Being a Starving Graphic Artist Sucks

Graphic designers, web designers, design students and freelancers - thanks for visiting. This blog is a collection of my thoughts, ideas and observations concerning my almost 15 yr. career as a freelance graphic designer and creative director in the corporate world. It's my hope that by sharing these, you'll gain some honest, practical insights on how the industry really works and you'll avoid some of the nasty mistakes I made along the way.

If you dig what I am writing about and like the blog, please consider: joining the conversation and leave a comment or two, sharing the blog with other creative students/professionals out there, linking to this blog or picking up a resource on the products page if you're led to. Whatever you decide is totally up to you - I'd appreciate your help. Feel free to drop me a line with suggestions on what to write about, guest blogging or resources that you wish someone would develop for you. Thanks for stopping by, come back and visit soon - jeremy.

The deadliest person in the world to a creative freelancer

Man-eating alligators, poisonous snakes, and blood-thirsty bears--they all pale in comparison to the deadliest creature known to creative freelancers. It’s not scaly reptiles that freelancers should fear, it’s the dreaded in-house designer. They, more than a hungry alligator, can cause freelancers the most harm. Well, okay...an alligator can is something you should have a healthy respect for, but if you’re considering a project for a client that has an in-house designer or “creative” person, you need to be on your guard. 

Before we tackle why an in-house designer can cause a freelancer problems, I’d first like to share with you that I’ve been on both sides of this equation. I’ve been a freelancer working with clients who had in-house designers, and I’ve been the in-house marcom manager who worked with an outside creative agency (freelancers). I’d also point out to you that neither the freelancer, nor the in-house creative person, is right or wrong. They just have different objectives when it comes to the project, and these different objectives, coupled with their similar skill sets, and sometimes big egos, can cause a great deal of friction. 

For example, the freelancer’s objectives are to maximize the amount of revenue he makes, and at the same time reduce the amount of time, effort, and hassle he has to invest with the client. Yeah, I know, freelancing is more than making a profit. I am all about taking care of the client and broadening my creative horizons as well, but freelancing needs to be run as a business. Anyway, don’t send in hate mail. It’s not all about time and money, but freelancers need both to survive in business. 

Conversely, the in-house designer has a different agenda. She isn’t concerned with the freelancer’s time or money in the slightest. In fact, her objective is often to exhibit her expertise through the process by providing advice, creative direction, and guidance. She’s not looking to make the freelancer’s job both easy and successful. She’s looking after herself, and she wants to make sure her employer knows that she’s a valuable expert (even though a freelancer’s been brought in). At the very least, the in-house designer won’t let the freelancer get away for any shenanigans, e.g., over-billing, taking way too much time on a project, or using jargon meant to confuse the client. Beware of any of these approaches--especially when your client has an in-house designer. They will call you out. At worst, the in-house designer will actively try to sabotage the process in a selfish attempt to make the freelancer look bad, and them look good. Keep in mind that an in-house designer may feel some jealousy or may feel threatened by a freelance designer. 

In neither the freelancer nor the in-house designer’s case do I see someone at fault (unless one of them is secretly trying to undermine the other). For the most part, these are just two different creatives with naturally ulterior motives. 

From the freelancers point of view. I offer the following insider tips on working with clients who have in-house designers:

• Unless the in-house designer is the decision maker, avoid directly or solely replying, communicating or negotiating with them. Without being overly obvious, try to make your primary contact in the company the decision maker. If you email the in-house designer, always copy the decision maker.
• Avoid being overly friendly or rude with the in-house designer. Be respectful, kind, and professional. Keep your communications with them friendly, respectful, and concise. 
• Do not argue or get into a “pissing contest” with the in-house designer. If you have an issue with her/his feedback or communications towards you, speak to the decision maker. 
• In regard to creative direction, be flexible...at least a little bit. Inevitably, the in-house designer will want an opportunity to express their opinions about your project. They probably can’t wait to do it! Be respectful of their thoughts and opinions. 
• Before you send an invoice over, have a conversation with the decision maker. Let him know what will be in the invoice. Avoid overcharging, padding your time, or anything else that the in-house designer may call you out on. Charge for your time (you should always do this), but bill fairly. If you try to over charge the decision maker, the in-house designer is going to call you out. 
• Last, but most important. Have a conversation with the decision maker at the beginning of the process. Do this without the in-house designer being present. Explain to the decision maker how you work and what he/she can expect in terms of processes, revisions, etc. Be gentle, but get them to agree that while feedback (at least some) is welcome, you’ll be working on this project alone, rather than a collaborative effort with their in-house designer. Ask the decision maker if having you work on the project on your own...or even having you work on the project at all...will cause any friction with the other designer. As is true in so many other aspects of freelancing (pricing, deliverables, turnaround times, etc.) if you address and manage expectations before you begin working, you can avoid the majority of problems other freelancers right into. 

In closing, to say that I haven't met some great freelancers and in-house designers isn't true, and I don't advocate that you have a overwhelming distrust of the other party--just be careful when you're dealing with them. They probably have a different agenda than you do. 

Photoshopping Digital Images--Is Everything Fair Game?

Over the years, I’ve become comfortable manipulating all kinds of images in Photoshop. In fact, I few a couple of years I worked at a high-end large-format photo studio that charged an arm and a leg for photo editing. Like many of you, I can swap people’s heads around, remove objects, combine photos, move objects closer/further, clone in parts of the picture that are missing, and even match lighting and texture. But a photo editing story that was recently shared with me included some Photoshop work that I’ve never done before. Not that I couldn’t do the work--I wouldn’t.  

In a promotional email about their football game with South Carolina, LSU officials included a photo of high-energy fans at one of their football games. The students, painted faces, headbands and all, looked charged up enough to step out on to the football field themselves. It sounds pretty cool, doesn’t it? However, someone or some people responsible for handling the digital image, decided that the photo needed some editing because it contained references that would “offend other students.” No, one of the students in the photo wasn’t giving the camera “the bird,” another one wasn’t inappropriately grabbing a female fan, and there certainly wasn’t a trace of a derogatory gesture towards another race, creed, color, or religion. So what in the photo would have “offended other students”? The students were Christians, and they had crosses (about 4”H x 2”W) on their yellow and purple painted chests. 

I’ll steer clear of acting as the moral police in this post--perhaps it’s not my place to pass judgement, but I can’t help but wonder about three things:

1. If LSU was so concerned with offending students, were they concerned about offending the ones that were in the photo?
2. Did the designer(s) who Photoshopped the crosses out think that the students wouldn’t see it? Were they hoping they wouldn’t see it, or did they just have their head up their butt?
3. Would the symbols have been removed if they represented another religion? 

As designers, this brings up an interesting moral quandary: would you have Photoshopped out the crosses? Would you have taken out another religious symbol? Or would you have made your decision based on what religious symbol it was, and how you felt about the members of that religion?

Herb Vincent, a school spokesperson responded, “Only one of the students, who didn’t appreciate it, actually contacted us about it. So next time, we’ll choose a different photo.” The school plans to steer clear of photos with religious undertones. Good call, Herb and LSU, it's well after the fact, but a good call.

To their credit, the students in the photo aren’t angry with LSU, and they don’t want to cause any harm. “We love Christ; we love LSU. No, we don’t want anything.” What an odd response, considering the "sue happy" society we live in. The students' non-retaliatory attitude towards those that didn't exactly play them right is refreshing, mature, and a heck of a class act. Keep on cheering, guys. 

Think about it:

• Would you have a problem removing a religious symbol in a photograph you were going to share with the public?
• Would it matter what religious symbol it was?
• If a superior told you that you had to remove a religious symbol, would you do it?

Share your thoughts...I'd like to hear what you guys think. 

By the way, if you want to check out the original article, you'll find it here: http://tinyurl.com/9pvrsfe

Graphic Designers/Web Designers--How Do You Make Your Clients Feel

I passed by a run-down tuxedo shop on my way to visit a client yesterday. In faded, chipped window paint, it had a sign in the front that read “We’re your prom headquarters.” I wondered about that: really, this is where kids go for prom? I found that hard to believe. Anyway, I’ll talk more about this later. 

The shop, which was housed in a decrepit building, featured a parking lot that was in gross disrepair and shop windows that were so dirty that it was tough to see through them. To cap things off, the store plunked down cheesy-looking astroturf instead of grass, and they had a logo and brand name that is as old (maybe older) than I am. I remember this tuxedo shop when I was growing up, and it doesn’t look like they’ve done much to “get with the times” since then. The store, the logo, and the brand are dinosaurs. It was kind of sad. The store is so out of touch that I felt embarrassed for them--sort of like a fat, balding uncle that still thinks he’s cool, even though everyone else knows that he’s not. 

I know, you’re asking, “Who cares? What’s this got to do with graphic/web design freelancing?” Well, as I mentioned, the store claimed to be “your prom headquarters,” but I couldn’t help but wonder what high school student would want to get ready for his prom in a dingy, decrepit store like this. I wanted to walk into the store and declare, “You might have been prom headquarters in the 1950s, but you’re not now. This place is a dump.”

Prom’s a wonderfully exciting time for kids--it’s a time they want to feel great about themselves. For guys, in particular, they want to look cool and feel cool. However, there’s nothing about this store that’s cool. It’s a drab, boring stop on the way to something that will be cool (going to prom). It's like having to stop at a dirty, neglected gas station to fill up your car on the way to Disneyland. My ranting aside, the point is, the feeling people get during their purchasing experience is just as important as their result (at least in most cases). Sure, some high school kid could get a decent tux at this broken-down store, which is fine, but he’s missing out on a priceless experience and a memory of really enjoying himself while he’s picking out his tux. What, for example, if the store invested some money to modernize their look? Perhaps they could install widescreen tvs, a slamming sound system, offer free Red Bulls, and even hire attractive (hot) girls as salespeople. Could you imagine how many boys would visit the shop? How many of them do you think would tell their Facebook friends, “Dude, you’ve gotta go to this place. It’s unbelievable!” 

Think about this idea of customers/clients needing to get good results from working with you, but also feeling good throughout the process. Your clients don’t want to feel cool (well, maybe some of them do) the majority of them want to feel hope. They want to feel that working with you is going to bring in new and better customers, boost their confidence, and allow them to charge a premium for their products/services. As a designer, you have the power to help people turn their business around--to change how they feel, and their customers feel, about it. You might not have a store, like the tuxedo shop I’ve talked about, but everything about working with you should make your clients feel more confident and hopeful about their business. Providing exceptional design will help make you a success as a freelancer--providing exceptional design while making your clients feel like they can take on the world will make you a star. 

Graphic Designers, If You Don’t Design for Amway, Stop Hawking Their Products

To be fair, this article has nothing to do with Amway – please don’t come after me. Okay, now that’s out of the way, I’ll share something that happened to me recently (or at least recently when I wrote this). I hired a contractor, much like a client would hire you as a freelancer, to do a particular job. The guy had great reviews on Yelp, so I figured I’d give him a shot. He gave me a briefing of what he’d be doing (which is good), afterwards he casually mentioned that, “We’d better take care of business first.” 

“Oh, this means he wants to get paid,” is what I gathered, “That’s cool, it’s important that all contractors (freelancers included) make sure they get paid.” But to my surprise, instead of starting off with an invoice, he hands me an offer coupon for discounts on products and services that had nothing to do with his business. The offer/coupon required me to log on to a website and enter in personal information and a passcode. The contractor must have worked out some deal with this company (that I’d never heard of) in that he would get a kickback if someone used his passcode to buy something. 

“Uhh, what the hell is this?” I thought to myself. I hired this guy to do contract work and the first thing he does is try to get me to buy some crappy merchandise from some fly-by-night company so he can earn a few extra bucks on the side. I hired this guy to do a job, not sell me crap. Fortunately, while these thoughts ran through my mind, my mouth didn’t blurt out anything offensive. I took the coupon in stride, as most people probably would. However, just because I didn’t say something doesn’t mean that I wasn’t offended or that the contractor’s credibility didn’t take a major hit. I was mildly offended, and I wondered if I’d hired the guy by mistake. Well, to wrap this story up, the contractor didn’t mention the coupon again, which was wise. And, I have to say, he did a nice job. Having such an anti-climactic ending must have you thinking, “Who cares? The guy offended you but did a good job – so you were fine with it.” The truth is, I was fine with it: I paid the guy and was happy for his service, but because he felt it appropriate to hawk other products/services that were not related to his service, I did not feel comfortable referring him to friends or family. Yep, this guy probably lost out on two-five referrals because he thought it more important to try to make a few measly dollars by hawking cheesy merchandise from a company that couldn’t care less if he dropped dead. 

Takeaway lesson for freelancers: while you might think introducing your clients to other business ventures that you’ve gotten involved in: Amway, Avon, Juice Plus or some other venture, carefully consider that making a couple of measly dollars on commission might be costing you more than your credibility. Yeah, I know, some of these products and services might actually help your client – that’s not the point. Remember that your clients hire you for a specific reason: design. They don’t hire you to be their therapist, nutritional advisor, home organizer or anything else. If your good at design, and I bet you are – just stick to doing it.

The Graphic Design Freelancer Advice Mailbag: Managing Cheap Clients

Thanks to Gene in Ontario, Canada, for writing in, "Here's a question for you; however, please do not get the wrong impression, we have certain clients that cost us money, maybe not every time we do a job for them, but every few times we work for them , we lose money on the project. These clients are hagglers to begin with, so any profit we make on the first couple of jobs is typically lost on the third or fourth.  

I would like to be rid of these types of clients. Actually, we (my design production team and I) had this discussion today but exactly how to get rid of them stumped us. Would you have any suggestions?"

My Response:
Thanks for the opportunity to share some thoughts, Gene. I’ve had clients like this as well—they exist everywhere. Ultimately, you need to determine whether the client is just ignorant or cheap when it comes to haggling with you. 

For example, sometimes clients just don’t know the real value of your services. They are ignorant. While that sounds bad, it really isn’t. It’s your job to help to educate your clients about the value of their services. Please note that I used the word “value” instead of “cost.” All too often, clients are more concerned with how much something costs, rather than its value. I might get a cheap tire from a mechanic for $5 (instead of paying $85), but if that cheap $5 blows out while I am going 70mph on the highway, it doesn’t have a lot of value. Work with your clients on understanding the value of the services you provide. They might not be considering the great customer service, the quick turn-around, the wonderful creative ideas you come up with, the peace of mind knowing that you will do the job right, or the ability to reach you anytime, etc. I have a maintenance guy that helps me out once in a while around the house. He charges about $35/hr, but I always know that he’s going to be on-time, friendly, and fair…and I know his work is going to be good. His cost is $35/hr, but his value is a lot more to me. I am not interested in haggling with him or price shopping because I recognize that being able to rely on his honesty and expertise is far greater than what he charges me. I am more interested in value than price.  

Of course, there are going to be some clients that don’t see the value in what you do for them. They are not ignorant, they are cheap. These people aren’t looking for a good value; they just want a good price. They are often called “bottom feeders, ” and don’t care that their logo looks horrible or that they may have to call the designer eight times before they get a response (bad customer service), these clients only care about price. It has always been my experience that these types of clients are not worth having. Not only do these clients typically take up an incredible amount of energy, but they don’t see the value in paying for my time or experience. 

By the way, sales professionals will advise you that every time someone haggles for a cheaper price, you’ll want to reduce the value of your services—don’t give away stuff for free. For example, let’s say I’ve sent a client a contract to design a logo for $750, and she tries to haggle me down to $500. I would respond with something like this, “Thanks for the response, Sue. I appreciate you being honest with me about your design budget. The $750 is a great value for a logo design/corporate branding. Remember that package comes with up to five rounds of revisions. I’d really like to find a way to work within your budget, so we’ll just reduce the number of revision rounds to three instead of five, which will get us right where we need to be in terms of your budget. If I am able to do this, would you be ready to get started today?”

Interviewing for a Graphic Design Job - What Interviewers Are Looking for

What the %#@! are interviewers really looking for in an applicant? If you’re looking for your next job or gig right now, it’s one of the most perplexing questions imaginable. The truth is, there is no magic formula to get inside an interviewer’s head - interviewers, like people, are all different. That said, we recently brought on board a junior designer and I’d like to share with you reasons why some applicants weren’t chosen and others continued through the interview process. As a final caveat, I just want to remind you that this was our criteria and process, so please don’t take it as gospel (every interviewer is different). Instead, use the information below as a guide as you interview for a new job or gig.   

In looking at applicants, we had the following questions in the back of our heads (even though that hadn’t been formally written down):

• Can the applicant do the job?
• Does the applicant want the job?
• Is the applicant a good fit for the team?
• Can the applicant follow directions, listen and communicate effectively?
• Is the applicant likely to leave as soon as they have another opportunity?
• Does the applicant have the right skill set and experience for the position (will they need too much help or will they be bored?)

Some of the reasons candidates were not chosen:

• Poor grammar
• Didn’t follow instructions
• Were way too overconfident (came across pompous or arrogant)
• Didn’t appear all that interested in the position
• Portfolio didn’t match the style we were looking for. Some portfolios featured strange works of art that were at the least unprofessional and would not be appreciated by our clients, at worst, the artwork was kind of scary. 
• Didn’t listen during interview. We could tell they could hear us, but they weren’t listening - they were just waiting for their chance to talk
• Talked about other opportunities during the interview
• Had issues or possible complications with their schedule
• Didn’t have an online portfolio (this immediately disqualified people)
• TMI. Some applicants didn’t know when to turn their mouth off. They provided a little too much information. 
• Arrived late to interview, or said it was "hard finding the place." Note, never tell the interviewer that their business was hard to find. Do NOT complain about the traffic, weather or having to find the business. 
• Seemed way too desperate. Yes, letting interviewers know you want the job is a good approach - looking or sounding desperate is something you need to avoid.

These aspects didn’t disqualify an applicant, but they didn’t help:

• Emailed us at odd hours (this just looked odd)
• Demonstrated and showed passion for skills that were well beyond the scope of the job. For example, fine art, 3d modeling, CAD, sculpture, etc. These are wonderful talents to have, but it made us feel that the applicant might be bored in the position that was offered. It appeared that she/he was only applying for the position because they needed the money - not because they wanted the job. There’s nothing wrong with needing money, but we wanted someone whose artistic talents fit the position. The takeaway here is that if you have talents that go beyond the job you’re applying for, you’ll want to minimize them and focus on the talents that are directly applicable.  

Why we selected who we did

• Seemed honest and upfront
• Had basic skill set, and was willing to learn
• Pleasant personality that would fit in well with the rest of the team
• Humble. Could clearly tell the applicant was not a design diva
• Could clearly tell the applicant wanted the position
• Had a respectable online portfolio that sort of matched what we were looking for. From the applicant’s portfolio we could say, “Yes, we can see that this person can probably do what we’re looking for them to do.”
• Didn’t have a lot of artistic talents outside of what we were looking for. 

I hope these points have provided a little value to you. It's a tough market out there, so if you have any specific questions about your job search, feel free to leave a comment and I'll type out a response. Best wishes,guys. 

 

You know you’re a talented graphic designer when you can work with junk

300 dpi, high-resolution, vividly sharp photos, a library of vector images, the “go-ahead” to splurge on metallic spot colors, a four-page comprehensive report on exactly what the client wants and doesn’t want included in the project, and the client is allowing us to decide how much print space we’ll need to create our masterpiece – it’s a dream project, isn’t it? With a grin from ear to ear, we self-assuredly exclaim to the client, “I am going to create something really special for you!”

Just at that moment, the Marimba tone on the iPhone goes off – the 6:30AM alarm is ringing. It was just a dream – sort of. You still have the client and project to do (both are good), but the 300 dpi photos are actually 150 dpi, and some of them are out-of-focus, others have poor exposure. The four-page client information sheet is actually a few notes the client scribbled on the back of a napkin (in English, you’re guessing). The client is a on a shoe-string budget, so there will be no metallic spot colors, and you’ll need to keep the project to an 11”x17” bifold. You sigh to yourself, try your best to put on a smile, and know that you confidently say to the client, “I am going to create something really special for you!”

While it might be different for a few of you, most of us working as freelancers are not going to have ideal materials, instructions or budgets to create something wonderful. We still have to. If being in this position has left you dejected, I have good news for you.

There are always a handful of small business clients that only hire designers that work on high-end projects. These clients don’t care as much about price – they know what they want, and they pay for it. There aren’t a lot of the folks, are there? The rest of the clients out there desperately need help, don’t have huge budgets, aren’t sure what they want, and can’t provide you much in terms of graphics, photos etc. Herein lays your opportunity. These clients need designers that can work wonders with “junk.”

Whether you’re a freelancer or a designer working for a company, management loves resourcefulness and practicality. If you’re able to create a masterpiece out of little to nothing, if you’re able to select the right creative direction with little instruction, and you’re able to scrounge around and find/take high-res images that you can use in your project, you are (or will) be in demand.

Anyone (well, most talented designers) can create a top-shelf project when everything aligns perfectly, but how many can do it when they’re not given much to work with? Over the years, I’ve learned to be resourceful in creating projects. I’ve done this not because of some great talent, but out of necessity. I had to learn to work with little because my clients didn’t have extravagant budgets. Sure, I’ve harbored jealously towards artists that consistently get a $10,000 creative budget to complete their work (dirty rat bastards), but I’ve also learned to parlay my resourcefulness into getting both clients and jobs in a challenging economy.

If you’ve learned to work with nothing, or junk, make sure you bring this to light when talking to a potential client or employer. Tell people that you can, and have been, wonderfully successful, even when conditions aren't ideal. Remember, that everyone’s looking to save money, show explain to clients how you have a history of saving clients money (and still Turing out a terrific project). Next, and more importantly, give the prospective client or employer a GENERAL* idea of how you’ll be able to save them money. In this economy, everyone’s looking to save a buck. Show people how you’re able to do it, and still create some inspired work.

* - Avoid being too specific with your ideas, at least until you’ve formally been given the gig/job. Remember, the client or employer may end up taking your ideas and end up hiring someone else. Give them a small taste of what you can do to save them money, but save the really good stuff until you’ve started to get paid. 

Design is Going Right to the Dogs – How Freelancing Clients Can Act like Puppies

We adopted two puppies a few months back. Good dogs, but if you’ve ever had puppies before, you know what you’re in for. These little guys eat, scrap, poop and destroy anything that’s less than 20” from the ground. For you dogs lovers out there, yeah I know, they are just being puppies, but they are exhausting. Mercifully, they are starting to get better. They eat a little more now, but they scrap and destroy things a little less.

When I look back to when we first got the pups, we made a critical error in bringing them into our home: we didn’t set up clear boundaries. While I can’t say I was thrilled with them chewing a hole in the wall or digging up the carpet, the most frustrating things abut adopting the dogs was that we never felt like we had any time to ourselves – they followed us everywhere. We never got a moment of peace. Whose fault was all of this? Ours.

Let’s tie all of this back to freelancing – you aren’t reading this to learn about puppy training. Adopting puppies, at least in this example, is a lot like bringing a new client on board:

• They both need to be shown who is in charge (this has to be done gently and tactfully)
• They both need clear boundaries.
• They both need to be watched so they don’t chew on the carpet.

Okay, the last bullet might not apply to both – then again, it might (I've worked with some people that acted like they might eat their own carpet, I don't know). The point in all of this is that you have to establish clear boundaries, whether you are dealing with clients or puppies. If you don’t want phone to answer client phone calls at 5AM or 10PM, tell your clients upfront what your work hours are. If you aren’t willing or in a position to work overtime or weekends on a project, let the client know that as well. If you prefer the client doesn’t visit your office unannounced…well, you get the picture, right?

Whether were referring to puppies or clients, when “people” invade our personal space and personal time we often get upset – I know I do. But when I really look at why it happened, I often find that I did not effectively communicate where my boundaries were. For puppies, I’ve found baby gates work wonders; for clients, I would suggest discussing what you’re able to do for them in your initial meeting, and summarizing some of those boundaries in your contract. 

Load "*", 8,1. The C-64 is 30 yrs old this month. Wow. Nothing like paying $600 for 36kb of memory.

http://www.hlntv.com/article/2012/01/03/commodore-64-computer-30th-birthday?hpt=hp_bn13

Graphic Designer/Freelancing Tip: Not Telling Clients Your Prices

Been looking into getting a dog walker lately. Unfortunately, most of these folks we’ve looked into online do not list their prices. While price isn’t the only variable we’re considering, it is important. This is probably true with your freelancing clients. Seems like everyone is looking to save a few bucks nowadays.

Last week, we reached out to one vendor (hoping he would shed some light on what his services might cost). I emailed him a specific list of what services we'll need. Here was his reply:

"We will need to discuss your pets and their needs to accurately provide a quote because we work with each client to customize a plan based on those needs. We'll find out how many days per week you may need, if they may need walking, etc."

This isn’t a bad reply, but I was a little miffed that I still couldn’t even get a ballpark quote out of the guy. He seemed elusive. I wondered, “Why won’t this guy tell me his prices, is he hiding something?”

Shifting gears to your freelancing business, here’s how you might handle an email potential client who is looking for a price quote.

"Thanks for the email, Jeremy. If it’s okay with you, why I don’t I give you a call when it’s convenient for you, and we’ll talk about a couple of options that will save you some money? I want to make sure you get the best price possible. I would be available on Thursday or Friday, may I contact you between 9:00-11:00AM on either of these days?"

See the difference?

The dog walker talks about an “accurate quote” and a “customized plan”. As a potential client, I don’t care about either of those things.

However, in my example (the second example), you can see the reason why a specific quote wasn’t given was to help save the potential client money. Everyone cares about that.

Bottom line: 
There’s always going to be a debate about offering your prices to clients upfront versus holding off. I’ve discussed this elsewhere, so I’ll avoiding covering it here. The bottom line is, if you decide to hold off on talking about price, you need to explain to the potential client why you’re not telling them…AND tell them how not telling them upfront will benefit them. 

What do you think?