Let’s get something straight: you attract what you tolerate. If you’re consistently dealing with demanding, disrespectful, and difficult clients, it’s not just bad luck; it’s a reflection of your own pricing strategy. Your cheapest clients are almost always your most difficult, and it’s time to understand why and how to avoid this soul-crushing cycle.
This isn’t about being greedy or elitist. It’s about recognizing the fundamental relationship between price, value, and client behavior. It’s about understanding that the clients who are most obsessed with getting the lowest price are often the least willing to respect your expertise, your time, and your boundaries.
They often don’t have a budget and are just testing the waters. They may also have been rejected elsewhere. You also want to be at a comfortable and sustainable level of payment that will allow your best work to be done.
Why are cheap clients so damn difficult? Here’s a breakdown of the usual suspects:
- They Don’t Value Your Expertise: They see your services as a commodity rather than a specialized skill. They think anyone can do what you do, so they’re not willing to pay a premium for your expertise.
- They Have Unrealistic Expectations: They expect the moon for pennies on the dollar. They want the same level of quality and service as a high-paying client, but they’re not willing to invest in it.
- They’re Time Wasters: They demand endless revisions, ask for constant updates, and generally suck up your time with unnecessary communication. They don’t understand the value of your time, so they’re happy to waste it.
- They’re Price Sensitive: They’re always looking for ways to cut costs, even if it means sacrificing quality or compromising your integrity. They’ll nickel and dime you to death, haggling over every detail.
- They’re Disrespectful: They treat you like a servant rather than a partner. They don’t value your time, your opinions, or your expertise. They may be rude, demanding, and even abusive.
- They Don’t Understand the Value You Provide: They have no idea how much work, effort, and skill goes into what you do. They think your services are easy and effortless, so they’re not willing to pay a premium for them.
- They’re Desperate: They might be trying to cut corners just to get by. They might not value the services you provide, and need just about anyone with any service to just come by and help.
These are people who aren’t worthy of your service.
I remember talking to my friend, Rohan, who does web development. He had a customer that wanted a 1500-dollar website built from scratch with e-commerce, an app, and customer portals. He was asking to build what costs easily over $15,000 for just 1500, because those were the only funds he could muster.
That meant he needed a desperate person. Rohan was not interested, and let go.
Here’s how to avoid the cheap client trap:
- Know Your Worth: This is the foundation of all successful pricing strategies. Understand your skills, your experience, and your value in the marketplace. Research your competition, calculate your costs, and determine a fair rate for your services. Don’t be afraid to charge what you’re worth.
- Price Yourself Accordingly: Don’t be afraid to charge premium prices for your services. The higher your prices, the more selective you can be about the clients you work with.
- Qualify Your Leads: Don’t take on every client who comes your way. Take the time to qualify your leads, asking questions to determine if they’re a good fit for your skills, your expertise, and your working style. If a client seems too focused on price, don’t be afraid to walk away.
- Set Minimum Project Fees: Establish a minimum project fee to weed out the clients who are looking for a quick and cheap solution. This fee should be high enough to cover your time, your expertise, and your overhead costs.
- Raise Your Rates Regularly: Don’t be afraid to raise your rates periodically to reflect your growing skills, your increasing experience, and the rising demand for your services.
Here’s an idea: you increase your price as much as you think you’re worth. The more you increase it, the more people will be willing to pay. You can get good work, and a solid bottom line as well. The high price will weed out the people who are not worth your time.
Side Note: Is a Discount Actually Worth It?
The world says that there are times when you may want to provide a discount but should you? That’s debatable. Here’s what you need to remember:
- You need to do what you can to provide a good service and discount or low costs do not guarantee this.
- The discount may create problems and resentment down the line. Clients may expect it next time, or clients may disrespect your time.
- Discounts just aren’t worth the trouble, especially since it is meant to be a good strategy. This can destroy profits.
It’s been proven that quality over price is what you should always consider, even if it is at a high cost.
Let’s hear it from some stories in the wild:
The story of a web developer – Akash
Akash had an expertise in high quality design, and thought that he was a very talented web developer, and was able to get a $2000 monthly revenue. It was great and he thought he was rolling in dough.
Unfortunately, many of his clients were low, and were always bugging him. This took his time away and also caused so much anxiety on what needed to be done. Akash had to put his foot down and let these clients go because they were too hard to take.
Akash began to charge more and in the end he got 2000 to 5000 per client.
Just know, he knew his worth, and that’s what it took to push his client to see the same thing.
The tale of Priya the freelancer writer
Priya was a good content writer. She had a passion for the craft, and was able to churn out an insane amount of high quality work, but also took in lowball clients, since she thought quantity was more important. She would often spend a large number of time for just a mere pittance.
I tried telling her that she should ask for more but was too afraid. What happened to her in the end? She lost all joy for writing and was just going through the motions to make a living, as all the joy and talent was just drained. She was now doing the bare minimum for a small dollar.
It was too late for her, and you need to remember what her story is and prevent this from happening to you!
The epic saga of a designer name Sanjana
I know this designer that was asked to do a website that was complex with payment portal, but they were willing to pay only 500 which is a small amount! She would also work weekends without more money.
What this happened to be was a race to the bottom where there would be no winning. She became jaded and wanted to quit! I remember telling her to just move on and focus on what she is good at.
In conclusion: this can be a dark path if we aren’t able to value our time so please always remember to look at what will make the most money so you can have the best outcome. Make it be known. Always, if you can, make things happen and make it better, no matter what. You need to be good with your money and good at finding your ways.
Here are some simple things that you can check to create a good service.
1 – are you under charging? List how much everything is and make sure you are at a sustainable spot
2 – what is the cost of happiness versus just surviving, make sure you account for this.
3 – there will be tough days but just keep plowing through.
So to continue, to be the best and to live in the one percent.
Take the initiative and go.
What we must do to be better:
Do not give up, and always learn from past mistakes.
Remember you are the expert, and know that your skills will always help so let the clients know.
So keep it up and you’re almost there. So congratulations.
” “”That’s all there is.
” Now It’s time to level up, to be the expert you know you can be.”
Good luck.
