Completing projects

Some web projects never seem to end. The users are never satisfied with the colours, design, menu, and what not. I have spent time sitting with the users for hours altogether to let them select the colours they like… not once but on three occasions within 2 weeks. And just as I start to leave, they ask, just a questions – “How would this dark brown look on the website? It is just a question.”

They choose all the garish colours that I find hard to swallow. I point out to them that the site will look ghostly, unreadable by the majority, but no response. They seem to like the garish colours.

After a while I give up. I let them choose the colours they like without much comment. And after they have selected, and I am ready to leave the place, another question – “Would I choose these colours for my website?” How to answer it – I told them it will not look good. Of course I won’t ever put them on my site. It is better to put a “Under Construction since 1994″ sign than to choose that brown text on black.

I answer that I will make suggestions, but let teh owners choose what colours they like. I give feedback, suitability, general visibility and the advice on what colours go well with others, but I don’t select the colours for my clients… unless they ask me to. So it is their personal decision.

I guess what they want is validation that what they have selected will work. Even with all the feedback I gave, now they want me to validate that these odd colours will work. I can’t nod my head on this. come what may.

Yes, customer is always right. We try to educate the customer, but if they are not ready to take the feedback, advice or help, and continue their own blind way, yes, they’re right.

THis is just the colours, we have done the same thing with logos, banners, and images. I am really getting fed-up. How am I going to ever complete this project.

Do you all get into similar situations? Do you get stuck into some projects that never seem to maken progress or get completed. Do write if you have some tips on how to improve such situations, help the customers in making the right situations, and progress further, and faster.

Playing Solo

Growing a business is hard. And if you are doing it alone, it is doubly so… I am not preaching, I am no guru – this is based on my own experiences that I am talking about.

I am trying to grow a web design, email & direct marketing business from scratch. Didn’t have any clients when I started. It was very difficult to convince my first client to give me his business. It still is… with every new client. People seem to be so guarded and cautious about their money. I feel that they have’nt heard that time is money. They’d wait for many weeks and months before deciding to get themselves a $500 website.

For me, this time and effort seemed like a waste. After all, if you have to visit a client 4-5 times to get their 500 dollar biz, it is really worth it? What about my own time… isn’t it money?

But I guess I still need to feed my family. So hard cash is what matters. Not the time spent day in and day out trying to woo the clients.

All this is what makes it hard… getting a prospect in the first place, and then keep presenting to them the benefits of your solution. They know the benefits most of the time, or else they won’t spend time with me. But they can’t make up their minds to plonk down a deposit to get the work started at the earliest. I don’t know how long it takes to gain their trust.

For me, I haven’t done such kind of sales in my previous job, and it comes as quite hard to get clients in the first place.

I am curious to know how you grow your business. Do you face similar issues? Did you have a rough and tough time getting your first few orders?

Do post your experiences, raves, rants, anything to share with fellow beings, the ordeal of growing your business..