Constantly improving and delivering fantastic progress on any of life's many aspects is part of a valuable growth process. So, too, is the design process. More specifically, the matter of design revisions, how many your client needs, and how to manage expectations during a project.

Maybe they're tired of fooling around with Canva websites or recognizing the need to expand their brand. Either way, design clients will be eager to boost awareness once they've landed on the right graphic designer. That's where you come in.

How Many Design Revisions Should You Offer?

A standard number of revisions ranges from around one to three. However, this can change, depending on which business you work with.

There's no concrete, absolute number of revisions you need to settle on. However, it's essential to choose a number and stick to it. You need to be consistent and readily show your design clients that consistency.

And, keep in mind, design revision one should be a lot different than design revision three. After all, you and your creative team have a look and feel down for a web page and only need to make minor changes. When a designer is on the final revision, it should be less of a massive undertaking than the first few times.

Make this understandable to the client during your initial consultation and subsequent meetings. And don't be afraid to ask questions about editing work, either!

Revisions and Project Cost

If a client requests more revisions, that will eat into their budget. More revisions equals more money. Ensure that the client knows and understands this fully. If you don't make it explicit from the beginning, it can cause miscommunication and misconceptions that leave everyone frustrated.

Have a set number of revisions you provide your clients. Make it clear from the first meeting. However, inform the design client that if they need more revisions during the design process, you'll need to charge extra.

Key Ways To Help Manage Design Clients

The design revisions process is nothing without adequate business planning, branding expertise, and clear feedback. Let's look at other vital ways to handle your design client better and ensure that the working relationship is strong.

Clear Communication Channels With The Client

First and foremost, communicating clearly with your client is everything. Aside from building a working relationship and communicating ideas, you need to share project timelines.

After all, creating a beautiful website is much more than picking an appealing color scheme and font (although those certainly help).

More importantly, however, is staying consistent with client communication. Do you exclusively use Slack when chatting with a client about a project? Stick to as few channels as possible. When introducing other communication channels, it can quickly muddy the waters.

For example, did the client send you that one specific detail they wanted in a new design through Slack or email? Or was it Skype you were using? Either way, now you're on the hunt for crucial info through multiple platforms. It can take a while to comb through the archives of just one platform. So stick to just one to make things easier on you and the client.

That's why it's crucial to encourage constant and honest feedback from the client. Whether that's through Slack, email, or your favorite agreed-upon bird calls, keep it consistent!

Don't Be Afraid To Ask Questions

Asking questions and even consulting with the client before starting your draft is a great idea. Sure, it may seem like you're bothering them, but this is an important project they've hired you for. Obviously, it's normal to ask if a particular design choice aligns with what they want in the finished product.

Timelines Depend on The Client, Not You

We've always said that the client sets the tempo within the working relationship. Whether it's an SEO specialist, PPC master advertiser, or graphic design artist, the client is the one who moves things forward.

To help the client help you, you or your team need to provide a few things—namely, a feedback system for questions, concerns, and constructive criticism.

Next, you need concrete schedules. When will you finish branding a website? How long does it take, and when does the client need the finished product? Establish these in your initial meetings with your design client.

And a big part of establishing said timelines with the client is through the aforementioned communication.

Watch Out For 'Unlimited Revisions'

At face value, unlimited revisions sound great.

You can review every design revision, tweak things to your liking, and not worry about the bigger picture. However, this is a significant pitfall.

Unlimited revisions, especially if it originates from the graphic designer, is a major red flag. Why is the designer offering a company unlimited revisions? Can they not get it right the first, second, or third times?

When offering to create content for a client, you must know their wants and needs from the jump. Undermining the process by banking on unlimited revisions' is sloppy work.

On the flip side, unlimited revisions may communicate to the designer that their client may not be well-versed in the design process. Maybe they aren't sure what it is they want. In that case, it's well worth going through the details of a potential project with them.

Deadlines serve as the backbone to the success of your project. With unlimited revisions, you or your client are undermining attainable goals, project integrity and likely wasting a lot of valuable time.

In short, if someone requests an excessive amount of edits during the process, don't be afraid to set the record straight. After all, you want both parties to succeed!

Content Revisions, Your Client, and You

Think of how many design revisions are reasonable, and clearly communicate with your client about your policies.

It's best if you're open and honest about your policies, schedules, and services upfront. It saves both you and the client a lot of time. Plus, the client will end up happy, walking away from a project with a new site design. And a new designer in their contacts.