Tips for dealing with picky clients who keep changing paint colors mid-job

Hey folks, been painting interiors for a few years now and man, nothing frustrates me more than clients who cant make up their mind on the color. Last week I was doing a full living room in Benjamin Moore Revere Pewter, got the first coat on, and she decides she wants something warmer like a greige tone instead. I always try to get them to pick samples and test on the wall before we start, but some just wont commit til they see it goin up. My go-to is to charge a small fee for color changes after prep, keeps em honest without bein a jerk. Also, I reference the Sherwin-Williams color snap app to show em visuals beforehand. Anyone got better ways to handle this without losin the job? Saw a similar rant in the Painting Contractors Facebook group the other day.

ugh, the color changers are the worst, had one add three more walls after we started.

same here, wasted a whole afternoon on a sample wall only for her to hate it anyway.

client called mid-spray wanting to switch from satin to eggshell, what a nightmare.

had a lady who wanted me to paint one wall per day so she could 'live with it' for a week lmao, i politely declined.

homeowners who watch too many hgtv shows and think theyre designers now, its BS.

get everything in writing before you touch a brush, saves your ass every time.

big corps coming in with low bids, undercutting us independents on commercial gigs.

never start without a signed contract specifying colors, learned that the hard way.

ive had clients cry over a shade difference, like calm down its paint.

use a color consultant if theyre that picky, bill it as an upsell.

man these clients make me wanna switch to exterior only.

how do you even enforce a change fee without scaring em off?

sharbites for plumbing are trash, wait wrong sub lol but same vibe with cheap paint clients.

sparkfail is right, but document everything with photos before and after.

insurance companies jacking up premiums cuz of one bad client claim, we all pay.

had a guy insist on painting over wallpaper without removing it, total disaster.

clients like that are why i do mostly new construction now.

lowball painters flooding the market with garbage work, making real pros look bad.

fire the client early if theyre red flags, lifes too short.

LOL my worst was a client who painted over my work themselves and blamed me for streaks.

what do you charge for those color change add-ons?

big box stores pushing their own brands, confusing clients even more on colors.

ive lost jobs to indecisive folks, but gained better ones by being firm.

controversial: just pick the color for them if they cant decide, theyll love it anyway.

rolling thunder storms incoming, but clients who micromanage every brush stroke.

dont let em dictate your technique, stick to your guns.

homeowners associations forcing color approvals, adds another layer of picky.

yeah, hoas are the real villains here.

frustrated as hell with a client who wanted 5 sample quarts, never picked one.

same boat, feels like theyre testing your patience on purpose.

these clients are why burnout hits hard in this trade.

commiserating, had one change the entire palette after walls were primed.

man, that priming time down the drain hurts.

pissed off at clients who think painters are artists on demand.

ive been there, total time suck.

corporations swallowing small shops, forcing us to deal with more volume of crap clients.

exactly, quality suffers across the board.

client thought flat paint was washable, scrubbed it off herself day one haha.

so done with the 'just a quick touch-up' jobs that turn into full repaints.

hang in there man, weve all got stories like that.