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Serious question, what do you do when a client ghosts you after a big milestone?
I was finishing a website build for a client in Austin, and right after I sent the final mockup for approval, they just stopped answering. No replies for two full weeks. I had already put in about 40 hours on the project. I finally sent a firm email saying I'd pause all work and hold the files until the invoice for the completed phase was settled. They paid the next day. Has anyone else had to put a project on ice like that to get paid?
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anthony42610d ago
Honestly, that kill fee is a lifesaver. I took it a step further and split my projects into three clear phases, each with its own payment before I even start the next part. It means I'm never sitting on a huge chunk of unpaid work. If they vanish after phase one, I've at least been paid for that. It just removes the whole guessing game.
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allen.william18d ago
Put a kill fee in your contract next time.
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casey_harris9818d ago
Yeah, that's a solid idea from @allen.william. I mean, I got burned once when a client just ghosted halfway through a project. After that, I started putting in a 25% kill fee for work already done if they cancel. It saved me last month when a big order fell through, at least I got paid for the initial design time. Makes you feel a lot less stressed about starting work for someone new.
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