I Kissed A Scam Artist...BUT I Think I Liked It
"My gut instinct told me that this was not the type of client I should be dealing with. In fact, they had contacted me out of the blue, an urgent job apparently. They had spoken to a previous client of mine, seen a few samples, and wanted to do business.
However, I just couldn't rid myself of that nagging feeling. The way the client initially spoke to me - you know the sort - Looks upon freelancers as a species of inferior being, has a million and one instructions that could have been summed up in a sentence, and repetitive...OMG, how repetitive. OK, I get it, now leave me alone!
Against my better judgement I accepted the project. Hell, it's a subject I knew extremely well, it was $300, and I could research and write the entire thing in a day and a half. As I say, against my better judgement I completed the project, and with no up-front payment. My trusting nature (and the fact I had never encountered a non-paying client in 3 years), however, eventually led to my downfall."
A true story folks...However, it has a huge twist.
96 hours after delivery I have had no response from the client, although I know that they have been online in that time, and that they are still conducting business. The first thing I did was to check whether the articles had been published (and indexed), and to my surprise I discovered every single one of them had.
10 articles all indexed in Google on 10 different websites. So, my initial thoughts were to continue contacting the client requesting payment, but I also completed some research on the client, and indeed the websites that had published my articles.
What did I find out about the client - I discovered the client's IP address, location, and I believe I can even prove that they are not the sex they claim to be. The client works as a middleman/women/person and provides content for numerous webmasters.
However, it appears that they don't have the greatest references or testimonials. This client is the type of person who starts something, but has neither the intelligence nor inclination to complete anything, and see it through to the end. I know - I should have conducted my research before accepting the project, but hey, we live and learn.
Anyway, after researching the websites that had published my articles, I discover that every single one has been online for a minimum of 5 years, they all have PRs of 4-6, they have a bundle of traffic, thousands of articles, and an active readership.
Furthermore, my articles had picked up a number of interesting comments within the space of 24 hours, and this had started a variety of conversations between the sites' admin/owners and their readers.
So, this, of course, gives me an idea. To be honest, I'm not really bothered about the 300 bucks, although I would love to teach this pathetic client a lesson. However, they have now introduced me to 10 websites that have great PR, high traffic, and a readership that is interested in what I have to say.
In fact, I have a couple of websites myself within the same niches. My immediate thoughts turn to the possibility of article syndication, JV's, and paid writing projects for many years to come.
However, I find myself with a predicament - How do I approach these website owners? Do I explain everything? Do I simply approach them as an interested party who has provided content in the past and would like to build a business relationship from there?
I had already written out the emails I was going to send the website owners. These were basically a request to remove the content, as I still owned copyright, and explaining that the articles had been obtained illegally (as no payment had been made), etc. etc. etc.
But now I feel I've been handed a little goldmine, but I think my feelings towards this client is clouding my judgement. I would really like to teach this client a lesson in ethics, but who the hell am I to do that. What am I? Some hero crusader who fights evil? HELL NO!
I'm thinking business. So after my version of War and Peace (apologies), my basic questions are - How would YOU approach these website owners? What would YOU say? How much of the story would YOU tell them? And would YOU bother with the client over a few hundred bucks?
I would appreciate any advice on offer, and I thank you for taking the time to read my thread.
Cheers
Partha
However, I just couldn't rid myself of that nagging feeling. The way the client initially spoke to me - you know the sort - Looks upon freelancers as a species of inferior being, has a million and one instructions that could have been summed up in a sentence, and repetitive...OMG, how repetitive. OK, I get it, now leave me alone!
Against my better judgement I accepted the project. Hell, it's a subject I knew extremely well, it was $300, and I could research and write the entire thing in a day and a half. As I say, against my better judgement I completed the project, and with no up-front payment. My trusting nature (and the fact I had never encountered a non-paying client in 3 years), however, eventually led to my downfall."
A true story folks...However, it has a huge twist.
96 hours after delivery I have had no response from the client, although I know that they have been online in that time, and that they are still conducting business. The first thing I did was to check whether the articles had been published (and indexed), and to my surprise I discovered every single one of them had.
10 articles all indexed in Google on 10 different websites. So, my initial thoughts were to continue contacting the client requesting payment, but I also completed some research on the client, and indeed the websites that had published my articles.
What did I find out about the client - I discovered the client's IP address, location, and I believe I can even prove that they are not the sex they claim to be. The client works as a middleman/women/person and provides content for numerous webmasters.
However, it appears that they don't have the greatest references or testimonials. This client is the type of person who starts something, but has neither the intelligence nor inclination to complete anything, and see it through to the end. I know - I should have conducted my research before accepting the project, but hey, we live and learn.
Anyway, after researching the websites that had published my articles, I discover that every single one has been online for a minimum of 5 years, they all have PRs of 4-6, they have a bundle of traffic, thousands of articles, and an active readership.
Furthermore, my articles had picked up a number of interesting comments within the space of 24 hours, and this had started a variety of conversations between the sites' admin/owners and their readers.
So, this, of course, gives me an idea. To be honest, I'm not really bothered about the 300 bucks, although I would love to teach this pathetic client a lesson. However, they have now introduced me to 10 websites that have great PR, high traffic, and a readership that is interested in what I have to say.
In fact, I have a couple of websites myself within the same niches. My immediate thoughts turn to the possibility of article syndication, JV's, and paid writing projects for many years to come.
However, I find myself with a predicament - How do I approach these website owners? Do I explain everything? Do I simply approach them as an interested party who has provided content in the past and would like to build a business relationship from there?
I had already written out the emails I was going to send the website owners. These were basically a request to remove the content, as I still owned copyright, and explaining that the articles had been obtained illegally (as no payment had been made), etc. etc. etc.
But now I feel I've been handed a little goldmine, but I think my feelings towards this client is clouding my judgement. I would really like to teach this client a lesson in ethics, but who the hell am I to do that. What am I? Some hero crusader who fights evil? HELL NO!
I'm thinking business. So after my version of War and Peace (apologies), my basic questions are - How would YOU approach these website owners? What would YOU say? How much of the story would YOU tell them? And would YOU bother with the client over a few hundred bucks?
I would appreciate any advice on offer, and I thank you for taking the time to read my thread.
Cheers
Partha
“An expert is a person who has made all the mistakes that can be made in a very narrow field†Niels Bohr