Received really negative feedback from a client at work - help please

[soupsettttt]

I work in advertising and today I received a really horrible email from a client about a piece of work I produced. I'm quite junior (it's a graduate role) and have been working there for 6 months for context. My work is reviewed and signed off by two senior members of staff before it goes to the client.

I've never received negative feedback before from a client, even with clients known for being notoriously picky and critical. I'm used to receiving positive feedback.

This afternoon I received a long email in response to a piece of work I submitted saying how bad it was, far below the standard needed/expected, saying I must be a junior person to have produced something of this standard and questioning our internal review process that this quality of work got sent. They CC'd in several senior people at my company.

I was completely and utterly shocked by it. I then looked at their specific feedback on the piece of work and it was a reasonable amount of feedback, more than I'm used to getting from clients but an ok amount for a first draft. Some minor wording changes are needed but nothing too crazy. During our internal review process I had positive feedback with positive comments, so I thought I along the right lines so to get this kind of email felt totally out of the blue.

I feel so upset by it. I'm glad I was working from home today as I burst into tears when I read the email. I have a 1:1 with my manager tomorrow and I know she will bring it up but I don't really know how to discuss it in a professional way. At the moment it feels very raw and upsetting. Should I frame it as a learning experience? Acknowledge that this has been difficult to hear, but it's taught me to how to react to negative feedback and how to work as a team to rectify? Do I apologise to my manager? I just don't know what's the right thing to say

I feel so humiliated

I used to work in advertising. Some clients are a holes. Also, harsh feedback usually comes when the original brief was shot - which it sounds like it was. If I was your manager I’d tell them to go back and figure their brief out before we do any more work on it.

Don’t worry about it. You haven’t done anything wrong.

@MarshaBradyo sorry didn't mean to sound snippy! I was agreeing with you

Sorry for being late with an update

So this morning I had a call with my team and we went through the feedback and made some actions for how to address them. My manager then had a call with the client to go through our plan and then I've just been working on taking in the feedback and developing the next draft. In reflection, my colleagues think that the client was having a bad day when they wrote that email. Doesn't make it any less hurtful though

I can tell that word has got around my department, most people were CC'd in anyway as we always CC in a distribution list which most people are in

I have to keep rereading that email when taking in the feedback and it stings a little bit less each time.

I do feel hurt that no one has checked in on me to check I'm ok. I don't know if that's me being ridiculous though, but I thought it was a more supportive team than that

I had to move my 1:1 with my manager to tomorrow due to a clash so will update you after that

Bless you - don't beat yourself up. Remember it was signed off beforehand- this will not define you

OP, sorry that happened, it’s very shit and unfair.

But to put the email in context…..welcome to the world of working with other adults. You’ve officially met your first dickhead.

Make sure you react the correct way, so act like you take it seriously, want to get some internal feedback. But in a professional way. Hide how humiliated you feel. Do not criticise the client as it will get you nowhere and risks your internal image.

The client is nobody but a wanker who was probably having a bad day or who had maybe been royally pissed off by someone else in your agency so was using the opportunity to put you all in your place.

You sound conscious and earnest, keep that. But but ready for the next dickhead because there will be more. Oh, and have a little faith in your work. I bet another person would have seen it very different. Creative reviewed by clients is extremely subjective.

I do feel hurt that no one has checked in on me to check I'm ok. I don't know if that's me being ridiculous though, but I thought it was a more supportive team than that

There was that person who said not to take it personally, though. Most people will just be glad it wasn’t them!

It's not exactly a done thing to check in the way you expect though, OP. This is because negative feedback and occasionally, difficult clients, are part and parcel of working life. You haven't been ignored, I'm really not sure what else you're expecting. Perhaps you'd benefit from a mentoring scheme if your employer offers one, it might help you put some perspective on things.

You need to put it down to being an unfortunate experience and move on now. Sympathy quickly wanes in the workplace when people are seen to be needy. Hoping that people check in to see if you're ok is a prime example of that. It sounds like a horrible thing to happen but I'd let it go and mentally move forward at this point.

If no-one is checking in with you, might it not be quite as bad as you think? Anywhere I've ever worked would have an IM chain going about really outrageous 'feedback' within 5 minutes of it landing. The fact no-one is reacting may suggest it's either situation normal with this particular client, or not that bad?

Don't take it to heart. When you're writing for a living you will often get a lot of feedback and edits and you should see it as honing your craft.

In this case the client sounds rather over the top and rude and if it was reviewed by more senior colleagues then it's on them not you. If they thought it was acceptable then they've either misunderstood the brief and given you a bum steer or the client is being over the top.

Despite this do take the edits on board and think about what you could do differently next time. I've done a lot of drafting in my work over the years (30th + career) and nearly everything can be improved by review. Although I'm now a CEO I still encourage edits of things I've written - everything can be improved by fresh eyes.

I know is a shock this time but don't take it personally. It's part and parcel of the job.

I work in a client facing role. It's hard but you've got to be realistic, when you are client facing you are going to get this shit whether it is deserved or not so you have learn what you can from it and don't take it personally or take it home with you.

@soupsettttt

Luckily I'm leaving this account soon as I'm joining a new account. I feel quite disappointed that someone would send that kind of email, I know it's a pressured work environment and they are paying for a deliverable but felt like a personal attack. I'm not sure if I have thick enough skin for this kind of industry if this is what it can be like

I think the issue is we didn't meet the brief, but the brief was quite unclear.

I did have a quick call with my manager about something else and they did quickly mention that they had signed off on it so not to worry, it's wasn't just my responsibility. The client was unhappy with another piece of work recently so think they are lumping the two projects together and I took the hit of it

I feel so embarrassed as I usually receive positive feedback from clients and I feel like this has tarnished me and it's really knocked my confidence. I had to send out another piece of work to the same client and I checked it so many times as I'm so scared of disappointing them again

You could be sat working on reception and have somebody write a complaint email full of spite because you smiled/didn't smile quite right or told them the person they wanted to shout at wasn't in the building (because they weren't).

It's not the job. It's some people. This one probably does the same to waitresses, receptionists, doctors, drivers and anybody else they feel is at a disadvantage to them.

I've been the subject of complaints and attacks like that, I've handled people who make complaints and attacks like that and I've provided support and sympathy for people who have been on the receiving end of things like that. The one constant is that it's all about their feelings, most of which have fuck all connection with the actual matter they're shouting about.

It's their inadequacies that drive them to want to make somebody else feel as empty as the space where their soul is supposed to be.

Unless you've shagged their Mum live on Only Fans, eaten their cat and taken a huge shit in their coffee cup and not added a bit of sugar on top when handing it to them - it's really not about you.

It is really down to personal style. One person’s room for improvement is another person’s “completely messed up”. There will be a time when the criticism just rolls off you and doesn’t sting so much.

The work is now back with the client.

I updated it and then it went through review with the 2 senior staff. They spent hours reviewing it and when I went to open it I could see another senior staff member had it open so think they've asked for several people to review it.

I feel better knowing it's been thoroughly checked but it does make me realise how serious they have taken the situation and how big of a deal it is.

I had my meeting with my manager. It went well, I explained how it had been difficult to hear the feedback but how once I went back and read it again I could see their perspective. I mentioned how I'd used previous examples when developing it but must have missed the mark.

Sounds like you have handled it all very well, OP, despite your understandable initial wobble after reading it.

How did your manager respond?

Well done. Taking it on the chin and handling it professionally are all you can do. I'd be pleased if I was your manager.

That’s great op

It’s a harder part of the job and you’ve done really well

@PearPickingPorky

Sounds like you have handled it all very well, OP, despite your understandable initial wobble after reading it.

How did your manager respond?

So there are two managers in this situation and they are quite opposite.

One is very easygoing and told me not to worry about it, it's just work and it's not life or death. I'm worried that they don't really know the exact feedback I got and maybe think it's less worse than it is

The other one is more serious but reminded me that it wasn't just my responsibility, it had been signed off. They think the client was having a bad day as while there was room for improvement they don't think the work was as bad as the client said

Still trying to process through this. It's really knocked my confidence and I keep ruminating over it

One thing I'm trying to understand is what is my responsibility in this versus the senior staff who signed off on it? Will the senior staff be blaming me for doing a poor job? Or themselves for also not fully understanding what the client wanted/reviewing the work thoroughly enough? Are they annoyed/frustrated at me? Will they lose confidence in me and my abilities? Will they be feeling as awful as me about it and be worrying all weekend about what the client will think of the next draft?

I admit I did feel a little unsure with the brief, it felt vague but I knew as a department we were all a little unsure about this particular project, it's a new process for our client. Some things weren't really explained well in the brief. I used examples and and muddled through and made a first draft I thought I was happy with, and then gave it to my manager to review to see if it was along the right lines. Maybe before doing a first draft I should have requested a call to say I'm finding the brief a little unclear, can we talk through it? Because I'm junior I'm not allowed to join calls with the clients, so I have to hear everything second-hand, including feedback that are given in calls/meetings.

But my first draft had largely positive comments with a few things to improve which I did. Then it got signed off and went to the client.

With the second draft the review process was a lot more thorough. But, for example, there were sentences that the first senior manager added that the second senior manager then gave a negative opinion on and asked me to change.

Sounds like they both think the client is a dickhead and it's not your fault.

Which is absolutely true.

Honestly I’ve 20 years experience working in advertising and it sounds like the brief is shit.

If I was your manager I’d insist on a meeting with the client to cleft exactly what the fuck it is that they want before you do another draft and we burn through another X number of hours in fees doing something that still might not be right.

You poor thing OP. I don't have much practical advice to give, but I am sometimes the client in this situation and there is no way I would ever, ever respond to any creative we receive like that. We've had some pieces back that are way off the mark and the first thing I do is check the brief we'd given them for any flaws or potential for misunderstanding, before talking (politely) through the changes needed.

Your client sounds like an absolute dick and I hope your managers have you back x

Hey Op, don’t beat yourself up. You’ve taken it in the chin. Senior people signed off on it. Move on now. If you have to think of it again then also recall five examples where people were nice to you and your work. Save those emails!

It’s a group email address too, the client was just being a total knob. They just have thought the senior people did all of it, and maybe they took a dislike to them.

Keep on trucking !

You cant please every one and no one is perfect. if your manager brings it up, discuss it with them. Be honest if you feel you could improve on what you did and what you can do in the future.

I have my own business, I have over a thousands clients through my business in the past year and I have had two negative reviews left on my google account. There are hidden well amongst the many many good reviews I have.

First one I took to the heart like a dagger and couldn't sleep.
Second one I took on the chin and moved on.

Take it as a learning curve

OP as others have said you can't please everyone and your line of work is really subjective.

Look at how many ads people hate - yet whole teams of people have signed off on them and are obviously proud of what they have done.

You will move on from this and laugh about it in a few weeks years time.