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Archive 2013 · How would you handle this?

  
 
patrick Eilers
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p.1 #1 · p.1 #1 · How would you handle this?


I have been working with someone for a while now on a new custom website. A few curve balls have been thrown into the mix and it's taken longer than we anticipated. When we started the process, the company had a couple of templates but I wasn't too keen on them. We finally have the design pretty well nailed down, but recently, during the design phase I started to get pretty frustrated at one point and just glanced at their templates again. From the time we started until now, this company now has a number of nice looking templates... including one that is nearly identical to my custom layout. There are a couple of VERY minor detail differences, but for all intents and purposes... it's nearly the same... overall layout, the way the galleries show, the way the blog interacts with the site, etc. My site is going to cost $1800 and this template is $300. I know the designer has spent a lot of time on my site and so have I. But, I feel like I would be paying a major premium for a site that now anyone can have for a fraction of what I paid. I haven't made the final payment yet and want to bring this up to the designer but I'm not really sure how. I feel like I can just go with the template they now have and be happy but I've already paid more than it cost.

What would you do or how would you handle this?

Thanks!

Edited on Jan 26, 2013 at 05:33 PM · View previous versions



Jan 26, 2013 at 03:16 PM
amonline
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p.1 #2 · p.1 #2 · How would you handle this?


I would have emailed him this instead of posting it on a forum.


Jan 26, 2013 at 03:34 PM
patrick Eilers
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p.1 #3 · p.1 #3 · How would you handle this?


Good enough.


Jan 26, 2013 at 05:35 PM
scottam10
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p.1 #4 · p.1 #4 · How would you handle this?


Does the contract say that you get exclusive rights to the design?
Photographers use clients photos for self-promotion all the time, given the hours that have gone into producing the site I guess you can see why the designer would want to offer it to others.
And if you hadn't spent the time/money, you wouldn't have the site design that you wanted

Perhaps you could ask for 'exclusive' rights to your site design for a certain period (6 months?) after which it could be offered in the templates



Jan 26, 2013 at 05:35 PM
patrick Eilers
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p.1 #5 · p.1 #5 · How would you handle this?


No, nothing about exclusive rights to the design. I totally get how much time is involved and wanting to offer it to others. It's just that my site isn't even up yet and I feel like I can just use the template instead of spending the extra $1500.
I'll just contact them and see what they says.



Jan 26, 2013 at 05:57 PM
nolaguy
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p.1 #6 · p.1 #6 · How would you handle this?


It's a frustrating situation to be sure and I can empathize with you, Patrick. But I would call it a lesson learned, hopefully be happy with your new site and next time, if you choose, exhaustively research out-of-the-box solutions.

So far I don't see any reason to be upset with your designer other than maybe the delays you mention.

There is very little new under the sun and good design gets closely replicated all the time in many fields.

Chalk it up to experience and don't let it bother you too much.



Jan 26, 2013 at 08:00 PM
D. Diggler
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p.1 #7 · p.1 #7 · How would you handle this?


patrick Eilers wrote:
There are a couple of VERY minor detail differences, but for all intents and purposes... it's nearly the same... overall layout, the way the galleries show, the way the blog interacts with the site, etc. My site is going to cost $1800 and this template is $300.


Please send a link to to this great template for $300 so that we may better help you wih advice.



Jan 26, 2013 at 08:20 PM
TTLKurtis
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p.1 #8 · p.1 #8 · How would you handle this?


Yeah that's not cool that you pay for a custom site and then he makes it into a template. That is not OK at all. If that's what they are doing I would demand that I only pay $300 because otherwise you're simply fronting their development costs for templates and this was a collaborative effort.


Jan 26, 2013 at 11:18 PM
swoop
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p.1 #9 · p.1 #9 · How would you handle this?


I totally get that you feel burned but then again nowhere in the contract does it say you have an exclusive design. It's just something to think about. If you got an assignment from Modern Bride to photograph a couple standing in the middle of Golden Gate Bridge, something that would likely require hiring models, wardrobe, a permit and paying for city cops hired off duty and then a month later some other publisher wanted to print that photograph in a calendar. If your contract with Modern Bride didn't state that they had exclusive rights even though they financed the shoot why would you turn down another check for a photo you already have.

Your web developer already put effort into the site. So why not make some extra money off of it. If anything just think of it as a learning experience and next time just try to keep exclusivity in mind



Jan 27, 2013 at 12:56 AM
TTLKurtis
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p.1 #10 · p.1 #10 · How would you handle this?


I should clarify that I would have had a contract stating exclusivity (just as many commercial clients might who wouldn't want you to turn around and license the image they paid lots of money for you to shoot to end up getting licensed cheap and diluting their campaign essentially)


Jan 27, 2013 at 01:23 AM
patrick Eilers
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p.1 #11 · p.1 #11 · How would you handle this?


Thanks everyone. This is the first time I've done a custom site and just didn't think to ask about exclusivity. I've emailed them and we'll see what happens. I do feel like I've fronted the development cost and it just doesn't sit well with me, which is why I asked in the first place. But you have good points. I'll see what they say and take it from there.

Thanks!



Jan 27, 2013 at 11:54 AM
TheGE
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p.1 #12 · p.1 #12 · How would you handle this?


Live and learn. Maybe you can negotiate some more value for your dollars? In the way of whatever he can add from his expertise, such as in SEO? Helping you rank better or something like that? Just a thought. It may work IF he values keeping clients happy.


Jan 27, 2013 at 12:12 PM
patrick Eilers
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p.1 #13 · p.1 #13 · How would you handle this?


Indeed...



Jan 27, 2013 at 01:25 PM
paparazzinick
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p.1 #14 · p.1 #14 · How would you handle this?


I know how you feel. We have created sites for people and then wanted to use what we created as templates to sell. But I did run it by the people first since they did pay me $2k to do the site for them. A few of them said no way in hell and I said ok thats why I checked first. A couple others said ok but only if they could get a kick back from selling them since they were the ones who fronted the money for me to develop them. I said ok and for every 1 I sold of that persons template I gave them 5% of the profit. They agreed that was good and since the majority of these people pay me $250 a year to make changes and tweaks and whatever else to maintain their site then it ended up paying of for them.

I learned a lesson of this but from the other end of where you come from. I would suggest like others, to contact them and work something out. Im sure they would be reasonable with you and see where you come from.

Best of luck.



Jan 27, 2013 at 03:36 PM
Mark_L
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p.1 #15 · p.1 #15 · How would you handle this?


As someone who has done web design myself it is a grey area since I have often reused code and layouts but actually offering the entire template is a serious dick move. When I have reused stuff it has been php code or css where it is under the hood type stuff and the end result has looked very different.

I'm not sure where the law stands on this, since they are not your employee and just a contractor I imagine there isn't too much you can do. The last thing you want after dropping coin on a custom layout is others having the same template as you



Jan 27, 2013 at 04:48 PM
peterrowe
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p.1 #16 · p.1 #16 · How would you handle this?


This is a painful dilemma, when did you discover the company was going to make a template of your website?

I don’t think it is reasonable that you pay more than anyone else for the same thing. An argument could be made that you got what you wanted but then you should also have the benefit of the only one having it. $1,800 is not a huge amount of money for custom work but then it’s not custom if anyone can buy it. I think that making something you helped design available for less cost to others than to you doesn’t seem right - this template would probably not exist without you.

We create websites and we only do templates (ones that can be used by others). We often have people come to use with specific designs and if they are good enough we ask permission and do them as a template if all parties are in agreement. Typically we give a substantial discount to the person who had the idea.

Good luck on this. I think it is when the company decided to create a template that things went wrong on this especially when they decided to price it 1/6th the cost you pay – they really should have asked you about that first. I’d talk with them and see if you can come to an arrangement, be nice and see what you can manage.

Good luck!



Jan 27, 2013 at 05:19 PM





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