Real-Life Decision Making -- Solution
You copy the image.
If you've learned anything in business, it's that the customer is always right. If Hobson wants to use that image, really, that's his business. If you don't do it, he'll take his business elsewhere and you'll lose a well-paying customer.
So you copy the image for Hobson's hardware store flyer. It does look good, but it's not yours, and it's not his, either.
Hobson is happy, though. He offers you that job you've been hoping for -- the mail-order catalog. Naturally, you're very happy and you can see the end to your financial woes.
But Hobson has been doing some more Net surfing and he's found a few more images he'd like you to use in the catalog. Suddenly, you're not so happy. You know your reputation is about to go down the drain. If word of this gets out, some of your other clients will drop you and you'll be in worse financial trouble than you were before.
You have to tell Hobson no. He feels let down and takes his business elsewhere.
"Not only have you compromised your ethics, you're still in financial trouble and the time you spent on the account could have been spent hustling up new business," says graphic designer Sherry Stinson.