All too often a business or organization seeks a designer to execute an untested, unrefined idea as quickly and cheaply as possible. A business that’s design-oriented will not regard design as an afterthought but as the basis for its marketing communications and brand awareness.
If we approach a design solution as an opportunity for self-expression, we’ll miss the point and risk not solving the problem.
I was asked about how to deal with unusual requests. Once someone finds out you are a designer, writer, photographer… any type of creative, you
Freelancing is on the rise. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the freelance (contract, temp worker and freelancer — in all industries) economy has a healthy
Listening is related to empathy. Empathy is valuing another’s experience, and keeps the designer from creating something that is self-expressive.
Creative freelancers spend a lot of time designing stuff. Good design is structured, organized and unified. When you juggle multiple projects, the ability to focus
Planning is necessary for any business owner. Going through an end-of-year assessment in order to set up for the next can lead you into more
When you start freelancing you become a business owner and are responsible for the success or failure of your enterprise. Honestly, it can go either way,
What do you do about scope creep? Avoid it? Agree to it? Stress out about it? Scope creep is when the amount of work originally agreed
Having a different sort of spirit when pitching to prospective clients can prove to be the difference for your creative brand and business. What do
The commonly-given advice is: Do what you love and the money will follow. This is a great ideal, because no one wants to spend the majority
In Part 1 of this article I focused on what a brand is, and the visual and conceptual components of an effective brand. Brand is
Self-promotion is an ordinary and necessary aspect of doing business as an independent creative professional. Unlike social media marketing, self-promotion campaigns are targeted to contacts
Although it’s a common assumption, clients are not automatically entitled to a designer’s working files. The tools, preliminary concepts and layouts remain the property of
Not every client relationship is a good fit, and it’s just good business to separate.
A key principle in successful use of the Socratic Method is that your work product is not the thing — the objective. It’s the thing that leads to the objective the prospect wants to make happen.
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.
Pricing your creative services is one of the most-discussed topics among freelancers. There is no one right way to price your creative services — there is no industry
One thing I really appreciate about using WordPress for my website platform is the multitude of time-saving plug-ins available. One plug-in I really appreciate is Akismet. Akismet recognizes and
Since I established my design studio over thirteen years ago, I have worked with clients large and small, designed for sole proprietors and for publicly-held
Has something like this ever happened to you? You have a solid, signed written contract with your client that includes payment terms and penalties for
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
We’re on a mission to cultivate a business mindset in support of our creative work. If we want to profit from our creative work, we
How do you know if you should quit or not? Sometimes quitting is in fact, the wise and right option. Freelancing isn’t easy. It takes courage and tenacity to push through. It starts out being fun, like a great adventure, especially when you land your first couple of clients and get paid for the projects. But when obstacles and opposition show up, what will you choose?