If you’ve never heard the term scope creep before, you might still have experienced it. It’s what happens when a freelancer sends a client a quote and outlines the work it covers. Then, when you start work, the client begins adding bits. It’s never anything significant at first. It might be an extra task that will “only take five minutes”. The trouble is, those five-minute tasks start to add up, and suddenly you’re doing a lot more work for the same money.
Here’s how it happened to me, and what I learned from it.
The client
The client had taken over running a business event that had already been going for several years. During our first meeting, they told me about their plans to improve the event, including some exciting new sponsors. They said I’d have opportunities to meet all of them if I performed well on the first part of the project.
Yes, I know. The alarm bells should have started ringing as soon as I heard promises of future riches. In my defence, I’d only been in business for about a year, and I was still very green.
The project
The project involved creating new content for the event’s website, reflecting the change in management and highlighting the new sponsors. They had statistics from previous events, so they wanted to include those to build credibility. The client had also taken over similar events at other venues, so would potentially need two more websites.
I sent them a quote, and they offered more than I’d asked for to cover the second website. They sent me the headline statistics, which someone else had already analysed and said they were working on doing the same for the second website.
The scope creep
I’d delivered the copy for the first website, and everything was going well. Then, they sent me the data for the second website and said I’d need to analyse it myself. I should have said no, but they were paying me more than I’d ever been paid, so I got on with it and wrote the second website. I was so stressed that I found myself crying at my desk on a Saturday night, keeping my fingers crossed that my analysis made sense.
Then the client mentioned a third website. We’d touched on it briefly, but hadn’t agreed on anything. Except the client said we had. I was due to go on holiday, so I gave them a deadline for the figures.
The end
My deadline came and went with no more information from the client. I emailed them to inform them that I wouldn’t be completing the work, as it hadn’t been included in my quote anyway. That’s when I got the phone call. According to the client, I’d promised to deliver the third website, and they hadn’t received the full value for the payments they’d sent, so they’d need a refund. They also said that my analysis wasn’t good enough. (No surprises there.)
What I learned
With hindsight, I should have said no as soon as they sent me spreadsheets instead of ready-to-use data. I was inexperienced and grateful for the money and the opportunity to connect with potential new clients.
The most important thing I learned was to get everything in writing. I’d sent a written quote, but we’d agreed on the increased price on the phone, so I didn’t have a contract to confirm what it covered, what information they’d provide and what would happen if they didn’t deliver it in time. I ended up refunding part of the final payment because I couldn’t prove what we’d agreed.
Ready for a chat?
I hope this helps you to push back against scope creep sooner than I did and get everything in writing before you start work. When you work with me, I’ll get to know you and your business, and write content that sounds like the best version of you and that your audience will love. More importantly, I’ll put everything in writing before we start so we both know exactly what to expect.
Please email me to arrange a chat or book a Zoom call to find out more.
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