I did not receive payment for an article submission job - What do I do now ?

Hi
I met a person on GAF (getafreelancer.com) & over PMs & IM he ordered a written article & submission to 150 article directories.

My team member did the submissions (a bit late due to problems , but we lowered the price after talking with him.)

Now, you guys may know how submissions are, they take time to be reviewed & approved.

Already 2 got approved, & I asked him for payment, he says he will pay me for just 2 submissions.

So, I told him I wanted full payment, he says, he will wait for 3 months & then pay

My fuse just blew , I just couldn't understand this guy.

So, I told him I will report him to scam alert websites , he says he will call a lawyer & make me pay for any damages that occur.

Now, I have proof of submissions , so can a lawyer touch me ?

Let me know

Thanks
Ishan

 

Do you have any saved covos, or something that confirms the order? Also why didn't you make him pay up front?

 

covos = conversations ?
Yes, all IM conversations are saved , (I used Gtalk)

I had PayPal credit card accept problems (Personal account, now Premium) , so I did not request payment then.

 

Well 'normally' you would receive about 50% in advance - your desire to not do that is your problem...

I actually don't see a problem with what the guy originally proposal -- since submission "acceptance" was the implied outcome.

Let's look at the rest:

You were behind schedule and you admit that it was your fault.

You have only 2 acceptance in a period of time [....?]

You knew in advance that acceptance takes time so you seriously can't use that as a defense for early payment.

You "blew up" the client shouldn't need to pay for your outburst.

If I were the client - based on your performance - I wouldn't trust "your word".

On submissions you should have gotten notification that you actually did sumit and your submission was received... that would at least prove you submitted... but was your deal based on submissions or acceptance at 150 article directories? Based on your own words... "they take time to be reviewed & approved... Already 2 got approved, & I asked him for payment"... seems reasonable that you should be paid for what is confirmed and not what is anticipated.

If that isn't to your liking then you need to change your business practices... IMHO the client is correct.

 

Have yo charge in advance for your online services, friend.
Otherwise there is no real way to avoid situations as such unless you stop trading online. Got to learn your lesson for the future, sorry to hear about your trouble.

 

My job was only the submissions. I am not supposed to get them approved, it is the job of the directory owners.

Yeah, I agree to that, I had a near death accident & I was in the hospital for 2 days. I told him that & also reduced the amount he was supposed to pay. He was ok with that & it was he who told the reduced amount.

I had 2 acceptance 3 days after submissions were done. Acceptance can take few days to many weeks, depending on number of submissions that directory receives.

You cannot expect me to wait for 3 months or more to receive a $9 payment , can you ? The submissions work this way, pay first then the job is done & after we do the submissions we dont have anything to do with it.

Even you would blow up if your client tells you that he will pay after 3 months for a job you have done.

There is no question of trust, I had shown him proof of submissions. I even gave him my login details for all directories.

The deal was based on submissions (its always like that). I can prove it by giving anyone the login details to the directories, so that they can check whether it has been submitted or not.

Well, that's your opinion now, check my statements above & it will change

Thanks
Ishan

 

Well, looks like he didnt want to pay from the beginning . If I had demanded advance payment, he would have paid up & then filed a chargeback.

What I am wondering about is that, how he dares to threaten me with a lawyer, when it is I who should be suing him for non-payment .

 

Regrettable situation. Ignore the bastart and stop wasting your time with him. Try to accept the loss and move on.

 

I am trying to, but if he really puts a case against me, I dont have the time nor the money to try & fight it.

 

Its essential you use the escrow. He puts in the money, you deliver, then he pays. It is also good that you specify when you would consider the project finished. After submissions? If so what is the proof of submissions. After approval, if so what is the proof of approvals. What if a site takes 6 months to approve? You should have factored all these conditionalities into the project.

You can report to the managers of the freelancers site. If the person has zero feedback, it may not be important because he has no stakes to come back. He can use a different username. Report only if he has five or more feedbacks.

 

Did I read that the whole issue is over $9 ? If so, I doubt he will pursue you legally because legal fees will runs in the hundreds at least or the thousands.

Actually what you could have done if you have not already done so was to receive payment first before you start work.

He probably is trying to be funny or it must be the first time he had his article submitted, he may just want to be sure that it is really done.

If it is just because of the $9, I think it might be better to just move on and take it as a lesson. Just do not deal with this person again.

If however it is a bigger amount, what did your contract say ? When in doubt, go back to the contract that both of you agreed to when he signed up with you. Because when he signs on it, he would agree to the stated terms.

 

How much he owes you?

 

Well, it appears from the OP's post that the amount in question is $9.

 

That's nice, so much hassle around a miserable $9 fee, really. Legal threats and all that stuff, I'm sure a lawyer will just laugh at this. Time to move on.

 

A lawyer wouldn't even touch it for a hundred times that amount...