When the client is wrong

Know this scenario? You are faced with a client that clearly is wrong, on so many levels? And I mean not just wrong in terms of a decision she has just made, but just wrong for her job. Unfortunately, there is nothing you can do about it. She is the client, and she pays your bills. You have to live with it.

So here she is. She sits on her brand, she has been doing some marketing stuff in the past, but clearly her knowledge of how to do it right is limited to what she has come to know. Unfortunately, if you don't know what to look for, you are not looking for it. Then you are looking back inside, focusing on what you already know, and what you have already been doing so far. Therein lies the challenge.

I mean, you - as an ad guy - have been hired to help her to get it right. Yet once you have analyzed the situation, and have come to realize that drastic changes have to be made, you are faced with a client that seems to be holding on to the only thing that she has left, the status quo. She is trying to defend it, in order to save face, will try to justify why x, y and z that she has done in the past, have been good decisions. You, of course, completely disagree. Of course, you cannot tell her that she has no clue of her profession. So what can you do? Here are two viable options. The third one is simply out of a question, if you have any sense of self-respect.

1. RADICAL CHANGE
You radically challenge the status quo. You break down the house, clear it out completely, and then rebuild it from the ground back up. This will require a lot of schmoozing, and diplomatic relationship management on your end, but this has a chance of success.

2. SLICE BY SLICE CHANGE
Look at it as slicing a salami, slowly starting at one end, cutting one thin slice after another, until you have worked your way all the way to the end. For you, this means, being extremely patient, and starting with smaller projects, making her part of the process, making her buy into the process, and hence, get her support. Then, you will move on to larger projects, until you have gradually changed the status quo.

3. KEEPING THE STATUS QUO
This way, you will basically surrender, give up, waive the white flag. You should be ashamed of yourself though, and I am sure you will feel like a prostitute, only doing it for the money, not for the love of your profession. You won't last long this way. So no, it's not an option.