Resourceful Designer: Strategies for running a graphic design business

Are you competing with discount designers? Let me start by saying that I've never lost a client to discount designers. I've had clients question my higher prices, but in the end, they ended up hiring me. I know that many designers have difficulty justifying their costs to their clients so I thought I would share what I do when a client asks "Why should I hire you when I can get that designed cheaper elsewhere?" This is a follow up to last week's episode - Stop Competing On Prices. In it, I explained why lowering your design prices to compete with discount designers is not a sustainable way to run a design business. If you haven't listened to that episode, I suggest you do before continuing with this one. I don't have a ready-made checklist or prepared response for when a client questions my prices compared to discount designers. Instead, I follow these guidelines. Encourage the client to inquire about discount design sources. I never tell a client with my true feelings about these discount design services. Doing so would seem petty and expected. After all, of course, I want their business, so why wouldn't I badmouth the "competition?" Instead, I encourage my clients to look into whatever service they mentioned. Even if it's another local designer. Here's something I might say: "I think you would be better off with me because I'm going to take the time to get to know you and your business before designing anything for you. By getting to know your business and its pain points, I'll be able to direct my creative energy to find the perfect design solutions for your problems. I understand if you need to consider your budget and decide to look into (insert cheap designer source here), however, if you do decide to hire them instead of me, I want to make sure you get what you truly need." This response shows the client that I have their best interest in mind even if it means losing them as a client. Coach the client on what to look for. If I were to send a client off without any instructions, I would probably lose them on price alone. After all, why pay multiple times the price for what you believe is the same service. However, by coaching the client on what to look for and what to look out for, I help them make a more informed decision. Here's a conversation I might have with them: As you're looking into (discount designers platform) for your design project, here are some things you'll want to know before deciding who to hire. 1) Are they using clip art? According to most licenses, clip art is not allowed to be used in logos. Not all, but many of the discount designers on these platforms use clip art to speed up their process and keep their costs down. You can run into legal problems if the designer you choose uses clip art. Don't take their word that they don't. Once you see the initial proof of your job, it's your responsibility to check it against the various clip art catalogues to ensure you can legally use the design. 2) Is it copyrighted material? Clip art isn't the only thing you need to watch out for. Make sure that whatever they design for you is not stolen from someone else, or that there isn't something almost identical out there that could again, lead to legal troubles. Some of the designers on these platforms have been known to steal other people's designs and pass them off as their own. 3) What files are they providing? Make sure you are getting the proper files and resolutions for everything you need now, and for everything you may need in the future. Some discount designers only supply you a screen resolution JPG file. You'll want to ensure you choose someone who will also provide you with hi-res and/or vector files. 4) Are they willing to talk to you? For a designer to do a good job, they need to know their client. Try to have a conversation with the designer you want to hire so they can fully understand you and your business. You'll know a good designer because they'll want to get to know you a bit before designing anything for you. Anyone who doesn't want to talk with you first, doesn't care about you or your business, all they care about is pumping out a design as fast as possible, because the quicker they can do it, the more money they make and the quicker they can forget about you and move on to the next client. 5) Do they charge for extras?. Be careful of prices and add ons. A lot of discount designers advertise inexpensive designs and then charge you extra for things that professional designers include at no additional charge — items such as vector files or higher resolution files needed for print. In the end, you may end up paying multiple times what you thought it was going to cost. Make sure you find out all the prices upfront and ensure you are getting everything you need. If you keep these things in mind when you're choosing your designer, you shouldn't have a problem. I'm here if you have any questions. Good luck. By providing this list of things to look out for, I'm helping the clien

Lowering your prices can hurt your design business. I was talking to a fellow designer recently who is concerned about competing on prices. He asked me what I do if a client says they can pay less for a logo at Fiverr, Upwork, 99 Designs, or any other discount design platforms. This isn't the first time I've heard this concern from a designer. You may have experienced this exact thing with your clients questioning your prices compared to discount design sources. The fact of the matter is, competing on prices is a no-win scenario. There's no way that you can compete with the prices these places offer. Ok, maybe that's not true. Sure you could lower your price to their level, but what would it accomplish? You would be selling your services for a pittance, and cementing yourself in a rut that would be difficult to escape. Competing on prices is not a sustainable way to run, let alone grow, your design business. I'm going to make this a two-part series. Next week I'm going to explain how I respond to clients who say, "I can get it cheaper elsewhere." For now, I want to explain why competing on prices is a harmful and unsustainable way to run your business. It all comes down to this. If you offer rock bottom prices, you will never be taken seriously as a designer, let alone a business owner. If you try to match the pricing found on places like Fiverr or Upwork or 99 Designs, You'll end up developing an unfavourable reputation that will be extremely difficult to overcome. You'll have a tough time trying to raise your prices in the future, which you will need to do if you plan on making a decent living at this design life. Are you familiar with the concept of a "dollar store"? There's probably at least one, if not many around where you live. The premise of a dollar store is that just about everything they sell costs between one to three dollars. They're known as cheap discount stores. Dollar stores have a reputation for selling cheap merchandise. Not just in price, but in quality as well. After all, just how good can a $2 butcher's knife or a $1 mini speaker be? And These stores are ok with that reputation. They make no claims that they are anything but what they are. Dollar stores don't make their money by selling quality products; they make it by selling quantities of products. They make their money one dollar at a time. Could you imagine if all of a sudden a dollar store decided to sell a crystal wine decanter for $50? Their customers would question the validity of that product. There must be something wrong with the decanter, or it must be sub-par in some way. Nobody would take them seriously, let alone believe the decanter is worth $50. It's a dollar store, after all. And their reputation for selling cheap merchandise for low prices would hurt them. That's what happens to your design business when you try to compete by lowering your prices. Nobody will take you seriously as a designer, especially if you later decide to raise your rates. So how do you deal with discount designers taking clients away from you? The answer is easy; stop competing with them. In fact, and this may sound weird to you, but if you feel discount designers are your direct competition, the best solution is to raise your prices. Wait; what? How can raising prices help in this situation? I'm glad you asked. I talked about this in an early episode of Resourceful Designer. In it, I explained how Raising your prices can lead to getting better graphic design work and more committed clients. Recently I was listening to Tom Ross's Honest Entrepreneur podcast, episode 87, to be specific. Tom is the founder of Design Cuts. He was on episode 155 of Resourceful Designer where we talked about supplementing your income by selling design products. Tom mentioned an excellent point in episode 87 of his show. The biggest issue with pricing low is that the lower your price, the more designers you're competing with. Tom permitted me to use this image, depicting his idea. Looking at this hypothetical chart, would you want to be competing against 10 million designers for a client that will pay you $10? Or would you prefer to compete against 50,000 designers for a client that will pay you $1,000? Because there are so many designers charging lower prices, a client has more leverage over you. If they're not happy with what you're offering, they can very easily find a different designer for the job at the same or even lower price. And since the cost is so little, the client doesn't care where they get it from, as long as they get it. However, clients with a $1k or $10k budget have much fewer designers from whom to choose. So when they find one they like, they tend to stick with them. As you can see, offering low prices not only diminishes your income, but it drastically increases the number of designers you're competing with. Why would you want to be in that situation? By ignoring all the discount designers and raising your prices, you diminish your competition,

Turning down design work. The idea may seem foreign to you. Especially if you're relatively new to running your design business. If you're at a stage in your freelance career where you're trying to establish yourself, you're trying to get your name out there; you're trying to make ends meat and pay your bills, then you might not be ready for this concept. Turning down design work may not be in your best interest right now. However, if you plan on growing your design business to be more than a commodity, more than selling your time for money, then there will come a time when you will need to stop and think, "Is this a design project I want to take on?" You see, the goal for most home-based designers is to become successful enough to be in high demand. The type of demand where you are booking new clients and new design projects weeks, possibly months in the future. The kind of demand where a client is willing to wait several weeks for you instead of finding a designer that can start on their project sooner. When I was hand-coding websites, there were times when I was booking two to three months ahead. I don't see that as much these days since WordPress makes it much quicker to design a website, but demand is still there. And when there's demand, it means there's an abundance of work coming in. And when there's an abundance of work coming in, you can afford to be choosy in the type of projects you take on, and which projects you turn down. But how do you choose? I'm going to give you three criteria. Each criteria is made up of a few simple yes or no questions. Asking yourself these questions can help you decide "is this a design project I want to take on?" Criteria # 1 Yes or no? Does this project sound fun or interesting? Will it be challenging? Will it push me? Will it make me learn new skills? Is the project to design an event poster for a new upcoming festival, or is it to format a company's 80-page code of conduct manual? One of these two projects sounds fun and challenging and can push you to learn new skills. The other, not so much. You need to decide if the project is a YES or a NO. Criteria # 2 Yes or no? Will this project get me a foot in the door? Will it lead to other work? Will it lead to more interesting work? Will it connect me with people I want to connect with? What will the future hold for you by taking on this project? If it's an entry to bigger and better things, then it's a definite YES. Otherwise, it's a NO. Criteria # 3 Yes or no? Is this project profitable? Will I make money on it? Will it bring me recognition or reward? Is it worth my time? Note: Being profitable and making money are not always the same thing. Profitable can mean the project is advantageous, or helpful to you in some way besides monetary income. If you're trying to break into a particular niche, maybe adding a niche related project to your portfolio is worth more to you right now than the money you'll make on the project. Adding up the answers. Ask yourself these criteria questions before every new design project. If you answered YES to all three criteria, then the design project sounds like a dream job and you should accept it. If you answered YES to two of the three criteria, then you should highly consider taking on the project. It sounds like an ideal job for you. If you answered YES to only one of the three criteria, you should be leary of the project. Chances are, it's not a project worth taking on. And of course, if you answered NO to all three criteria, take a hard pass on the project, it's not for you. Go with your gut. These three criteria to accept or decline design work are just guidelines. Always follow your gut when it comes to working with clients and on new projects. If you're hesitating about a job, even one that passes two or even three of the criteria, then the best course of action is to turn it down politely. Never take on a project you don't feel right about. Are you in a position where you can afford to decline design work? Let me know by leaving a comment for this episode. Questions of the Week Submit your question to be featured in a future episode of the podcast by visiting the feedback page. This week's question comes from Julie. Should I use different branding for my photography business or I should include it as part of my design business? To find out what I told Julie, you'll have to listen to the podcast. Resource of the week WordCamp.tv If you can attend a WordCamp in your area, I highly suggest you do so. However, if attending WordCamp is not feasible for you, fear not, the sessions and presentations from all WordCamps are available for viewing, free of charge at wordcamp.tv. If you are a WordPress designer or developer, attending WordCamp should be a regular part of your schedule. WordCamp is a place for WordPress enthusiasts and novices to gather and share their knowledge. Sessions and presentations accommodate all levels of WordPress skills, so everyone benefits from attending.

Have you ever considered designing in a particular niche? Have you heard the term "The Riches Are In The Niches"? It shouldn't come as a surprise that the more focused you are on a particular sector, the more familiar with it you become. And the more familiar with it you become, the more you are perceived as the expert in that particular sector. Graphic and web design is no different. Designers who focus on a particular sector become knows as experts and command more respect and earn more money from clients in that sector. I've talked about niches before on the podcast. In episode 54; Should You Find A Graphic Design Niche, I explained what a niche is and the benefits of choosing one, as well as not having to limit yourself when you choose a niche. In episode 93; Targetting A Design Niche, I teach you how to go about finding and marketing to your particular niche. In today's episode of the Resourceful Designer podcast, I'm talking to Craig Burton, owner of School Branding Matters, a New Zealand based branding agency that specialises in helping schools craft compelling visual brands. Craig found his niche and has spent the past ten years building his company and inspiring journeys in school branding. In this episode you'll hear us discuss: How Craig stumbled upon his niche. Hint, he didn't look for his niche, his niche found him. The early days of developing his niche What worked and what didn't in the process Working within his niche before defining it as his niche. What came first, his niche or his business focusing on the niche. How Craig learns about and creates unique brands for similar and yet very different institutions in his niche. Conflicting branding ideas for different schools. How Craig attracts clients ten years into his business. Repeat clients, branding is more than a logo; it's a journey. The Pros and Cons of working in a specific niche. How working in a niche requires a passion for that sector. Competing with non-niching designers Working with non-niche clients. How Craig has changed as a designer over the past ten years. What's your experience with working in a design niche? Do you work in a design niche? Let me know what your experiences are by leaving a comment for this episode. Listen to the podcast on the go. Listen on Apple Podcasts Listen on Spotify Listen on Android Listen on Stitcher Listen on iHeartRadio Contact me I would love to hear from you. You can send me questions and feedback using my feedback form. Follow me on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram I want to help you. Running a graphic design or web design business all by yourself isn't easy. If there are any struggles you face running your design business, please reach out to me. I'll do my best to help you by addressing your issues in a future blog post or podcast episode here at Resourceful Designer. You can reach me at [email protected]

Have you thought of your contingency plans? [sc name="smartpress" ]So you're running a graphic design business. You're plugging away day after day, week after week, engaging with clients and designing amazing things for them. Life is great, and you're living the dream. But what if the unexpected happened? Are you prepared? What would you do in the event of a national disaster that destroys your home? What would you do if all of a sudden, without any warning, you lose all your office equipment? What would you do if something happened to a loved one and you had to drop everything for who knows how long to be by their side? What if you were hit by a car on the way home from the grocery store and end up in the hospital for several weeks. What would you do? Any of these events could happen and prevent your business from functioning. That's where a contingency plan comes into play. What is a Contingency Plan? The easiest way to define a contingency plan is to refer to it as a "plan B" for your business in the event of a setback. A contingency plan creates a clear path, a course of action to get your business through a hardship. All of the scenarios I described above are pretty harsh, but a contingency plan doesn't have to be. It just needs a bit of time and foresight to prepare. Here are some steps to help you with yours. Identify triggers that could affect your design business. Imagine different scenarios that could affect your business. I've shared a few with you already, but there could be many more. Each situation will require it's own contingency plan. What will you do if you lose your office or all your equipment? What will you do if a loved one requires you and you can't work? What will you do if you are incapacitated and cannot work? What will you do if a trusted contractor suddenly disappears? What will you do if your electricity goes out or the internet goes down? What will you do if, for one reason or another, your business has a setback? You need to identify these triggers before you can figure out a plan to cope with them. Discuss this with family and friends; they may think of something you haven't. Create a contingency plan for each trigger. Once you identify the various triggers that could impact your design business, the next step is to figure out what actions you will need to take to get over the hurdles. No one's contingency plans are identical, but there are a few things you should consider including in yours. Your plan to notify clients of your situation. Your plan to deal with approaching deadlines you can no longer meet. Your plan to reach out to fellow designers if you need someone to take over a project for you. Your plan to acquire new equipment for your office if it needs replacing. Set a timeline to help you carry out your plans. What steps will you need to take in the hours, days and possibly weeks after your contingency plan is triggered? Who to involve. If you have business partners, they should be involved in the creation of your contingency plan since your absence affects them. Make sure they have all the information they need to handle your side of the business until you are back. In the event of an emergency, you should have someone you can trust to contact your clients on your behalf and inform them of the situation. The last thing you want to be doing during an emergency is talking to clients. Protecting yourself before anything happens. There's already enough to worry about with whatever scenario you're dealing with, and the last thing you need is more hardship that could affect your business. Protect yourself as best you can by setting the following in place beforehand. Protect yourself in your contract. You should have a clause in your contract that states any natural disasters, acts of god or family emergency that affects your ability to fulfil your end of the agreement automatically negates the contract. You can also offer a full refund to the client should you need to enforce this clause. Insurance to cover your office equipment. You probably have home/tenant insurance to protect your dwelling but does it adequately protect your business assets if you are running a home-based design business? Most home insurance companies will reimburse you for the value of your loss, not the amount it will cost to replace that loss. The money you will receive from the loss of a five-year-old computer will not be enough for you to purchase new equipment. Talk to your insurance company and see if you can include a rider on your policy that will reimburse you the current replacement costs of your losses. Emergency Line of credit. A line of credit can help you purchase new equipment or replace lost income due to an unforeseen business shutdown. A line of credit will allow you to pay your bills and make any needed purchases while you are waiting for insurance money to arrive. Off-Site Backup. In the event of a natural disaster or theft, and off-site backup is crucial for maintaining your cli

Do you ever feel like a fraud? In a previous episode of the Resourceful Designer podcast, I talked about Superhero Syndrome. It's when someone takes on more responsibilities than they need or should take on. Sometimes doing things they are not qualified to do instead of doing the logical thing and finding someone qualified for the task. Today I'm talking about the opposite of Superhero Syndrome. And that's Impostor Syndrome. What is Impostor Syndrome? Impostor Syndrome is a collection of feelings of inadequacy that persist even in the face of information that indicates that the opposite is true. It is experienced internally as chronic self-doubt and feelings of intellectual fraudulence. In layman's terms, Impostor Syndrome is the belief that you're an impostor and not qualified to do the things that are asked of you, even though you are qualified. Several years ago, I talked about impostor syndrome on an episode Stuff I Learned Yesterday, another podcast that I shared hosting duties. That was the first time I had heard about Impostor Syndrome, and I had to do a lot of research before recording that episode. Since then, the term, and unfortunately the suffering, has become more popular. Before choosing this topic for today's episode, I decided to do a bit more research into the subject. After reading several articles and blogs on the topic of Impostor Syndrome, I've come to one conclusion. Impostor Syndrome is B.S. Not the syndrome, that's real, and I believe that many people, especially designers, suffer from it, including myself. I release a new podcast episode every week. I do this to help you with your design business. But there are plenty of times when I think to myself. "who am I to be advising the people who listen? Why should anyone care what I have to say? I'm no superstar designer. I don't have hundreds of thousands of followers like Chris Do does." That's Impostor Syndrome. And even though I know what it is, the feeling is still there. We all suffer from it at some point. As designers, we're expected to create things from nothing using only our imagination and creativity. Businesses stake their growth on the ideas we dream up for them. That's a daunting task. What if we're not up to it? That's what I'm calling B.S. on, that view that people suffering from Impostor Syndrome have about themselves. Am I the most qualified person to talk about the 170 plus topics I've shared with you on the Resourceful Designer podcast? No, of course not. There are plenty of designers more qualified than me. But that doesn't mean I'm not qualified in my own way. I have over 30 years of design experience, 14 of which I've spent running my own design business. Everything I've learned over that time and everything I'm still learning, that's what I'm sharing with you, and there's nobody better suited to share my experiences than me. I'm the designer, and the person I am today because of the time I invested in myself. When I start feeling Impostor Syndrome, I remind myself that you're there listening to me. You've decided to press play on my podcast. You've determined listening to me is worth your time. And that gets me through it. But what about you? Do you ever feel like you're a fraud? An impostor? If you do, then I'm telling you to stop. If you are at the point in your design career where you are working with or thinking of working with clients, trust me, you earned that right. Chances are, if you weren't ready yet to work with clients, you wouldn't be trying to. It's a common belief amongst impostor syndrome sufferers that they only got to where they are by pure luck, or by somehow deceiving others into thinking they're more skilled and competent than they believe themselves to be. No matter the evidence of their competence, those with Impostor Syndrome remain convinced that they are frauds and don't deserve the success they have. Again, it's all B.S. I don't want to sound mean or come off as impassive. What I'm trying to say is, unless you're trying to pass yourself off as a designer but never designed anything before, then you're not an impostor. An impostor would be someone offering to create a website, but they've never done one before, or someone charging to design a logo without any knowledge of what a logo is. Chances are you got to where you are in your design career because you deserve to be there, wherever "there" is. I believe a lot of designers should have more confidence in their abilities than they do. It's that the self-doubt that gets to them. You've earned that degree that says you're a designer. When you were in school, you did the same projects and took the same tests as those around you. Sure some of your classmates may have done better than you, but that doesn't mean you didn't earn your passing grade. If you didn't go to school for design, then chances are you've spent time honing your skills and learning the necessary programs and techniques to be a designer. Don't think for one second that just

What's holding you back? [sc name="pod_ad"]September 30 will mark four years that I've been releasing episodes of the Resourceful Designer podcast. During the time I've received hundreds of emails from people thanking me for what I do. They tell me how much I've helped them, inspired them and motivated them. There's no way for me to express how this makes me feel, knowing that me, a designer, working out of my home office in small-town Ontario, Canada is having such an impact on designers from around the globe. It's truly humbling, and I cherish every message I receive. But over time, I've noticed a common theme with many of the messages. Web and graphic designers write to me saying that after listening to Resourceful Designer for so long, they've finally started their own design business. I'm happy for them, but I can't help wonder what was holding these people back from starting sooner? Why did it take them so long of listening to the podcast, in some cases years, before starting their business journey? Does this describe your situation? Have you started your design business yet? I understand those people who tell me they've lost their job for one reason or another and have decided with my inspiration to start their own graphic or web design business instead of looking for new employment. But what about those who tell me they've finally built up the courage to begin working with clients as a side gig while still employed somewhere? These people have a steady income at their current job, so the fear of not being able to support themselves isn't a factor. What was holding them back? What hesitation was stopping them from trying it sooner? If you're in a similar situation, where you haven't started your business yet, why haven't you? Don't get me wrong; I'm not encouraging you to quit your current job. I don't need that responsibility. Yes, some people have told me that I've given them the courage to do just that, quit their job and start their own design business. That's a huge leap, and a lot of things need to be in place before someone does that. However, in most cases, quitting your day job is not required if you want to start a side gig. Let me ask again. If you are listening to this podcast because of your dream of running your own design business, but you haven't started one yet, why not? Is it fear? Is it imposter syndrome? What factor is preventing you from moving forward? Whatever is holding you back, maybe I can help give you one more little nudge. The 80/20 rule. Have you heard of the 80/20 rule? It states that 20% of your effort will produce 80% of your desired results. For example, 20% of a sports team's players will contribute 80% of the goals they score. 20% of an investment portfolio will produce 80% of the profit. 20% of a retail store's client base will purchase 80% of its products. 20% of your design clients will result in 80% of your income. Let's get your design business started Let's use the 80/20 rule to make it easier for you to finally start your design business. Write down ten things you need to do to start your business. Of those ten things, I want you to select only two of them. Choose the two that will create the most positive impact toward helping you reach that goal. Following the 80/20 rule, Those two things, the two most important ones from your list of 10, should bring you 80% of the results you need and bring you closer to having your own design business. Even if those two things are not enough, they will put you further along the path than you are now. Small steps, taken regularly, will lead to progress. It's just like finishing a marathon is accomplished by putting one foot in front of the other. It's called progress. Every step you take towards entrepreneurship will get you closer to that goal. Break down everything you need to do into small manageable tasks, and you'll find it easier to get things done. Maybe this might mean finding your first client. That may be all it takes to get you started. Remember, you can be a freelancer before you become an entrepreneur. The pieces will follow. Some people think they need to have everything in place before they can start a design business. I Can't start yet; I don't have a business name. I Can't start yet; I don't have a website. I Can't start yet; I don't have business cards. I Can't start yet; I haven't registered my business. I Can't start yet; I haven't figured out invoicing. I Can't start yet; I don't have a contract. Etc., etc., etc. Sure, these are all things you will eventually need, but they are not things you need to start your business journey. All that's required for you to get started are your skills as a designer and the willingness to find your first client. The rest can follow. I want you to remember; you define your business; your business doesn't define you. Meaning, you can get started now, and let the business grow and evolve around you over time. If the reason you have not started on the journey of working

Don't waste time when you're not busy. Wouldn't it be nice to have so much design work that you don't have time during your work day for anything else? Come to think of it; I don't know if I'd like that. I enjoy a bit of downtime now and then, and I'm sure you do too. Downtime, when your brain isn't working at one hundred per cent concentrating on some important task or churning away pumping out those creative juices. You need time to give your brain a rest. It's that old proverb "all work and no play makes Jack a dull boy". Downtime is good. But downtime doesn't have to be wasted time. Downtime can be put to good use and become productive time, benefiting your business while still giving your mind a break. The next time you feel that pull from the rabbit hole that is YouTube or Facebook, I want you to think of productive things you could be doing instead. To help you, I'm going to share ten productive things you can do when you're not busy. Let me first state; If you are not busy because you don't have any projects to work on, then you should ignore this list and concentrate your time on client acquisition. Your first concern as a business owner is to find work that pays the bills. If you can't pay the bills, then you won't have a business for long. What I'm talking about here are those non-busy times between projects. Those times when you complete something 30 minutes before lunch and don't want to start a new project on an empty stomach. Or Friday afternoons when you know you should be working, but it's the end of the week, and the design spirit isn't in you. Instead of wasting those moments doing something mundane and useless, try doing something productive with that time such as: 1) Organise your bookmarks. If you're like me, you bookmark a lot of websites that at the moment, seem important, but over time, become redundant. And again, like me, you probably rarely take the time to clean our or organise those bookmarks. Downtime is the perfect time to look over your bookmarks and clean them up. 2) Clean out your email. Those times when you are not busy are the perfect times to look through your email inbox and delete unnecessary messages. You know the ones, the emails you put aside to look at later that you know you'll never read. Or funny jokes from friends that you'll never pass on. If your email client allows them, use smart mailboxes to sift through your email and delete anything that is no longer needed. This downtime is also the perfect opportunity to review your email subscriptions and determine which ones are worth keeping and which ones you should unsubscribe. 3) Watch a tutorial. I'm sure there are things you would like to know but never find the time to learn. If you're going to immerse yourself in YouTube, why not make it a learning experience? Find tutorials and training videos that will benefit your business. If you're a proponent of Just In Time Learning look for interesting video tutorials and put them aside for viewing in the future. 4) Read business articles and books. Running your own design business means you are not only a designer but a business owner. And being a business owner is not something they teach in school. Use your spare time to brush up on your business skills. Thirty minutes is plenty of time to read an article or a chapter in a book. You'll be expanding your knowledge and benefiting your business. 5) Organise your office. I don't know any business owner that doesn't have something in their office that needs organising. Most likely it's that "catch-all" place. In my case, it's the second drawer on my desk. It's the place I put things when I don't know where to put them. It's my catch-all drawer. If you have a drawer or a place like that in your office, why not use your 15-30 minutes of downtime to sift through it and start organising its contents. 6) Research potential new clients. If you don't feel like doing something physical such as organising a drawer, why not spend some time researching potential new clients? I'm not talking about client outreach, although if you have the time, then why not do some. I'm talking about research into who could be the right person to reach out to when you have more time. Try a local search for new businesses and start a list of people you may want to contact when you do start your outreach. 7) Organise your computer files. Is your computer is a mess? My desktop alone is covered with over a hundred files and folders, and my Downloads folder currently contains 1931 files. Both are in desperate need of some cleanup. If you are in a similar situation, why not take the time while you are not busy and organise your fonts, client projects, downloads, applications, stock images, etc. Downtime is the perfect time to do some computer file management. 8) Update your portfolio and website. If you're trying to attract new clients, you need to make sure your touch points are in order. A crucial touch point is your website, particularly your portfol

How do you charge for design work? [sc name="pod_ad"]Do you offer fixed prices to your clients or is hourly billing your pricing strategy of choice? I'm not interested in how you come up with your rate or your price. What I'm asking is, do you or don't you know how much a design job will cost before beginning the project? Today I want to share my opinion on why you should stop billing by the hour and start offering fixed prices instead. Changing my pricing strategy. When I started my design business in 2005, I prided myself on the fact that I didn't offer fixed pricing. Everything I designed was billed by the hour for the exact amount of time it took me to complete the project. It was my most prominent marketing feature. I landed plenty of clients because unlike other designers who were charging "outrageous" fixed prices for the work they did, I only charged for the actual time I spent on a project. For years I traded my time for money. And it worked. In no time at all, I grew my business to dozens of recurring clients. I thought I had made it big. Now, however, when I look back, I realise I was doing a disservice to both myself and the design industry because I was treating myself like a commodity. But you can understand my thinking, can't you? Most service industries bill by the hour after all. And lots of business people, the people who hire freelancers think in those terms as well. It's familiar to them. They pay their employees by the hour so why shouldn't it be the same with you? It took me a few years before I realised that creative people like you and I, we aren't selling our time. No, we're selling our talent, our skills, our experience and of course, we're selling the final creative product that we're providing to our clients. We're not selling the processes involved in creating those designs. For a business person used to paying people by the hour, it may seem logical that the faster you can produce your designs, the less it should cost them. However, it's false to think that designers should be paid based on how long a project takes to complete. Instead, you should be paid for how much the final design you deliver is worth. It has nothing to do with how much time you spend on it. I've spent days working on a logo concept before getting it right, and other times, I've designed the perfect logo in less than an hour. Why should I be paid less just because inspiration hit at the start? I shouldn't, and neither should you. Hourly billing causes opposing interests. Charging by the hour for your design services creates a designer/client relationship with opposing interests. If you are billing by the hour, it's in your best interest to take your time. Sure, you need to take the necessary time to complete the project to the best of your abilities, but you still know that the longer you take, the more money you'll make. The client, on the other hand, has conflicting interests. The client wants the best work you can deliver, but at the same time, they want you to complete it as fast as possible, so it doesn't cost them as much. Why fixed prices are better. Charging a fixed price for your services alleviates this burden of opposing interests because the final price is set at the start and agreed upon by both parties. The client is no longer worried about how much extra it will cost them with every revision. By agreeing on a price beforehand, it puts both of your interest in perfect alignment. You know how much you are money you are making, and the client knows how much it costs them. Time, the conflicting notion with hourly billing, is no longer part of the equation, and you and your client can work unencumbered by conflicting interests. With fixed prices, the faster you come up with and execute your idea, the better. You end up getting paid more for your time, and the client receives their design more quickly, at the agreed upon price. You're both happy. Should you end up taking longer than expected, you get paid less for your time, but you still know how much you are making. And the client is ok with the extra time since it doesn't cost them any more. The trick with fixed pricing is determining a price that is acceptable to the client and yet still covers you should a project take longer than expected. Removing conflicting interests strengthens relationships. When I stopped charging my clients by the hour and switched to charging fixed prices, I felt the relationships I had with my clients deepen because there was no more give and take from both sides wondering what the final cost of a design project would be. Justifying your fixed prices When offering fixed prices, you are sure to be asked questions such as "why are you charging $800 for a logo when services are offering $20 logos?" Here's what you can tell your clients to justify your prices. When you design something, you are creating from a marketing perspective. In other words, you are developing a marketing tool for your client, a tool that will rep

Do you use Cold Emails to attract clients? Equivalent to Cold Calling, Cold Emailing is when you send unsolicited email to someone without prior contact. A Cold email is a very effective way to reach out to potential new clients. So effective in fact that it's been in use since the first businesses were around. OK, maybe not cold emailing, but cold calling has been. Even before phones were invented business people would knock on strangers doors trying to sell their wares. It was their version of cold calling. It's a practice that has worked for generations and can work for your design business as well. Sending cold emails is not the same thing as sending spam emails. A cold email is a one-to-one personalized message sent to a specific individual. Its purpose is to start a business conversation with that one person rather than to promote your services to the masses as spam emails do. Email, a force to be reckoned with. Did you know that email, in the form that we know it today has been around since the mid-70s? In terms of technology, that's archaic. And yet, even in today's world of social media platforms, direct messaging, video chats and the likes, email still reigns. Facebook, the world's largest social media platform boasts over 2.2 billion users worldwide. But there are over 3.8 billion email users, that's almost double the number of Facebook users. Over 500 million tweets are sent every day, but that's just a drop in the bucket compared to the 281 billion emails sent each day. Face it, business is built on email. If you want to get ahead in your design business, knowing how to write effective and compelling emails is something you shouldn't ignore. Especially when sending out cold emails. If you cannot capture someone's attention with your first email contact, what chances do you have of starting a working relationship with them? 10 tips that will help your cold emails convert. 1) Self-Awareness The problem with the written word is everybody interprets it differently. Your meaning could be misconstrued and not come across the way you intended. Think of this simple sentence "I can't wait". Does it mean you're looking forward to something or does it mean time's up and you can't wait any longer? In order for your words to come off the way you want them to, you need to be self-aware of what you are writing. Meaning you need to imagine yourself in the recipient's shoes and try to understand how they will receive your message. Make sure what you write is straight forward and only has one meaning or interpretation. 2) Length Be efficient. The less you write, the more chances of your message being read. I'm subscribed to several email lists. I read almost every short message I receive but rarely do I read any of the ones that are several pages long. And that's from people I've asked to send me stuff. Imagine how people will react to a message from a complete stranger? A 2018 study done by Hubspot said that only one in three messages longer than 2500 words receive a reply. Their study concludes that between 50 and 125 words, the length of a small paragraph is the ideal length when sending unsolicited emails. People are busy, some receive dozens if not hundreds of emails every day. Increase your chances of being read by keeping your message brief. 3) Be Clear Short messages are not good enough if the message isn't clear. Skip the niceties and get directly to your point. Messages that come across as boasting or too academic in writing makes it difficult to understand and can hurt your odds of getting a reply. The company behind the Gmail add-on Boomerang found that emails written at a third-grade reading level are 36% more likely to receive a reply than those written at a college reading level. Don't try to sound smarter than you normally do. Excessive formality, complex sentences and long-windedness won't impress anyone. 4) Be specific Be very specific in why you are emailing this person and what you are expecting from them. Don't list every design service you offer. Instead, mention the one service you think this client is in most need of. Let them know how you can help them with that service and let them know how to get in touch with you should they want your help with that service. Once you get the conversation started you can mention your other services, but in this cold outreach, you should stick to one specific topic. 5) As a question. According to the Hubspot research I mentioned earlier, emails that ask one to three questions are 50% more likely to receive a reply than emails without questions. A question is your call-to-action. It informs the recipient that you are expecting a response from them and will increase your chances of receiving one. 6) User soft language. Cold emails are sent to people that don't already know you. You don't want their first impression of you to be harsh. Don't overstep your bounds or come off as too forward. Avoid this by using friendly, more suggestive language. Instead of

Do you worry about your eyesight? Do you worry about your eyesight? As a designer, there's pretty much no escaping being in front of a screen. If you're like me, between the computer, phone and TV, you probably spend more time each day with your eyes staring at a screen than you do sleeping. Face it, we're slaves to our tech displays. Did you know that this constant exposure to one screen after another throughout the day can cause strain, and even damage to your eyes? The issue is ultraviolet blue UV light emitted by all these devices. Although researchers are at odds on whether screen use can cause permanent damage or not, they do agree that prolonged exposure to blue UV light does affect your eyes. Dr Ritesh Patel, an optometrist with the Ontario Association of Optometrists here in Canada, describes the problem. Our eyes are sensitive to a narrow band of light frequencies called the "visual light spectrum". In that spectrum, blue light has the shortest wavelength causing it to emit the most energy. Traditionally, ultraviolet blue UV light comes from sunlight. It's why you've been told all your life to protect your eyes with UV protecting sunglasses. However, unless you're an MTV rapper trying to look cool, or you're playing in the World Series of Poker, chances are you don't wear sunglasses indoors. That's a problem because all these screens we stare into each day also emit blue UV light. That's not taking to account the LED lighting in our homes and offices which also put out blue light. Blue light is known to suppress the sleep hormone melatonin, causing an artificial feeling of wakefulness and disrupting sleep patterns, which can add to eye strain and affect your life in general. But it goes beyond just the blue light. Some screens today have built-in features to alter the light spectrum and reduce the amount of blue light they project, but they can't eliminate it altogether, and it doesn't change the fact that you are staring at a screen. How screens affect your eyes. A Canadian study reports that one-quarter of Canadians spend over 2 hours per day staring at their phones. Staring at a screen for hours at a time puts a heavy strain on your eyes, so it's probably not a big surprise that doing so can put your eye health in jeopardy. Researchers are linking exposure to blue light to macular degeneration, one of the leading causes of blindness. This research is referencing the blue light from the sun. These same researchers are not confirming a connection between screen time and blindness, but it's a scary thought nonetheless that the same outside light they're worried about is also being emitted by that device in your hand. According to a study done by Weill Cornell Medical College in New York: 93% of American adults spend two or more hours per day in front of a screen. 61% spend five or more hours in front of a screen. 30% spend more than nine hours in front of a screen. Chances are, as a designer you fall in that 30% bracket spending more than nine hours per day in front of a screen. Does that concern you? It should. Other studies say between 50%-90% of people who work all day in front of a computer screen experience symptoms of what doctors call Computer Vision Syndrome (CVS). CVS is not one specific condition, but rather a term used to classify a multitude of problems caused by prolonged computer use. Things like: Blurred Vision Double Vision Dry, Red Eyes Eye Irritation Headaches Neck or Back Pain People with existing vision issues are even more at risk to Computer Vision Syndrome. Eye strain isn't only annoying, it can lead to health issues. Not to mention that when your eyes start bothering you your performance drops, you slow down, you become less creative. Not good for a designer. Smartphones are just as bad as computer screens. A study out of the United States predicts that 2 out of every 3 Americans will experience eye strain caused by excessive use of their phone. I'm sure the same applies in most countries around the world. Eye strain is a growing concern. Did you know that until the 1960s, the majority of the world's population was farsighted? But since the 60s the table has shifted and now there are more nearsighted people in the world than people with farsighted vision. The 60s is when the television gained in popularity as a form of daily family entertainment. When I was in grade school back in the 70s, there were maybe two or three kids in my entire school who wore glasses. Nowadays, it's hard to find a single classroom without at least one child with vision problems. Just look around you and you'll see evidence everywhere of how people's eyes are getting worse. As a graphic designer or web designer, someone who relies on your vision to make a living, you should be taking precautions to protect yourself. What can you do to protect your eyes? Fortunately, there are steps you can take to drastically reduce the risk of eye problems in the future. 20-20-20 Rule The first thing you should do

The Goodbye Packet Last week I told you about Client Offboarding, the process of finalising a design project and preparing a client for working together again in the future. Offboarding is a way of informing a client that you've completed the work they've paid you for, and any additional work from this point forward will be considered a new project, incurring further fees. In this last part of the Client Onboarding series, I'm talking about the Goodbye Packet, a way to collect and package up all the offboarding information in a convenient package to hand over to your client. What is a Goodbye Packet? A Goodbye Packet is a document informing a client their project is complete. It lets them know that any additional work you do will incur extra charges. You can also use it as a transition phase between your web design contract and your maintenance package. If a client continues to ask for changes after the completion of a web design project, it's a good indication that you should sell them an ongoing maintenance package if you haven't already done so. In brief; a well put together Goodbye Packet should accomplish the following: Informs the client of the completion of their project, stopping them from asking for more changes. Thanks the client for choosing you as their designer showing how grateful you are. Instructs the client how to access their deliverables such as downloading asset files or logging in to their website and any other relevant accounts. Teaches the client how to use their website. Relays essential details about their design project. Encourages the client to hire you for more design work in the future (or right away if you can manage it) Answers common questions most clients have at the end of a project. Shows the client how professional you are, which will make them more likely to refer you to others and to use you again in the future. Unlike the Intro Packet, which is a document about you and your business, a Goodbye Packet is all about the client. It's about making it easy for the client to transition to using whatever it is you created for them. Where the intro Packet is handed out to all clients showing them your services and design skills, the Goodbye Packet is a document customised to each specific client. There are pieces of it you can reuse again and again, but overall, it should be unique to the client receiving it. How to create a Goodbye Packet A Goodbye Packet is a document you create for your client. It could be a printed booklet, a Word document, A PDF, A dedicated page in a password protected client area of your website, or even something as simple as an email. The platform you use to create your Goodbye Packet is not as important as the information that goes into one. However, no matter the platform you use, do make it look good. You are a designer, after all. Some sections of your Goodbye Packet can be reused from client to client with minor changes. Creating templates for them can save you time and save you having to create each one from scratch — website login instructions, for example. The instructions to log into a website are the same for all sites; it's just the URL, Username and Password that changes. Contents of a Goodbye Packet Think of your Goodbye Packet as a small booklet, whether it's printed, a PDF or a web page. Here's what it should contain: Cover:The Goodbye Packet is all about the client and should be recognisable as such. Design the cover with the client's colours and branding. Introduction:Give an overview of what information the client will find in the packet and why it's crucial they hold onto it. Access Info:Provide login information for websites or any other accounts you created for the client. Make sure they know to keep this information safe. Better yet, provide them with a temporary password and instructions on how to change it. Quick Reference:A cheat sheet if you will. This section should contain information such as font families, Colour codes/values, Image guidelines for the website, branding do's and don'ts. Think of this as a mini style guide. Tutorials:Provide links to online resources or written or video tutorials you've produced yourself showing the client how to use their new product. Additional Services:Remind the client that you are available for further work should they need you. Also, remind them of other services they may not be aware you offer. FAQ:Provide answers to commonly asked questions. Such as the importance of keeping a website updated (if they haven't hired you to maintain it for them). Or when to use different file formats. Conclusion:You should end your Goodbye Packet by thanking your client for hiring you and letting them know you are there for them should they require your services again. Don't forget to ask the client for a testimonial. Why use a Goodbye Packet? Why take the time to dress it up when you can send a simple email with this information? It's all about exceeding the client's expectations, a crucial part of bui

Client Offboarding [sc name="pod_ad"]Client Offboarding is the final step in building that oh so meaningful client relationship that will keep them coming back to you time and again with more design projects. For the past few episodes, I've walked you through the various steps of Client Onboarding — everything you need to do to turn a potential client into a paying client. But once the client is onboard and you have their project, is that the end? Of course not. The whole purpose of Client Onboarding is to create relationships with your clients. What kind of relationship would it be if it ended once the project is over? Acquiring new clients is hard work, especially the type of clients you want to work with and that pay well. But what's even more important is having those clients come back in the future with even more projects. They say it takes roughly five times more time and energy to land a new client than it does to keep an existing client. If you can get even 5% of new clients to come back, you should be able to increase your profitability by 25-125%. That's huge. The best way to keep an existing client is to impress them with good work and by exceeding their expectations. All the steps in the Client Onboarding process, The Intro Packet, The Client Meeting, The Design Proposal and The Contract are all used to impress good clients with your organisational skills and the thoroughness you bring to your profession. By setting high standards from the start, you create a powerful impression that will encourage clients to come back again and again. But to hit the ball out of the park, you need to have a good Client Offboarding strategy. What is Client Offboarding? Client Offboarding is the process of finalising a design project and handing over everything you've promised to the client. It informs the client that their project is now complete. Should the client require your services again in the future, you would be happy to help them under the umbrella of a new project. Where client onboarding was all about turning a potential client into a paying client, the point of client offboarding is to transition them from being a current client to a future returning client. What does Client Offboarding do? Client Offboarding defines an end to a project and prepares your client to bring you future projects. Have you ever finished a project, only to have the client linger on, asking for adjustments or more work? This is especially bad with websites. The client contacts you weeks after it's launched asking for fixes and changes. Do these fall under the original project or is this considered new work? Without proper offboarding, it's kind of a grey area. Client Offboarding clears up this confusion by informing the client that their project is completed and all future work will be considered a new project. In the process, it makes the client feel welcome to bring you more work. It's another way of showing your professionalism. The Client Offboarding Process. Just like the steps involved in Client Onboarding, you'll have to adjust your offboarding process to work for you and your business. But generally, the process should look something like this. You've finalised your revisions; the client is pleased with the work you've presented them, and they give their final approval. Now it's time to begin the Client Offboarding Process. Project review: Go over the final project with the client. Review the website or other deliverables and make sure the client knows and understands what it is you are giving them. Go over any expectations that were in your initial proposal or contract. For example, I allow 14 days after a website launch for fixing any bugs or small errors. After 14 days, any requests are considered a new project. The client was told this information at the beginning of the project, but I remind them again during the offboarding process, so there's no confusion. Provide deliverables: Package up logos and other design material and deliver it to the client in an efficient matter. If a style guide was part of your package, this is when you present and explain it to your client. Launch websites, publish content, deliver printed materials, hand over whatever you are expected to give your client. Provide access information: Provide usernames and passwords your client will need to access their website, analytics, emails or whatever. I usually record a short screen capture video walking a client through how to use their website. It's a great way to reduce any follow-up questions once the project is over. Send Invoice / Request payment: If your payment terms stated full or partial payment upon completion of the project now is the time to request it. Send your final invoice or payment reminder and ensure the client complies as per your agreement. Some contracts state that payment in full must be received before any deliverables are turned over to the client. Offer more services: The client offboarding process is the perfect opp

The Design Contract The Design Contract is the final part of the Client Onboarding Process. This vital part confirms that a potential client is now a paying client. In this series, I talked about the Client Onboarding Process as a whole before breaking it down into the individual components, the Intro Packet, the Client Meeting and the Design Proposal. Each of these different elements helps win over potential clients encouraging them to hire you, which brings you to this next step, the Design Contract. In the last episode, I shared a statistic with you; 48% of designers don't use a contract. I find that number mind-blowing. Not only does a contract establish you as a professional business, but it's your protection against anything that may go wrong with the project or the client. Have you ever been part of a design forum or online group where someone mentions an issue they are having with a client? What is the #1 response or comment they receive? "Did you have a design contract?" If you are part of that 48 %, I hope you take note and add a contract to your client onboarding process right away. Before I go any further, let me state that I am not a lawyer. Do not take anything I mention here as legal advice. My advice is for you to either have a lawyer draft up your contract or at least create one yourself and have a lawyer review it. If you don't have the budget to consult a lawyer, please find yourself a ready-made contract and start using it today. A quickly written, non-lawyer verified contract is still better than no contract at all. Then, once you have the means, consult a lawyer. As Mike Monteiro, co-founder of Mule Design Studio said. "You need a lawyer when you decide to stop being a design amateur and decide to start being a design professional." Here are two sources for free design contracts you can modify for your needs: Stuff and Nonsense - Contract Killer AIGA Standard-Agreement What is a Design Contract? A Design Contract is a legal terms and conditions document that defines the expectations of a project for both parties. A design contract should contain: An overview of who is hiring you, what they are hiring you to do and for how much. The respective responsibilities agreed to by both parties. Specifics listing everything included and not included in the scope of the work involved. What happens should one of the parties change their mind about anything pertaining to the project. An overview of liabilities and any other legal matters. In other words, Your design contract needs to cover your process, what the client can expect, what you can expect from the client, time frames, payment details, technical details and any other legalese you deem fit. Everything in your contract should be explicitly stated and agreed upon by you and your client before a project begins. Do you really need a design contract? Maybe you're thinking "if 48% of designers don't use a contract then how can it be so important?" Let me tell you. A contract is the only surefire way to protect you and your business' interests while working with a client. So the answer is it's crucial. You should use a design contract for every client and every project you take on. In the case of disputes, a signed contract will quickly establish if anyone is at fault, and what actions should be taken to remedy the conflict. With that said, you need to be reasonable. If your mom or sister wants you to design an invitation for their annual poker tournament, you don't need her to sign a contract. Friends and family are exempt, most of the time that is. My rule is; If what I'm designing will be used to generate money then I have them sign a contract, even if it's family. This includes charities, fundraisers and non-profits. When money is involved, it's better to protect yourself. Contracts prevent problems. You want client relationships to go smoothly, don't you? A contract can help by preventing problems before they start. A Contract protects for both parties: A good contract should benefit both parties signing it. Not only does it protect you but it should protect your client as well. A Contract shows your importance: The goal of any client relationship should be to see each other as partners. A contract establishes this. Without one, a client may think you are working FOR them instead of WITH them. They will treat you differently if you get them to sign a contract. A Contract makes expectations clear: When both parties understand their roles, the whole project will move smoothly. When do you present your contract? A great time to present your contract is as soon as you finish your Design Proposal. Everything is fresh in the client's mind, and they are receptive to moving forward. You can even use it as a stepping stone or launchpad to land the client. "That was my proposal for designing your new website. If you would like to move forward to the next step, here's a contract we can go over and sign together before beginning working on this project

Continuing the client onboarding process with the design proposal. Part 4 of the Client Onboarding Process is the Design Proposal. A tool you use to convince clients that you are the designer for their project. Last week I told you all about the Client Meeting. The part in the process where you learn about the client and about the project they are presenting to you. After a successful client meeting, you should know whether or not you want to take them on as a client and tackle their design project. You should also have a good feel for whether or not the client is inclined to hire you. The client onboarding process is all about finding the right clients that fit your business and goals. If after the client meeting you've decided you're not a good fit, then there's no need for a proposal. Simply thank the client for considering you and inform them that you are not the right person for their project. However, if you think you are a good fit, and you would like to work on their design project, the next step is the proposal. Is a design proposal required Before I dive any further into design proposals let me state that unlike and Inro Packet, which is an important advertisement for your services, or the client meeting, which is required in order to figure out what the client needs from you, not every design project merits a design proposal. If you are bidding on a website worth thousands of dollars, it makes sense to create a proposal. However, if a client has an existing logo and they're asking you to design a business card, or they have a powerpoint presentation already done and they just need you to "make it pretty" for them, then there's no need for a design proposal. Weigh the pros and cons of creating a design proposal against future returns from the project in question. Is it worth spending an hour, 2 hours, 10 hours or more working on your proposal in the hopes of landing a design project? It all depends on the possible returns you will get on that investment. It's up to you to decide whether or not a design proposal is the proper next step. The Design Proposal Too often, designers, especially freelance designers work without any kind of protecting documents in place, documents outlining the parameters of a design project. Industry statistics suggest that 48%, almost half of all designers don't protect themselves with a contract. Without any such documents, agreed upon by both the client and designer, what's to prevent issues such as scope creep or missed payments from happening? Proposals and contracts are a designer's best friends. Not only do they protect you and establish the groundwork for a smooth project, but they can help you close the deal, and land more design work. Don't confuse the design proposal with the design contract. A proposal isn't always required whereas a contract should be. Some designers combine the two but know that a proposal and a contract, although often used together, are in fact two different things. I'm going to talk about the contract in the next episode. What is a design proposal? A design proposal is a document you present to a potential client outlining details pertaining to their particular design project in order to convince them to hire you. The content of the design proposal is generated through the information you acquired during the client meeting. Just like an intro packet, a design proposal isn't just a tool to present project details, it's a tool to show off your talents. Create your design proposal in a way that showcases your skills as a designer. It needs to look professional since it's a representation of you and your brand. Wow the client with your presentation and they'll be itching to see what you can design for them. Once you've created your first design proposal you should be able to reuse its layout for future clients with minimal alterations except of course for the content pertaining to the client and project in question. As a freelancer, a designer running your own business, you need to get comfortable with presenting design proposals if you want to continuously get bigger and better clients. In time, you will become so good at preparing design proposals that it will become second nature to you. The structure of a design proposal. A design proposal should be well presented to show off your skills as a designer. It should also contain pertinent information leading the client to want to work with you. What a proposal shouldn't be is a novel. Nobody wants to read through a dozen pages regardless of how highly they think of you. Aim for a one or two page document containing five sections plus an introduction and conclusion. Your content should say as much as you can with as few words as possible. Just like designing, simplicity wins. Every proposal should have an introduction, a body and a conclusion and it should show the client the value you bring to the relationship. Introduction: The introduction should be a brief overview of what you discussed du

Are you ready for your next client meeting? In part 2 of the Client Onboarding process, I told you all about the intro packet and how it's the foundation for setting expectations going forward with your client relationship. If the intro packet is the foundation, then the client meeting is the framing, or structure if you will. Think of the client meeting like a job interview, which in a way it is. You are interviewing the client, and the client is interviewing you. This meeting is less about the design project and more about discovering if this client is someone with whom you want to have a working relationship. Both parties need to feel comfortable working with each other before anything else can proceed. Don't mistake this first client meeting for a discovery meeting. Don't get me wrong, you'll get a lot of answers to your discovery questions during this first client meeting, but that's not the purpose of this meeting. The real discovery process comes after you've received the signed contracts and deposits. The client meeting is the part with the nitty gritty, the part when the client explains what it is they are looking for and why they reached out to you as a possible candidate for the project. It's not a deep dive into their design project. It's a fact-finding mission. The client meeting is your chance to gather information so you can prepare a proposal for the project. Remember, at this stage of the game, you and the client are not working together yet. If you gave the client an intro packet as I talked about in the last episode, then you have the benefit of going into the client meeting with established ground rules and a potential client that knows how you work and wants to proceed to the next step. That's always a good place to start. Meeting with a potential client for the very first time can be both exhilarating and terrifying. Exhilarating because it's a fresh slate. They are presenting you, and possibly entrusting you with a brand new design project. At this stage the possibilities are endless. If this first meeting goes well, it can be the start of a long and lucrative relationship. It's exciting. However, it can also feel a bit Terrifying. The client is potentially entrusting you with the responsibility of finding a design solution that works for whatever problem they're trying to solve. That can be a lot of weight on someone's shoulders. If you don't impress them during this first meeting, there's a good possibility that your relationship will be over before it has a chance to start. What can you do during this all-important client meeting part of the client onboarding process to sway things in your favour and convince the client that you're the one for their job? That's what this episode will teach you. Every client meeting is different. Of the entire client onboarding process, the client meeting is the one with the most variables. Every client is different, and no two design projects are the same. It only makes sense that every client meeting will be different as well. Here is a simple guideline that will hopefully give you the best chance of success. Because until the contract is signed, the client can always walk away. So let's do our best to prevent that outcome. How to meet with a client. There are many ways two individuals can communicate. But when it comes to an initial meeting with a potential client, there are only three methods that matter. In order of importance they are: Meeting the client in person. Meeting the client over video. Talking to the client over the phone. No matter how busy you are, or how busy the client is, your first meeting should never take place via text (email or any messaging service). Most meetings with your client even beyond this first one should be face-to-face in person or over video or on the phone. The written word can be interpreted in different ways. It's easy to take something out of context and inadvertently change the meaning of what the writer intended. Plus, personality seldom comes through in the written word. And personality plays a huge role in that ever important relationship building. Try to have at least your first client meeting face-to-face or over the phone. Preparing for a client meeting. Remember how I said the client meeting is like an interview? You wouldn't go into an interview without doing some research on the company you were interviewing with, would you? The same goes for a client meeting. You want to know things about the client before meeting them. Google the client and their company. Read through their website if they have one. Quickly look up their competition. A little bit of time spent researching the client can go a long way in impressing them. The client will appreciate that. Just like an interview, you do not want to be late for a client meeting. Make sure to double check where the meeting is taking place, the route to get there and how long it takes, and who exactly you are meeting. Preparing yourself physically for

Do you have an intro packet for your design business? An intro packet is a tool you use to land new clients and facilitate the client onboarding process. It can either be a dedicated page on your website, a detailed PDF or better yet, a well designed and nicely printed piece to hand out to potential clients. An intro packet is a great way to create a good first impression of who you are and what you do. It answers basic questions, sets expectations and gives clients a first look at what it will be like working with you. It's also a good tool to filter out clients that are not a good fit for your business. In the last episode of the podcast, I told you all about the client onboarding processand how having a good onboarding process is crucial to landing new design clients. A good intro packet is the foundation of that important onboarding process. What's in an intro packet? Think of your intro packet as well designed piece containing all the introductory information you normally give to potential clients. Not detailed information like what goes into your proposals and contracts. Instead, the intro packet contains an outline of what you do and what it will be like working with you. Your payment policies Time frames How you work What you expect from your clients etc. It answers those basic initial questions a client needs to know before they start discussing their project with you. The intro packet should be the very first thing you present to a client before agreeing to talk to them about their proposed project. Its purpose is to outline the big picture of what working with you will be like. It also saves you time by providing clients with answers to the most asked questions you receive saving you having to answer them personally. When should you send an intro packet? The intro packet should be one of the first steps in the client onboarding process right after the initial client inquiry. Your onboarding process should look like this: Client contacts you Send them your intro packet Meet the client to discuss their design project Proposal and contracts are sent Send the client a welcome packet (more on this in a future episode in this series) Start the project. Whenever a client emails you, fills out a form on your website or contacts you by phone, your first response should be to send them your intro packet and ask them to look it over before you schedule a meeting with them. This will accomplish one of two things. 1.It will ensure the client they've made a good choice in reaching out to you and strengthen their resolve to work with you. 2.It let the client know that you are not a good fit and save you both a lot of time and possible headaches. The purpose of an intro packet. An intro packet serves multiple purposes. It introduces clients to who you are and sets expectations as to what they can expect when working with you. This helps alleviate fears or anxieties they may have and make them more confident in working with you. It saves you both time. Presenting your process in a well-organized manner makes future communications between you and your client both faster an smoother. It establishes you as an expert and authority in your field. It also helps strengthen the brand image you are developing for your design business. It creates a great first impression that shows clients you are organized, thorough, capable and professional. It helps you screen potential clients before having to talk to them. After reading your policies and learning how you work a client may decide not to work with you, which saves you the time involved in figuring that out yourself, or worse not figuring it out until it's too late. It gives you a chance to show off your skills because your introductory packet isn't just a sheet of paper with info on it. It should be a well-designed piece to wow potential clients with your skills as a designer. Imagine this scenario. A client needs help developing a brand for a new restaurant he's opening. He chooses three different local designers and emails them in order to get a feel for each one before deciding on who to hire. Designer #1replies to the email saying they would love to sit down and talk with him about his project. When could they meet? Designer #2calls the client and tells him all about his design services before trying to schedule an in-person meeting with the client. While on the phone he explains his work process, how payments work and anything else he thinks the client should know. The designer thinks he did a thorough job and feels good about his chances of landing the client. However, the client can't remember half the details after hanging up the phone. Plus now he's committed to a meeting a designer he's still unsure about. Designer #3Calls the client and thanks him for considering her for his project. The designer expresses an interest in working with the client and offers to send him her intro packet. The designer explains to the client that the intro packet contains all the

What is Client Onboarding? Client onboarding is the process of turning potential clients into paying clients. It's the process of introducing them to your business, addressing their questions and concerns, and ensuring they understand the services you offer and your processes while providing those services. Onboarding is all the steps from the initial contact with the client until you start working on their design project. It's your chance to explain to a client; What they should expect from you. What their part is in the relationship. How communication between you should happen. When and how you are to be paid. And more Over the next few episodes of the podcast, I'm going to dive into specific parts of the client onboarding process, but for today, I'm going to talk about the process as a whole. Why is Client Onboarding important? Let's look at the process from two angles. From the client's point of view: The Onboarding process plays a vital part in building and nurturing the relationship between you and your client. It's a way of ensuring you're all on the same page when it comes to working together. Clients don't often know how partnering with a designer works. It's nervewracking for them to trust you, someone they may not know, with this vital part of their business's future. With proper Client Onboarding, you give the client a glimpse of what it will be like working together and hopefully leave them feeling confident that they've made the right choice in hiring you. For your point of view: The Onboarding process is a way for you to grasp the scope of the project the client is presenting you with, as well as a chance to get to know the client. You learn their communication style which allows you to address any concerns you may have right at the start, so they don't become problems later on. And it allows you to show the client your "plan of attack" for tackling their project, letting them know what you expect of them. The onboarding process is also a great way to weed out potential bad clients. At this point, you have not agreed to anything with the client. Use this time to determine if they are someone with whom you want to work. Finally, the onboarding process is a great opportunity for you to show the client just how awesome it will be to work with you, hopefully putting them at ease and solidifying in their mind that they've chosen the right designer. To sum it up, Client Onboarding is all about keeping the client happy, because a happy client will come back for more. That's how vital the onboarding process is. Ignoring the process. Client Onboarding is a process. As a process, it has a structure that over time you will become intimately familiar with and comfortable using. Once you get used to an onboarding process, you will find it much easier to land clients. If you receive inquiries from potential clients but with very few of them converting into paying clients, then you need to evaluate your client onboarding process. Whenever you meet a potential new client, you can't just start throwing random information at them and expect them to come on board immediately. It's overwhelming for them. And yet, that's precisely the strategy many designers take. They give as much information as they can without taking the client's point of view in mind, which is probably why they find client acquisition difficult. Onboarding involves not only informing the potential client of what they need to know but listening to them and answering their questions and concerns. It's about making the experience of hiring a designer as smooth as possible for them. If you don't do it right, you'll leave the client with the wrong impression, and the chances of them hiring you or coming back are slim. However, If you do it right, the client will come to believe that there is nobody else they want to work with but you. Part of running a design business is being a salesperson. And as all good salespeople know, having a good onboarding process in place is half the battle to winning over clients. When should Client Onboarding start? The onboarding process should start as soon as a client reaches out to you. There are various steps to the onboarding process that I'll cover in the next few episodes of the podcast. But just know that Client Onboarding is ongoing from the first contact until project start, and sometimes beyond. Client Onboarding gives you direction. Any time you start working with a client, both sides usually have a sense of enthusiasm towards the new project. Ideas go back and forward, people get excited and before you know it, decisions have been made without any form of direction. Client Onboarding gives you that direction. Part of the process is to create a schedule and a plan for the project. This allows you to set out roles by determining who will be doing what and when. How long the process should take and what is expected from all parties. This way nothing is left up in the air and there are no surprises. Design p

Understanding Priorities will help grow your design business. Whether your design business is still new or you've been doing this for many years, I'm betting you started it feeling greedy. Meaning you took on any design work that came your way. That's OK. Not many designers just starting their freelance career are picky about the type of work they take on. I'm not talking pricing. Just because you have a new business isn't a reason to accept $25 logo jobs. You still have to have your principals after all. What I'm talking about is the type of work you take on; logos, brochures, postcards, websites, banner ads, powerpoint presentation, etc. If you started a web design business and a client asked you for a logo, and the money was good, chances are you took on the project and designed a logo for them, even if it didn't align with your business model of running a web design business. You have to pay the bills after all, and money is money. Understanding priorities become essential once the ball is rolling, money is coming in, and your business is out of the infancy stage. At some point, you need to take a measure of what it is you are doing with your design business, compared to what it is you want to be doing with it and ask yourself, "am I saying yes to stuff I probably shouldn't be saying yes to?" The answer to that question should come easily once you understand your priorities. What is important to you? What type of design business do you want to run? The options are endless. Do you want to be a branding specialist? Do you want to focus your talents on print design? Do you want to create product packages? Is building websites your passion? Or is coming up with the best ways for users to interact with things what excites you? Whatever direction you want to take your business, you need to streamline your process to match it. Figure out what aspect of the design space you want to focus on and make all future decisions with that goal in mind. Once you know what to focus your choices on, it will become much more transparent and easier for you to see what you should be saying yes to, and what you should be saying no to. Choosing where to take your design business. Think of everything you are currently doing in your design business. Of all of those things, what can you clear out? Here's an exercise in understanding priorities that will help you weed out the yes's and no's for your business. Take out a pad of paper (Post-it notes works great for this) and follow these steps. Compile your list of tasks. On each sheet of paper, write out ONE thing you are currently doing with your business. For example, write out all the different types of design jobs you take on (logos, brochures, websites, magazine ads, etc.). Then write out all the peripheral tasks associated with those design jobs. Such as photography, photo editing/manipulation, copywriting etc. Don't' forget to Include things like discovery research, file handling, backups and archiving. Every single thing you do, write each one on a separate piece of paper. Next, write down all the administrative tasks you do in your design business. Things like invoicing, bookkeeping, client followup, taxes, outreach, marketing etc. Write down as many items as you can on as many sheets of paper or post-it-notes as you need. Separate your tasks into two piles. Once you've written down everything that you do in your design business, it's time to start separating them into two piles. Look at each note and ask yourself these two questions. Does this bring me joy or Do I like doing this one particular thing? Am I good at this particular thing? If you answered yes to BOTH questions, put it in pile number one. If you cannot respond yes to both questions, put it into pile number two. Separate your collection into these two piles. Continue separating. Now, look at pile one, the tasks you enjoy doing or bring you joy AND that you are good at, and ask yourself one more question. If I continue doing this thing or offering this service, will it help my business grow in the direction I want it to become? Make two new piles, one pile containing the tasks that will help your business grow and one pile containing the tasks that won't. In the end, you will be left with a small pile that: You enjoy doing or bring you joy. You are good at doing. Will help your business grow. The items in that pile are the things you should prioritise for your business. Those are the things you should be marketing to potential clients. Those are the things you want to hone your skills even further. Those are the things that will let you achieve your business goals. What about the other piles? What about the other piles that don't meat all three criteria? It all comes down once again to understanding priorities. Here's what you do. The pile with tasks you enjoy doing and are good at, but Don't help your business grow, these are the items and services you continue doing when needed. You don't have to list them und

What does a designer do on April Fools Day? This week's release happens to fall on April Fools Day. The one day of the year where tomfoolery, shenanigans and levity abound. A day when you put all seriousness aside and let out your inner practical joker. I thought of trying to pull one over you by starting off saying something like "I've decided to end the podcast, and this will be my last episode" But then I thought, what if someone is reading this or listening to the podcast for the very first time. That person might not realise it's an April Fools joke and leave. Or what if a regular listener took me seriously and unsubscribed from the podcast? Not to mention, since my episodes are mostly evergreen, someone may be listening to this episode later in the month, the year or perhaps even years from now. Instead, I decided to use this episode to share some of the "design" related practical jokes I've been part of over the years. I put "design" in quotation marks because I'm not talking about creating fake designs as a joke (although some of that does come into play) I'm mostly talking about pulling pranks on unsuspecting coworkers. If you're here for advice on your design business, I'm sorry, but you probably won't get much out of this episode. However, if you're looking for something to liven up your day, then keep on. I'm a big proponent of working from home. I can't imagine going back to office life working for someone else. But with all the perks of being self-employed, one of the drawbacks is not having coworkers to have conversations with, share ideas OR pull practical jokes on. That's one of the things I miss since leaving the print shop. Pulling practical jokes on my wife or kids is fun. But it's not the same as pulling a good one past an unsuspecting coworker in the middle of a busy business day. In honour of April Fools Day, I thought I would share some of the things I've pulled on my unsuspecting peers in years past. I describe all of these in detail on the podcast episode, so if you are here reading this, I suggest you press play and have a listen instead. They get better as you read. Unscrew the top of the salt shaker or switch the salt and sugar Saran wrap on the toilet seat (funny, so long as you don't have to clean up the mess afterwards.) Turn the lights off in the bathroom via the circuit breaker leaving the victim to finish their "business" in complete darkness. Turn Brightness off on monitors to make people believe their screen is turned off. Remove balls from mice (was fun before optical mice became the norm) Swap left and right mouse buttons, or change the tracking and scrolling speeds via System Preferences. Reroute computer wires, so keyboards and mice control the wrong computers (pre-wireless devices). Rearrange keys on a keyboard. Especially fun when used on people that need to look at their keyboard while typing. Put all phone lines on hold and tell someone there's a call for them. Let them worry about picking up the wrong line. Up until now, I've shared some of the typical harmless pranks I've done. Now it gets more fun. Upsidedown screen: Find someone's desktop/wallpaper image and rotate it 180 degrees in Photoshop. Watch their confusion when they turn on their monitor and see the image upside down. Screenshot of a messy desktop. For someone who keeps a messy computer desktop, Take a screenshot of their desktop. Put all the files and folders from their desktop into one folder. Change that one folder's icon to a 1px by 1px dot and rename the folder to a single character. Place the folder at the bottom of the screen so that the name is off the screen. This leaves only the 1-pixel square "visible". Replace the background/wallpaper of the now clean desktop with the screenshot of the messy desktop. Watch and laugh as the person tries clicking on files and folders not knowing they are part of their background image. Scary warning message This was probably the best prank I pulled on my coworkers. Take a screenshot of a coworker's desktop. Take a screenshot of any warning or confirmation box that your computer displays. In Photoshop, crop the warning or confirmation box and alter the message to read something like "Warning: Proceeding with this option will result in the deletion of the hard drive." Create two realistic looking systems buttons. One that says "Cancel" and one that says "Continue" but make the "Cancel" button greyed out. Place your new "Warning" message over the screenshot of your coworker's desktop. Replace your coworker's desktop image with your new creation. Sit back and enjoy. Watch as your coworker panics at the message on their screen. They will try to press the Cancel button, but of course, it won't work. Plus you made it greyed out to look like its not clickable. They'll be afraid to do anything else in case they inadvertently delete their hard drive. Let them worry for a while before letting them in on the secret. Then watch your back, because they will want to retal

How much thought do you devote to protecting your WordPress website? [sc name="pod_ad"]I want to share something that happened to me this week. I came home from a nice lunch with friends to both an email and urgent voicemail message from a client saying someone had hacked their website and their URL redirected to a porn site. This is a relatively large client of mine that gets a decent number of visitors to their website each day, so there was a good reason for the panic. When I heard the message and the panic in my client's voice, my only thought was to get this problem fixed ASAP. But I wasn't worried because I know I have measures in place for exactly this sort of thing. But more on that later. WordPress is the most popular CMS in the world. That popularity also makes it the most popular choice for hackers. Fortunately, WordPress is on the ball and releases regular updates to patch any new and existing security holes. But, security as a whole is a reactive process. Patches are only issued once a security vulnerability is known. At its core, WordPress is incredibly secure, but the massive ecosystem of plugins and WordPress themes makes it more vulnerable to security holes. That's why you should have measures in place for protecting your WordPress Website and those of your client. It's not good enough to rely on what your web host provides as part of your hosting package. You need to have your own measures in place. Those measures need to include both a security plugin and a backup plugin. Step 1: A WordPress security plugin By installing a WordPress security plugin, you'll get access to additional features that WordPress doesn't have right out of the box, including things such as: Site, file, and malware scanning Protection from brute force attacks Regular security scans, monitoring, notifications Site firewalls Overall security hardening Sadly, a lot of site owners don't think about security for their WordPress website until it's too late. And once a WordPress site is compromised, there's not a lot they can do besides notify visitors and try to clean up the mess if possible. If only there were something they could've done to prevent the site from being hacked in the first place. Oh, there is. Installing a top-ranked WordPress security plugin is the first step in securing your WordPress website. Top-ranked WordPress security plugins All In One WP Security & Firewall Wordfence Sucuri Security SecuPress Free iThemes Security Pro (This is the plugin I use on all my sites) Google Authenticator - Two Factor Authentication Although not a security plugin, the Google Authenticator plugin is a great addition for protecting your WordPress website. It's something that should be installed on every website. Google Authenticator adds an extra level of security by adding Two Factor Authentication every time someone logs into the WordPress website. iTheme Security Pro, my security plugin of choice comes with Google Authenticator as part of the package. I'm unsure if the other security plugins mentioned above also include Google Authenticator. Step 2: A WordPress backup plugin Every WordPress installation should also have a backup solution. Not one provided by your web host, but one you implement and control yourself. There are too many instances where web host provided backup solutions either take days to provide you with the backup of your website, the backup is outdated, or in some cases, it's corrupted. Don't take any chances with your WordPress backups and install a top-ranked WordPress backup plugin such as one of these. Top-ranked WordPress backup plugins Duplicator BackWPup BlogVault VaultPress(part of Jetpack) BackupBuddy (This is the plugin I use on all my sites) So how did my story end? First off, let me tell you that I wasn't surprised that my client's site got hacked. I had seen increased login attempts on it lately numbering in the 10,000s. If a determined hacker wants into a website, there's only so much you can do to stop them. So I wasn't surprised when it got hacked, but I also wasn't worried. The first thing I did was wipe the site. I logged into my cPannel, went to File Manager, found the directory for my client's website and deleted everything in the folder. That immediately solved the first issue of the site being redirected to the porn site since there wasn't a site anymore to do the redirection. Then it was a simple matter of downloading the most recent backup from the cloud drive I send all my client site backups to and using BackupBuddy, reinstalled the entire site from the backup. In all, it took me less than 10 minutes to get the site back up and running. After reinstalling the site, I changed the password for the database as well as all User passwords and made sure WordPress, the installed theme and all plugins were updated. Only then did I call my client. When he answered and immediately started asking what can we do about the problem, it felt so good being able to tell him that everything wa

Building Client Loyalty = Repeat Business I have to preface today's topic of building client loyalty by saying everything I'm going to talk about here won't help you if you are not a good designer. You don't have to be an amazing designer, simply being a good one will do. As long as you know what you are doing, then you will benefit from today's topic. Face it; if you are not a good designer, there's not much you can do to get repeat business from clients. Other than practice and get better that is. But I'm guessing by the fact that you are here right now, that you are serious about your design business and therefore must know what you are doing when it comes to design. So let's move on. The idea here is to build relationships with your clients. Building relationships is the main ingredient in building client loyalty. I'm not talking about designer/client relationships, but relationships on a more personal level. No, I'm not suggesting you start dating your clients to keep them coming back. Although that might work. I don't personally have any experience on that front, but hey, if it worked for you drop me a line and let me know. What I'm suggesting, is to get to know your client on a more personal level beyond the design projects you work on together. I've been following this principle since I got into the industry 30 years ago. Even more so since I started my own design business in 2005, and I must say, my track record is pretty darn good. The majority of my clients become repeat clients, and the majority of those repeat clients, keep coming back over and over again with more design jobs for me. I have a special mailbox in my mail app where I keep "praise" messages that clients have sent me over the years. Let me share a few lines from some of them. "There's nobody else I'd rather work with." "I can't imagine working with anyone else." "I feel like you're a part of our company." "You get me, I don't know how, but you get me." So how did I end up building client loyalty like this? Is it because I'm a world-class designer? Because I'm not. I consider myself very good at what I do, but I'm nowhere near world-class status. The reason I receive this sort of praise from clients is because of the relationships I've built with them over the years. Think about it. Relationships are built on two principles. Trust and how much you like someone. If you don't trust someone, chances are you won't have a relationship with them. Same if you don't like someone, chances are you won't have a relationship with them. Now the trust part is easy. Create good design work and deliver that work on time and chances are your clients will trust you. The other half of the equation is getting them to like you. Think about this: Clients would prefer to work with a good designer they like, than work with an amazing designer they don't like. My strategy for building client loyalty Here's my strategy for building relationships with my clients and getting them to like me. Are you ready for it? I listen, AND I take notes. That's all there is to it. No, seriously, that's the magic of it. Listening and taking notes. The goal is to get clients to like you. The more you know about your clients, AND the more your clients realise that you know about them, the better the likelihood of those clients liking you. Let me elaborate, whenever a client comes to me, for whatever project. Not only do I want to know about their organisation and how the particular design project fits in, but I want to know about the client themself, their personal life, their family, etc.. And I build up this knowledge over time through conversations. How? Through idle conversations and chit chat and by asking the right questions when the opportunity arises. Don't be too forward by directly asking personal questions. Instead, ask indirect questions that will allow you to gain knowledge about your clients. Let me give you an example. Let's say a client I'm working with calls me on the phone. Me: Hello? Client: Hi, it's Mike, I need to talk to you about the project." Now's the perfect time for me to gain some personal information about Mike, my client. Instead of getting right into it, I might try stalling for some chit chat. One method I like to use is telling the client I need to save what I'm currently working on before talking to them. In doing so, I might respond with something like this. Me: "Hi Mike, just give me a couple of seconds to save this file I'm working on." During the pause, I'll add"Do you have any plans for the weekend?" While Mike is waiting for me to save my file so we can begin our conversation about his project he'll probably answer my question. Mike: "My wife and I are going to our daughter's piano recital this weekend." Knowledge bomb! I now know that Mike is married and has a daughter who plays the piano. This opens me up to asking followup questions such as asking how old his daughter is, how long has she been playing the piano, does she get her music

Have you ever considered selling digital products? Selling digital products is a great way to put your design skills to the test. Not only will you challenge yourself to come up with great ideas, but if you're successful, you can make excellent money doing it. I've never tried selling digital products myself so on this episode of Resourceful Designer; I'm happy to be joined by Tom Ross, the founder of Design Cuts, one of if not the best place for acquiring and selling digital products online. Listen in as Tom, and I discuss everything there is to know about selling digital products so you can hit the ground running and do it right. In this episode you'll hear us discuss: How to determine what product you want to create Choosing quality over quantity Ways to promote your digital product Creating sample and preview images for your digital product The difference between designing for clients and designing for a marketplace Income possibilities And more Whether you are contemplating selling digital products or you are an old pro at it, you're sure to gain some valuable knowledge from this episode. Be sure to share it with all your design friends. What's your experience with selling digital products? Let me know by leaving a comment for this episode. Questions of the Week There's no QotW this week, but I would love to get one from you. Submit your question to be featured in a future episode of the podcast by visiting the feedback page. Resource of the week The Honest Entrepreneur Show The Honest Entrepreneur Show is a new podcast and YouTube channel by Tom Ross, founder of Design Cuts. Each episode is 10-20 minutes long and contains zero fluff and zero B.S. Just real, candid insight into modern entrepreneurship. Tom covers topics such as dealing with mental health, to burnout, to behind authentic. You can watch The Honest Entrepreneur Show on YouTube, or listen to the podcast on Apple Podcasts on Google Podcasts or Spotify. Be sure to follow Tom on Instagram at instagram.com/tomrossmedia

Do you have an organization strategy? I was recently leafing through an old business magazine from the early 2000s, and I came across an article on organization skills. Specifically, organization skills to help you regain control over your schedule, your environment and your life. Although this article wasn't about design, I found a lot of what it said still applies to today's businesses and us as designers. Here's my spin on the article with some of my knowledge to bring you four basic organization principles to help you as a designer. Clear out the clutter In today's society, it's not uncommon to feel overloaded. We deal with too much stuff. Too many obligations, too many tools and resources, too much information. Clearing out the clutter means doing away with anything that is unnecessary. Clutter takes up time, space, energy and money. Make yourself a plan to clear out as much clutter from these areas as you can. Tackle them one at a time and free yourself. A place for everything The number one reason for clutter is not having a set place for stuff. In order to be organized, you need to have a system in place to organize your things. That may be hanging file folders in a drawer, a file cabinet or even a cardboard storage box. It also means having an organization strategy for your client files and folders on your computer. Whatever it is, having a clearly designated area for your "stuff" will make it more likely that your "stuff" will end up where it belongs. And when stuff is where it belongs, it will make it much easier and faster to find it in the future. That's the time-saving part of an organization strategy. Develop systems I talked about organizing your "stuff" but what about your time? You can go about your daily activities in one of two ways. You can either do things randomly, meaning you have to figure out how to do things each and every time you do them. Or, you can work systematically, where you have a set way of doing those things each time you need to do them. Systems can apply to any activity you do, from designing logos or websites to invoicing clients, to collecting your tax information at the end of the year. When you have systems in place, you end up spending less energy figuring out how to do things. Instead, it becomes automatic. I have a system I follow for building websites. It's a step by step list of everything I need to do in order to set things up to get started, such as installing Wordpress and plugins. Laying out the structure of the website. Figuring out the content of each page, putting those pages together, and finally testing the site to make sure everything is hunky dory. When you have systems in place, you can spend your time and effort focused on completing the task instead of figuring out how to do the task. Which in turn allows you to finish it much more quickly. Review and revise your systems Having systems in place is wonderful. They definitely help you become more organized. Providing they are still effective. If you are using the same organization systems you put in place 5 years ago there's a good chance they are not as effective as they were and they could actually be impeding you. Don't fall in the rut of doing things only out of habit just because it's how you've been doing them for so long. Every once in a while you should ask yourself these three questions about your familiar routines. 1) Does it even need to be done? Don't let "busywork" dictate your time just because it's a habit. 2) Is this something that needs to be done by you? Can it be deligated? 3) Is this the most efficient way to do this? Is there an easier or quicker way? Get your life in order and you'll not only be happier, but you'll be more productive. And if you're more productive, there's a good chance your business will grow. Develop good organization strategies. What's your organization strategy? Let me know by leaving a comment for this episode. Questions of the Week Submit your question to be featured in a future episode of the podcast by visiting the feedback page. This week's question comes from Antonio Hi Mark, I'm studying graphic and web design. I'm from Spain and I start to listen your podcast for homework. After so many years in the business, what advice would you give to someone who is just starting in the industry? To find out what I told Antonio you'll have to listen to the podcast. Resource of the week Securitycheckli.st Securitycheckli.stis an open source checklist of resources designed to improve your online privacy and security. Check things off to keep track as you go. It covers interesting things such as how to encrypt your text messages — reviewing your social media privacy settings — reviewing permissions such as location services and even your camera setting.

Do you have a business plan for your design business? Did you make a business plan when you started your design business? If you did, then you are in the minority. Most designers who freelance or run their own design business don't bother creating a business plan unless they are required to do so by a bank or such. I'm lucky; my bank asked for one when I first approached them for a business account. At the time I thought it was a nuisance, but in hindsight, I'm glad they made me do it. It gave me direction and made me think about what I wanted to accomplish with my design business. So if you don't already have a business plan, even if you've been in business for a while, you may want to take some time to come up with one. Here are seven common business plan mistakes to avoid. 1) Putting off writing a business plan. Most designers don't bother with a business plan unless they're asked to create one. Once their business is up and running most think they don't need one, or that they are too busy running their business to make a plan for how to run it. That's a big mistake. The busier you are, the more you need a plan. Have you heard the term "work on your business, not in your business"? A business plan will help you accomplish that by helping you focus on the things you need to do to work on your business. 2) Fearing the business plan. The thought of writing a business plan is much scarier than actually creating one. A business plan is not a thesis paper or a novel. It's a simple guide for you to follow that will help your business to succeed. There are plenty of great resources online and in your local municipality, such as small business development centres, libraries, banks etc. that can help you with your business plan. 3) Ignoring cash flow. Most designers think in terms of profits and not cash. Profits are your sales minus your costs and expenses. Unfortunately, you don't spend profits; you spend cash. And that's where a business plan can help you. When you are running a home-based design business, there are plenty of things that require payments that go beyond the business — things like utilities, property taxes, home maintenance, and so much more. An essential part of a business plan involves creating a cash flow table showing you exactly how much of your profits get converted into spendable cash. 4) Establishing vague goals. A business plan is not about the dreams you have. You don't write "I want to be the best designer in my area" in your plan. That stuff is all hype. The objective of a business plan is to generate results for your business. And for results, you need to be able to track and follow up. S.M.A.R.T. goals are a great way to look at a business plan. Your plan should contain specific dates, the responsibilities you need to take on, and the budget you are allotting to those responsibilities. Then set milestones so you can follow up and check your progress against your business plan. No matter how well written your business plan is, it's meaningless if it doesn't produce results. 5) Copying someone else's plan. There is no one size fits all when it comes to business plans. The resources I mentioned above can help direct you in writing your plan, but it has to be tailored to your specific business and needs. Remember, a business plan is a sales plan, a detailed action plan, a financial plan, a marketing plan and even a professional growth plan. A business plan is essential for starting a new design business, but it's also useful for running and growing your business. You can bet that big design agencies such as Pentagram or Landor not only have a business plan but regularly review and revise it as their business grows. 6) Diluted priorities. A business plan is meant to be a focused strategy for your design business. Therefore you need to focus on the priorities in your plan. A plan with 20+ items to keep track of is not very focused and will be much harder to adhere to. Each section of your business plan should have only three or four essential items you are working towards. Remember, the more items you are focusing on, the less importance and less attention you can devote to each one. A short, precise business plan has a much higher chance of success than a long diluted one. 7) Not reviewing your plan. Hopefully, you're convinced of the importance of having a business plan, no matter how small or large your design business. But having a business plan isn't very helpful if you don't review it on a regular basis. Set annual reminders to review your plan and make amendments to it to help your design business grow. Doing so will help keep you focused and show you the direction to take to achieve to achieve success. Do you have a business plan for your design business? Let me know by leaving a comment for this episode. Questions of the Week Submit your question to be featured in a future episode of the podcast by visiting the feedback page. This week's question comes from Rosey How do you balan

Designing for family and friends is the bane of many designers. Opinions vary amongst designers regarding designing for family and friends. Some are firmly against it and for others, it's no problem. I fall into this latter group. A couple of weeks ago I released an episode on starting a design business from scratch. My second step in the process involved reaching out to family and friends to help spread the word about your new design business. After all, who better to spread the word then the people who know you best, your family and friends. And chances are one of them will become your first design client. I go into much more detail and share personal experiences in the podcast episode. Be sure to listen to it for the full story. Here is a rundown of what I covered on the podcast. Setting ground rules for family and friends. Because family and friends are familiar with you outside of a work environment, you need to set ground rules before agreeing to work with them. If you state the terms of your business relationship with them up front, your dealings should go much smoother. Here is the process that has worked for me over the years. Keep in mind that everyone's family and friends are different so what works for me may require some adjustments to work for you. A family member's or a friend's business is still a business. A business operated by a family member or a friend is still a business, and you should treat it as such. Your relationship with them should not change the way you operate your design business. You need to treat family and friends like you would any other client. Follow your standard procedure by sending proposals, making them sign a contract and issuing an invoice once the project is finished. Family and friends should not be exempt from good business practices. The only exception I make is offering them a "Family and Friends Discount" of 30% off my design services. I charge full price for all expenses such as printing or web hosting. Even if you are doing the work for free, you should still use a contract and issue an invoice with a 100% discount. This will teach your family member or friend to value your time and skills by showing them how much you would typically charge for the services you are providing them. Dealing with personal projects from family and friends. Family and friends will sometimes approach you with a personal project that has nothing to do with business. They're hoping that the bond between you is strong enough for you to volunteer your time and skills. How you handle these requests is entirely up to you but keep in mind that it's perfectly ok to say no to them. One option at your disposal is bartering, getting something in return for your services. Family and friends are a great resource for a "favour for a favour". The way I handle these situations is to determine if the project in question is personally for my family member or friend. If it's something specifically for them, I'll do it, as a favour to them. However, if they are asking on behalf of someone else or a group they belong to I will treat the project as a business dealing and determine if it merits a discount or not. Mom's are exempt. When it comes to your mom, everything I mentioned above goes out the window. The woman put up with all your nonsense growing up the least you can do it offer your skills and time to whatever she asks of you. You probably owe her way more than you'll ever be able to pay back anyway. How do you deal with family and friends? Let me know by leaving a comment for this episode. Questions of the Week Submit your question to be featured in a future episode of the podcast by visiting the feedback page. This week's question comes from Kayla In a past episode I remember you saying that you upcharge print materials (i.e. you've designed a brochure and the client wants 500 more of the exact same design. You simply send it to print again). How do you suggest upcharging? A flat rate? Or a percentage? To find out what I told Kayla you'll have to listen to the podcast. Resource of the week Facebook Groups Facebook groups are a great way to stay connected with our industry and a great source of information when you need help. There are various Facebook Groups for just about any topic. Here are a few I belong to that may interest you. Resourceful Designer Group Logo Geek | Logo Design Community This Design Life Divi Theme Users Divi Web Designers Listen to the podcast on the go. Listen on Apple Podcasts Listen on Spotify Listen on Android Listen on Stitcher Listen on iHeartRadio Contact me I would love to hear from you. You can send me questions and feedback using my feedback form. Follow me on Twitter, Facebookand Instagram I want to help you. Running a graphic design or web design business all by yourself isn't easy. If there are any struggles you face running your design business, please reach out to me. I'll do my best to help you by addressing your issues in a future blog post or podcast

Don't ruin your design business, avoid the following. [sc name="pod_ad"]Think of your design business like climbing a mountain. To climb a mountain, you require willpower, perseverance, skill, knowledge, stamina, patience and concentration. All these traits come together to allow a mountain climber to make their way up a mountain. You need these same traits to run a design business. Sure, you use them differently, but they're the same traits nonetheless. And similar to maintain climbing, one slip can mean disaster. Luckily, slipping up on your design business won't result in death like falling off a mountain will. But it could ruin your reputation, which in turn will ruin your design business. That's why it's good to stay on your guard and avoid these 12 ways to ruin your design business. Doing these could ruin your design business 1) Failing to communicate - taking too long to reply to emails. You are not expected to drop everything you're doing to reply to each new email. It's standard business practice to respond within an acceptable window of time. However, that window shouldn't stretch several days long. It can become increasingly frustrating for the person waiting for your reply. Do this often enough, and clients will lose confidence in you and take their business elsewhere. If Gmail is your email platform check out Boomerang that allows you to set follow up reminders, so you never miss replying to an email. If you don't use Gmail, setting reminders is easy using Siri on your Apple device, your Amazon Alexa or Google Assistant. Simply set a time for your device to remind you to reply to the email. 2) Missing deadlines. Missing deadlines is a sure fire way to ruin your design business. Miss more than one and there's a good chance your clients won't bring you any more design projects. Missing deadlines is usually a case of bad time management and biting off more than you can chew (see number 4). Whenever possible try to pad your deadlines, meaning once you figure out how long a project will take, add on a few days or weeks to act as a buffer, just in case. If you go over your estimated time that buffer will keep you within the deadline. And if you manage to finish on time, your clients will be that much more impressed with you. 3) Showing a lack of confidence in your skills. Nothing turns off a client more than showing a lack of confidence in your abilities. If you show any doubt in what you present to your clients, they will start having doubts about hiring you. Even if you are unsure, you need to present with confidence. Your client will let you know if your designs are not right for them. Never ask a client what they think about the designs you present them. You can ask them what they like or don't like, but not what they think. Asking them what they think is a way of saying you are unsure of what you are presenting and you are seeking their affirmation. 4) Biting off more than you can chew. Don't be afraid to turn down work or to delay working with a client because of your heavy workload. Being in a situation where you cannot take on any more work is a great position to be in. If a client wants to work with you, they will wait their turn. The worse thing you can do in this situation is accepting the work anyways. It's a sure fire way to missing deadlines (see number 2). The same goes for projects with scopes larger than you can handle. You should have a team you can call uponin certain situations, but some projects are just too big for solo designers, no matter how much you'd like to take them on. Don't be afraid to pass on them. 5) Overreacting to criticism. If you can't take criticism, you shouldn't be a designer. It's the nature of our industry that not everyone will like what you do. You need to learn and grow from the criticism you receive, regardless if you agree or disagree with it. Responding to criticism with a strong emotional reaction is an excellent way to alienate your clients. Keep your hurt feelings to yourself. 6) Over-promising and under-delivering. Over-promising and under-delivering is another way to ruin your design business. Examples are missing deadlines (see number 2) or biting off more than you can chew (see number 4). However, sometimes you might be tempted to over-promise your skills and abilities. Telling a client, you can do something, when in fact you are not sure how to do it can lead to disaster. Never promise a client you will/can do something unless you know you can follow through. 7) Don't take time to learn and experiment. This relates to you as a designer. Our industry is continuously changing with new tools, new platforms and new trends. If you fail to keep up your business is doomed. Clients hire designers to help them compete in their market. For that to happen, you need to know how to design things that can compete. Nobody wants a designer who is behind on the times. 8) Don't take time to be inspired. You are a creative person; it's why you became a designer.

Micro Goals are the key to achieving your goals. [sc name="pod_ad"]For your design business to succeed, you must set goals for yourself, and for those goals to be reached you need to break them down into micro goals. I've talked on a previous podcast episode about setting S.M.A.R.T. goals for your design business, goals that are Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant and Time-Related. But even S.M.A.R.T. goals fail sometimes. That's where micro goals come in. You need goals to measure your personal and professional success. Without them, it's much harder to know when you've reached a milestone or level of success. There's a certain satisfaction in accomplishing goals. It has even been scientifically proven that accomplishing goals releases dopamine, a bodily chemical associated with happiness. Unfortunately, plenty of goals go unaccomplished. Mostly due to a lack of urgency. This happens when a person concentrates too much on reaching an end goal and not on the steps required to get there. Micro goals are the day to day steps needed to achieve those loftier end goals. For example, a person wanting to lose 100 pounds may feel like it's a daunting task. However, it will seem much easier to accomplish if they set micro goals to lose two pounds per week throughout a year. Micro Goals give you a path. The path to reaching a future goal isn't always clear. Micro goals act as stepping stones that help you along the way by showing what needs to be done tomorrow, today, or even right now. Since they are easier to concentrate on, there's less chance you'll lose focus on your micro goals. If your goal is to start your design business within three months, what will you do between now and then? Perhaps some of your micro goals will look like these. Choose a name for your business Complete and file business registration papers Acquire a domain name Set up email accounts for your new business Design a logo for your business Build a website Have business cards printed Open a business bank account Choose and set up an invoicing system These micro goals act as reminders of the steps you need to take each day until you open your design business. Micro Goals give you a reminding push. Because micro goals are small and easy to accomplish, they encourage you to start doing things now that may otherwise get pushed off. They act as reminders that these things need to get done to make progress towards your end goal. Micro goals are also reminders of the progress you are making as you complete each one. Without micro goals, you may fall victim to procrastinating. You may feel that a goal that is still months away isn't a priority and you may delay working on it for another day, week or month. Micro goals keep you on track and help build momentum. Do you want to hear something funny? That momentum you gain by completing micro goals makes you feel good about each accomplishment and pushes you to do even more. That's the dopamine effect. Your body releases dopamine whenever you experience a pleasurable sensation, such as completing a micro goal. This effect is associated with your body's reward system motivating you to crave it even more. And that means a greater motivation to tackle the next micro goal to feel good again. According to Psychology Today, "everything from making your bed to doing all the dishes will give you the 'ding-ding-ding' feeling of having completed a task. Neurobiologically the satisfaction of completing a task creates internal rocket fuel that energises you to keep working towards your larger goal." And according to Teresa Amabile and Steven J. Kramer of the Harvard Business Review "The more frequently you experience that sense of progress, the more likely you are to be creatively productive in the long run," It doesn't matter how much is left to reach your end goal. Making these little strides can make a huge difference in how you feel and perform today. Isn't the human body a fantastic thing? Micro Goals help with time management Most of us have more than one long term goal. Sometimes those multiple goals compete for our attention, and it's hard for us to prioritise them. With our limited time available each day, on which goals should you concentrate? Because Micro goals have small time frames associated with them, they allow you to cut through that confusion by letting you work towards multiple end goals at once. Spend an hour or two on one, a few minutes on another, and an afternoon on yet another goal. By the end of the day, you will have made progress on multiple end goals, and you'll feel good about yourself. How Micro Goals Work To get started with micro goals you need to ask the question "What individual steps, once accomplished will bring me closer to my end goal?" Write out those steps and start working on and checking them off. You'll quickly learn to appreciate all these minor accomplishments, and you'll feel good about the progress you make towards your end goals. Examples of micro goals If you

Here are nine steps I would follow if I were starting a design business from scratch today. Since launching Resourceful Designer in 2015, one of the biggest struggles I've seen from my audience is starting a design business and finding clients. I realise that I've never actually said what I would do if I had to start a design business from scratch. Until now. Over the past 148 podcast episodes and via countless conversations on Facebook, I've shared plenty of advice on growing and starting a design business. This is advice I've garnered through my own experiences and what I've learned from other's who have gone through a similar journey. Every week I receive messages from listeners thanking me for that advice. They tell me how I've helped them start their own design business. Some even credit me with giving them the courage to leave their full-time job to pursue their dream. I'm glad that they find my advice helpful, but I also know that I'm far removed from where these listeners are in their careers. I have a successful design business. I don't need to go looking for clients; they come to me. I'm at a point where I can turn down projects and clients that don't interest me. I don't even have a website for my business. And yet, I'm prospering. That's because I'm 14 years into this. Plus I have another 15 years before that working at a print shop. All these years have helped me build my brand, my reputation, and the client loyalty that I talk about so often on the podcast. I know what I did to get to where I am today, and I share a lot of that with you. But I also know that I started at a time when "social media" wasn't a common phrase. When most people hadn't heard of Facebook. When YouTube was just getting off the ground and wouldn't become mainstream for several years. And talking about podcasts would be met with blank stares. Things were different then. When I decided to start a graphic design business I never dreamed that I would have clients all over Canada, the USA, some in Scottland, Australia, Hong Kong and more. Back then, I was just hoping to get a handful of good local clients to keep me busy. I built my business on that principle. But what about today? I've been thinking a lot recently. What would I do if I had to start a design business from scratch today, without the benefit of 30 years experience? Here are the steps I would follow if I were starting a design business today. Please keep in mind that I'm talking about starting a design business, not becoming a designer. In this scenario that I already know how to design. Step 1: Build a website The very first thing I would do while starting a design business is launch a website. I know it's ironic considering I don't have one for my current business. But a site is crucial to growing any business today. It's the hub where people can find out about you and your business. I'd Start small with just the basics and a small portfolio, and build upon it over time. But I would launch a website ASAP. Step 2: Tell family and friends about your design business The next thing I would do is start spreading the word that I've started a design business. I would tell my parents, siblings, aunts and uncles. I would reach out to cousins I haven't seen since so and so's wedding a decade ago and tell them that I've started a design business. The purpose isn't to get business from them, although if I did it would be nice. I would reach out hoping they will spread the news. You never know when one of your relatives may know of or hear about someone who needs a designer. I would then go through my email contact lists, my Facebook friends etc. and send them a message, even if I hadn't spoken to them since high school. Again, I just want to spread the word. The more people who know I'm running a design business, the better the chances of me picking up clients. I would say something like this. Hi Lisa, It's been a while, hasn't it? I hope life is treating you well. The reason I'm reaching out is to let you know that I've started a graphic and web design business. Here's my website (URL). If you or anyone you knows needs a graphic designer I would be grateful if you would pass on my name. Thanks and take care, Mark Step 3: Join the Chamber of Commerce After contacting family and friends, I would join my Chamber of Commerce. Not only would I join the Chamber, but I would set up a meeting with whoever the director is and get to know them. I would inquire if they have any events or projects coming up that may require my services. Then I would go through the Chamber's membership directory and reach out to every person on the list, introducing myself to them, and once again. Asking them to pass on my name if they know anyone that needs a designer. Step 4: Contact suppliers who may need design work done. Once my business was set up, I would visit every printer, screen printer, design agency, sign company, trophy shop, promotional marketing supplier, embroidery shop, etc. and let

You can't get worse by practising [sc name="pod_ad"]Every skill you try to learn has a learning curve to it. Sometimes that curve is small, and sometimes it's very long. And in some cases, that learning curve is never-ending. Such as with design skills. The title of this episode is Progress Over Perfection. That's because perfection is an unattainable goal, which is a good thing. Think about it. What if you designed the most fantastic logo or website, one that every single designer in the world acknowledged as being perfect. How would you follow that up? How can you improve on perfection? You can't. And that's a good thing. It's what keeps us creative. If you attained perfection, there would be no more motivation to carry on because everything after that point would be a step-down. That's why I choose the title Progress Over Perfection. Because perfection is unattainable, your goal should be to make progress instead by continually improving your design skills. You do that by practising. There will never be a time in your life when you don't need to improve your design skills. Even famed designers such as Michael Bierut from Pentagram or Kate Moross from Studio Moross continue to practice their skills. Carolyn Davidson designed the Nike swoosh when she was a student at Portland State University. It's one of the most recognisable brands on the planet. But do you think Carolyn stopped learning or trying to improve her skills after that success? The answer is no. These designers, as well as every other designer around the world, continue to improve their design skills by practising their craft. And by practising, I mean doing things over and over again with the intent of becoming better. It's a long road. I've been in this business for 30 years and the skill level I want to be at as a designer is still far beyond the horizon. That's why I continue to practice my craft every day. Have you ever watched an Aaron Draplin teaching logo design? He doesn't merely pick up a pencil or his mouse and design an amazing logo. No, he tests out idea after idea, discarding some and expanding on others. He keeps doing this 50, 100, 200 times until he begins to narrow down the ideas to one concrete logo design. Even then, that final logo design may get discarded for something completely different. That is practising. Call it brainstorming or brain-dumping or experimenting or whatever you will; it's still practising. When my daughter was a young teenager, she played on a competitive soccer team. One day, they had one of the women from Canada's Women's National Team help them out at practice. She was one of the players from the 2012 Olympic bronze medal team. She told my daughter's team that if you want to get good at soccer, you need to touch the ball over and over. Not kick it, or dribble it or bounce it on your knee, although those do help. Just keep moving it with your feet over and over and over again, and you will become a better soccer player. Every time a soccer player touches the ball, the ball reacts. They touch the ball with their foot one way the ball behaves in a certain way. They touch the ball another way, and it responds differently. Every time the ball reacts to their touch, they are learning what to expect. After doing it a thousand, ten thousand, a hundred thousand times, they will come to know exactly what to expect from the ball. That is called practising. It's not as glamorous as practising penalty or corner kicks. Or as fun as dribbling the ball through an obstacle course of orange cones but it's practising nonetheless. And the more they do it, the better they will be on the soccer pitch because that practice will help them understand how the ball reacts to their touch. To stay at the top of their game, they need to continue practising. Amazing players such as Renaldo or Messi or Canada's Christina Sinclair don't stop practising just because they're at the top of their game. If anything, they need to practice even harder than before. The same goes for design. Every doodle you make, every sketch you make, every ill-conceived design concept you come up with, every logo, poster, banner, or website that gets rejected by a client should be considered as practice in the journey to make you a better designer. Every design you make will help you better understand how certain elements interact with each other, how things align, how colour combinations work or don't work, how fonts complement each other. What things create flow and what things break it. Every design you make is practice to become a better designer. There are no fast solutions. There are no books, tutorials, online courses or school programs that will magically make you a great designer. The only way to become a great designer is by learning new skills and practising those skills over and over and over again. This goes for both new and veteran designers. We all need to keep practising. The better you get at design, the more you'll understand the import

Are you taking measure of your design business? Whether you are running your design business full-time or part-time, you probably started it with a vision of how your ideal business should look. How does it measure up? Are you exceeding your expectations or are you falling short? If you are exceeding your expectations, do you know how you're doing it? What is contributing to your success and can you sustain it and continue to grow your design business? If you're falling short of your vision of an ideal design business, do you know why? Knowing why your falling short is a significant step in rectifying your situation. I'm publishing this during the first week of 2019. I know it's cliché but the beginning of a new year is the perfect time to look at your design business and see if it measures up to what you imagined it would be. It's also the perfect time to make any needed changes to realign and get back on track if it isn't. For most people, the beginning of a new calendar year also means the beginning of a new fiscal year. If you've been in business for more than a year you can take some time and compare the past year over the previous ones to see how things stand. A new year also means you have a clean slate to build upon going forward. Taking measure of my own business, I see that I didn't grow in 2018. I made about $2,000 less in 2018 than I did in 2017. In the grand scheme of things, $2,000 isn't that much, so I'm not worried about it. But it is the first time since I started my design business that I haven't seen growth from the previous year. So what went wrong? I invoiced for more design work in 2018 than I ever have. So that's not the issue. Looking at my accounting books, I see that revenue from the print brokering service I offer declined. Design revenue went up, while print brokering went down. Please don't take that the wrong way, there's still a significant amount of money to be made in print brokering if you're thinking of getting into it. I believe I can pinpoint the decline in print brokering revenue to three clients. I had two clients who went completely digital and decided not to have printed versions of their annual report last year. A third client, a yearly festival had some financial difficulty and drastically reduced the number of booklets, pamphlets, posters and other printed material I handled for them. Between the three of them, I lost several thousand dollars in printing revenue. Considering this, I need to take the time to figure out how I can make up for the decline in print brokering revenue going forward should the trend continue. Should I concentrate on promoting my print brokering service more, or should I focus on getting more design work? That's up to me to decide. What you need to decide is what it is you want to accomplish with your design business this year. I don't know your particular situation so I can't tell you exactly what you need to do, but I can offer some suggestions that may help your business grow. Improve your touchpoints Touchpoints are the avenues potential clients come in contact with your business. They consist of things like your business cards to your website to the way you answer your phone. My free guide, the Four-Week Marketing Boost can help you with this. As the old saying goes, "You only have one chance to make a first impression." so why not make it the best first impression you can. Review your contract and proposals Take a few minutes to review your contract and proposal templates. Do they protect both you and your clients as thoroughly as they should? Make sure any new services you offer are listed and remove anything that is outdated. Raise your prices The beginning of a new year is a perfect opportunity to raise your rates. Especially but not limited to anything you charge for by the hour. Raising your prices not only increases your income, but it can elevate the quality of clients who seek you out. Expand your services Did you learn anything new last year that you could add as a service you offer? SEO, Google AdWords, Facebook Ads, Print Brokering and so much more can become new services that can increase your income. Niche down Have you considered specialising in a niche? Narrowing your focus and concentrating on one industry is a great way to be seen as an expert in your field. The beginning of a new year is a perfect time to start targeting a new niche. Set goals for your business. Of course, January is the perfect time to set goals not only for yourself but for your design business. Determine what it is you want to accomplish this year. Having a goal makes it much easier to track your progress, and it becomes much more satisfying when you reach it. Any time of year works No specific time of year is best for reviewing your design business, but January seems like the most popular time for taking measure of things in your life. However, even if you are listening to this episode in April or in July, you can still take a bit of time for ta

A look back at 2018 and a look ahead to 2019. I want you to take a look back at what you accomplished and at what you failed to achieve in 2018. With that in mind, what are you going to do to make 2019 even better? I don't know your situation. I don't know your family dynamics. I don't know your level of education. I don't know your current work situation. Maybe you're a student still learning design. Perhaps you're a new designer still getting your feet wet. Perhaps you're a veteran designer like I am. Maybe you work for yourself, or maybe you work for someone else. Whatever your situation, I want you to take some time to look back at 2018 and think about your accomplishments and your perceived failures. I say "perceived failures" because they are only failures if you've given up on them entirely. Like most people, you probably had some goals for yourself and your design business. Perhaps it was to start your own design business or to land that first paying client. Maybe it was a financial goal you set for yourself — a specific dollar figure you wanted to reach in revenue. Did you reach those goals? For those goals you accomplished, where you satisfied with the outcome? Thinking back, are there ways you could have made reaching those goals easier for yourself? If there are goals you didn't reach, what prevented you from reaching them? Have you given up on them or are you working even harder to achieve them in 2019? My 2018 I want to share some of my accomplishments from 2018 with you. Resourceful Designer Released 46 podcast episodes Over 200k episode downloads in 2018 New Amazon Alexa Skill for Resourceful Designer New Resourceful Designer App for IOSand Android Resourceful Designer released on Spotify. My design business Started calling myself a Design Consultant. Switched to fully value-based pricing Implemented Three-Tier Pricing Streamlined my To-Do List. Worked on design projects for 27 different clients in 2018 Nine of those clients were first-time clients. Sent out 93 invoices resulting in income in the high five figures. My 2019 goals I have big plans for 2019. First off, I'm thinking of narrowing down my niche. Or, at least concentrating more on a particular niche while continuing with what I'm doing now. I want to speak at more conferences. In 2018 I had two public speaking engagements, and I would like to do more. I want to grow the listenership of Resourceful Designer. I know there are many more designers out there searching for answers for their design business. I want to be the source of those answers if possible. You can help me achieve this goal by helping spread the word about the podcast. Let your fellow designers know they can listen on Spotify, Google Podcasts, Apple podcasts or download the App. And of course. I'm looking forward to engaging with you in the new Resourceful Designer Community. So long 2018 As 2018 comes to an end. I encourage you to reflect on this past year. Think about everything you've accomplished and those things you fell short on. And come up with a plan to make 2019 even better. To help, I suggest you listen to episode 55 Setting Goals For Your Design Business. I look forward to helping you in 2019. What are your goals for 2019? Let me know by leaving a comment for this episode. Listen to the podcast on the go. Listen on Apple Podcasts Listen on Spotify Listen on Android Listen on Stitcher Listen on iHeartRadio Contact me I would love to hear from you. You can send me questions and feedback using my feedback form. Follow me on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram I want to help you. Running a graphic design or web design business all by yourself isn't easy. If there are any struggles you face running your design business, please reach out to me. I'll do my best to help you by addressing your issues in a future blog post or podcast episode here at Resourceful Designer. You can reach me at [email protected]

Try this pricing strategy for your design business. I learned of the three-tier pricing strategy many years ago, but I never gave it much thought in regards to the design industry. Until recently that is. A few months ago I came across it again while reading a business book. A day or two later I was watching a YouTube video, and a designer mentioned using a three-tier pricing strategy in his design proposals. Maybe there's something to this I thought and I decided to give it a try. And you know what? It works. I've used it on several proposals recently with great results. What is a three-tier pricing strategy? A three-tier pricing strategy is when you offer three different pricing choices for essentially the same service or product but with different options which increases the value for each one. Look at this example of a fictional web hosting company using a three-tier pricing strategy. A web host may offer three different hosting package. A $4.99/mo package that is good for 1 site and offers basic security A $9.99/mo package that is good for 3 sites, offers advanced security and monthly site backups and a free Basic SSL Certificate. A $49.99/mo package that is good for unlimited sites, offers Super advanced security including daily malware monitoring, plus daily backups and the free Wildcard SSL Certificate. I know you've seen this type of pricing strategy before. You've probably also noticed that companies usually highlight the middle price as the "recommended" or "most popular" one according to the seller. That's because it's the option they are hoping you will choose. The other two are there to help you come to that decision. Why a three-tier pricing strategy works There are two main reasons why this type of pricing strategy works. It gives the purchaser options to choose from, which makes them feel more in control of what they are buying. It showcases the value of what the purchaser is buying making their choice easier. In the above web host example, the buyer sees three options. One that's good for one website, another for three websites and a third for unlimited sites. It also shows escalating value options at each tier. Tier 2 offers more advanced security plus backups and an SSL Certificate where Tier 1 doesn't. Tier 3 offers super advanced security PLUS daily malware monitoring. It also provides daily backups instead of only monthly and a Wildcard SSL Certificate over a standard SSL Certificate. By offering these three options to a potential client, the hosting company is altering the purchaser's mindset. Instead of giving the client one option and having them ponder "is this a good value for me?" they are given three options and instead ask themselves "which one of these is the best value for me?" A single pricing option requires a yes or no decision. But by introducing the variables in three-tier pricing, you force the client to contemplate their decision making them feel more in control of their buying choice. And when a client feels in control of their buying choice there's less chance of them deciding to shop elsewhere. The other benefit of the three-tier pricing strategy is how it educates the client on the value of what it is they are buying. They see what their money is getting them. The client came to the website looking for web hosting for their one site. But now they are shown that there are different values available to choose from when it comes to hosting a website. Even though tier 2 allows up to three websites, the added value included with that option may persuade the client to choose it even though they only have one site to host. You can almost predict the outcome The great thing about a three-tier tier pricing strategy is that you can practically guarantee what option a client will choose. Why do you think so many sites highlight the "recommended" or "Best Value" option? It's because they made it the most tempting of the three. Some people call that middle tier the "anchor price" or the "pillar price". You base your entire strategy on that price. How a three-tier pricing strategy works This pricing strategydoesn't work very well if you charge an hourly rate based on your time. For it to work, you should be using fixed, project-based or value-based pricing. You start by figuring out a price for your ideal proposal and what benefits/value to offer with it. That's your anchor price. It should be the best value for the price. Once you've determined your anchor price, you create a lower priced option with fewer benefits/value. Make this more economical option close in price to your anchor price. You wan the client to look at the first two options and come to the conclusion that tier 2 is the better deal even though it costs more. For Tier 3, you set the price significantly higher and offer a lot more value with it. But most clients can usually do without the added benefit offered in Tier 3. When a client looks at the three tiers, there's a good chance they choose Tier 2, your ancho

Avoid these common mistakes freelancers make. To the uninitiated, running a design business sounds easy. You find clients, create designs for them, they pay you, repeat. Freelancers, however, know there is so much more to it than merely designing. And yet, even armed with that knowledge there are still several mistakes freelancers make when it comes to running their business. 1) Not using downtime productively One mistake freelancers make is not taking advantage of downtime. When things are slow, you should be using any spare time you have on something productive to advance your design business. Use downtime to: Update your website Attend networking events Take a course/tutorial to learn a new skill Experiment with your software Use the time to grow your business and to make yourself a better designer. Just because you are not at a 9-5 job doesn't mean you shouldn't be putting in a full day worth of hours into your business. 2) Not building a team (copywriter, illustrator, VA) In episode 77of the Resourceful Designer podcast, I talked about the importance of assembling a team around your business. To serve your clients, you should align yourself with people who have skills you don't or are more suited to performing specific skills than you are. Your team can consist of: Copywriters Illustrators Programmers Developers Translators Social Media Experts Photographers Virtual Assistants more I made a mistake when I first started my business in thinking I needed to do everything myself. If I couldn't do it, then I didn't take on the project. I missed out on some great jobs and clients because the projects they presented me with were beyond my ability. Then I learned that it's ok to ask for help. Since then I've expanded my circle to include many talented people that allow me to offer services I couldn't provide if I were doing everything myself. 3) Not taking advantage of extra income opportunities The bulk of a designers income should come from client design work. But many peripherals can earn you money as well. Things like: Print brokering Web hosting/maintenance Selling design resources (Photoshop/Illustrator brushes, patterns, fonts, other design resources) Merchandising (T-shirts, posters, etc.) more You're a creative person. Put that creativity to work by looking around and finding innovative ways to supplement your income. 4) Not spending time working on your outreach when you're busy. There are hills and valleys when it comes to running a design business. Some weeks you have barely anything to do, while other weeks you can't believe how much work you have. To minimise this up, down, up, down effect you need to figure out how to fill in those valleys. The problem is, most people wait until things start to get slow before trying to drum up new work. But the time to promote yourself is when you're busy. When you're at the top of a "hill". If you do it right, you'll drum up work while you're busy that will fill in those valleys and even out the terrain for you, creating a much more balanced working life. 5) Not saving money As a home-based designer, you probably don't have a steady paycheque. Nor do you have any guarantees of how or when money will come in. If you do a good job on point number 4 and work on your outreach when you're busy you'll minimise those slow times when money isn't coming in, but that's not a guarantee of income. That's why you should be putting aside a fixed percentage of all your income for those "just in case" or "What if" situation. You should be saving for those unexpected times when a "valley" stretches out longer than expected. Start putting money aside for: Slow Periods Emergencies Unexpected expenses Known expenses (taxes, licences, etc.) Time off (vacation, medical, etc.) Retirement There will come a time some day when you decide to stop, or you're forced to stop working and then how will you provide for yourself? 6) Calling themselves Freelancer Long time listeners of the Resourceful Designer podcast know that I don't like the term Freelancer. Back in episode 17, I shared a story of a designer I know who missed out on a job opportunity because she called herself a freelancer. The potential employer told me he was looking for someone who took the job more seriously than that. He's not alone. People often associate the term freelancer with temporary or in transition designers. Designers who are willing to work with you until something better comes along. You and I know that's not the case. But that's how many people in the business world, people who are your potential clients think about freelancers. Consider this before deciding what to call yourself. A freelancer is a designer looking for a boss. If you imagine yourself working FOR your clients, then feel free to call yourself a freelancer. However, if you imagine yourself working WITH your clients, partnering with them to solve their design problems, then you are not a freelancer, you are a designer who runs your own design b

10 Money Saving Tips For Freelancers Freelance designers rarely know when they'll get their next paycheque. That's why it's wise for us to hold on to the money we do have for those times when income slows down. To help you, I have 10 money saving tips for freelancers you should consider adopting. Have you ever heard the saying a penny saved is a penny earned? It means that any money you save by not spending it is similar to the money you earn. I know there can be various debates about that, but you can't argue that any money you don't spend on something is money in your pocket that you can put to use somewhere else. Chances are you didn't become a designer because you wanted to become rich. You chose to become a designer because of your creativity and a love of designing. Sure, there are designers out there living the good life racking in significant dollars for their services. But for the majority of us. We're happy earning a decent, comfortable living doing something we love. If this latter one describes you, then money is probably not something you have to throw around. And since money is one of the gages used to determine success. It makes sense to avoid unnecessary spending and keep as much of your hard earned money for yourself. And for the record. I use every one of these 10 money saving tips for freelancers in my business to keep as much of my own hard earned money as I can. Freelancer money saving tips 1. Cancel recurring expenses you don't use Take an audit of all your subscriptions, memberships, software, services, plug-ins, etc. that incur an ongoing regular monthly or yearly payment and cancel any that you seldom use or don't get your full money's worth. 2. Buy Refurbished Save money by purchasing refurbished products whenever possible. Refurbished products are just as good as new ones, including coming with warranties. They can save you a lot of money on a product you were going to buy anyway. 3. Hire an accountant Accountants are like magicians with numbers. They know all the tricks that can save you money during tax season. Letting an accountant handle your books and taxes can save you more money than the cost of hiring the accountant. Every freelancer should have one. 4. Ask for discounts from suppliers You can't get something if you don't ask for it. Contact your internet, cable, phone, etc. suppliers and ask them if there's any way they can offer you a discount or do something to reduce your expense. You would be surprised how often they will compromise with you and save you money. 5. Use reward-based credit cards You're probably using a credit card to pay for some of your business expenses. Take advantage of reward-based credit cards like those that offer cash back or those that let you collect points for travel or other rewards. 6. Get a low-interest line of credit Banks and credit unions provide lines of credit at much lower interest rates than credit cards. Use your line of credit to pay off high-interest credit cards whenever you can't pay them off that month. Don't be penalised by carrying over unpaid balances. 7. Save on heating/cooling Stop heating/cooling your entire home while you're working. Adjust your thermostat to save you money and use a fan or heater to adjust the temperature in your office space. Warm sweaters can also help during the cold season. 8. Use coupons or discount codes Before making an online purchase, do a quick Google search to see if there are any coupons or discount codes available for the product/service you're buying. Many companies will offer coupons or discount codes to certain groups which are also usable by the rest of us if we take the time to find them. 9. Shop around for better prices When shopping for fonts, stock images or design resources be sure to check multiple websites before making your purchase. Prices on identical products can vary drastically depending on the source selling them. 10. Wait for sales Whenever possible wait for a holiday or special deals to make your purchases. Black Friday, Boxing Day, Amazon Prime Day and similar occasions offer amazing discounts if you can wait for them. A penny saved is a penny earned You work hard for your money. Don't spend any of it unnecessarily if you can avoid it. Use these 10 money saving tips for freelancers to keep as much of your income in your pockets as you can. Do you have any money saving tips for freelancers you would like to share? Let me know by leaving a comment for this episode. Questions of the Week Submit your question to be featured in a future episode of the podcast by visiting the feedback page. This week's question comes from Kevin I've been running my web design business for almost half a year now. My current problem is reaching out to new potential clients. What is your take on cold emailing and how would you go about it? To find out what I told Kevin you'll have to listen to the podcast.

Do you have any gift ideas for Christmas? It's November, and that means the holidays are just around the corner and everyone is looking for gift ideas for friends and family. I don't know about you, but every year I dread the question "what do you want for Christmas?" I don't know what to say when someone asks me that question. Are you like that too? In case you are, I've come up with ten things you could ask for, that are very useful for designers and are not that expensive. 1) Luna Display Luna Display is brought to you by the team behind AstroPad. AstroPad is software that allows you to mirror your Mac's display on your iPad. Luna Display is their new hardware solution that turns any iPad into an actual, wireless second display for your Mac. It's available as both a USB-C or Mini DisplayPort device. All you have to do is plug it into the port on your Mac, and your iPad becomes a second monitor. It only takes seconds to set up and works over your existing Wi-Fi. Luna Display is excellent for MacBook users who could use more screen real estate. 2) Amazon Echo Dot. The smallest of Amazon's Alexa devices, The Echo Dot is your small office assistant. Use it to set alarms and reminders, add items to your calendar, look up things, do calculations, play music and so much more. The Amazon Echo Dot can also be used to control smart devices in your home. I have mine set up, so all I have to say is "Alexa, turn on/off office lights". You can check out the Echo Dot and Amazon's other Alexa enabled devices through this link (affiliate) resourcefuldesigner.com/amazonecho 3) Amazon Prime If you're not already an Amazon Prime member, you really should be. Amazon Prime membership gives you access to great content such as Prive Video that gives you access to thousands of movies and TV series, including Prime Original series like Jack Ryan, which was terrific by the way. Prime Reading, with exclusive free and discounted eBooks each month, Prime Music so you can listen to all your favourite songs. And of course, fast and free shipping on over 100 million items for sale on Amazon. The savings on shipping alone are worth the price of membership. Plus, with subscriptions, you can save money on purchases you make on a regular basis. Receive a discount when you subscribe to stuff like toilet paper or laundry detergent. Just set it up by telling Amazon how often you need to replenish, and it will show up at your door on schedule. Try Amazon Prime free for 30 days(affiliate link) 4) Whiteboard with dot grid Whiteboards are staples in many offices. They're easy to use, highly visible, and a great way to organise your day to day business activities. But if you're like me, the top left of your whiteboard looks nice and tidy, but as you move down and to the right, the lists and writings become more and more crooked until the stuff written on the bottom right is way out of skew. My son recently bought a dotted whiteboard, and when I saw it, I thought, what a brilliant idea. The dots are printed directly on the whiteboard in a grid pattern. They're very light, so they're visible up close but not so much from farther away. Those dots help to keep your writing, lists, and drawings straight and aligned. 5) Daylight light bulbs One of the benefits of working from home is not having to commute to work. But on the flipside, that benefit does have some drawbacks because people working from home spend less time outdoors and therefore have less exposure to the much-needed Vitamin D you get from being in the sun. Especially in the winter when it gets dark earlier. A lack of Vitamin D can cause all sorts of health issues. You can take pills to help, but another option is to equip your office lights with bulbs that mimic daylight. It's not the same as being out in the sun, but it can help you get through those dreary winter months. 6) Monitor Stand Back in episode 118 of Resourceful Designer, I explained how the optimal height of your computer monitor is to have the top edge of the screen level with your eyes. I'm 6'2", and even with a 27" iMac I look down at my computer. After a long day of work, my neck kept getting sore. Then I bought a monitor stand to raise my monitor, and it made a huge difference. Now my computer is at the right hight, and the stand I got looks good, plus it provides me with some extra storage space below my computer. I bought the VIVO height adjustable monitor stand for iMac. The foot of the computer sits on an adjustable shelf so that you can set it to the hight that's most comfortable to you. 7) Phone/tablet stand A stand for your phone/tablet helps keep your device facing you which surprisingly helps eliminate distractions. When my phone beeps with a notification, I can quickly glance at it to see if it's anything I need to deal with without having to pick up my phone or bending over my desk to see what the notification is. I do suggest you turn off all notifications, so you're not distracted, but there are certain things

Design Business + Chamber of Commerce = Success [sc name="pod_ad"]One of the best marketing tools available to your design business is your local Chamber of Commerce. If you are not taking advantage of how this organisation can help you grow, you are missing out. Big time. What is a Chamber of Commerce? A Chamber of Commerce sometimes called a "board of trade", is an association or a network of businesses and business people formed with the purpose of promoting and protecting the interests of its members. The Chamber of Commerce is not a new idea. The very first one was founded in France in 1599. The first one in the USA was started in New York in 1768. Nowadays, you can find them in almost every country and most cities around the world. One of the primary roles of the Chamber of Commerce is to debate, promote and lobby for or against municipal, state/provincial and even federal policies and laws that affect businesses in your area. They have no direct role in creating laws or regulations, but they are very effective in influencing people who do create them. At the municipal level, your Chamber of Commerce is there to advocate and promote its members. That's why you should join your local Chamber of Commerce. What benefits do Chamber members receive? There are many benefits to joining your Chamber of Commerce. Although some benefits will differ from Chamber to Chamber some common ones are: Your business listed in its member directory. Receiving deals and discounts from other chamber members. Your business gets promoted in your region. Having a voice in shaping local business policies in your area. Free or discounted admission to exclusive events such as networking and social events, guest presentations, trade shows, etc. Being a member adds credibility to your business. Why you should join your Chamber of Commerce. The main reason you should join your local Chamber of Commerce is for the support of like-minded business people that can help you succeed. You know that networking is a critical element of growing your design business. If nobody knows who you are, how are people going to know to hire you? Joining your Chamber of Commerce gives you an opportunity to meet and network with other local business owners, the company decision-makers, the people who hire designers like you. Imagine the Chamber of Commerce as an exclusive club. Many members take this club very seriously and will often look to fellow Chamber members whenever they need help with something. Including looking for design services like yours. I have several good clients that initially contacted me because I'm a fellow member of the Chamber of Commerce. Some met me at a networking event; some saw my business in the member directory, and the Chamber referred me to others. The Chamber of Commerce itself also requires design services for the many events and promotions it puts on throughout the year. Who do you think they will turn to for these designs? Chamber members who are designers of course. Free Marketing for your design business As a member of your Chamber of Commerce, you also get free marketing for your business. Let me repeat that; FREE MARKETING. This free marketing may come in the form of exposure through physical or electronic newsletters, the Chamber's social media posts and other forms of publications. The Chamber loves spreading the word about its members because it helps them attract more members who want the same attention. Have you designed a new logo or website for a fellow Chamber Member? Let the Chamber know, and they'll tell everyone about the great work you've done in their next newsletter. On a side note; once you are a Chamber member, please make sure you read your Chamber's newsletters. The Chamber of Commerce is often the first one to break the news of new business starting in or coming to your area. Often, at the very earliest stages of those businesses. Talk about an excellent opportunity to get your foot in the door and introduce yourself to people who need your services. How people view the Chamber Many people, whether they are a chamber member or not, see their local Chamber of Commerce as an authority when they are searching for products and services. New businesses starting or relocating to your area will turn to the Chamber of Commerce for help and guidance in finding the local talent they can hire. That authority means people TRUST their opinion when the Chamber recommends a business to them. And if there is a Chamber member that offers the sought after product or service, that's who the Chamber of Commerce will recommend before anyone else. Look at these numbers compiled by American Business Magazine. 44% of consumers are more likely to think favourably of businesses who are members of their local chamber. 51% of companies are more aware of businesses who are Chamber members than businesses who are not. 63% of consumers are more likely to buy products or services from businesses who are members of their local

What if you looked at design from a different perspective? Sometimes, all it takes to improve your designs or to break out of a creative slump is to alter your perspective on how you go about designing. For the past fourteen years, I've vacuumed the house starting at the South end and working my way North. A couple of weeks ago I took out the vacuum as I usually do only to discover that my wife had chosen that time to groom our two dogs in the living room near the South end of the house. Instead of waiting for her to finish so I could pick up all the excess dog hair and nail clippings, I decided to start at the North end of the house figuring by the time I reached her she would be done. In vacuuming the house from this different direction, I experienced a whole new perspective to our living quarters. I came at familiar areas from a new angle and in some cases discovered that it was much easier to reach those areas from this new perspective. What does this have to do with designing? Sometimes, changing up your regular design routines can change the way you perceive a design. Getting out of your comfort zone can alter your perspective on a project. I always start a logo design project by choosing various fonts that I think will suit the logo. I then design the symbol or icon that accompanies the type before putting the two together and figuring out colours. Last week with my vacuuming adventure still fresh in my mind, I decided to change things up for a logo I was designing. Instead of starting with the font, I dove right into creating the icon. Usually, the font I've chosen influences the icon I design. This time was the opposite. I picked the font based on the icon. In doing so, I decided on a font I might not have chosen otherwise. By changing my perspective on how I approached the design I came up with an idea I don't think I would have reached if I had followed my normal routine. And the client loved it. What did I learn from this experiment? Routines are good, but sometimes they can prevent you from seeing things you might not have otherwise. Changing your perspective can help you find a new solution to a hard design problem. Have I changed the way I design things because of this? No. My routines are established, and they've worked for me for so long that I won't change them. But that doesn't mean I can't tweak them from time to time or ignore them altogether whenever I'm in a creative slump or merely need a new perspective on an idea. Try changing your perspective every once in a while and see what happens. You might like the outcome. For the full story be sure to listen to the podcast episode where I go into much more detail than I just did. Have you ever tried breaking from your normal design routines? Let me know by leaving a comment for this episode. Questions of the Week I don't have a question of the week for this episode, but I would love to answer one of yours. Submit your question to be featured in a future episode of the podcast by visiting the feedback page. Tip of the week Minimalistic business cards I was recently handed a business card that had the gentleman's name and title of "web designer" on one side, and only his website on the other side. He told me that as a web designer, he wanted to ensure that people saw his work before contacting him. His business card forced people to visit his website if they wanted the rest of his contact information. In the process, they could look at his services, his portfolio, the type of clients he works with and gets a feel for who he is before deciding if they want to work with him. This gentleman told me that since he started handing out his new cards, a much higher percentage of people who contact him convert into clients. If you are a web designer, you may want to give this idea a try. If you do, please let me know how it turns out. Listen to the podcast on the go. Listen on Apple Podcasts Listen on Spotify Listen on Android Listen on Stitcher Listen on iHeartRadio Contact me I would love to hear from you. You can send me questions and feedback using my feedback form. Follow me on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram I want to help you. Running a graphic design or web design business all by yourself isn't easy. If there are any struggles you face running your design business, please reach out to me. I'll do my best to help you by addressing your issues in a future blog post or podcast episode here at Resourceful Designer. You can reach me at [email protected]

Are you freelancing as a side gig? I created Resourceful Designer to help designers run their full-time home-based design business. However, a large number of you are not full-time freelancers. Many of you have another job and freelance as a side gig. Maybe you work for a design agency, or you're an in-house designer dreaming of going at it alone. Perhaps you're like Jose, one of my listeners. Josee is a full-time firefighter with a spark for creativity. He started by designing posters and things for his fire hall. When his coworkers saw how good he was, they started hiring him to create stuff for them. Eventually, word spread and now Josee runs a part-time design business on the side but has no intentions of leaving the fire service. You might be a student, taking on a few side projects to earn some extra spending money while still in school learning the trade. Or you could be a student exploring your options for after you graduate. Maybe you haven't started any side hustle yet. You are reading this because the idea of working for yourself appeals to you. It's something you would like to do shortly or maybe far down the road, but you're not there yet. Regardless of your situation, know that many designers are in the same boat as you. To help you along, here are four things you need to take into consideration when freelancing as a side gig. 1) Time Management. When you're running your own business full-time, you are in complete control of your schedule; you have 24 hours every day to divide up how you see fit. If there's a networking event at 10 am on Thursday you want to attend, no problem, work your schedule around it. If the forecast calls for rain later today and the lawn needs mowing, do it now and put in an extra hour tonight if you need to. If you're burning the midnight oil to complete a project, no worries, you can make up for it by sleeping in a bit tomorrow. When running your own full-time design business, your schedule can be as flexible as you need it. However, when you have a full-time or part-time job, and you're running your design business as a side gig, it diminished that flexibility drastically. You will have fewer hours in your day to devote to your side gig. That may translate into sacrificing leisure time or sleep, especially when you have deadlines to meet. Clients don't care if you run your business full or part-time, as long as they get their job when they need it. To meet those deadlines, you may have to give up relaxation time or time with family and friends. It's not that bad if you're single, but if you have a significant other or children, your partner or kids won't like playing second string to your design work. Figuring out how you are going to manage your time is crucial if you are freelancing on the side. 2) The scope of the design projects you take on. One solution to the above mentioned time management issue is the scope of the projects you take on. If your design time is a couple of hours in the evenings and a few on the weekends, you might want to avoid taking on any large projects with tight deadlines. Running a part-time, some may even call it casual-time side gig requires you to know your limits. How much time do you have, or better yet, how much time don't you have to devote to design projects? Sure you can hire help with big jobs, but doing so requires time devoted to overseeing the parts of the project you hand off. Sometimes it's not worth the stress of taking them on. 3) Extra income from your side gig. One of the biggest fears holding designers back from becoming full-time entrepreneurs is the uncertainty of income. There are no guarantees of income when you are working for yourself. And giving up a steady paycheck is scary. One mistake people often make is thinking "Once my side gig income equals my current job's income I'll be ready to quit my job and work full-time for myself." This scenario is fine, as long as you don't spend any of the money you earn from your side gig. If you put it all into savings and continue to live off your regular paycheck, you should be fine. When you decide it's time to leap, you'll have a nice financial cushion to hold you over during the transition period. The mistake people often make, is in using their side gig income as extra income alongside their regular paycheque. If you make $25,000 per year in your day job, and you work up your side gig to the point where you are making $25,000 per year there as well, you are actually making $50,000 per year. When you quit your day job, you are cutting your income in half. That can come as quite a blow, especially if you've grown used to having that extra income. I'm not saying you shouldn't use or spend your side gig income. I want you to be aware that if your goal is to build up your side gig until it can replace your new full-time job, be aware of the consequences before quitting. 4) Conflict of interests If you are working for a design agency, studio, a commercial printer, or any oth

Design Contract Failure In this week's episode of Resourceful Designer, I share a case study where a poorly written design contract cost a web designer her fee for the client site she built. Be sure to listen to the podcast for the full story as I go into much more detail in the episode than I will here. Earlier this week a long-standing client of mine called about a bind she was in. Convinced by a friend that she could save money by using Wix for her new website, she hired someone inexpensive in the Wix Arena to build it for her. Not liking the completed site and confused about the terms and jargon the Wix designer was using my client swallowed her pride decided to call me, her old web designer for help. What I discovered was a very poorly designed website and a bunch of inaccuracies in the correspondence between the "designer" and the client. Such as the "designer" offering SEO Search Engineering Optimization and a free CSS Security Certificate for the website. Or the "designer" saying the client would have to pay extra if she wanted the website to be mobile friendly. (who doesn't design websites to be mobile friendly in 2018?) The "designer" also offered to set up a Wix account for my client FREE OF CHARGE. All my client had to pay was the annual hosting fee of $299US. The strange thing is the account she was going to set up for my client is priced at $120US per year on Wix's website. After a quick perusal, I determined that the person my client hired may have been a Wix site builder, but they were definitely not a designer, and there were too many red flags in their correspondence for my liking. My client asked me if there was any way she could get out of the deal she made, so I took a look at the contract she had signed. That's when I spotted a big failure in the design contract. Here's how it was written. Investment for the website design: $800.00* *(300.00 ahead + 200.00 on publishing and 300.00 30 days after publishing).If our company does not make your website, we will refund it completely.If you do not pay for the total amount the website will be out of work. In case of cancellation after starting service, there is no refund for the ahead payment of 300.00) As per the contract, my client had given the "designer" a $300 deposit before the start of the website. But from what I was reading, that was the only amount my client had to pay if she decided not to continue with this "designer". The contract clearly states the next payment of $200 is due upon publishing of the website, which never happened. The last line of the contract's payment clause indicates that "In case of cancellation after starting service, there is no refund for the ahead payment of 300.00". Technically, regardless of what stage the website was currently at fell within the parameters of "cancellation after starting service". Meaning my client could cancel their agreement at any time and all she would lose is her initial $300 deposit. My client informed the "designer" that she would not be continuing with her services and thanked her for the work she had done. Crisis averted (minus a $300 learning lesson). So why am I telling you this story? A contract is meant to protect all signing parties. In this case, it didn't protect the "designer". All she would have needed is to include something to the effect of "...and payment will be due for any work completed up to the time of cancellation." added to the end of the paragraph. With that simple sentence, she could have demanded full payment for the website she had completed for the client. Take the time to read over your contract and make sure it's written in a way that it protects you as much as it protects your client. I feel bad for the "designer" because she did complete the work. But in this case, I was looking out for my client and took advantage of this design contract failure. I have a new website project. In case you are wondering, yes, I'm now designing the website for my client. She tells me she shouldn't have listened to her friend and she should have just hired me in the first place. She tried to save a bit of money, and it ended up costing her $300. I feel bad for what she went through, so I'm designing her site for the same $800 the Wix "designer" quoted her. It's much lower than my standard minimum website fee, but sometimes you do what you can to help people out. However, I will not be using Wix. I'll be building her website on WordPress using the Divi Theme and hosting it on my servers. When was the last time you verified your contract? Don't let design contract failure affect you. Let me know your contract stories by leaving a comment for this episode. Questions of the Week Submit your question to be featured in a future episode of the podcast by visiting the feedback page. This week's question comes from Jordan Do you charge for the time it takes a file to load/save/render/process? I'm curious how others handle this. I'm currently working on a massive project that take

How do you motivate yourself to avoid burnout? Running a home-based design business is stressful work. It takes motivation and dedication to avoid burnout. But what do you do when that motivation and dedication is waning? As a solopreneur, you are probably a very busy person. You're either spending a good amount of your time trying to get new clients or spending it trying to please the clients you have. Probably a bit of both. But doing it all by yourself can take a lot out of you. Having a team to pick up some of the slack can help, but not for everything. Face it. You embrace the freelance lifestyle because you want to be your own boss, to make your own rules and do things your way. That's one of the best things about being a home-based designer. You're in charge, and you get to decide how things work. But being in charge and doing everything yourself can become overbearing at times. Especially when your business is busy, and you are feeling overwhelmed and stressed. I want to share 8 Tips with you to help you avoid burnout and motivate yourself to keep going, even when things get tough. Please listen to this podcast episode. In it, I dive deeper into each of the following tips more than I do in this article. 1) Find Inspiration. Without inspiration, your creativity will stagnate and fizzle out. Look for things around you that will rejuvenate your creative juices. Make time to do things that get you excited. Visit a museum. Try a new recipe. Take a course and learn something new. Talk to a coach or mentor if you have one. Watch or listen to YouTube videos, Podcasts or TED Talks that motivate you. Whatever source of motivation you choose, make the time for yourself and do something that energises and excites you and helps you move forward reinvigorated. 2) Relax and Recharge. If you are a "go, go, go" kind of person, you need to learn to slow down and take some time to relax every once and a while. Take a few hours, or better yet a day or more and forget about your business, your clients and ongoing design projects. They'll still be there when you get back, ready for you to pick up where you left off. Turn off your computer and your phone. Disconnect from your email and social media and all the other anchors tying you to your business and do something calming. Read a book, take a walk, spend time with friends and family, anything to take your mind off work, even if it's just for a little while. If you don't take regular breaks to relax and recharge, you'll end up hitting a wall and feeling crushed by the weight of everything on your shoulders. You need some "Me Time" to avoid burnout. Separate yourself from the stress of your business and take the time to enjoy the life you are working so hard to have. 3) Appreciate your accomplishments. Sometimes, when you are working for yourself trying to get by day by day, it's easy to forget everything you've done to get to where you are. Take some time to appreciate everything you've accomplished in reaching where you are and feel gratitude for those who have helped you get here. Appreciating applies to both the big and the small. Think about everything you've done since you began your journey as a designer. What and who motivated and helped get to where you are today. But also think about the little things that have happened recently to help you get to here and now. Such as the small tasks and to-dos that you've checked off in the last few days. All of it plays a part in how you ended up where you are right now and deserves to be acknowledged and appreciated. 4) Look at the big picture. Take a few minutes to review the goals you set out for yourself and your business. Examine and reassess what is still important and what isn't. Are your goals still relevant? If you want to change your trajectory, now's the time to adjust your goals accordingly. Revisiting your goals will help you focus on what is essential for yourself and your business and allow you to realign yourself for better future success. 5) Stop doing everything. One of the problems with being a solopreneur is the overwhelming feeling that you need to please everyone and need to do everything. Learn how to say no. Especially if what you are being asked to do doesn't align with the goals you set out for your business. You can't do a good job when you are trying to do everything, so stop spreading yourself too thin and learn to become selective of which projects and clients you take on. 6) Audit your client ROI. Before you get to the point of feeling unmotivated and are on the cusp of burning out you should run an ROI (Return On Investment) audit on your business and get rid of anything that doesn't fit with your goals. Examine which clients and which projects are the ones you enjoy the most and are bringing in the most money. Spend your energy focusing on them. For the clients and projects you don't enjoy or are giving you the least ROI on your time, try raising your prices to bring them in line and make the

How much should you charge for your design services? How many times have you asked yourself that question? It doesn't matter if you are new to the design life or a veteran designer, that nagging question is always around. How much should you charge for your design services? There are many things to take into consideration when you ask yourself that question. Such as what pricing strategy you want to use for your design business. But regardless of which approach you choose, be it charging by the hour, by the project, or based on value, you still need to figure out how much to charge for your services. But where do you start? How do you know if you should charge $20 an hour, $50 an hour or $100 an hour? For project-based pricing, do you charge $500, $5,000 or $50,000 for a website? Figuring out how much to charge can get confusing. I'm going to share one way for you to look at things that may help you calculate what you should be charging as well as help you figure out what type of clients you should be going after. Look for the sweet spot The trick to figuring out how much you should be charging for your design services is to find that sweet spot between how much you charge your clients and how many clients you need to sustain the lifestyle you want to live. The first step is to figure out how much money you want to make annually as a designer. You could pick a number at random and say you want to make $30,000 a year, or $80,000 or even $200,000. Or you can try calculating your business and personal expenses, including savings plus money for leisure things, and come up with an annual salary to cover that number. Regardless of how you come up with the annual amount you want to make, once you know it, it's time to look at your design rate versus your workload. For example, let's say you want to make $48,000 per year. $48,000 per year is $4,000 per month or $1,000 per week (based on four weeks per month. The extra days are your vacation days). At a regular 40 hour per week 9-5 job, your wage would be $25 per hour to achieve this. But as a home-based designer, you are not working a 40 hour per week 9-5 job. Chances are you are not working 40 billable hours per week either. You may be working 40 or more hours per week, but they are probably not all billable. To figure out how much to charge your clients and how many clients you need to take on, we have to do some calculations. There are several ways for you to make $4,000 per month such as. 1 client that pays you $4000/month 2 clients that pay you $2000/month 4 clients that pay you $1000/month 8 clients that pay you $500/month 16 clients that pay you $250/month 20 clients that pay you $200/month 40 clients that pay you $100/month Every one of these bullet points will earn you $4,000 per month. But if you imagine them like a bell curve, you will find a sweet spot somewhere in the middle that will be much easier to attain and maintain. That sweet spot is where you have the right number of clients paying you the right amount of money to earn your desired monthly income. While at the same time having a number of clients that is sustainable. Let's look at those numbers again. One $4,000 client each month. Finding one client every month that will pay you $4000 may prove difficult for some designers. It will take a lot of work to acquire and onboard a new $4000 client every month. Not to mention that $4000 clients will demand a lot of you which could be stressful for you. Failing to sign a new client every month could leave you financially strapped. Forty $100 clients each month. At the other end of the scale, procuring forty $100 clients every month will also be very difficult and stress-inducing. You will need to spend a lot of your unbillable time trying to acquire 40 clients each month. Then, after onboarding all of these clients, you still need to find the time to produce 40 pieces of design work that month. That's 2 completed design pieces per business day. Not to mention, lower paying clients are usually the most demanding clients. Sounds like a nightmare to deal with, doesn't it? Your work will probably suffer because of the high workload, and there is a good chance of burnout on your part. You couldn't sustain this for very long. Finding the sweet spot. Somewhere in the middle of this bell curve is the sweet spot where you get a good amount of money per client. The task of finding new clients isn't as difficult, and managing your client list and completing the design projects is easily doable. Looking again at the bullet points above, It will take a lot less effort to land eight $500 clients or ten $400 clients every month than it does to find one high paying client or forty low paying clients. With eight to twelve clients you should have the time to properly interview them, do your discovery, come up with ideas and complete their design projects without overstressing yourself. You'll also be producing better quality design work because you will have the proper

Failure Is Always An Option I love that line "Failure is always and options". I first saw it on a T-Shirt worn by Adam Savage of Mythbusters. In his case, it applied to science and engineering, but it applies just as easily to the world of design. Failure is what lets us learn. Failure allows us to improve, to expand, and to grow. If you fail badly enough at something, you probably won't repeat the same mistake. In your case as a designer, when I say failure, I'm talking about your designs being rejected by clients. That excellent logo design you created that wasn't accepted by your client, no matter how hard you worked on it or how much you loved it. Or that cutting edge poster you did that was "too wild" for the event it was promoting. The designs may have been great in your mind, but they were still rejected, making them failures. Who knows why? Maybe the client has different tastes than you do. Perhaps the market isn't ready for your innovative approach. Or, and I'm just putting this out there as a possibility, maybe your idea stank. Whatever the reason, your design failed. In researching this podcast episode, I looked up some famous quotes on failure. Here are some great ones that could apply to designers. Failure is simply the opportunity to begin again, this time more intelligently. – Henry Ford You have to be able to accept failure to get better. – LeBron James One of my favourite ones is from Winston Churchill who said Success consists of going from failure to failure without loss of enthusiasm. – Winston Churchill As a designer, you can't let rejections get you down. And yet I see it all the time in design communities. Designers mopping because a client didn't like their idea. It happens, don't fret on it. Pick yourself up and get back at it and try again. Think of your draft process when you're designing something. Chances are you don't just come up with one idea and present it to your client. If you do, then I think I found the reason why clients are rejecting your designs. If you're like most designers, you go through dozens if not hundreds of ideas and incarnations of those ideas before settling on a design you think is presentable to your client. If you look at those earlier design drafts, most of them are very poor compared to the presented version. Each one of those earlier drafts was a failure that led to improvements. Those failures allowed you to progress to the next version or next idea which was an improvement over the last one. When a client rejects one of your designs, you shouldn't look at it as a failure. Instead, see it as one more step in the process. Maybe you showed it too soon. Maybe there are more variations to explore or refinements to make. Perhaps you hadn't stretched your creativity enough to come up with the next, even better idea. It's all part of the creative process, and you shouldn't view it as a failure. Doing so is not productive. If a client turning down your design pushes you to create something even better, then nobody will remember your previous unsuccessful tries. Don't get attached to your designs. The trick to getting past failure as a creative is not to become overly attached to your ideas and concepts. I know, it's tough. You work hard to create something that you think is amazing. Something you know will blow the client's socks off. And then you're shocked when it doesn't. You feel defeated because, in your mind, it was the perfect design. That's the problem. When you become so enamoured with your design that it blocks your creativity and prevents you from improving your idea. You'll never progress as a designer if you allow that to happen. Don't get me wrong. Being proud of your work is ok. But those great pieces you create are still just stepping stones to even better ideas yet to come. If you want to be a successful designer you need to learn to brush off rejections. Use the failure as a learning experience to improve your skills and abilities and become a better designer. One more thing. Just because a client rejects, a design doesn't mean it's a bad design. If you like it, put it aside and recycle it in the future if there's ever use for it. Maybe, after time you'll start to see the flaws in it you couldn't see before. Or, if it still holds up, you can adjust it and present it to another client who will appreciate it. Remember that design is subjective. Not everyone has the same idea of what looks good and what doesn't. When you present something to a client, no matter what you think of the design, the client has the final say and failure is always an option. What stories about failure do you have? Share your stories about design fails you've had by leaving a comment for this episode. Questions of the Week Submit your question to be featured in a future episode of the podcast by visiting the feedback page. This week's question comes from Mark What is your policy on sharing the source files with your clients? Some years ago I created a series of packa

How to politely turn away clients Are you afraid to be stuck with a client from hell? If so, knowing how to turn away clients politely is a skill you better learn. In the last episode of the Resourceful Designer podcast, I shared 12 red flags for spotting bad design clients. You should be familiar with them before continuing to read. Unfortunately, spotting a bad client is only half the battle. The next hurdle is turning them away. I go into much more detail in the podcast. For the full story be sure to listen. But what if you're wrong about a client? They may have raised one or more red flags, but that doesn't mean they wouldn't have turned out to be a great client after all. Just in case you have the opportunity to work with them again someday, you need to turn away clients in a way that doesn't burn any bridges. Script templates you can use to turn away clients. Feel free to copy, use and reword these script templates whenever you need to turn away clients. Just be sure that your final draft is as polite as possible and that you don't insult the client. After all, you never know what the future holds. Clients you want to avoid. In most cases, this first script will be all you need. From the red flags I shared in the last episode, this one covers clients with a bad reputation, clients with inconsistent communications, clients who complain about previous designers, those who flirt with you and clients who for whatever reason, give you a bad feeling. All of these fall under clients you want to avoid. The best way to avoid going any further with them is to send them a message like this. Dear (client's name) Thank you for considering me (or your business name) for your (insert kind of design project here). It sounds like an exciting project. Regrettably, due to my current workload, I am not taking on any new projects at the moment. Thanks again for considering me (or your business name). I wish you success with your (insert project name). Regards, (insert your name) That's it. That's all you need to say. Politely tell the client you are unable to take on new projects at this time and you wish them the best. No other excuses or explanations are required. If the client asks when you will be available for new projects, tell them your work calendar is full for the foreseeable future. Client rudely challenges your fee. Challenging your fee is expected. It's called negotiation. However, when a client starts to get rude or obnoxious about it, you need to remove yourself from the situation with a message like this one. Dear (client's name) Thank you for considering me (or your business name) for your (insert kind of design project here). I know my (fee/rate/price) is not for everyone. I've spent many years developing my craft as a designer, and I've positioned my fees to reflect the level of service I provide to my clients. I understand you are looking for something in a lower price range. Perhaps you can contact (insert list of designers who may take on the project). I believe (he, she or they) may be able to help you where I cannot. I wish you success with your (insert project name) Regards, (insert your name) If you don't want to provide a name or list of designers, you could switch paragraph three to this. I understand you are looking for something in a lower price range. I believe you would be better served by a designer whose services are not as involved as mine are. This paragraph reaffirms that your prices are higher for a reason. Should the client not be satisfied with another designer they may return and accept your higher rates. A client wants you on call 24/7 or to micromanage you. This client still has potential. If you don't want to work with them, you can use the first script above. However, if you wish to try and save this client but curb their overbearing ways, you may want to try something like this. Dear (client's name) Thank you for considering me (or your business name) for your (insert kind of design project here). It sounds like an interesting project that I would love to work on with you. Before we get started I'd like to share how I operate. My business hours are (insert your working hours). I expect all communications between us to be via email or phone during my business hours. All correspondence regarding your design project is to be by email. Email documents our communications, so we each have a record of what we discussed in case we need to refer to it in the future. I will try to respond to email promptly. I am reachable by phone during my business hours. However, I do not accept any project changes, updates or approvals over the phone. Any changes or approvals must be sent by email. If you would like to move forward with this project let me know and I will forward you my contract. Thanks again for considering me (insert client's name) as your designer. Warmly, (insert your name) Include other vital points such as how often you provide updates or how many revisions you allow. Stating th

12 Red Flags For Spotting Bad Design Clients Bad Design Clients can ruin a business and destroy your love of design. Luckily there are certain Red Flags to help you spot bad clients before things go too far. In past episodes of the Resourceful Designer podcast, I talked about reasons for passing on design projects from both existing clients as well as from new clients. This time I focus on the clients themselves, specifically bad clients you want to avoid. Maybe you're just starting out, or perhaps you're a struggling designer, and the thought of turning away clients is entirely foreign to you. Not to mention that telling clients you can't or won't help them is not only uncomfortable, but it goes against human nature to want to please people. Plus there's the fear that turning a client away may backfire and you may lose future opportunities. These are all real fears. But to run a successful design business, and also be happy in the work you are doing, there will be times when passing on a client is the right thing to do. Not every client out there is a good fit for you and some you plain don't want as a client. In the years I've been running my business I've had a few clients I wish I had turned away at the start. Not every client out there is right for you and some you just plain don't want to work with. By being selective in your client selection you are not only helping yourself, but you are also helping the client who deserves to work with someone who is better suited to serve them. So how do you spot the red flags letting you know when you should pass on a client? Start by studying the client Before you can decide whether or not to accept a new client, you need to try and get a feel for what it will be like working with them. Only then will you know if you want to invest your time in building a relationship with them. Start by asking the client about themselves and their business before ever asking about their project. Get to know them a bit first. Once you start discussing the project make sure you ask them what it is they expect from you as a designer. Not just the designs deliverables you will be providing, but what experience do they expect from working with you. Through your initial conversation, you should get a small feel for what it would be like working with the client. Over time you'll develop the ability to quickly feel out potential clients to decide whether or not you want to work with them. One thing you could do is hold off agreeing to a project on the initial call or meeting. Always offer to send a proposal to the client outlining your discussion before taking on their project. You will accomplish two things by doing this; It will give you time to think about the client and research them if needed. Should you not spot any red flags and start working with the client only to discover later they are a bad client; you will have the initial proposal in writing to fall back on in case of any disputes. 12 Red Flags to watch for to spot a bad client. 1. The client has a bad reputation. You might be unfamiliar with the client, but that doesn't mean you can't do some research before agreeing to work with them. A quick Google search of their name or business can turn up all sorts of red flags with information that may help you make a decision. If you know of anyone the client has worked with before, contact them and ask how it was to work with the client. 2. Inconsistent communication. Clients who contact you in a rush to have something designed but then take forever to give you details or to respond to a proof. Or clients who harass you looking for quotes or proposals but don't respond to you when you follow up afterwards. These are red flags that can help you see how communications will go during the project phase. Inconsistent communication while working on a project can be a real pain. Spotting this red flag early could save you a lot of headaches. 3. The client rudely challenges your fee. It's normal for a client to question your price, as long as they do it in a professional manner "that's more than I was expecting to pay, my budget was closer to X." What isn't right if when a client rudely scoffs at your prices and replies with "who do you think you are charging this much?" or "you're working from home without any overhead, you can give me a better price than this" or "this price is ridiculous, I can get the same thing done much cheaper elsewhere". Scenarios similar to these are akin to bullying. Any client that starts off the relationship this way isn't work keeping. 4. A client expects you to be on call 24/7. Some clients expect daily progress updates or to be shown every step of the design process. Some want to be able to communicate with you at any hour of the day. Some clients may expect super fast turnarounds, or for you to be "on call" at the drop of a hat whenever they need you. There are also the clients that will send you an email, then a text telling you they sent you an email an

When clients view design as an investment, you win. Whether or not a potential client decides to work with you relies heavily on your pitch to them. If they like the presentation but view the cost of hiring you as an expense, they may choose to look for more affordable options. However, if they consider the cost of hiring you as an investment, there's a good chance they'll decide to work with you. Not promoting the investment opportunity is a critical factor that holds so many designers back from charging what they are truly worth. One of the most significant concerns over raising design rates is that clients can get design work done cheaper elsewhere. Yes, it's true, but only for clients who view design as an expense. Something to shop around for the best deal. For clients who see design as an investment, the price isn't usually an issue. Nurturing an investment mentality in your clients. How can you get clients to view design as an investment? Change how you make your pitch to them, and it will make a difference in your proposal success rate. It all comes down to semantics. When you tell a client their new website will cost them $8000, they hear the price and imagine it as an expense they need to justify. They may feel reluctant to move forward and may want to shop around for a better deal. However, if you explain to a client that by working with you they receive much more than just a website, they receive a strategic partner that focuses on their business success, the same $8000 suddenly becomes an investment in the future of their business. If you can get a client to think about the return they will receive after paying your fee; they will be much more inclined to work with you. The trick is to expand beyond the receivables you are providing the client and explaining what they can accomplish with those receivables. A well-designed logo can bring them better exposure and brand recognition and make them stand out amongst their competition. A well-designed website can generate more traffic, get them a better market share, help them monitor trends and visitors through analytics and increase their conversions. When you explain what the client gets beyond the designs, they are much more inclined to appreciate what you offer them and invest in you. You can even change the wording on your proposals from Total Cost or Total Price to read Total Investment. It's such a subtle shift, but if it clicks with a potential client, then that client becomes loyal to you. An investment is something people want to do, whereas an expense is something people try to avoid but know it's sometimes inevitable. If you can convince clients you are offering the first one, there's a good chance they hire you. I've talked in past episodes of Resourceful Designer about building client relationships and how you want them to see you as their strategic partner and not just a design supplier. Clients are much more willing to invest in a partner because they feel like they will get something out of it. What if the client still questions the price? If you present your proposal as an investment and the client still questions your price, you should try explaining it to them in business terms more familiar to them. If a client has a storefront, look at its location. Is it in a busy downtown area? Is it in a shopping centre? Ask them why did they choose that location instead of opening in a cheaper location on the outskirts of town. If the client runs a service based business and relies on their vehicle for work, ask them why they didn't choose an older model vehicle that would have cost them less money? The reason clients choose premium locations or newer vehicles is that they are thinking of them as investments and not merely an expense. Yes, you could argue that mortgages, leases and loans are expenses according to accounting practices. But they are investments when it comes to the success of the business. Store owners will pay more for a better location because of the exposure it gives them. Service businesses are willing to pay more for their vehicles because of the perception it instils in people who see them. The same should apply to design. Clients can get websites, logos, and marketing material designed cheaper than what you are offering. But if they genuinely want what is best for their business, they should be willing to invest more to get something that will impact their business beyond just the design, and that's where you come in. To paraphrase author and business leader Michael Hyatt. If a design seem cheap, dated or confusing, potential clients will think the business is cheap, dated or confusing. No business can afford to be percieved this way. The best way to avoid being viewed as cheap, dated or confusing is to hire a professional designer who will work closely with the business to ensure their success. That's where you come in. So if you are not already doing it. Change the way you pitch yourself to clients. Stop telling them

Do you focus on the Features or the Benefits of working with you? I love visiting graphic and web designers' websites. I love looking at their portfolio of projects to see the work they produce. But even more than looking at portfolios, I love studying how these designers promote themselves to potential clients. One of the things I've noticed while visiting these sites is the different focuses presented to visitors. Some focus heavily on the features and services they offer to clients, while other sites focus on the benefit a client receives from working with that particular design studio. After visiting hundreds, if not thousands of designer sites over the years, I've concluded that the ones most likely to convert visitors into clients are the ones who list the benefits. The ones who let potential clients know what's in it for them. Don't get me wrong. You should list your features and services on your website. Many clients are looking for a designer for one project and don't even realize that they offer other servicesas well. However, your features and services shouldn't be the primary focus of your message. They should be secondary to the benefits a client gets from deciding to work with you. Here's an example from a website that focuses mostly on the features they offer: Why work with us? Whether you need a website, an event poster, or to add graphics to your vehicle, we can create the designs that will direct your potential clients back to you. We create designs for you that are aesthetically pleasing, modern and relevant within your industry, with a simple and clear message. With creativity and clarity, we develope your branding through custom graphics that you and your customers will appreciate. We offer services in: The message goes on to list the features and services this design company offers. This is good information for the client to have. But It doesn't show the benefits for the client from choosing this company. Here's an example of a company focusing on benefits: We want to work with you. When you partner with (name redacted) to develop or expand your brand, you not only get a team of experienced designers and marketers who have helped hundreds of businesses just like yours excell. You get a team of devoted people whose focus is on your success. When you look good, we look good. Our aim in working with you is to develop a connection and learn everything we can about your business. This partnership will allow us to develop a personalized branding strategy that fits your budget. If you are ready to expand your business then so are we. Click here to set up a call to discuss your business and the services we can offer you. Do you see the difference? Sentences like "When you partner with..." or "You get a team of devoted people whose focus is on your success." or "Our aim in working with you is to develop a connection...". These all show a benefit to the client. It shows that the design company cares about their clients' success. It shows that choosing this company is choosing a partner in developing your brand and not just a supplier. This website did list their features and services on a secondary page reachable with a "Learn more" link for potential clients who want to know more about this company. Listing your features and services is a good idea. It helps expand who you are, and It does work in attracting clients. Visitors are interested in what it is you can offer them. But it should be secondary to your main message. When you focus on the benefits, you are reaching the client on a personal level, and that makes it much easier for the client to decide to work with you. Developing your message strategy When it comes to creating your marketing material; your website, brochures, advertising etc. you need to keep your target audiences' behaviour in mind. How will they react to the message you put in front of them? Is your message more knowledge-based, meaning it focuses on the features? Or is it emotion based, focusing on the benefits? Remember that clients want to know "what's in it for them?" If you can trigger an emotional response from a potential client, you are already most of the way there to winning them over. This subtle shift in how you word things can make a world of difference in the growth of your design business. Do you explain the benefits to your clients in your marketing material? Let me know by leaving a comment for this episode. Questions of the Week Submit your question to be featured in a future episode of the podcast by visiting the feedback page. This week's question comes from Stian My main focus is webdesign and development. So I will get loads of logins to FTP servers, web clients, web services, I even make new ones for my clients. And on top of this there is the contact information to each client. Do you have a tip to organize this ? Like a software where I can store passwords and usernames safe, and other client information. I am not looking for some sort of billing

Have you tried downselling to win over design clients? Building client relationships is one of, if not the most important thing you can do as a designer. One of the best ways to build relationships is by downselling to your design clients. In a previous episode of the Resourceful Designer podcast, I talked about Upselling to increase your design revenue. In it, I mentioned how upselling is an excellent way of delivering more value to your clients which in turn will make them think higher of you. Upselling is a great way to build relationships with your clients while also increasing your revenue. However, downselling is another great skill you should practice to not only build client relationships but to win over clients that otherwise would not have hired you in the first place. Downselling is vital in building your company's reputation. What is Downselling? Downselling is when you offer something of lesser value to win over a client. Usually, once the client has indicated, they won't be proceeding with your original proposal. For example, you could offer to build a smaller website for less money by eliminating some of the features a client requested. Downselling can also be used when you believe a client is asking for more than what they need or want something that is wrong for them and you counter with something of lesser value that suits them better. This is more of an ethical decision. Sure you can design what the client is asking for and charge them accordingly. But if you downsell them on a lesser idea because it's the right thing to do, they will realise you have saved them money and possibly misery, and they will become big fans of yours. For example, after looking at their content, you may suggest designing a more economical postcard or rack card instead of an expensive tri-fold brochure. Anything you do that helps the client achieve their objective and save them money will raise their impression of you and strengthen your relationship. When should you downsell? The best time to downsell is once you realise a client isn't going to move forward with what you are offering them. However, be careful of downselling too early. Sometimes a client simply needs more time or more convincing before agreeing to your initial proposal. But if there are indications that the client is not buying what you are offering them, then a downsell can work. How do you downsell? The best way to introduce a downsell is by acknowledging that your initial offer was too much for the client or that what the client is asking for is more than what they need. "James, I understand that my website proposal is more than what you budgeted for. How about we go over the scope of the job once more and see if there are any areas we can rework in order to cut costs." In this example, the client was rejecting a quote for an eCommerce website to sell their new product. The downsell is to offer them a simple site with a purchase button hooked up through PayPal, it accomplishes their objective at a more economical cost. When it's a case of the client wanting more than they need it could be something like: "Jennifer, I would love to design the souveneir program for your upcoming concert tour. You mentioned how expensive it is to put on this tour. May I suggest going with a saddle stiched program instead of having it perfect bound? Your fans will enjoy it just as much and it will save you a lot of money on the production costs." Clients like Jennifer will appreciate your honesty and realise that you have their best interest in mind and your not just viewing them as another source of income. What not to do when Downselling One thing you should never do when downsellng is just lowering your price. Dropping your price is not downselling, it's informing your client that you typically charge more for what you do than what you think you are worth. Trying to win over a client by dropping your prices will have the opposite effect to what you are trying to achieve. The client will always second guess your future dealings. If you can't offer an alternate product or service of lesser value that will still benefit the client, you are better off to let the client walk away. Other ways to downsell Sometimes budget or needs are not the issues. Sometimes it's the resistance of working with someone new for the first time. Downselling can help in these situations. When a client is showing hesitation because they don't know you or are unsure of your work, you can downsell your services by offering to take on a single part of a more massive project for them to get to know you better. "Charles, I understand how hard it can be to trust your entire marketing campaign to someone you just met. Here's a proposal, what if we start with just the post card design. If you like what I design for you then we can discuss the rest of the campaign." This "foot in the door" strategy is a great way to downsell a hesitant client and to build an excellent foundation for the relationsh

Nine Situations when you should say No to your clients. How does that old joke go? "Business would be so much easier if I didn't have to deal with clients." It's funny but unrealistic. Without clients, you wouldn't have a business. So thank you to all the design clients out there that keep designers like you and me in business. Yes, clients are great. However, some of them can be difficult to work with at times, and others, let's say they can be a real pain in the ASSumption that we'll bend over backwards to work with them. Sometimes one of the best skills you can have is knowing when to say NO to your clients. Having to say no to your clients can be very stressful. But sometimes the situation you find yourself in requires you to put your foot down and do just that. In episode 42 of Resourceful Designer, I discussed how it's OK to say NO to graphic design work. In that episode, I talked about how and why you should turn down design work or design clients. Here are nine situations where you should say no to your existing clients. 1) Scope Creep The dreaded scope creep. You've already agreed with your client on what a project entails, hopefully via a signed contract, but your client keeps trying to push things beyond what you initially discussed. A little bit of scope creep is expected, but you'll know when enough is enough and that's when you need to say no to your clients. Let them know the project is growing beyond what you initially agreed upon, and you either cannot accommodate their new demands, or you need to renegotiate the terms of the project. Clients will try to get whatever they can from you, but they will respect you when you say no. 2) The project is beyond your abilities When a client asks you to do something that is beyond your skillset, you can say no. There's no shame in showing your boundaries. In fact, the client may appreciate your honesty. In some situations, if what a client is asking is beyond your abilities you can still take on the project and have someone else work on it. In that case, you can say yes to them. However, sometimes what is asked of you is beyond your comfort zone, and you don't want anything to do with it. In those cases just say no. Your client won't think any less of you. 3) Difficulties with previous projects Some clients are difficult to work with. If at some point you decide that they are too much trouble you can choose to say no the next time they approach you with a project. Remember, "NO" is a complete sentence. It doesn't require an explanation. Simply saying "I'm sorry but I won't be able to take on that project" is good enough. 4) Negotiations Everyone likes a good bargain, and design clients are no exception. Some of them like to haggle for the best deal. Nip this in the bud right away and say no to your clients. Your fees are what they are because you deserve to be paid that much. Tell those clients you don't negotiate. 5) Micromanaging, or "Too many cooks." Some clients want to decide everything by committee, and that's their prerogative. However, you can demand to have only one point person that you deal with. When anyone else on their committee contacts you directly tell them no, you can't deal with them. If they need you to do something they have to go through the point person. Save yourself time and headaches by never dealing with committees without an assigned point person. 6) Impossible timelines There are times when it's just not possible to do what your client wants in the timeframe they want you to do it in. Maybe you're overloaded with work (good for you). Perhaps you're getting ready to go on vacation. Whatever the case, if you can't do something in the timeframe required, it's your job to say no right away. 7) It's not worth your time For all those jobs that you don't want to do there's nothing wrong with you just saying NO to them. Clients may ask you to design something mundane like an invoice or packing slip. Those things are boring and tedious, and you probably don't want to do them. If that's the case, just say no. Plus at the rates you should be charging for your services why would your client want to pay you for something just about anyone can do. 8) Bad design choices A client may ask you to do something with their project that you think it's a bad design idea. If this happens, tell them you think it's a bad idea, and you won't do it. Maybe it's filling up every bit of white space with copy, or making the logo bigger for no reason. Whatever they want you to do, let them know that it will affect their design in a negative way. If they insist you can say no, you won't do it. You'd be amazed that when you take a stand on design how all of a sudden clients will take you more seriously and listen to what you have to say. 9) Something compromises your Design Principals Similar to bad design choices when a client asks you to do something, but in this case, it's something that could ruin your reputation as a designer. Maybe they want you to us

You can't grow your design business if you rationalize the value of what you do. Most designers don't get paid what they're worth. The reason they don't is that they rationalize the value of the service they provide. What I mean by this is they try to justify why they are charging the price they do for their designs by itemizing what's involved in their creation process. A logo will cost this amount of dollars because it will take me X hours of research, and another Y hours of development and finalization. Since my hourly rate is Z, the cost of the logo is (X+Y) x Z Cost of design = hours invested X hourly rate. This formula works for many designers and they're happy with running their business this way. But the problem with this scenario is you're trading time for money. Yes, it's a tried and true method used across many industries. But it shouldn't be used for design. Or at least it shouldn't be the sole method of calculating what you charge your clients. How much you earn running your graphic design business should not be related to how many hours you put in. It should be connected to the value you provide. Face it; we live in a world where we assign a dollar amount to most services. A haircut costs this much. A cab ride downtown costs this much. Having your car serviced costs this much. But even simple things such as these have variations based on value. My daughter changed her hair colour recently. It's not the first time she's changed the colour, but this time she decided to go to a different salon. One that charges almost double what her usual salon does. Why? Because the man running the new salon has a reputation for excellence and the perceived value of the service he provides is worth that much more to those who go there. In the end, my daughter paid a much higher price for her new hair colour than she used to. She loves her new look and is getting compliments left and right so in her mind it was well worth it. It's a perceived value. The same scenario applies to cars. When you have a problem with your vehicle you can take it to a privately owned garage, maybe a national chain such as a Walmart garage or you can have it serviced at the dealership. From my experience, the dealership is always more expensive. But think of it from a value perspective. If you drive a Honda, who is more equipped and more knowledgeable about your car than the Honda dealership? That perceived value is why some people are willing to pay more to have their car serviced by the dealer. What does this have to do with your design business? The services you provide as a web designer or graphic designer are not commodities like haircuts or oil changes. There is no one price fits all. Or at least there shouldn't be. A logo for a local bricklayer should not cost the same as one for a regional airline because they bring different values to each client. The representation the logo brings to each client affects them each differently. You may design a great logo for the bricklayer but what's he going to do with it? Stick it on the side of his truck and his business cards. That may be it. Most of his work will come via word of mouth referrals and through contractors. What his logo looks like may not have that much impact on his business. The airline, on the other hand, is going to showcase their logo on everything to bring awareness to their business. It will be on their planes, their building, their uniforms, their tickets, even on the cups and napkins they serve on their planes. And that's not counting the vast marketing campaign they will use it on. Their logo will be displayed everywhere, and over time the logo you designed will come to represent an excellent, reliable airline, that offers quality flights with courteous, friendly staff. For that reason alone the airline's logo should cost way more than the bricklayer's logo. It doesn't matter that both logos took you the same amount of time to design. Their value is different. And yet many designers would still charge for both logos solely on the time they spent designing them. When you start trying to rationalize what it is you do by focusing on things like time and effort, you lower the value of the service you provide. This rationalization devalues what design is all about. Designing is all about vision. It's about emotional impact. Giving a visual voice to what the design represents. It's about problem-solving. Both the bricklayer and airline needed a logo, but the problem that logo is solving for each company is vastly different. Instead of rationalizing your pricing to your clients by explaining every little thing you are charging for, or how much time a project will take, you need to explain to your clients how they will benefit from your designs. How design is an investment and not just an expense. When done right and with proper focus, a well-implemented design can skyrocket a company's growth. When explained this way, a client will begin to see the value you bring. Will t