Dear Dakota: What Do I Do When a Client Doesn’t Provide Timely Feedback?
Dear Dakota,
What do I do when a client doesn’t provide timely feedback?
This is a question we hear all of the time from our 1:1 clients.
In our experience, most designers give between 3-7 days from the time of presentation for clients to provide feedback. Beyond that, it's billed at the hourly rate or an addendum to the contract is made to add time and an additional design fee.
You'll definitely want to have a revisions policy in your contract, as well as in your welcome guide, via email before you present the design, again verbally when you present, in your presentation recap email, and as you’re nearing the end of the revisions period so they are completely aware.
If clients don't give feedback at all—you can pause their project and move them out of the active queue.
This is why it's so important to get the design fees right from the start: if the client falls off or ghosts you, at least you got paid for the design.
Some common threads among designers who say clients fall off and don't give feedback.
It's usually one of these:
Designer isn't presenting the entire design all at once, or they aren't including pricing when they present (so client has a sense that things aren't done yet)
Designer is presenting multiple options
Designer doesn't have a clearly defined revisions process
Designer isn't charging enough and client isn't "invested" in the process
Designer is giving all the information away to client so client can DIY the design and doesn't need to move forward
Designer has overcomplicated the presentation of information, leaving the client feeling like they have TONS to do
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