Website Design and SEO

Have recently been made aware of a ‘very demanding’ client of a website design company that pushed the copy writer, project manager and designer / developer to the brink of insanity with her demands / requests and every increasingly high standards. Ironically the client then turned the situation around and claimed that they didn’t fulfill their requirements.

Before you read her email ramblings / legal threat  you need to read about:

The facts from the website design company:

1 She refused the webcopy then refused the revised webcopy then refused the second revised webcopy, this was the first time in 10 years that the copy writer has had copy refused, she then went on to inquire how to write webcopy for the website to make it search engine friendly.

2 She had two lots of two hour meetings with a project manager then send a scrap of paper that she claimed was the way she wanted her services to be displayed and work, this information and her ramblings were transferred into a process flow design diagram that wasn’t commented on despite numerous requests to confirm they had understood her requirements.

3 She sent 104 emails to the website design company who sent 125 emails back to her over a period of 9 months. During this time there were at least 10 phone call conversations and two full meetings.

4 The website design company produced three full designs (working pages) before she settled on the one she said this about ‘I am very excited about my new website and feel the  look is amazing’

5 The draft website was published on her website under a directory, this directory was not added to the search engines but somehow was indexed in Google, we can only assume that the client put the link to her website online somewhere and Google picked it up.

6 She directly contacted the Hosting company to remove / close her account by transferring her website away by getting them to update the IPS Tag.

7 The email below is in response to a request to end the relationship by asking her to pay for two lots of outstanding hosting (her two websites went into their second year) as well as £50 for three stock images she requested (one of the images was £40)

Her last email:

I am writing to outline my disappointment at your recent actions and prior to that your inability to fulfil the contract I paid a deposit to you for.

I appreciate that supplier relationships where a designer is not able to understand and deliver what a client wants is a possible outcome. It makes sense to end that relationship and that a cost would be due to the client. However, you effectively ended the business relationship in an unreasonable manner.

 The issues are as follows:

• You never once managed to understand my brief
• We have not agreed upon a wire frame, a site map or any designs put forward
• Having advised that I needed a completely new site  you re-used parts of the old site when I told you not to
• Part of your bill was  for webcopy.  I rejected the copy that your writer presented and paid my own copywriter this amount.
• You published the proposed website without my approval on two occasions; a website that is totally incomplete and which I am not happy with
• I understand that the copy you published was indexed by Google which has an irreversible impact to my site
• You copied other sites which I referred to as indicators of concept
• I informed you on 7^th June by e-mail that, following the second time I became aware of publication of the proposed website, I would be considering my options as to continuing my business with you
• You took down my site and placed your phone number upon it preventing me from accessing potential business
• I have two witnessed statements from third parties that you defamed my character and claimed treatments with Perfect Makeup were unsafe when they phoned the number.
• When this was put to the other hosting company they said they could not condone such behavior and took remedial action
• When this was put to your hosting company they said you were behaving in a personal and spiteful manner and would take remedial action through the correct channels

In light of the above I will not pursue legal action if you pay me back £250 within 14 days. Failure to do so will leave me no option but to take legal action.