Should I provide the psd for my clients?

Get Started
1

Hello,

Lately my design business has taken off which come as a suprise, but increasingly people are asking for the psd.

Should I give it to them, and what do they want anyway? I use Fireworks mostly with photoshop occasionally.

If I don’t give it to them and they want changes in the future am I obligated to change a background or images? My business is only for single pages mostly.

Any thoughts would be appreciated.

Thanks

Jon

2

A big part of it depends on what your contract says. The rest depends on whether you actually create a PSD in the first place for the specific images.

3

Make it clear in a contract what service you provide. Personally I would provide the files, stored on the server under /files for example. But make it clear that any further work is charged by the hour. However, if they wish to take the business elsewhere, or tweak it themselves, then they have the files they need. But I guess is is ultimately up to you.

4

I always give psd and source files to my clients.

5

it always depend on the contract. if it is not written in contract then it is your choice.

6

I would never give away originals, whether they be PSDs, HTML, CSS, or any other file. I can’t really see why a client would need them.

7

I would charge extra for the PSD files. It is no different than when a photographer charges for the proofs.

8

Charge a premium price for sendin psd etc - basically if they ask and get they are going to shop around or hack it themselves in the future, so get the extra income at the start!

9

For a web project you should generally deliver PSDs too (same for source code) unless your contract states otherwise!

10

I disagree. When I enter an agreement with a client I am doing it for a long term relationship. I believe that handing everything over sends the wrong message to the client. It says I’m done, and I’m washing my hands of this.

11

As a client, I prefer getting hold of PSDs once everything is done. Designers, whom I’ve worked with, give PSDs after they have finished thier work and have received the payment. Having PSDs with me lets me use of services of some other designers in case the person who created them is not available for more work.

12

You can’t keep a client just by taking the PSD files “in hostage”. Actually when he pays you that implies that he also bought everything you created for him/her! copyrights too! So if you give them the PSDs -or the source code- it doesn’t mean ending the relationship with the client! But just showing that he can trust you! and if you are doing a good job there’s no reason he leaves you! If you’re not doing well he will probably leave you with or without the Sources!
There’s no way you send a wrong message like that if you know how to talk/interact with your clients!

13

In the absense of any contract - ie as long as you work for yourself, you don’t have to give anyone anything. The problem, however, is that if this is the case then you should have discussed this with the client before starting the job. To the client it may seem unfair of you to refuse this now, if they had the expectation that you would provide it and you provided no indication otherwise.

and what do they want anyway? I use Fireworks mostly with photoshop occasionally.

They probably want the source images that you used to create the design, complete with layers - including everything they would need to modify the design. They may see it as an insurance policy, so that if they need further modification to the design in the future and you are no longer in business or no longer an option for them, they can get someone else to do it.

If I don’t give it to them and they want changes in the future am I obligated to change a background or images? My business is only for single pages mostly.

No, you are not obliged to work for them in future - that would be slavery. You can always refuse to do work for someone.

In this situation, however, it sounds like you came to no understanding with them beforehand about what would be included, so they are probably assuming they’ll get everything, including your source images. Refusing to hand them over will conflict with what they expected from you, which may make them very unhappy. I doubt that they would want further business from you and they may even consider taking action against you.

If you had agreed with them about what you would provide in the first place, then that’s different. But with no agreement you kind of have to accept that what you expect and what your client expects may be different, and while you may or may not be within your rights to refuse to hand over some work, it may make enemies, simply because there was no clear agreement before the work was done.

Of course, if you are an employee, then the situation is different again, because then they own all your work anyway. But it sounds like you are not an employee.

Yes. This is quite a valid strategy. You just need to communicate with the client beforehand about what is included and what isn’t - the problem is when the client had no idea that the proofs/PSDs would not be included and they feel cheated.

14

I keep all my files, but give the option to the client that they can purchase them from me. or if they say so at the begging they will be included in the contract.

15

I work for a government entity and at times (like these) funding dries up, requiring us to do as much as possible on our own. I’ve had a number of issues for graphics acquired before I was hired that have led to needing the graphic in a particular file format but not having it and the person we hired to do our work was long gone. Additionally, we had someone work on a yearly report that was printed in a pamphlet format, yet we were wanting to put it online. I wanted to get it reformatted so it could be readable online and not require someone to print it out and fold it to easily read it. The person we had work on it lost the original file!

So there may be legitimate reasons for requiring original files; working out a contract/some kind of legal understanding may be the best route.

16

I’ve sat at both sides of the table on this argument.

I’ve come to the conclusion that if the client has paid you to do a certain job, they should receive all the source files. Would you let a builder build you a house and then tell you that all the 2x4’s are actually his and he’s just letting you use them for your house…? I think not.

In most situations I’ve found that clients request the source files as a boost to their ‘comfort’ level. What happens if you go out of business next year…??? Move…? Your client will be stuck with something they can’t change or alter b/c they don’t have the source files.

I’ve also found that most clients that request source files don’t even have the proper program available to open them, much less do anything to them.

It is stated in my contract with clients that all work done post-project will be assessed by hourly rate (unless they have a service contract with me). It is also stated in the contract that if they have had someone else work on the site/project and I have to work around or clean up after them my hourly rate is increased by 50%.

I tell them up-front. Feel free to use another contractor, but when you bring it all back to me to fix I will charge you 50% more than my hourly rate. When they do the math, any money they may save on a bargain contractor could be eaten up rather fast if he breaks the site and they have to bring it to me. :smiley:

17

I would also charge extra for the psd file unless its in the contract to provide it at the end of the service. It would also depend on how much you are charging the client, if you are doing a lot of work for little money, then keeping hold of the file will hopefully bring in a little more money in the future for adjustments.

18

I’ve also seen both sides of the contract.
We always hated it when we had to ask for source files of banners etc … just so we could change the text in an other language.

I find it best practice to always give all documents & source files to the client for the following reasons:

  • It builds trust, they don’t have to worry. The thought alone that they don’t have to fear about this, makes the relationship stronger.
  • I work with standards, & with standard software (Creative Suite). I always translate this as an advantage for the client. So that if he isn’t happy with my work he can pass it to someone else without having to worry about it. I also do this when I sell implementations of open source software (there’s a huge community behind it, so you don’t have to worry about rebuilding the whole thing from scratch if you leave me). Again this builds trust.
  • For networking: I always provide my contact details on every deliverable. (source files, wireframes, prototypes,etc …). If the client preferred to work with another agency, they can always contact me & I can guide them. If it takes longer then 5 minutes they’ll be charged for it (hour fee written in contract). If you make quality, then it’s definitely a good way to meet new people in the industry, some who may hire your in the future or pass you work.
  • There’s always the chance that the client will ask small changes (spelling mistake, other text, etc…) urgently when it doesn’t suit you.
    They’ll just get frustrated when they don’t get it on time, while they might have done it themselves if they had the source files.
    These things are mostly not a matter of price, but a matter of time.
  • Never force a relationship by keeping the source files. If you can’t make them want you, you’re doing it the wrong way. Some clients may have had bad experiences with other designers before. Guarantee them in advance that it won’t be like that with you.
  • I sell websites as an investment. When you invest in something you must be able to built on the things you already have, like the source files. A website is never complete & can always be optimized, some optimizations can be beyond your knowledge or expertise. With the source files you give the client the guarantee they won’t have extra costs for doing something they’ve already paid for.
19

Normally I would say “it depends on the contract”, but as a web developer who routinely gets PSDs from designers - the layers make it easy for me to get the elements that wouldn’t be recreated any other way.

20

I think the advice Fre420 gave is excellent. Remember, you should be working to create a relationship with your client. Your question makes it sound like you view a client as an adversary.