Steps to Take When a Client Asks for Excessive Edits

When you work as a freelance writer, your livelihood depends on being able to find new clients and keep existing ones coming back with work orders. However, sometimes clients are not always the easiest to please. This is especially true of clients who never seem satisfied with the content you produce, demanding multiple rounds of revisions that can eat into your daily schedule. Of course, you won’t want to leave a client hanging or feeling like you didn’t deliver on an order, but you can’t spend all of your time offering round after round of edits until the client is happy. So how do you deal with this situation? We’ll take a look at some strategies for providing the edits your client needs without letting them run the show with endless demands.

Plan Ahead

Ideally, clients would be happy with every deliverable you produce, the first time around. Unfortunately, this isn’t always the case. And it may have little to do with the quality of your writing. Sometimes clients simply don’t properly iterate what it is they want, or they change their mind about a project that you have already started. Because you can’t always predict what a client will do, it’s best to start your relationship with a contract that outlines procedures for requesting edits and revisions as well as the amount you will charge for those revisions. You may have an hourly rate for edits following content delivery, or you might include one round of revisions for free. No matter what the details are, keep your client accountable with the contract they have signed.

Avoid Becoming Defensive

When a client asks for a rewrite, it’s easy to assume that they are being finicky. After all, you’re the professional writer, and they hired you, right? Don’t fall into this pattern of defensive thinking. Instead, read the client’s feedback carefully. If this is the second or even third round of edits they’ve asked for, consider whether you have taken the details of each revision request into account. It can be challenging to hear negative feedback on your writing or hear that you haven’t delivered what a client wants, but if your instinct is to argue with the client that edits are unwarranted, then you are likely to see a negative outcome.

Ask the Client for More Details about What They Want

If a client is asking for more edits than seem reasonable, then it’s likely that they had envisioned a different finished product than you did with the details provided. So, it’s worth asking them for more details about what, exactly, they want to see in the finished writing. You should also follow up on rewrite requests that don’t seem to line up. For example, if the client says that the writing is filled with factual errors, but you cannot readily spot any, ask for specific examples of misinformation from the article in question. Again, don’t get defensive, but do speak up when the request seems unreasonable or out of line.

Know When to Charge for a Full Rewrite

A client may ask for an edit when what they really want is a full rewrite. Don’t be afraid to draw the line and tell a client that you need to charge them for an entirely new article, rather than some small edits. If you are going to have to revise more than 30% of the content you’ve sent, then a rewrite is likely most appropriate. And remember, these are all terms that you can outline in a contract that the client will sign before you start working with them, so you will be able to substantiate any new charges.

Consider Whether You Should Continue the Client Relationship

Often, it is possible to rein in a client’s over-the-top edit requests and establish a more functional working relationship. However, for those clients who are constantly asking for revisions, it may be worth terminating the relationship. Don’t do this by simply ignoring the client, but provide them with notice that you will no longer be able to work with them. A client that is going to take up substantial chunks of your time with edit requests will only keep you from finding clients that are a better fit and moving forward with your freelance career.

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