Client ghosted us after 3 revisions, then blamed our agency in a public review. Who's actually at fault?

We're a small web design shop in Columbus. Six months ago we took on a restaurant client with a $4,500 site project. We delivered the first draft in 3 weeks. They asked for changes. We made them. Then again. Then a third time. After that, they just stopped replying to emails and calls for 2 months. No feedback, no payment on the final invoice. Then last week they posted a public review saying we 'ignored their vision' and 'left them hanging.'\n\nHere's the thing, we still have the finished site ready to launch. They never paid the last $1,200. But their review is sitting there making us look bad. Do we fire back with our side, or just take the hit? Some say we should've set firmer limits on revisions upfront. Others say the client was never serious. I keep going back and forth on whether we did something wrong or they just wanted free work. Has anyone else dealt with a client who vanishes then trashes you publicly? How did you handle it?

1 comments

1 Comment

willow_robinson27d ago

Oh boy. Classic move from someone who wants the work but not the bill. You delivered three rounds, they went silent, that's on them. If you have emails showing you kept asking for feedback and got nothing, post that as a calm reply to their review. Just state the facts, no emotion. Next time, put a hard cap on revisions in the contract and collect half upfront. That weeds out the freeloaders fast. Take the hit on the $1,200, but don't let the review stand unanswered.