“I’d love to discuss working with you, what should I do next?”
I like to meet my clients face-to-face if possible. This means I can find out all about you, your business and your creative needs. I’ll ask about the project, what you hope to achieve for your business, who the piece is aimed at and whether you have any existing marketing materials or brand identity it needs to fit with. Alternatively we can have a conversation over the phone if it’s difficult to meet up.
“How much will it cost?”
Some clients are happy to work on an hourly or daily rate basis (but not many). The best way for you is a fixed quote. After we’ve met or spoken about your job I’ll create a quote for the work we’ve discussed. This will be a fixed price quote based on the time I estimate the job will take. It will also take into account my experience and the value I believe I can add to your business. The quote will include amends and print or web build costs if necessary. I’ll clearly state how many rounds of amends are included. The only item that won’t be included is costs for images. It’s hard to know how many images I’ll need until I start a job, but I’ll always agree the costs for any stock library images with you before purchasing.
“Is that expensive?”
In our initial meeting, I’ll always try to ask if you have a budget in mind for the work. This doesn’t mean that I’ll just quote to that figure, but it’s useful to have an idea. It takes time to put costs together, so if it’s clear straight away that I don’t think your budget is enough for the work you need, then at least we can discuss at that point, rather than once you receive the quote. I quote honestly, based on estimated time and experience, but I’m always willing to discuss a quote. I’d much rather work with you and help your business than not … within reason. Being a small (but lovely) consultancy, with low overheads, I’m more often better value than some of the larger local agencies.
“I’m worried I won’t like what you produce.”
If you’ve come to me because you love the work in my portfolio, then I’m confident you’ll love what I produce for you. I won’t present the work to you until I’m happy with it. As long as I have a decent brief of your requirements (gleaned in our initial meeting) then I think the work will be effective. My friends over at Watertight Marketing have written a great piece that gives ‘10 Simple Steps to Writing a Marketing Brief’, which might be useful to you. I can’t remember a situation where a client hasn’t liked anything I’ve produced for them.
“Can you give me some ideas of what you might do before I commission you?”
‘No’ is the quick answer to this. As a member of the Design Business Association (DBA) I, along with its other members, have agreed not to take part in pitches which require unpaid work. The level of payment for design work should relate to the time and effort involved. (Point 7 of the DBA’s Recommended Code of Conduct). I provide a valuable service which, with a good creative brief, I believe you’ll love. After all, you wouldn’t take your car to a mechanic, ask them if they could do part of a service and then say that if you like what they’ve done, you’ll pay for the rest.
“What if I
need other services for my business such as marketing advice or copywriting?”
Whilst I handle mostly graphic design work, I have a number of trusted suppliers in my network that I can recommend for copywriting or marketing. Just ask and I’d be only too happy to give you their details. I also have good relationships with local photographers and illustrators, should you require bespoke photography or illustration.
“So, once
the work is complete, what happens next?”
Once the work is signed off by you, I’ll do the following:
Send it to print, let you see a proof if required, then print the full run once you’re happy. I can deliver to your home or business address. If you’d rather handle your own print, I can provide high resolution print-ready pdfs for you to supply your chosen printer.
For graphics or documents you’ll be sharing online, by email or via social media, just let me know what format you need them in (pdf, jpegs, pngs) and I can supply what you need. If you’re not sure, just ask and I can help.
For a website I’ll produce visuals of the main pages first, for you to sign off, then give it to my coder to build. You’ll be able to view progress on a server hosted by my coder and sign off on this before we make the site live to the world.
For logos and brand identity, I can supply a set of logos for your use in a range of formats for print, web, and Microsoft Office or Google Docs. If you require logos or brand elements in any other formats, just talk to me.