“Didn’t Work Out”? “DIDN’T WORK OUT”?!

I do graphic design and basic websites for clients who do not require fully custom websites.

I once had a client who would periodically send me photos to edit. They were mostly fashion photos, and she just needed me to remove the backgrounds for her. They were pretty simple, and I would charge her a couple of bucks per photo since each photo took me less than ten minutes.

Things started going south when, after a few weeks, her deadlines started getting tighter and tighter, from a couple of days to a twenty-four-hour turnaround. To be fair, we had a standing contract about this particular job, and she was always very prompt with payment, so I thought I’d do my part when it was really urgent and politely decline or outsource it when it was too much.

After a couple of weeks, she stopped contacting me, so I thought she didn’t need my service anymore.

One day, I received this email from her.

Client: “Sorry I haven’t contacted you for a while. My previous business didn’t work out, but now I have a new idea. I need a new website by next week. I can pay you $50.”

I never bothered replying to that email.