Client tells graphic designer to stop "pestering" them about the project, panics 3 weeks later when they forget and their sidelined project has made no progress: 'We’ll reply when we’re ready'

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Brad Dickson • Managing Editor
Jun 16, 2025 12:00 PM EDT

When it comes to any sort of design process for a client, the approval process is extremely important. Taste is subjective, and everyone has their own vision, even if their vision is bad. You might think you've done the best work of your life, and then you go to show it to the client and can see the disappointment on their face as they try to reconcile it with what they were picturing. 

See, the thing is, even if you're not skilled in a particular art form, that usually means that you're not practiced at getting visions out, be it words onto paper, sounds recorded onto silence, or paint onto canvas. It doesn't mean that you can't hear what you want something to sound like, or picture how it should work, or what thoughts it should convey. Trying to properly get thoughts out for your artistic medium is something you'll work towards throughout your entire life. 

So, clients have an idea of what they want even if they can't make it themself, and that's sort of the whole point of the relationship. Listening becomes one of the most important skills for a freelance creator, not just hearing what they're saying but coming to grips with what it is they actually mean. So, communication, like getting approval and feedback, becomes extremely important.

When this graphic designer's client told them to stop "pestering" them with their reminders and approvals, they put the entire project on hold while they waited for responses and approvals. When, lo and behold, the client called weeks later, panicking, they had a suitable paper trail to refer back to.

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  • 01

    "Client wanted me to stop 'pestering' them for approvals. No problem!"

    I work in graphic design, mostly for finicky corporate clients. One of them, a mid-sized real estate firm, would always ghost me on approvals, then complain about delays. I used to send reminders every 2-3 days. Then the client's project lead sent a snarky email to my boss: "Can your designer stop pestering us for updates? We'll reply when we're ready." Okay then.
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  • 02
    Cheezburger Image 10517619200
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    The image is representative only and does not depict the actual subjects of the story.

  • 03
    I flagged the email, stopped following up, and moved the project to "on hold." Three weeks later, they call panicking, their billboard design hadn't gone to print and the ad buy window closed. They blamed me, but I attached their email with a cheery note: "As per your request, I did not follow up further on pending approvals." Silence for a day.
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  • 04
    Then a new project manager emailed to say the other guy had "moved on" and to please feel free to resume reminders as needed. I send those reminders now, cc'ing the new manager and legal.
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  • 05
    mrjane7 Yikes, that's a tough one for them! I'm glad that didn't come back on you. I did graphic and web design for 9 years and these kinds of clients are the reason I got out. I had a lady that brought in a mock up of a website she'd done in some program, saying she wanted her website to look like the example. I spent 18 hours making the website, doing the graphics, to make it look like the sample she'd brought in.
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  • 06
    I show it to her. She doesn't like it. Uh... what? But it looks just like the image you brought in. "Oh, well, that was just an example." I got so frustrated. Final website ended up looking nothing like what she'd brought in. And then a week later, I dropped her as a client. And a few weeks after that, I changed careers. One in which I don't have to deal with those kinds of people.
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  • 07
    TXquilter1 .2d ago I posted this in another subreddit last week but this sounded like another perfect spot for it. LOL I had a boss that refused to read his email. Then he decided to make me the gatekeeper of his email and let him know if there is anything major that needs attention. There was one instance where he needed to approve to pay an invoice on a contract with one of our vendors. It was for a huge project. If the invoice wasn't paid
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  • 08
    on time all work stopped. Also if no payment was received to our vendor, it could have legal ramifications and could result in federal fines. I verbally asked him and emailed him requesting his immediate approval. I re-sent it to him for ease of email location. He still didn't approve it. I even put a note on his desk and again emailed him requesting approval, still nothing. Each time for over a
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  • 09
    month, I emailed and physically requested his approval. When the work stopped in several facilities and we received federal fines for breach of contract he tried to blame me not realizing there was an email chain validating my approval reminders. I produced my emails to the CEO. My boss was demoted that week and I was promoted to Contract and Project Administrator.
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  • 10
    bottledmoons • 2d ago I see this ALL the time in printing. Then they get the surprise pikachu face when we remind them (again) what the production timelines are and that we can't just pull hundreds of thousands of whatever-the-h | out of our business day lol. in less than a
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  • 11
    1SweetChuck This is why I stopped doing graphic design and freelance web development, the clients are just the worst.
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  • 12
    Kyoku22 Classic. Please stop pestering us. And BTW, since you failed to highlight the importance of the question, please suggest some compensation. We're a very important client paying you peanuts, we thought you valued our business
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