Should you show a client options or one recommendation?
Show your options, but lead with one recommendation and one reason. A guide for freelancers and consultants on presenting choices to a client, with a short video.
Show your options, but lead with one recommendation and one reason. The client hired you for your judgement. Three equal choices hand that judgement back to them. One clear answer, with the other options as backup, gives them something to say yes to.
In the video, Hira, a freelance UX designer, lays out three sketches for her client Catalina and lets her choose. Catalina does not want to choose. She wants to know what Hira thinks. She waits with her arms crossed.
Why do freelancers show options instead of one answer?
Because options feel safe and respectful. If the client picks, the client owns the choice. Nobody can say you pushed them. Showing three sketches also proves that you did the work and explored more than one idea.
Those are good reasons, and they are about the freelancer. From the client’s side, three sketches with no opinion attached look like homework. They now have to compare details they may not understand, guess at the trade-offs and take a risk on their own.
Many clients will not say this. They pick one, or they ask for a fourth, or they go quiet for a week. The project slows down, and nobody knows why.
What does a good recommendation look like?
A good recommendation names one option and gives one reason the client cares about. In the video, Hira says it in two short sentences. “I recommend B. It removes one step from checkout.”
- Name the option first. Put the answer before the reasoning, so the client does not have to wait for it.
- Give one reason, in the client’s terms. Fewer steps, lower cost, faster launch. Not the design theory behind it.
- Keep the other options visible. They show what you explored and give the client a real alternative.
- Say what would change your mind. “If brand matters more than speed here, I would pick A.” That invites the client’s knowledge without making them do your job.
How many options should you show a client?
Two or three is usually enough. One option alone can feel like there was no thinking behind it. More than three makes the choice harder, and the differences between them get small and hard to explain.
The number matters less than the order. Lead with your recommendation. Show the others as the paths you considered, with a line on why you did not pick them. Then the options support your answer instead of replacing it.
When is it right to let the client choose?
When the choice depends on something only the client knows. Brand taste, internal politics, a budget you have not seen or a plan for next year can all decide which option is best. In those cases, you cannot pick for them with confidence.
Even then, do not hand over three sketches in silence. Say what each option is best at, and what it would take to choose it. “Pick A if the brand matters most. Pick B if checkout speed matters most.” The client still chooses, but they choose between clear trade-offs instead of between pictures.
Early in a project, before you know the client well, this is often the honest approach. As you learn what they care about, move towards one recommendation with a reason. That shift is part of earning their trust.
How do you find out what the client needs from you?
Ask them after each milestone, and read the comment as closely as the score. Hira could have guessed that Catalina was unhappy. She would not have guessed why.
In Feedback Journey’s Service Delivery survey, the client scores four fixed categories from 0 to 10. They are Expertise, Communication, Expectations and Quality, and there is a field for a comment. The Communication question asks how satisfied the client is with your communication and availability throughout the project.
In the video, Catalina gives Communication a 7 and writes, “Tell me what you recommend, and why.” A 7 is not bad. It is the kind of score that is easy to ignore. The comment is what makes it useful, because it tells Hira exactly what to do differently next time.
The same fixed questions after each milestone also let you compare one survey with the next. If the change works, you see it in the numbers, not just in the client’s mood. To act on a score more formally, you can set an improvement goal in the category and track it in new surveys.
Is it pushy to tell a client what you would choose?
No. It is what most clients are paying for. A recommendation is advice, and the client is still free to choose something else. What feels pushy is pressure, not an opinion with a reason.
If the client picks a different option, ask what made them choose it. They may know something about their users, their budget or their boss that you do not. Note the reason, and carry on with their choice. Next time, you will recommend with better information.
In the end, Catalina gets what she asked for, a clear answer. She smiles. The sketches did not change. The way they were presented did.
What should you avoid when you present options?
- “They are all good.” If they really are equal, say which one you would pick anyway, and why.
- Long explanations before the answer. Lead with the choice. The reasoning can follow.
- Options that are too close to tell apart. If you cannot explain the difference in one line, the client cannot see it either.
- Guessing what the client wants. Ask, and let the comment tell you.
If extra requests keep coming after the choice is made, read how to stop endless revision rounds with a client.
What happens in the video?
The video is under a minute long. The text on screen tells the story, so it works without sound. The people in it are fictional, and the video is AI-generated. Here it is as text, in the order it plays.
- Title card. “Let the client choose?” Hira, a freelance UX designer, and Catalina, her client, are introduced.
- Three sketches. On screen, “Three sketches. No recommendation.” Hira lays out three sketches side by side.
- One answer. On screen, “Catalina wants one answer.” Catalina waits for an answer with her arms crossed.
- From three sketches to one answer. An infographic shows three steps. A short survey after the sketches. Four questions from 0 to 10, plus a comment, on Expertise, Communication, Expectations and Quality. The comment says what she needs.
- The score. An example survey card, labelled “Example”, shows the Service Delivery question Communication with 7 selected, and the comment “Tell me what you recommend, and why.” On screen, “Catalina gives a 7 and one request.”
- One recommendation. On screen, “One recommendation, with a reason.” Hira holds up one sketch and says, “I recommend B. It removes one step from checkout.”
- A clear answer. On screen, “A clear answer.” Catalina smiles.
- End card. “Ask your client what they need from you.” The card shows feedbackjourney.com and the note “AI-generated. Fictional characters.”
Frequently asked questions
Try it with your next client
Create your first client survey in the Feedback Journey app, or read more guides on collecting honest feedback.