advice
3 Reasons Why Creative Freelancers Should Go Bold Or Go Home
A long time ago in a faraway place called Pasadena, CA, I sat in a classroom and heard my instructor say, “You can’t sit around
Alvalyn Lundgren
advice
10 Items On My Don’t-Do List
I keep a Don’t-Do list. I spend most of my efforts on my to-do lists, agendas, and getting things done, but a few years ago I
Alvalyn Lundgren
advice
Should Freelancers List With Online Business Directories?
Q: As a freelancer, is it worth having business listings like Yelp and YP? A: It depends upon what directories you choose and why you choose
Alvalyn Lundgren
advice
Keeping Good Clients: 10 Ways To Build Loyalty
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
Alvalyn Lundgren
advice
Pricing Strategies for Creative Freelancers
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
Alvalyn Lundgren
advice
12 Questions You Need to Ask Every Client BEFORE You Accept Their Project
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
Alvalyn Lundgren
advice
7 Pointers to Rock Your Social Media Marketing
To begin with, social media is not about selling, but about conversations and providing value. Be knowable, likable and trustworthy. To make the most of
Alvalyn Lundgren
advice
Using LinkedIn Profinder To Find Freelance Gigs
This article was updated on February 8, 2017 by the author. Being always on the lookout for new client opportunities, I thought I’d give LinkedIn
Alvalyn Lundgren
advice
Does Formal Design Education Matter?
Aesthetic sense and talent are raw materials. They amount to nothing without discipline. Education forces you to add skill, discipline and expertise to your talent. And in order to meet project deadlines, you learn to steward your time.
Alvalyn Lundgren
advice
How Do I Know If I Will Be Successful At Freelancing?
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
Alvalyn Lundgren
advice
Stepping Out: How To Get Unstuck
Creativity requires action and effort to actually make something. We can mull over our ideas all we want, but to make a difference, at some point
Alvalyn Lundgren
How To Work With Clients
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,
Alvalyn Lundgren
How To Manage Your Brand
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
Alvalyn Lundgren
How to Avoid Spam in Your Blog Comments
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
Alvalyn Lundgren
8 Ways to Cut the Cost of Design
Every design project includes a punch list of required deliverables and a budget. When the budget does not allow for the creation of all these items,
Alvalyn Lundgren
advice
Creative Freedom Through Setting Boundaries
Working with clients can be likened to a downhill race: The designer moves along in her process and picks up momentum as she heads toward the finish line, and all
Alvalyn Lundgren
Freedom Through Boundaries
During a downhill event at the Winter Olympics in Sochi, a contestant wiped out against the fence because she lost her footing on a turn.
Alvalyn Lundgren
advice
Advice For Emerging Designers
…your process of emerging from school into the (design) profession needs to be as carefully framed and designed as any of your projects.
Alvalyn Lundgren
Maintaining Long-Term Client Relationships
When it comes to clients, it is better to pursue relationships instead of projects. We’ll build our businesses more successfully via relationships and connections, not
Alvalyn Lundgren