh, whatever. Not too much work and seems reasonable. The email also contains the benefits of said product, what the messaging should be during awareness, consideration, and action.
E.g., in awareness, the focus was on the core proposition. In consideration, it was to link the aspirations and triggers of the TG with the features and benefits of the product. All cool, yeah? But they don’t send the core proposition or details of the TG. How exactly am I supposed to do this test?
Sep 6 (afternoon) — I send an email requesting details about the core proposition, the TG, brand tonality, previous brand communications, and payment terms.

Sep 11 (morning) — I get an email saying, “Hey Sharjeel. Awaiting the below assignment”. This behavior really grinds my gears. It’s incredibly annoying. I could throw the very laptop I’m typing this piece on.
Sep 11 (morning) — I sent a reply saying, could you answer my questions.
Sep 11 (afternoon) — “Hi Sharjeel, PFB answers to your questions.” Finally! Now I can get started with the test given to me on Oct 6.

Sep 12 (afternoon) — I sent the completed test.

Oct 15 (today) — I’m still waiting for their reply.

There were early red flags, but still, I chose to go ahead with our conversation. Overall, I probably spent around 5 hours between all interactions and the test. That’s time I’m not going to get back.

The next story I have regarding “The Send Only Option” clients is that of a middle manager. Now, it must come as no surprise to readers that I don’t like middle managers. Oftentimes, they interfere with the process more than contribute to it. This isn’t because they all suck. No. Far from it. This usually happens because they aren’t the final decision-makers. Therefore, gratification comes hard to this lot. On the contributions table (nowadays Zoom meetings), they always make sure they bring their ego. Great!

So, I connected with a couple of prospects who wanted help with digital branding, pricing strategy, and go-to-market supply chain processes. My POC — the brand manager, who in this case worked under the CEO, but these people could also work under CMOs.

After a week, I get a reply saying, “Hey, let’s do a call,” to which I happily agree. A couple of good conversations over a few hours was enough to understand the brand, their values, and the culture they are trying to create.

These conversations spanned 4 days, and on Day 5, I sent the pricing across. They requested a week to get back. A week later, another week.

Today is Oct 15, and this email trail started in Mid-August. I don’t think I expect to hear back before November. I predict they’ll need more time.

What’s the point of this story?

Glad you asked. Look, there are many shitty clients out there, and my hope is that by sharing experiences I’ve had in my past, the rest of you could see if these patterns exist in your work life too.

If they do, then here’s what Sagar Hebbale, founder of the collaborative microblogging platform, IndieFact, and a good friend and advisor, says is the proper thing to do — “A very important thing I learned at the start of my career, let go of shit clients, even though you may not have a fallback option. Your time is better used doing nothing than dealing with people who just want to use/exploit you as much as they can.”

I wholly concur with him on this, and I too say, screw shitty clients. They are not worth your time. And time is limited.

Happy to not waste your time and connect with you on LinkedIn or Instagram. I hope you have a great day wherever you are. Seize control of your time. You’ve only got so much left.

P.S — The dates in Story 1 may not be exact, but the duration is.