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ripped off by a web master?

Posted by rebourne • 7/26/08 • Subscribe to this Discussion [RSS] • Report This Topic
Topics: website design ripoff scams misleading experiences complaints

I should clarify quickly that I am one, and a few of my newer clients have come with horror stories of being ripped off by past designers or being put off indefinitely on a paid project. I'm curious how much this happens and what kind of experiences you've had?

User Comments

7/26/08

weblogian

How can a past designer ripped off ur page?

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7/26/08

weblogian

What was the project

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7/26/08

johnsblogs42

Could use a lil' more background.

What exactly is the rip-off? Are they collecting a design fee upfront and then not delivering?

My roomie is a web designer, so perhaps she might know a lil' about this sort of thing as well.

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7/26/08

teambenya

I've never hired a designer before, precisely because of horror stories like this.

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7/26/08

rebourne

okay, more detail... I guess by ripoff i mean people who've paid for web design services they never received (through no fault of their own) or the site was never finished after after months of waiting. That's mostly what I've heard recently. But I have to wonder too if they simply never gave clear instructions, or provided content, or made needed decisions?

One guy claimed his company had spent thousands and never did get a completed website. (so of course they don't want to spend much with me or need extra reassurances that we won't do the same). I understand the fears and want to gain their trust without being hoodwinked myself. Most of my work has been from word-of-mouth referrals and if they need references they can view my clients' websites that are linked from my website and even contact them. But I also want to guard myself against people who blame a designer when maybe the client didn't really provide enough content or direction for a designer to work from? I DO believe there a lot of designers out there promising things they don't deliver because it gets too hard or they get bored. So I would like to hear from some of you who've had a bad experience or know someone who did, and what happened? thanks!!

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1. 7/27/08
  
  acousticguitarist
  
  Timelines with milestones are a great start. Including sign offs at particular points, obviously there'd need o be areally clear brief and outlines on who does what and when. This is basic stuff that goes missing because anyone can be a web designer
2. 7/29/08
  
  LGramlich
  
  I'd seriously consider written contracts if I were you. Outline exactly what is expected of both sides, have everyone involved sign it & at least you have backup if you have to go to court someday! (I can't help it--Dad was a Judge.)
7/26/08

acousticguitarist

Maybe the first mistake is choosing a designer to handle your web site. designers design and design is only a small part of the web. I teach IT, predominantly web, can you tell us the story so I can use it as test case in the clasroom, no names required

Sounds like there was no contract define what is what

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1. 7/27/08
  
  ender
  
  hey, hey. some designers also do some coding.
  
  still, i do wish more people would learn the difference between web designer and web developer ....
2. 7/27/08
  
  acousticguitarist
  
  Yes Ender, and we know you're fine
7/27/08

teambenya

In my case it was a situation back about 7-8 years ago. We hired a company to design and implement a real estate website. We had a contract for $4,500; and they were to use a series of domain names that we already owned.

What we ended up with was a site that had lots of dead links (Content Coming Soon!), and did not meet the basic criteria for search functionality. They ended up refusing to revert control of the domain back to us on one name, and it took 3 years to get the other one back. They also had a contract to host, and they refused to stop charging us on that when we wanted to revert control (Due to shoddy design) of the domain name.

In the end it took us years to get one of our names back, still waiting on the other, and I was stuck paying $125/mo for a website that nobody would want to visit anyways.

On the other hand, I started a blog last year, pay virtually nothing for it, have minimal expense for hosting, and I'm sitting at PR3 with 100's of visitors a day. All it took was a lot of time learning how do get a rudimentary design together on my own.

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7/27/08

rebourne

thanks teambenya, that really does suck royally... especially having your domains held hostage when they were already yours! I don't think that's even legal, by all standards I know of ICANN? But maybe your company had lost too much already to spend more on a legal battle over domains? But $4500 was a serious investment and I'm sorry to hear it went so badly. The web's potential as a platform of its own (web2.0) and the public acceptance of it was changing drastically 3-4 years ago though and so were computers, again. It was a tough time to develop because there were old school ways and new technologies to consider, especially in real estate. That market has changed a lot in itself over the past 10 years. I'm glad to hear you are doing well now with a very personal approach! You deserve to see some turnaround and control after such an unfair experience. I've have never held a domain for ransom on a broken contract. Its like trying to claim ownership of someone's real name or business name after a break-up. (lol) But I've had some people come back to us after trying something else, once they realized how fair and attentive we'd been. Sometimes it takes a bad experience to appreciate a good one I guess, its just the way we are. But
I have to admit, real estate sites were tough to work with for a few years there. They have only become more manageable as the market itself has built more shareable resources to tap into; at least that's true in the midsouth.

anyone else? this can be helpful to all of us to talk about and to those who may be having issues right now and need to see what others did or get advise. thanks!

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7/27/08

howisbradley

Wed designer or web developer. What should you be called if you're both...ahem.

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1. 7/27/08
  
  ender
  
  king of all web stuff?
  
  no, no. too long.
  
  umm, web desloper?
2. 7/27/08
  
  acousticguitarist
  
  Brad, good question
  
  I teach on courses that are called Cert 4 in Web Design. I spewed when it was changed from Web Developer, simply because the type of people that were applying were very different. A lot of peoples perceptioin of being a web designer is creating a pretty web page.
  
  I agree that the end result in both cases is a web site, but it's possible to save a Word doco as html and people call themselves web designer because they have made a web site. So in one way I understand you, that the two things are sort of the same, but a web developer to ME means someone that sees the WHOLE picture that includes, Analysing the neds, seeing if there is a market, How to market properly and how to either put together the needs of the client as an online package with a team of the correct people or do it themselves. Whereas a Web designer would be able to create a web page.
  
  And then there are graphic designers and they have beautiful design skills, I married one. But graphic designers come from a different perspective, and then there are IT people and they have thei own perspective, and often they look through a very very small window and see web as an exctension of IT, which I'm confident it is not.
3. 7/27/08
  
  acousticguitarist
  
  Brad, how about Webologist
7/27/08

cooper

I've never paid for anything like that so I can't help, though most of what I see is designers separate from the people who do the code for a design, and the people who actually do setting up websites are something different though I know some people do both.
I it typical to pay for something before it's done?

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7/27/08

Mark155

Use RentaCoder.com. With their escrow and partial payments everyone wins and no one gets screwed ... If you do it right

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1. 7/27/08
  
  cooper
  
  I actually used them when I first got my wp blog and I shouldn't say this but after the first time I made my own arrangements with the coder, taking out the middle man.
7/28/08

johnsblogs42

Sorry.. didn't get a chance to actually chat with roomie on this topic till earlier today.

Another "rip" she mentioned some were doing was, registering the domain in thier own name (that being the web designers) instead of the person who was purchasing the domain. I guess unless it's in the contract, most people don't even think about it.

So if the person wanted to switch to someone else at some point, they are technically screwed 'cause the site is "registered" and owned by the web designer.

Another she mentioned was people being charged excessive hosting fees for their domain, and the web designer was actually having the site hosted on an inexpensive web hoster, and pocketing the rest.

Just a few things she mentioned out of many.

John

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7/29/08

bladeaxe4

i make websites within a month, if its a full fledged case to handle... to serve is divine..to rule does not allures much !

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12/03/08

kcgagne

It's developers like that that give the rest of us a bad name. I personally never take payment in full when I begin a website development project. I take a deposit initially if it's for someone I have never worked with before and then invoice for payments in intervals as work is completed. Most of my work comes from referals and are smaller projects, so it's usually not an issue.

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