As a copywriter, I’ve had plenty of eye-rolling moments, but I’ve thankfully only ever had to deal with one real a**ehole.
They need a website. I write all the copy. A few days later, I receive an email.
Client’s Email: “This is all wrong. You’ve completely misinterpreted the brief. It will have to be rewritten from scratch.”
Shocked, I set up an emergency meeting, drop everything, and rush over to his offices. It is a small company, and nearly everyone appears to be sitting in on our meeting.
Me: “I’m really sorry about this, but we can fix it. Let’s start at the first page.”
Client: “I don’t like the first sentence.”
He continues reading silently.
Client: “But the rest of it’s okay.”
I suggest alternate wording.
Me: “What about the next page?”
He reads silently.
Client: “Yeah, that’s okay.”
Me: “Page three?”
The client reads it — I’m guessing for the first time.
Client: “I don’t like that word. The rest is fine.”
And so on.
There were eighteen pages of copy. I ended up having to change six sentences. It took me fifteen minutes. Attending the meeting took up half a day. There was no apology.
Later, the client tried to stiff me for my fee, arguing that the briefing process took far longer than he’d anticipated. I’d fixed (and he’d agreed to) my fee AFTER I’d taken the brief.