The World's Tallest Writing Coach

The informality of working online sometimes sees us drop our guard when it comes to things like official contracts and formal agreements. We talk to clients in casual, informal settings like email and Instant Messenger, and it tends to lower our guard and our parameters for how we typically do business.

But whether you’re dealing with a client for the first time or the 100th time, the best practice is always to get everything in writing, always be professional, and always handle any disputes in as professional a manner as you can.

In February, I took a job through oDesk to shape up a woman’s resume and cover letter to allow her to apply for a pair of jobs. She was very active in communication as I was doing the project, and I turned it in about 12 hours before our agreed-upon deadline.

As soon as it was turned in, however, she went 100% radio silence, even as I sent a pair of messages to her via email and via oDesk’s messenger service. A good four days after the deadline (and 24 hours after her payment deadline, which went unmet) – I received a short message telling me her grandparent had died, and she would look at the work I had done when she was “more focused.”

Already, warning bells were going off in my head, because I think we’ve all used a dead grandmother excuse in our day, but this is my professional livelihood, so I responded with a short message, offering prayer and asking for an update when possible.

The next day, I opened my email to discover the client had put in a request to oDesk to have her funds refunded, and that she had closed the contract altogether, with no reason listed. Clearly at this point, I was in full battle mode, but was fortunate that my professionalism won through again. No angry emails were sent; I went to oDesk, filed a dispute, and because I had been meticulous in my record-keeping, was able to very efficiently and swiftly put together the chain of events to the mediator, meaning I’ll have my money before too long.

Moral of the story? It can be tough, but when disputes happen, be professional and be prepared. That’s the best way to be paid.