Has something like this ever happened to you? You have a solid contract with your client that includes payment terms and penalties…
Creative freelancers invest time and effort carefully crafting brands for their clients. In regard to their own brands, they often come up…
When you work project-to-project, you can experience inconsistencies in your schedule and revenue flow. One way to mitigate those gaps is with…
Have you ever gotten involved on a project and then realized that neither the project nor the client is ideal? The project that…
As an independent creative, you get to decide how you will attract clients and projects. One option is via Requests for Proposals…
Did you know that there is more than one way to be a freelancer? Independent creatives — freelancers — can choose a variety…
Avoid awkward moments and misunderstandings about getting paid for your freelance work. Prepare written agreements for each client that outlines the type of work you will do, how much you will charge for it, and how you want to be paid. You cannot make a living by doing favors.
Most problems freelancers experience when working with clients are due to contract mistakes. Do any of these statements sound familiar to you?…
What do you do when you a client refuses to pay you? According to Freelancers Union nearly 50% of freelancers were stiffed by clients in…
An up and coming freelancer asked me about how to deal with unusual requests. We all get these from time to time.…
I was asked about how to deal with unusual requests. Once someone finds out you are a designer, writer, photographer… any type…
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…
One of the huge differences between a salaried worker and a freelancer is that freelancers need to always be looking for work.…
Good clients are integral to successful freelance projects and to your career overall. Beyond the project itself, a referral or recommendation from the right…
I wish I hadn't said, "Yes" to certain design projects. It's not that the projects were a problem, but something about the clients'…
branding influence reputation
typographic illustration in reds for Design and Conquer blog post
Of Influence, Time and Trust Branding is a popular discussion in my circles, and in the course of those conversations I gain…
Recently, I met with a start-up business. As we discussed the scope of work and began putting the design brief together, it…
Every design project includes a punch list of required deliverables and a budget. When the budget does not allow for the creation of…
Are you more concerned about aesthetics or your bottom line when contracting design services? Designers - good ones - always care about how…
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…
I am a full-time graphic designer/illustrator and part-time design educator, so design thinking is a familiar and routine part of my life.…
During a downhill event at the Winter Olympics in Sochi, a contestant wiped out against the fence because she lost her footing…
Listening is related to empathy. Empathy is valuing another's experience, and keeps the designer from creating something that is self-expressive.
Let's begin with the premise that design, illustration and photography are service professions, and that being a professional means you're in business.…
Before working with a designer, a client should prepare for that relationship. Often, businesses will request a web site or a logo…
Not every client relationship is a good fit, and it's just good business to separate.
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.
To be meaningful, design needs to connect on five successive levels of significance…
How many people set goals and never achieve them? How many creatives start a business and then watch it fizzle out Are…
Being effective involves doing the right thing at the right time in the right place.
If we approach a design solution as an opportunity for self-expression, we'll miss the point and risk not solving the problem.
From the client's point of view, there are two crucial criteria in deciding what designer is awarded the project: 1. Does the…
How can you invest your product or service with “lovability” and create devotion in your customers? Here are some options: Love it…
Clients have a choice when selecting creative services: They can go the cheap route and buy a logo through a crowdsource or contest…
The strength of a design lies as much in the steps taken to create it as in the final result. The process — the…
Without the aesthetic, the computer is but a mindless speed machine, producing effects without substance, form without relevant content, or content without meaningful…
Client retention is tied more to character than to talent.
Since I established my design studio over thirteen years ago, I have worked with clients large and small, designed for sole proprietors…