Robert Brodrecht's Client Guidelines

You were serious.

If you are reading this, it means you were serious about having me create your website. That or you were curious about my client guidelines. Well, here goes...

I freelance part-time.

I have a full-time day job. I work on freelance projects at night and on the weekend. It happens that I am a firm believer in sanity. I know that all work and no play will drive me insane. So, I only allot 12 hours a week for freelance work. This drives several of my guidelines.

• No time sensitive projects. If you have a deadline that is less than two months away, I can't help you.
• No big projects. If the project is going to take more than one month to complete on my time schedule, I can't help you.
• No boring projects. I'm not going to waste my and my client's time working on a site that I'm not excited about.
• No undedicated people. If you aren't willing to work on this project, I'm not either.

Would you try to tell your doctor how to do her job?

People hire professionals to do a job for them because they don't have the know-how. The problem is that everyone thinks they are a designer. Not everyone thinks they are a doctor. What gives?

The problem is that everyone has certain aesthetic tastes. Aesthetics are subjective (where what illness someone has is not); however, good design is not subjective. So, I take the approach of a doctor: you tell me the symptoms (what you want from the site), and I diagnose and treat it (I design a site to fit your needs). So, what I mean is that your opinion is important, but, by hiring me, you are admitting that you are not a designer and you lack the know-how to design your site. That means you are not always right.

With that in mind, I'll add the following:

• No control freaks. I am the designer. I need control. You have to trust me.
• No egos. If you think you know more than me, you don't need me to do the site.
• No unbending preconceived notions. Suggestions and input are welcome as long as you are flexible.

Good design is important.

I'm passionate about my work. I want to be proud of everything I do. I want to build sites I can show off. I have a few guidelines related to this.

• No flash intros. They are pointless, painful, and antiquated. If you want a flash intro, I'm not the man for the job.
• No content, no site. The site is created to present your content. If you don't have content, I can't build a site. All images, text, etc. need to be presented up front.

I am not a Macromedia Flash fan-boy.

I can do Flash, but I'm not a big fan of it. Flash takes longer to develop and is a bit of a pain to work with. I don't mind limited use of Flash, but a Flash-only site will cost you big. In other words, I won't use it unless it adds real value to the site.

Money, it's a gas.

At some point, everyone has to pay. My rates are on a flexible scale dependent upon the client. If you request more information, I'll give you more information. I expect 50% of my quote up front. All payment should be through personal checks or cash.

The process.

The first thing you'll need to do is get in touch with me. After I know you're interested, I'll begin a dialog with you to determine your problem and determine if I can provide a proper solution.

If I decide to take on your project, I'll discuss the solution with you. If we agree on the solution, I'll work up a list of deliverables. With that list, I'll include a low and high estimate of the amount of time I think it will take for me to complete each item. From there, you'll be able to accept, modify, or reject my proposal.

If you accept the proposal, I'll begin work after I receive 50% of the minimum estimate. Once work has begun, changes to the deliverables will not be accepted. Any new or modified deliverables will be postponed until completion of the project. The right to cancel the contract is available at any time by the client or myself. However, the 50% down-payment will not be refunded in full or in part if the project is canceled unless I deem it necessary.

I will keep a log of the hours spent on the project. Upon completion, I will bill for the remainder of the payment owed based on the actual hourly rate in the estimate. After receiving the payment, I will upload the site.

Upon payment in full or cancelation, I will provide all the files I have available (including master graphics) on CD-ROM or on the live server.

Are you still interested?

Feel free to contact me if you fit within the guidelines.