Being a Starving Graphic Artist Sucks

How did Your Freelancing Design Business Do in 2009? How Do You Intend on Improving in 2010?

2009-12-21T06:51:00-08:00

As the holiday season and the end of the year approach, this is a good time for reflection over the last year. Around this time of Christmas trees, church services, holiday treats and presents, I find myself asking some difficult questions about how I did over the last year, what I want ’10 to look like, and what I’ll need to do to make it happen. I would encourage you to do the same. With many clients more preoccupied with their families than their business, this is the perfect time for you to take inventory of where you’ve been and where you want to take your business in this next year.

The trouble is that most people either fear change or they think it’s too hard – you’ll find some of your potential clients are this way. If you ask them, “Do you plan on growing your business this year?”, they’ll of course respond with a resounding “Yes!” If you then ask “What steps are you going to take to make that a reality?”, you’ll typically get a blank stare followed by “Hmm, I don’t know.”

Wishful thinking is nice to have but it’s no way to build a successful business. Blind hope without planning or action is worthless – I know that sounds harsh, but it’s true. I would encourage you to look over the last year and evaluate how your business is done.

We’re you as successful as you wanted to be?
Did you make significantly more money and bring in more clients than last year?
If you plan on ’10 really being your break out year, how do you intend to do it?
What will you do different or better in ’10 than you did in ’09?

It’s important to be honest with yourself: if you’re comfortable doing freelance on the side as a hobby, that’s fine, or if you’re happy with the rate you’re being paid, that’s okay too. If these are things you want to change, I would encourage you to take different action steps in ’10 rather than doing the same things over and over and just hoping they will work.

Ask yourself what steps you’ve taken over the last year to grow your business – how have they worked? You may be surprised to realize that many of the things you thought were helping didn’t do very much at all.

If you’ve bought new Photoshop books, occasionally participated in online forums, subscribed to a couple of free eNewsletters, subscribed to some RSS feeds or whatever you’ve done, ask yourself how much have they helped your business grow and how closer have they moved you to success?

If you’re not getting the results you want, maybe it’s time to try something new for the New Year - just something to think about. If I don't get a chance to talk with you before Friday, have a Merry Christmas.

Creative Freelancers: A Great Resource to Use if Your Clients Assume You're a IT Expert too

2009-12-19T07:39:00-08:00

My buddy Scott sent this over to me a few days ago, he's not a designer but is frequently called on to troubleshoot people's computer problems.

I am not sure why clients assume that just because web/graphic designers use computers, they can acutely troubleshoot any hardware or software issue...no matter how obscure.

Anyway, if you find yourself in this position frequently, free free to use the diagram over to the right. As it indicates, you'll want to post this in an easy to see spot to "educate" all of your friends, family, colleagues and clients.

My buddy found the original here.

PS - thanks to Josh, AIPX grad who said this about Verbal Kung Fu for Freelancers last week, "I've been meaning to tell you that I've finished the Verbal Kung Fu book (quick and easy ready, i like that!), and it was awesome! I've recommended it to many people already, especially to those that I hear complain about clients..."

Freelance Designers - What Does Being Business or Marketing Savvy Designer Mean?

2009-12-15T03:44:00-08:00

One of the first freelancers that ever bought the Being a Starving Artist Sucks book wrote in a few weeks after checking out my design firm's web site and wanted to know what a "business savvy designer" really was. This is a term that I used to describe my skill set and the value that I bring to the table for clients...while this type of designer is a little less common, I am not silly or arrogant enough to think I am the only one that can say this - far from it. Heck, you might be a business savvy designer as well.

I wanted to share my connotation of what a business savvy designer with you because they are almost always in demand since they provide business owners what they really want (it's not "good" design) - it's sales and revenue.

This isn't to say that if you aren't a business savvy freelancer/designer that you have to be one to be successful - you don't. For the skill set the good Lord has provided me, it's worked out really well.

Here's what I would describe as a business savvy designer:

You understand the role of profits in business.
You design creative projects that are focused on bringing in sales & revenue first, rather than expressing artistic creativity.
Every detail of the projects you is based on the feedback you've received from your client's customers, rather than what you felt like designing that day.
You can easily sell your design concept to the client and articulate why it will help her/him attract and bring in the customers she/he wants.
You understand your role as the hired professional, and you control the creative and approval process, not your client.
You can write compelling content that will attract the client's target market; you can then get them to take action. (This skill takes time to develop).
You put in some initial market research time in learning about your client's culture, their competition, their clients and where they want to be positioned among those variables BEFORE you start designing.
If it's possible, you interact directly with your client's customers throughout the creative process to ensure you're designing a project that will resonate with them.
You know what questions to ask your client's customers to get the feedback you'll need to design a project that will resonate with them.
You measure your success in terms of how many sales (how much revenue) your client brought in rather than how creative the project was.
You have a proven track record of being able to generate revenue and sales for clients through your creative projects. Your clients consider you an investment rather than an expense.
You do what's best for clients at all times. You actually become an advocate for your client and her/his customers. You base your production and creative decisions first on whether or not this will help your client or not rather than your own.

PS - Thanks for the question Patricia; I hope you found this helpful, please retweet or share this if you enjoyed it.

Graphic Designers: Why Your Clients Don't Provide Testimonials But Will Complain All Day Long

2009-12-12T04:40:00-08:00

I bought an Xbox 360 game off of eBay recently...yes, sadly I still do occasionally play video games at my age...I am getting therapy for it ...but I digress.

In about a week the game arrived - looks in good shape and plays without incident - pretty much what I expected, so I am a happy customer and I can move on with my life.

Within a few days of receiving the game I received an "urgent" email from shipper asking me to leave positive feedback for a great transaction. A week or so later I received 1-2 follow ups asking me the same.

I did finally get around to it, but in all honesty I wasn't all that excited about doing it. The item came as described and didn't have any defects - essentially I got what I paid for, no more and no less. I am not sure that warrants me leaving great feedback for someone, maybe some other people do.

I write this not to slam on an eBay seller but to give you a glimpse into your client's mind when you've finished their project. If you're looking for them shout to the heavens how great your work is, you may need to do a little more than you promised you would. Maybe you provide them with more attention, a bonus or two or add something to the project that makes it memorable. See Seth Godin's book, "Free Prize Inside".

If you don't do provide someone with outstanding service, design, results, quality or attention...or make their project memorable, how can you expect them to be eager to write you a testimonial and tell others how great you are? You can't.

Personally I think all of us should be commended for doing a "good" job, but that's not how most of the world works. Since you and I aren't going to be able to change it, we need to adapt our approach to ensure that we do get testimonials.

When you get right down to it, most of the time people have all day to complain about something, but no time to tell others how good something is...unless that good is more like GREAT! When you're working with clients, do you do anything memorable, personal or authentic that would get them TO WANT to tell others or give you a testimonial?