Horrible Client.. Need Graphic Designer advice in legal and moral opinions

[M A V I C]

Dear [customer],

We would be more than happy to provide a use license for the working files. The license will be worldwide, non-exclusive sublicensable (through one or more tiers), assignable, royalty-free, perpetual, irrevocable right to use, reproduce, distribute (through one or more tiers), create derivative works of, publicly perform, publicly display, digitally perform, make, have made, sell, offer for sale and import into new or existing works. Our fee for such a license is $900. Please see attached invoice.

Sincerely,
[you]

[attach invoice]

[bazookaman]

[quote weapon]How do I tell them?

How do I start the email and still sound professional?
"Listen up boneheads..."

well...maybe not so much.

[weapon]

Damn mavic, you have run into this before.

Thanks man.

[M A V I C]

[quote weapon]Damn mavic, you have run into this before.

Thanks man.
Yep. Not only that, but I used to just shutdown and give in. Then I would be frustrated but have no way to express it. Then I would have clients who intentionally walk over their vendors and I just couldn't find a way to convey myself. I've always been a person doing the work or project managing, or dealing with clients but not budget requests and all that. Having to learn to do that has been the toughest thing.

I remember years ago doing some freelance projects while I had a day job. I made $20/hr and so when they asked me my rate I said $30 and they replied back "how about $50?" It was so confusing to me that they thought I was charging too little.

Now many years later, I understand the true cost of doing business... at least if I want it to be sustainable. I used to not like discussing money because it was tough to ask what the work is worth, even though I knew it was worth that much. Finally I started asking a fair rate and I would lose perspective projects. I never liked people walking away because they thought I was too expensive, because then I felt like I lost money. But really I've found that if someone walks when they hear my hourly rate, I'm better off for it.

True businessmen do not care what a person's hourly rate is, but what the return on that rate is.

Anyway, in the past many years I watched a pro in a related industry in action. He's world famous. And I saw how the client presented him with numerous things such as this topic and how he responded. He gave me new light on it all, and I've since realized that's the sort of response I need to give.

Be happy to serve them charging the going rate. If they are unable to make the return on the investment - and they're not also hiring you to create that return for them - then it's not your problem they can't run their business.

[MysteryGuest]

[quote M A V I C]Dear [customer],

We would be more than happy to provide a use license for the working files. The license will be worldwide, non-exclusive sublicensable (through one or more tiers), assignable, royalty-free, perpetual, irrevocable right to use, reproduce, distribute (through one or more tiers), create derivative works of, publicly perform, publicly display, digitally perform, make, have made, sell, offer for sale and import into new or existing works. Our fee for such a license is $900. Please see attached invoice.

Sincerely,
[you]

[attach invoice]
Copy and paste!

[weapon]

Copy and pasted and sent.

Awaiting the firestorm...

[MacMission]

Power to you. Let us know when you get paid. Beers on you.

[Big Daddy Cool]

Yes, please post a follow-up post with the outcome.

[katkramer]

M A V I C...beautifully written. Definitely copy and paste!

Those kinds of clients are a pain. Just ask them how they'd feel if their boss cut their pay tomorrow by XYZ amount. Remind them that you have to pay taxes out of that as well.