When your not happy with paid work

[Arcainess]

Hey all o/

 

So a few of you have probably paid another person to make a resource for your game, so say you asked them to make you a Dark Knight character, and you have given al the detail given and explained how you want your Dark Knight Character sheet to look. So the work is done and the artist's sent you the work you ask them for but for whatever reason, you don't like the work, it could that it doesn't match the description you gave or the style isn't right. 

Here's 2 scenarios

You already paid them for the work but your not happy about it.

 

or

 

You don't like the work but they want payment for there time.

And let's just assume the work isn't bad but in fact rather good and anybody else would be happy to have it but it just not what you asked for or what you hoped for.

 

So let's discuss. What do you do?

[Damian666]

pay them for their time/work. then move on I guess?

 

unless its a huge amount, then I think I deserve the right for saying its not right.

[Kibbelz]

Its usually on you for not looking at their portfolio for what their skill level is in that area. When I've freelanced I've had clients want a small edit, bug fixes for code I usually do it for free since its on me for not doing it right the first time. I always make sure payment is done before i send them my code. I would always recommend going to someone wit a good reputation on the forums rather than a low post user. Also we as mods will ban users on the spot with proof of anyone scamming anyone for money so I'd say we have a safe environment here so problems shouldn't occur as long as you communicate well and give constructive feedback if its not what you want exactly.

[jcsnider]

For coding it's easy. From a developers standpoint you give a price estimate, you make the change, then you send a compiled app/demo (no source) for them to play with and a final price. 

 

Once the buyer has the compiled app it is their job to find any bugs and report them, it is also their job at this point to determine if the changes/additions work and are acceptable. 

 

The buyer should take all the time they need to test because all sales should be considered AS-IS. Some developers will fix bugs in their code free of charge but you can't count on it. Any bugs you miss during the testing stage are on the buyer.

 

----------------------------------------------------------------

 

So for scenario 1 where you paid for the work but aren't happy with it:

Thats unfortunate but you should have tested further and made sure you liked the product in the testing/demo stage. If you've already paid then this is buyers remorse and you have to find a way to live with it. 

 

For scenario 2 where you don't like their work but they still want payment: Don't give it to them. Some deals fall through even after work is done - this is a known risk to the seller. What if they did a poor job in hopes that you wouldn't notice, do you want to encourage that behavior further?

 

 

A few extra thoughts:

From a selling standpoint you could require that buyers pay half up front (especially when dealing with new people) to divide the risk amoungst both of you. A lot of people do this, arguments can be made that it's fair -- I hate doing this especially if I'm dealing with someone who has paid in the past. 

 

I think this is the same in a lot of way for art/graphics. Sellers need to give proofs (watermarked is fine) and buyers need to make sure they're happy before paying and assume that the seller won't make further changes after receiving payment. 

 

Hourly rates suck and are scary for buyers, but they are the most fair for sellers. We don't know how long your job will take and if you change your vision/requirements over and over again after we implement them you should be billed for it. If you don't like the sellers policies or you don't think the seller will remain honest then go find someone willing to do the same job at a flat rate. 

 

Finally, always look up the history of who you're dealing with. Buyers usually leave reviews of sellers and discuss their experiences (good and bad) so you should know what you're getting into. If there are no reviews then the seller probably has a bad history or is just starting out. It's up to you to decide whether or not to give them a chance. 

 

More thoughts coming soon. 

[Kibbelz]

I think the main thing is credibility. Once you know someone is credible you're set to go.