What makes a great client? Part II

In my previous post, I talked about what makes a great client, andÊI thought I would return to the subject as it is always an exchange of information that happens when we work with clients. You can readÊPart 1 of what makes a great client.One issue that I thought would be a good start for this blog posting is risk.Ê6) Risk is shared. One of the challenging aspects of building a website in 2013 is that the technology is rapidly changing. It can be risky business building a website today. Sometimes we start with a technology that has become obsolete by the time the project is finished.Ê More often, it is not obsolete, but rather something has changed in it that leads to making technical changes. It is hard for clients to see why they should have to pay for these kinds of things, but the reality is is that the risk is shared between the client and us at the agency.Ê Imagine if you were a carpenter and every time you started a project they changed the shape of a hammer. As professionals, we use tools that are peer-reviewed and accepted as standard tools in our industry but the reality is that they are constantly evolving.Ê For example, third-party tools that, in the best world, can provide so much extra functionality for very little cost, but also often create havoc when they change. Ê Clients often have to understand this technology landscape and except that a certain amount of change will occur.7) Culture. I’ve realized in later projects that there is a culture at Agentic that actually makes sense for us to explain. Essentially, it’s the way we approach our livability and balance of life and work. Someone said to me, “we work so hard for progressive values in our work, we ought to do the same in our personal lives.” It means that we value our work, but also understand that our children, spouses and friends also need an important part of us. This translates into trying to avoid working on the weekends and after hours. This can be difficult for some clients, as they might have deadlines that are unavoidable. But with planning and preparation, we usually can manage these issues and work towards effectively avoiding after-hours work. Not to say we never do, but just that as a rule, we want to hold our personal lives in balance with our work.ÊI’ve love to know if there are thoughts that clients have about working with us, as I know that it is a two-way street. We love our work, and always want to get better at it.Ê

• Author: Phillip Djwa