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MANY DESIGNERS ARE TOLD THEY NEED TO WORK FOR FREE TO BUILD THEIR CVs AND PORTFOLIOS. HERE ARE 10 TIPS FOR GETTING PAID WHAT YOU DESERVE.
- AN ARTICAL FROM CO-DESIGN -adjusted and added to by Lu Burnell (A version of this article originally appeared on Question Design.)
When you first step into the heady, mad, mad world of freelancing it's exciting, scary, breath taking and easy to fall into being taken advantage of for fear of losing call-backs, new clients and next month's rent.
The overarching business problem designers new to the freelance industry are mainly about how to get paid for things. Scared that its more important to build your CV rather than finding paid work. A notion that is wrongfully being accepted as normal practice today and can therefore seem like impossible situation to protect yourself from. Luckily here are 10 tips to help:
1. Get things in writing.
Get project scopes & briefs explained fully and make sure both you, your client and your client's client understand exactly what’s being undertaken by you. Things like: specific constraints, milestones, revisions, changes, pricing, timeframe, etc. Use a contract if possible, or at least get it all in email.
Contract samples:
2. No spec (speculative) work.
If you ever receive a brief that reads “We’re asking for examples from different firms/people” or “We’d like to see what ideas you have first,” politely explain to the client that you don’t work for free. You’ll run the risk of not getting paid otherwise or worse, the possibility that the client uses your work anyway. So you have no further input or chance to develop and enhance a design that was just a starter-block idea.
Go to NO!SPEC for more information.
THIS RULE AND THE NEXT ARE THE 2 MOST IMPORTANT IN PROTECTING YOURSELF FROM BEING SCREWED OVER.
3. Upfront payments.
Those who are not satisfied with your product could well not pay for your time even if they have all the output. 50% upfront, 50% at end of your project or a stage or 1/3, 1/3, 1/3, is standard practice. Anyone who doesn’t think that’s fair is going to treat you poorly with money and be very wary doing business with them. When I was a freelancer I had a middle man company, which meant, of course that they took a cut for providing me (I still got paid my going rate however) But they paid me whilst my client paid my agent so that I never missed a payment, which I felt was worth it. Most companies have to pay you within 31 days but if they lose your invoice or you are late submitting it, it will be 31 days from the time the invoice has been inputted into their system.
4. Never send final work before final money.
"End of project" means "once the client gives the okay, but before final work is sent." Don’t send a website live before you have the money, and don’t send vector/hi-res graphics files for print. Use your own hosting (mywebsite.com/projects/project_name), and send low-res/raster files.
5. Look for red flags. Run for the hills.
Look out for warning signals. A client who tells you they have design skills or experience or an "eye" can be trouble because he or she may not respect your ideas.
'Design by committee' is a group of people who must approve your work, rather than a single person. This can be troublesome because it can turn into a 'Too many cooks in the kitchen' situation.
Watch out for things like “this will look great in your portfolio." That generally means “we don’t want to pay you."
Also, in job listings, "Code ninja," "Design warrior," or other meaningless phrases tend to signal the person who wrote the listing doesn’t understand much about the topic and wants the reader to feel like their firm is hip and trendy.
Other notables, and their translations:
This will lead to paid work. -I don’t want to pay you, and I will have an excuse later as to why it didn’t lead to paid work.
It won’t take long. -I have no idea how long it should take, nor do I care; I just know that I want to pay for 10 minutes of work.
Feel free to just be creative. -I’m not sure what I want, but I’ll know it when I see it.
Let your creative juices flow. -I have no direction for you and want to see a billion styles for the price of one.
Think outside the box. -I’m under the illusion that “different” automatically means “better." Also, I was born in 1937 and haven’t updated my idioms.
To be honest here are a huge number of things that could fall under the “red flag” heading, and an entire list could be dedicated solely to it. Just be aware of anything that doesn't feel right or is ambiguous. Don’t turn away clients automatically, but also be look after your 'state' and don't put yourself in a position which could cause you headaches and be more trouble than they’re worth.
6. Avoid working for friends and family.
Money is a touchy subject with some people, and it isn’t worth ruining a relationship over work. If you’re going to work for friends or family, make the constraints all the more clear. If you give friends a great price because you know them, you might get bitten in the ass later and be asked to do more work than you than you expected. Also if you offer to do it for free, make sure they know your limitations regarding the amount of time and out put you are willing to give them so they don't take advantage. Many people outside the industry don't understand how long it can take to produce a good piece of work or make big amends, so be clear, open and most importantly honest - without being rude!
7. Pick your battles.
Something you’ll face a lot is the large disparity in clients with regard to creative control; some will give you too much freedom (open-ended, no direction), some not nearly enough (telling you exactly what they want designed). Don’t argue every time someone doesn’t like what you make. Err toward accommodating their wishes, but also explain your design decisions, they should respect you for listening to their comments but standing your ground and having good insight.
8. Be flexible and reflective with pricing.
Some people want something for nothing. Don’t work for them. Be fair with your pricing, but understand that in design, clients are not paying for labor and time, but for skill and the end-product. Try to glean what a client can pay, and make that part of your decision. You shouldn’t be charging a non-profit the same as a big company.
9. Learn.
Don’t be nervous about taking on things that you aren’t sure you can do, because you’ll figure it out, 'necessity is the mother of invention'. Try to imagine a giant web of every skill/profession and their interconnections. From your master skill, you will probably know a bit about all the skills that touch it. It will make your work better and a more rounded professional and you will definitely use your new skills again.
10. Reputation is everything.
Get good and relevant clients early on and you can choose your work down the road. Think of the kind of designer you want people to think of you as and be that.
Conclusion
There are inevitably going to be times that you’ll feel stuck between two bad choices: the appearance of a good opportunity, and not being paid (or being paid something that isn’t worth the cost). Learning to make the hard decision of sticking to your guns and swallowing the loss of potential work is invaluable, especially when you’re in business for yourself. People will hopefully respect your choice but more importantly, you'll respect yourself and your work by realising these behaviour choices.
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