Your Website’s Magnificent 7
Like any design, websites are experienced. Your goal should be to provide the best experience to the largest percentage of people who visit your site.
Like any design, websites are experienced. Your goal should be to provide the best experience to the largest percentage of people who visit your site.
Many businesses are going through a reset right now, and creative freelance business owners are no different. As we emerge from a state of lockdown
A student asked me the same question I asked my teachers: “How do I know if I will be successful at freelancing?” After 35 years
10 Best Practices For Building Reputation and Relationships When you accept a client’s project, you make it your own. You’re not creating for yourself. Even so,
Successful soloism is about 80% mindset and 20% mechanics. I’ve learned from experience that you can get the mechanics right, but still not be thinking right. Much of what holds us back as creatives and independent business owners is our mindset.
Working on spec directly contradicts good business practices and does not even promise payment for work performed.
A significant percentage of my clients are non-profit enterprises. I have had many opportunities to design campaign materials, annual reports, and graphic assets for non-profit
The Practice and Principle of Accomplishing Something Upon learning about what I do by trade, an employed acquaintance asked with some concern, “But will you
Most freelancers will agree that it’s easier to hold onto an established relationship than begin a new one. And it’s less work to retain a client
My friend, Mary, was in a community theatre production of The Mikado, and was asked to write her bio for the printed program. This being her first theatrical
[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Freelancing provides more freedom than any other type of work structure. With that freedom come the responsibilities of ownership and reputation. When we choose to
You probably already know that you can deduct mileage as a business expense. But did you know that, if you work from home, all mileage
Have you ever gotten involved on a project and then realized that neither the project nor the client is ideal? The project that was going to
I recently read Deep Work: Rules for Focused Success in a Distracted World, in which the author, Cal Newport, makes the case for engaging in sdeliberate, uninterrupted
Has something like this ever happened to you? You have a solid contract with your client that includes payment terms and penalties for late payment.
Building a business requires connection with people: prospective clients, colleagues, mentors, customers, and sometimes even family members. When we connect, we share information, ideas and
The first 3 1/2 months of the year are known in the US as tax season. If you are an independent creative professional, that means you
Creative freelancers invest time and effort carefully crafting brands for their clients. In regard to their own brands, they often come up short. Creatives should
Client retention is tied more to character than to talent.
Most problems freelancers experience when working with clients are due to contract mistakes. Do any of these statements sound familiar to you? “I started working
As with cars, your freelance business needs regular tune-ups to ensure smooth performance and prevent breakdowns. If you’re the owner of an independent creative services
Design your time. Time is wasted when we do the wrong thing at the wrong time. It’s easier to keep your time boundaries and your well-being intact if you plan ahead.
From the client’s point of view, there are two crucial criteria in deciding what designer is awarded the project: 1. Does the creative understand what’s
To be meaningful, design needs to connect on five successive levels of significance…