Like in personal relationships, you can find in a client – supplier relation one of them being an ‘abuser’.

If the client is the one abusing, there are 2 options on the table for the supplier:
a. Fire the client
b. Find ways to deal with it

It is not as easy as it sounds and you have to take into consideration a few variables before deciding to ‘cut the cord’:
– The value of the project: how much the money you get (as a supplier) compensate all the trouble and abuse? If the value is high, maybe is worth it to find ways to cope with the situation… and hope the things will change 🙂
– How many people in your organization are affected by this?
– How much finding a solution and adapting to this situation will disrupt your business process?

Each business has to decide for itself the answers.

Examples of client being abusive:

• Feeling as if you are walking on egg shells
• Lack of communication
• Controlling and a “know it all” attitude
• Asking constantly for work outside the scope of the project
• Not paying on time (regularly) or not paying at all

Here are a few examples of a supplier being abusive with the client(s):

• Not taking into consideration client’s needs
• Diminishing client’s value and worth
• Lack of communication
• Controlling and a “know it all” attitude
• Taking advantage (usually charging too much for too little)

More particular to online marketing:

• Overcharging
• No Analytics on the website (and there are marketing campaigns running) and no reliable system to register the source of the
  leads/clients)
• Basic click-to-call or click-to-email setups NOT done