Resourceful Designer: Strategies for running a graphic design business

Has this ever happened to you? A new client contacts you looking for a designer. Their project sounds fun, and you seem to hit it off well with them. They verbally agree to your terms, and since everything sounds encouraging, you send them a formal proposal. And you wait in anticipation for them to approve your proposal and give you the go-ahead to get started on their project. And then you wait and wait, but you don't hear back. You send follow-up emails but don't receive any replies. The client has ghosted you. If you're not familiar with the term "ghosted," it's when someone ends all communication and contact with another person without any apparent warning or justification. Subsequently, they ignore any attempts to reach out or communication made by the person they're ghosting. And by that definition, this client is ghosting you. And it's not only with new clients. Sometimes an exiting client may ghost you in the middle of a project. You send them a proof and don't hear back. Or you ask them a question or for content you need, and you don't get a reply. This is any time you don't hear back from a client for whatever reason, even after several failed attempts at contacting them. What do you do? You send them The Magic Email, that's what. The Magic Email. What is The Magic Email, you ask? According to Blair Enns, Author and CEO of Win Without Pitching, a sales training organization for creative professionals. The Magic Email is a message you send to raise deals from the dead. That's its purpose, to solicit a response from someone who has been avoiding you. According to Enns, you must resist the temptation of sending an overly polite email. He suggests you do the opposite. Don't make excuses for your client's behaviour. And don't go soliciting a yes or any other answer from them. Enns suggests you strip away all emotions and let your prospect go matter-of-factly. And you that that with the following Magic Email. Within the last existing email thread, you had with your client, hit reply, change the subject to "Closing the Loop," and then write the following. Hi [FirstName]; I haven't heard back from you on [project/opportunity], so I'm going to assume you've gone in a different direction or your priorities have changed. Let me know if we can be of assistance in the future. Regards, [You] That's it. Enns says this removes the emotional reasons for the prospect to continue avoiding you. You are stripping out your neediness by no longer feigning politeness, by not asking how they've been or by being anything other than completely practical. This Magic Email says, "I can read between the lines, and you have decided we are not doing business together. No hard feelings – it's just business. You can call me if things change." What to expect after sending The Magic Email. You can expect one of three things to happen when you send The Magic Email. 1. Silence. Silence is the least likely scenario where you don't get a response at all. There's no longer any reason for the client not to wrap things up. All they have to do is send you a one-line acknowledgement email to remove this stress from their own lives. 2. Thank You. The client will send you a reply acknowledging that they have decided to cancel the project or they've moved in a different direction. This gives you closure and allows you to stop wasting energy over something that wasn't going to happen and move on to other clients and projects. There's no need to sulk about it. The deal was already done, probably a long time ago. The client just didn't tell you. 3. No, Wait! This is the response you're hoping for. According to Enns, by retreating unemotionally, where you might otherwise be inclined to advance, you suddenly become the one that might get away. The client stops seeing you as the predator that keeps sending them emails, to the prize they're about to lose. There's a psychological effect of this unemotional retreat that can be staggering in its effectiveness. And any resentment the client had over you harassing them turns into guilt about not replying to you earlier. This gives you the upper hand emotionally, and you suddenly become much more attractive to the client. You can learn more about all of this on Blair Enns site winwithoutpitching.com Variations of The Magic Email. Variation by Kai Davis We recently had a discussion in the Resourceful Designer Community about The Magic Email. Particularly about the different variations. Kai Davis of kaidavis.com adapted his Magic Email from Blair Enns' He says he split-tested it, and his version works better. His version is to send this one-sentence email. "Since I have not heard from you on this, I have to assume your priorities have changed." That's it, nothing else. Davis says it works because it's simple, intentionally vague, and effective. People are loss averse. Meaning their natural inclination is to reply immediately to keep you from walking away. You are taking back control of the situation by declaring it's over. Davis goes on to say that you may find this email rude. And that's the discussion we had in the Resourceful Designer Community. But he says it's not rude, just direct. It's the client who doesn't answer your emails that is rude. The person has already ignored you for weeks, so you have nothing to lose. It's just business. To learn more from Kai Davis' use of The Magic Email at themagicemail.com Variation by Chris Voss You can find another variation of The Magic Email in former FBI negotiator Chris Voss's book Never Split The Difference. Voss' variation is a simple message that provokes a "no" response, which gives the other party a feeling of safety and the illusion of control while encouraging them to define their position and explain it to you. This is how it works. Reply to an existing email thread. Change the subject line to a "no-oriented question." such as "have you given up on this?" In the body of the message, write the same or a very similar sentence. Don't add details or explanations. One short sentence is all you need. For example. "Have you given up on this project?" or "Have you moved in a different direction?" According to Voss, this is not a trick or technique. It's a respectful approach that gives the other party the freedom to respond truthfully to you without pressure. Which variation would you use? What version of The Magic Email would you use? We had our discussion in the Resourceful Designer Community, but I would love to know your thoughts. Leave a comment below and let me know how you approach clients who are ghosting you. Nobody likes to be ignored. And it's a waste of time and energy pursuing someone ghosting you. It's frustrating. So the next time something like this happens to you, try sending a variation of The Magic Email and see what happens. Who knows. You may light that fire under the client and get your stalled project back on track.

There are two things I started doing that have helped me provide a better service to my clients. Which, in turn, makes me a better designer as far as they are concerned. I've been doing one of them for quite a while, while the other I only started doing a few years ago, and much more so since the pandemic began. What are these two things, you ask? Contemplation and Revision. Take time to contemplate after a design project. When you have a busy schedule, it's easy to finish one design project and immediately jump to the next. After all, with deadlines and clients to satisfy, you need to stop diddle-daddling and start that next project. If this is how you work, you are doing yourself a disservice. Some of the best insight you can gain is by taking time to contemplate after finishing a project. Think about the ups and the downs. What went right with the project? What went wrong? Were there any parts of the project that slowed things down or helped things along? Take the time to think about all aspects of the project and ask yourself, what could I have done to make things better? Is there anything I can learn from this project that I could use to improve my SOP, Standard Operating Procedure, so that future projects go smoother? If you have a team, talk it over with them. Ask your team if there's anything that could have made their part easier? Do this after every design project, and you'll quickly learn ways to make your life easier. I do things differently now than the way I did things when I first started my business. Heck, the way I do things now is different from how I did things a few months ago. All because I regularly take the time to contemplate how I've been doing things and if there's anything I can do to improve upon the way I work. Now I know you're probably thinking. I already do what you're suggesting automatically. If something works on a project, I'll implement it on future projects. That's well and good. And we should all do the same thing. But that's not the same thing as what I'm suggesting. Discovering something new and implementing it on future projects is great and should be automatic for you. But what I'm saying is that by dedicating 15, 30, or 60 minutes, depending on the size of the project, to contemplate the ups and downs of how the project went, you can learn valuable insights you may otherwise gloss over. Perhaps the way you've always done things isn't the best. Only by contemplating what you do can you spot areas for improvement. You get the idea. It's hard to remember and even harder to try and fix problems if you don't think about them again once a project is over. The same can be said of things that go well. If something goes very well with a project, you should figure out if there's any way to implement it in future projects. Contemplation: Dedicating time after completing a design project to figure out what went well, what didn't and how what you learn can improve your SOP on future projects. I've been doing this for years, and I can honestly say I'm a better designer for it. Record your conversations. The second thing I wanted to talk about that helped me become a better designer is recording my conversations with my clients. This one kind of started by accident. When I first started my side business, Podcast Branding, I began interviewing clients over Zoom in a quick discovery meeting. And even though I took notes, I would often need to follow up with a client for clarification. After doing this a few times, I started recording my Zoom meetings. And this became a game-changer for me. Now, If there's something I can't remember or I'm not quite sure of, I can rewatch our Zoom call and find the answer most of the time. Sometimes it might be a few days between when I talk to a client and start their project. I now make a point of rewatching the Zoom call before starting every project to ensure I do not forget anything. As I rewatch our meeting, I follow along with the notes I took. Sometimes, I'll pause or rewind to add to or clarify my notes. And I'll often catch something I may have missed during our live meeting, or maybe I didn't fully comprehend it at first but listening back helped me understand. Yes, relistening to your meetings adds more time to a project, but you would be amazed at how much it makes working on the project easier. Not just that, but listening again with fresh ears allows me to create better artwork that better meets the client's needs. And the clients appreciate how diligent I am, especially when I refer back to our conversation. It helps you become a better communicator. The other benefit of recording your conversations is you'll be able to pick up on things you said or didn't say and how you communicate with your clients. Listening to yourself on a recording will help you improve your communication skills. Did you sound confident? Were the questions you asked easy to understand? Did you answer your client's questions to the best of your ability? The more you listen to yourself, the more you'll improve. I've been doing it for years with my podcasts. I hear every episode three times. Once while recording the episode, again while editing it, and yes, I listen to it a third time after it's released. And I think I'm a better podcaster and communicator because of it. Record all meetings. Recently, since we can now meet people face to face again, I've asked clients if I can record our conversations in person. I use the Voice Recorder app on my iPhone for this. I put it down on the table between us and press record. I explain to the client that I'll refer back to the recording should I need clarification on something I may have missed during our conversation. Plus, it gives us a recorded record of what was said during the meeting. Which eliminates the "I thought you said this" scenario. So far, I haven't had a single client refuse to let me record them. Ask for permission before recording someone. In most places, it's illegal to record someone without their consent. Luckily, Zoom notifies participants they are being recorded before they join a call. By joining, they consent to be recorded. During in-person meetings or on the phone, the best practice is to ask for permission first, and once given, press record and ask for permission again, so you have it on record. Once I have the client's consent for my meetings, I press record and open with this statement. "Today is [date], and I'm with [name of the client(s)]. Do you consent to be recorded for this meeting?" and have all parties present say yes. Since I started recording client meetings, I've found it so much easier to work on their projects. I no longer have to ask silly questions such as, "I can't remember. Did you say you wanted this or this?" I just listen back to the recording. And through listening, I'm becoming a better communicator, which will benefit me in my next client meeting. I know these two things; contemplating after a project and recording your meetings sound simple, and maybe you're already doing them. If so, good for you. But I can tell you that these two things have helped me become a better designer, and I know they can do the same for you. After your next design project, dedicate time to contemplate the ups and downs of the project and note how you can do things better the next time. And during your next client meeting, ask if you can record it. Your clients will appreciate how diligent you are at understanding their needs. Do these two things, and you too can become a better designer.

One of the best things about being human is our ability to make choices. If you're in the mood for a hamburger but also in a rush, you still have options. Do you go to Mcdonald's, Burger King, Wendy's or one of the other fast-food burger joints? If you're in the market for a new car, do you look at Ford, Dodge, Toyota, or Honda? Need a new computer? You can choose one of the many models of Pcs or go with a Mac. Regardless of your choices, the ultimate decision is still up to you. But how do you go about choosing? You do so by looking at what makes each option different and how those differences appeal to you. We all know that not all hamburgers are equal. McDonald's has consistently stated that "Great Taste" makes them different. I know, that's very subjective. But it is a recurring marketing slogan they've used over the years. Burger King claims it's the flame broiling that makes them different. At Wendy's, it's the fact that their meat is never frozen, so it taste's fresher. Ultimately, you decide which one of these differences appeals to you the most. And that's where you get your burger. This same concept of what makes something different can equally apply to designers. What makes you different from the other designers in your town? What would make a client choose you over one of them? If you can figure out this question and use it to your advantage, you may outpace your competition with more work than you can handle. So what makes you different? Culture and Heritage. Maybe your culture or heritage makes you different. People find it easier to deal with people similar to them or who understand them. It's currently the middle of May, which is Asian Heritage Month. As a white person, I would never expect someone to hire me to design a campaign for Asian Heritage Month. It's not that I don't think I could do a good job. It's just that I feel that an Asian designer is better suited for the project. After all, they can relate to the subject matter better than I ever could. Whatever your heritage or culture is, you should embrace it and find a way to use it. A member of the Resourceful Designer Community is an indigenous Canadian woman. She's using this to her advantage by marketing her design business to companies, organizations and groups run by First Nation people. And she's killing it. She had to halt a recent marketing campaign because her available time quickly filled up for the rest of the year. Wouldn't you like to be booked entirely for the rest of the year? She's become so busy that she's in the process of hiring another designer to help with the workload. How is this possible? Is it because she's terrific at marketing her services? That may be part of it. But her marketing message alone isn't what's bringing in so many new clients. It's who she's marketing to. First Nations people, just like everyone else, need help when it comes to design and branding. And when given a choice, they are more likely to choose someone like them who is a member of a First Nation. Someone who understands their culture doesn't need to be educated on what works and what doesn't for them. In other words, it means they are comfortable working with her because she understands them. And this makes it easy for them to choose her over another designer who isn't a member of a First Nation. Perhaps you can apply a similar strategy. Are you Hispanic, Asian, or a person of colour? Have you ever thought of marketing yourself to people of the same ethnic background? It may give you an advantage over others in your field as clients may prefer you over someone who isn't of the same ethnicity as them. It's worth a try. Gender and Orientation. There has never been so much discussion over gender and orientation as there is today. And that's a good thing. The more we talk about it, the more it will become accepted. And when it comes to your business, your gender and orientation could be an excellent opportunity for you to attract clients. If you are part of the LGBTQ community, you have an advantage over those of us who aren't. Like-minded people prefer to deal with like-minded people. It makes them feel safe and understood. And it's no different when it comes to business. I know it's not design-related, but I recently heard of a podcast editing company that only deals with LGBTQ clients. They've created a place where LGBTQ podcasters can feel safe and unjudged for the podcasts they make. The same concept can be applied to a design business. An LGBTQ entrepreneur may feel more comfortable working with a designer from the same community. The manager at the print shop I used to work at is gay. And I know we had many LGBTQ clients because they felt comfortable dealing with him. And when we talk about gender, it could be as simple as a female designer opting to work with women-led businesses. I've heard of several designers who do just this. They only work with companies that are run by other women. And they have plenty of work to keep them busy. Niches But what if you're someone who can't embrace your culture or heritage, or your particular gender or orientation doesn't help? Then maybe you want to look at niching. Choosing a niche makes you different than other designers who don't specialize. Take Craig Burton, for example. I interviewed him back in episode 174 of the Resourceful Designer podcast. Craig's design company is called School Branding Matters. And you guessed it; he designs brands for schools. That's what makes Craig different. That's what makes him stand out. And it's helped him land clients around the globe. Not bad for a solo graphic designer from New Zealand. But any time a school needs new branding searches for a designer, there's a good chance they come across Craig's website. And when given a choice between a generic designer and one who specializes in school branding. The choice is pretty simple. After all, chances are they won't have to explain to Craig the intricacies of the school ecosystem and how a brand would be incorporated. So yes, niches are a great way to make yourself different. You can hear more about niching in episode 54 and episode 93 of the podcast. Other ways to be different. Are there other ways to make yourself stand out from other similar designers? Sure there are. Take Ian Paget, for example. You may know him as Logo Geek. He's a logo designer from Manchester, the UK and has a popular podcast of the same name as his business, Logo Geek. Ian specializes in Logo Design, but so do a lot of designers. So how does he stand out? I just mentioned he has a logo design podcast. So that gives him some authority in the space. Ian has also judged logo design competitions. And he's written articles about logo design for some well-established publications. All of this gives Ian credibility and has earned him some prestigious clients. He's been hired to design logos for universities, big corporations, large conferences, etc. His credentials differentiate him from all the other logo designers around. So he uses it to his advantage. And it's working. Small things can make a difference. Finally, I want to mention that you don't have to do much to be different. The things I just talked about are significant steps. But there are little things you can do to set yourself apart. Take me as an example. As you may know, a few years ago, I started a second design business called Podcast Branding, which specializes in podcast cover artwork and websites for podcasters. Other businesses in this niche specialize in podcast cover artwork beside me. Even though I know I'm priced higher than most of my direct competition; I have a thriving business. So what did I do to make myself different? For one, I established that not only am I a designer, but I'm also a podcaster. I've been podcasting since 2013, and that lays a strong foundation for my credibility in the space. I get podcasting. Any designer can design a square piece of art. But the fact that I'm familiar with the podcast industry helps me stand out. The other thing I do that makes me unique is offer a one-on-one meeting with every client. Most of my competitors provide a questionnaire for clients to fill out. They then take the client's information and design a podcast cover. On the other hand, I get on a Zoom call with every client to discuss their podcast. I ask why they're starting a podcast. What do they hope to accomplish with it? What format will it be? Will it be just them, or will they have a co-host? Will they interview guests? I find out everything I can about their new show. I do this for two reasons. I need to know about the show if I'm going to design artwork for it. And I want to get a feel for who the podcaster is. Their personality will affect what I create for them. If a person is very serious and formal, I may design their cover one way. However, if they come across as joyful and bubbly, I'll probably create it differently. These 15-minute meetings make a massive difference to me. And I've been told over and over it's the reason why a client chose me over someone else. Even when I'm the more expensive option, they felt my way of doing things is more personal than a questionnaire. Conclusion We all know that finding new clients can be difficult, especially when you're just starting. We also know that word of mouth is the most common way designers get new clients. I talked about this in length in episode 281 of the podcast. Word of mouth spreads quickest among like-minded people. Why is that indigenous member of the Resourceful Designer Community doing so well? It's because indigenous people talk to other indigenous people, and when she does a good job with one, the word spreads. The same applies in all communities, whether it's an Asian or coloured community, an LGBTQ community or even a school or podcaster community. Like-minded people talk to like-minded people. And when you do a good job helping one of them, they'll spread the word. Especially if they know you specialize in people of that community. So what's unique about you. What can you do to make yourself stand out from the competition? What can you do differently that will make clients choose you? Figuring the answers to these questions can mean the difference between looking for your next client and being completely booked for the rest of the year. Worth thinking about, isn't it?

It's so easy to get caught up in what we do, be that logo design, vehicle wraps, websites, trade show booths; you name it. We forget that our clients don't live in the same world as we do. Our clients don't see the world through a designer's eye. When they look at a billboard, they see the message. When a designer looks at a billboard, not only do we take in the content and message. But we also take in the layout, the hierarchy, the use of negative space and the colour pallet. We note what fonts are used and what imagery they chose to relay their message. When we see something that isn't kerned correctly, we feel the need to point it out. We feel almost obliged to mention every stock image we recognize out in the wild. "See that photo of that happy family in that car insurance ad? I saw that exact photo on Depositphotos." And we stop to admire displays, posters, cards and everything else we think is well designed. After all, when you see something that you feel is well designed, don't you secretly start cataloging pieces of it away in your mind so you can "borrow" the idea for something you create in the future? As designers, our brains are just wired that way. We see the world through a designer's eye. But sometimes, we forget that non-designers don't see the world the way we do. My wife has perfected the eye roll she uses whenever I start talking design about something I see. Sometimes she'll feign interest, but I know that she doesn't care that the line spacing on the restaurant's menu is too tight. She just doesn't get it because she's not a designer. But neither are our clients. That's why they hire us for their projects. And sometimes, it's easy to forget that they don't have the same knowledge as us, nor the same interests. And they view the world through a different set of lenses than we do. That's why it's a good idea that before you say or present anything to a client, you try to consider it from their point of view. Case in point. A designer shared an intro packet PDF in a design group I belong to, asking for advice. The PDF is to give prospective website clients to explain what a CMS is, a Content Management System. She went into great detail, outlining everything there is to know about CMSs. I how thorough she was. However, I and several others pointed out that it wasn't suitable for clients. She explained how databases work, with columns and rows and entry IDs. and how you can edit a database directly with tools such as phpMyAdmin. Then she explained how she builds a custom portal for each client that allows them to easily add, delete, and edit posts in the database. And finally, she explained how the items in the database end up displaying on the web page. She even showed examples of the PHP code required to make it all happen. Nothing was wrong with anything she presented, except that most of them are redundant to clients. A client doesn't need to know how databases work or how the info from the database ends up on a web page. All the client needs to know is their website will have a CMS with an easy-to-use interface allowing them to add, delete and edit the content of their site. Remember, these are perspective clients. Meaning they haven't committed to working with you yet. You don't want to scare them away before they've had a chance to work with you. Donald Miller, the author of Building a StoryBrand, said it best. "If you confuse, you'll lose." Consider your marketing message from a design client's perspective. Let's say you specialize in logo design, and you showcase your three-step process on your website. Step 1) I start with a meeting. I have a list of over 50 questions I ask you, covering everything from how your company got started, to your mission, to where you see the future going. This allows me to get to know you and your business. Step 2) I take the answers you gave me and start the research process. I take a close look at what your immediate competition is doing. I examine your industry as a whole to determine if there are any trends we may want to follow. I may conduct focus groups to learn more about what your clients think of you. I then gather all this information and begin the concept stage, where I brainstorm and develop several different ideas. I then narrow it down to the most promising ones and fine-tune them until I'm satisfied. Step 3) I present you with the best ideas. If required, we then enter the revision process, where you are allowed three sets of revisions to tweak your logo until you are satisfied. Once done, I'll create a brand guide that outlines the rules for using your new logo and supply everything you'll need in various file formats. This shows a comprehensive process. And a designer may think this is perfect for showing the client why they're worth the price they're charging. However, it may have an adverse effect from a client's point of view. "50 questions? I just want a logo for my new business. Why does it have to be so complicated? Maybe I should find another designer." Imagine a client's perspective if they saw this on your website. Here is my three-step process. Step 1) I take the time to get to know you and your business. Step 2) This is where the magic happens as I develop the perfect logo for your business. Step 3) I present you with the best concepts for you to choose from. Don't worry. You'll be allowed to suggest minor adjustments to tweak the logo until you're 100$ satisfied. Now, this a client can understand. All the other information is redundant or can be relayed once the person becomes an actual client. Presentation and mockups. If you are not using mockups in your presentation, you are doing yourself and your clients a disservice. I can tell you from experience that mockups make a massive difference in a client's decision-making process. Many clients are not visual thinkers like designers are. Their creativity isn't honed like ours to imagine how things will look in different situations. A logo presented on a white background doesn't have the same effect as a logo shown on a storefront, a shirt or a vehicle. A tri-fold brochure displayed flat may look good. But it doesn't have the same oomph as a mockup showing what it looks like when partially folded. I've had several clients over the years tell me they were hesitant about a logo design I presented until they saw the mockups. Once they saw the logo "in action," they saw its full potential. That's because clients often can't picture it on their own. Asking them to imagine the logo on the side of a delivery van is nowhere near the same as showing them the logo on a delivery van. When you prepare your presentations, thinking like a client can help you close more deals. Showing confidence, a client's perspective. You know the way you can sometimes tell when a person isn't sure of themself. It's offputting. Try to think about how you come across when dealing with clients. From the client's point of view, do you show confidence? Think about it. As you're pitching yourself to a potential client, They're looking at you and considering whether or not you're someone they want to work with. And that decision may have nothing to do with your actual pitch. From the client's point of view, they want to see someone who shows confidence in themself and their ability to do the work. You want every encounter with a potential client to end with the prospect thinking, "This is someone I want to work with." Let's talk pricing from a client's perspective. Once again, thinking from a client's point of view. Are your prices too high or too low? Is a client willing to invest in you? There's no right or wrong answer regarding how you price yourself. It comes down to the type of client you want to work with. Think of it this way. Let's say you're in the mood to go out for a steak dinner. You can find a restaurant that serves a $20 steak. Or, you can go somewhere else and get a $200 steak. What's the difference? The difference is how much you're willing to spend on a steak. People who opt for the $20 steak might never consider spending $200 for a similar meal. However, some people regularly go out for $200 steaks and would never consider a $20 cut of meat. Now for all we know, both steaks came from the same cow. But that's beside the point. The person who opts to spend $20 on a steak and the person who opts to pay $200 have two different mindsets. Neither is right or wrong in their decision. It's just the way they are. The same thing applies to design clients. Thinking again from their perspective. Most clients who consider Fiverr a good place to get designs made would probably never consider paying thousands of dollars for a freelancer. And there are just as many clients who are willing to spend thousands of dollars which would never consider ordering from a cheap designer. So who are you marketing to? Do you want low-paying clients to say you're their person? Or do you want high-paying clients to think you're the perfect designer for them? Figure that out, and then target yourself to go after that group of clients. In this case, thinking like a client can help you land the clients you want. I could go on and on about how thinking like a client can benefit you. But I think you get the idea. Most clients are not designers. They don't think like designers, nor do they see the world around us the same way designers do. Don't let that become a gap between you and them. Before everything you do, ask yourself, "How would a client experience this?" And if you're successful at doing this. There's no reason why your design business shouldn't be successful either.

Ask any designer, and they'll tell you that their number one way of landing new design clients is through word-of-mouth referrals. If you do an excellent job on a client's project, there's a good chance they'll pass your name along should they hear of someone requiring services you offer. I've built my entire business on this model. And chances are, so have you. But does that mean you should only rely on word-of-mouth referrals? No, it doesn't. Are you familiar with the term diversify? In short, it means "using different options." Such as "you should diversify your investments," meaning you should have multiple investments. If one of them isn't doing well, your other assets can help make up for it. Diversification can also apply to your income stream. If all your work comes from one client, and that client suddenly has financial difficulty and stops sending work your way, you'll be in trouble. That's why it's best to have multiple clients. If one stops sending you projects, you can still make a living from the rest. But I want to talk about diversity concerning how you obtain new clients. As I said, word-of-mouth is the most popular method in our field. But word-of-mouth has limits. That's why you shouldn't rely solely on it for your clients. This is how word-of-mouth works. Imagine a tree. The tree trunk s one client. You design a project for this one client. They may refer someone else to you via word-of-mouth if they like what you did. That someone else is now a limb on that tree. Again, you do a good job, and that someone else, the limb, tells another person about you. That new person becomes a branch on your tree, and so on. Every limb and every branch can trace itself back to the trunk, the first client. Now you have a big tree of clients, all somehow connected back to that initial client. And that's great. But there's more than one tree in a forest. This means many people could use your services but have zero connection to anyone in your tree of clients. And if they have zero connection to your existing clients, they'll never hear about you through word-of-mouth. That's why you should diversify how or where you find clients. Because every client you land that isn't connected to your other clients starts a new tree for you. Now there are many resources available on how to find clients. Searching the phrase "How to find graphic design clients" will produce more than 247,000,000 results. Have fun reading through all of them. But today, I want to share six unconventional ways you can find design clients. And just a note, I've successfully landed new clients using 5 out of 6 of these methods. And it's not because one didn't work. I just never tried it myself, but I know others who have. Also, note that some of these methods may require a small investment. So let's get started. Placing business cards in books. Leaving your business card in a book is a great way to introduce yourself to someone who may not know you. Look at your local library or book store for books on starting a business and insert your business card. If there happens to be a chapter on branding or marketing, place your card there. Should someone read the book, they'll come across your card at the point in the book where they're learning about the type of services you offer. This method worked for me recently. A client contacted me saying, "I found your business card in a book I bought." BTW, you could leave a business card as I did. Or, if you want to get more creative, you can have a special card made for just this purpose. Imagine someone reading a "How to start a business" book and coming across a card that reads, "Are you thinking of starting a business? I would love to help you with your website." Join a board of directors or committee. As I mentioned above, some of these methods require an investment on your part. This one isn't financial. It's time. We all know that networking is one of the best ways to become known for what you offer. After all, if someone doesn't know about you, there's very little chance they'll hire you. But networking doesn't have to be just at conferences or special events. You could join a local board of directors or a committee for an organization. What's good about this is you're not just meeting people once. You regularly interact with people when you're on a board or committee. This gives them a chance to get to know you. These relationships make it very easy for someone to consider you when they need a designer. Don't do this with the mindset of landing clients. If you're going to invest your time, it should be with an organization you believe in, even if it doesn't produce any clients. Advertise your design business on T-shirts. I've talked before about how when I first started my business. I had a T-shirt made with the message "Hi, I'm a website designer. Is your site working for you?" on the back. I wore this shirt to local events and trade shows. It landed me several new clients. But wearing a T-shirt advertising your services isn't what I wanted to talk about today. Over the years, I've designed T-shirts for various organizations, events and festivals in our area. Not only do I design the image for the shirts, but I broker the screen printing as well. Whenever I give a client a quote for a T-shirt project, I offer them two prices. A regular price and a discounted price if they allow me to put my name and logo on the back of the shirt. If it's for an event and they want a list of sponsors on the back, I'll ask to have my name and logo on the sleeve instead. Most clients jump at this opportunity to save money. And since I'm brokering the deal, I make sure I'm still making a profit either way. I've had my name and logo on shirts for sporting events, festivals, concerts, charity events, etc. Each of them is an opportunity for someone to find out about my business. And over the years, it's brought in new clients. Sponsor your kid's activities. Another option to get your name out there is sponsoring your kid's activities. If you don't have kids, you can still reach out to local youth groups or leagues and inquire if you can help them. Growing up, my daughter played competitive soccer and volleyball and danced on a competitive dance team. I found a way to advertise my business with each organization. For soccer and volleyball, I approached the teams with a fundraiser idea. I created a T-shirt not for the athletes but for the parents, grandparents, friends and siblings who watch the game from the sidelines. I designed a graphic with the team name and "Sideline Support" on the front. On the back, I put my business info. My daughter's team sold the shirts to family and friends of every team in the league. And all proceeds went to my daughter's team. For the dance team, my daughter was on. I offered to design their yearly dance recital t-shirt in exchange for a full-page ad in the recital program. I've had several clients discover me through that ad. Advertise your design business on your vehicle. Another way to get your name out there is simply by putting your information on your vehicle. Vinyl letters, a wrap or even a car magnet, create a moving billboard advertising your services. This is the method I haven't tried myself. But I know a few designers who have their business information on their vehicles, and they've told me it brings in many leads. Include an ad for your design business in any proposal involving ads. You'll get to work on projects that involve ads from time to time. Maybe you're asked to design a magazine. Or a program for a local event. It might be a sponsor board or a t-shirt with sponsor logos. Maybe a website client wants you to incorporate space for ads on their new site. Whatever the project is, always ask for one ad spot to be reserved for you as part of the proposal. If it's a sponsor board, request to include your logo as a sponsor. Try to have your ad or logo on everything you can whenever possible. There's more than just word-of-mouth. Word-of-mouth is, and will always remain, the best way for you to land new design clients. But it shouldn't be your only way. Try as many of these unconventional ways to land design clients as you can. Who knows what will happen. After all, people aren't going to hire you if they don't know who you are. The more you diversify how you find clients, the more trees you'll have in your forest.

Let me ask you something. How confident would you be buying a meal from a food truck that is so rusted and smoke-stained that you can't make out its name on the side? Or how confident would you be staying at a motel where the paint was peeling off the doors, siding was missing on the building, and duct tape held the cracked windows together? Or how confident would you be buying a car from an auto dealer whose windows were so dirty you couldn't see through them and whose sign was missing a couple of letters? I bet your confidence wouldn't be very high in those situations. How do you think a client would feel if they came across a website that contains errors while looking for a designer? I bet they wouldn't feel too confident in hiring that person. That's what I want to talk about today, making sure your messaging doesn't contain errors. Let me give you a bit of background here. I decided to talk about this today because someone sent me a message earlier this week. Now, if you've ever contacted me for whatever reason, there's a good chance I looked at your website. It's just something I do. Any time someone emails me or contacts me on social media, I'll try to find their website to see how they present themself. So, someone sent me a message earlier this week, and when I found their website, the first thing I saw was a spelling mistake. The very first line of the website was "I Designs Websites." Other places on the website included passages that lead me to believe this person is not a native English speaker. But I'll touch more on that later. And even though it was a beautifully designed website, and this person had a fantastic portfolio, those spelling and grammar mistakes made me question the quality of this person's work. Now imagine I was a client looking for someone to build a website for my new business. Those errors may be enough to make me second guess this person and move on to another web designer. Be careful with jargon. But it's not just spelling or grammatical errors that can hinder your chance of landing clients. Another section of this same website described their services and how they work. They mention that the first thing they do is build a wireframe to show the client before making their website using WordPress. Elsewhere on the site, it said their web hosting includes a CDN. You probably understand what I just said if you're familiar with websites. Imagine a client with no knowledge of websites other than knowing their business needs one. "Wireframe," "WordPress," and "CDN" don't mean anything to them. Reading these things may cause them more confusion, which may make them look elsewhere for a web designer. I talked about Jargon in episode 217 of the podcast. Jargon is common terminology in specific industries but maybe not so common outside of them. I'm a web designer, and I remember wondering what wireframes were the first time I heard someone use that term. It wasn't until I understood what a wireframe was that the word became part of my vocabulary. I'm not saying you shouldn't use these jargon terms in your communication. But if you do, you should add some clarity for anyone unfamiliar with them. For example: "We start by building a wireframe, a mockup layout of your website for you to approve before we start building the real thing in WordPress, a popular website platform, powering over 60% of the world's websites." "Our web hosting includes a CDN, a content delivery network that improves the efficiency and speed of your website and helps you rank higher in search engines." Even if a client doesn't recognize the jargon, they can still understand what you're saying because of the descriptions. A designer's job is communication. As designers, people think our job is to make things look good. And in part, it is. But more importantly, a designer's job is to ensure a message is told clearly and understandably. Design is about communication. And if the communicated message is confusing, then the person, company or organization behind that message will appear less competent. But what can you do? The first suggestion I have is simple. Spell and grammar check your work. A spell and grammar checker can help eliminate most problems, but only to an extent. They can identify misspelled words but are not as good at finding incorrect or better words. For that, I use a tool called Grammarly. I've been using Grammarly for years. Not only does it find spelling and grammar errors, but it helps improve my writing by suggesting alternatives. It helps me be a better writer by making me sound better. It's well worth the small price. Be wary of mistakes in headlines. I read a report that said there were more errors per capita in newspaper headlines than in the body copy. It said that, on average, there was one error for every 1000 words of body copy compared to four errors for every 1000 words of headline copy. Most people don't read headlines; they skim them—even the proofreaders whose job it is to find errors. Don't only rely on spell checkers. The other thing about spell checkers is they won't help you identify jargon. For that, you need to have someone else read over your text and tell you if there are problem areas. We do this all the time in the Resourceful Designer Community. People share their work, and others point out any problem areas they detect. Then the designer can choose whether or not to make a change. Having someone else read your work is especially important for anyone where English isn't their first language. This is probably the case with the website I looked at this week. The person wrote the copy themself to the best of their ability, but the fact that they are not native English speakers is evident. And this may turn away potential clients. The more precise and accurate your writing, the more professional you'll sound, and the more willing clients will be to work with you. Different dialects for different regions. And it goes beyond just language. Regional dialects also come into play. For example, if you're targetting clients in North America, you may say something such as. "I design custom logos." However, if you're targetting clients in Europe, you may want to write "I design bespoke logos." Both words mean the same thing, but "Custom" is more common in North America, whereas "Bespoke" is used more often in European countries. Colour is another example. You're going to spell it c-o-l-o-r if you're talking to Americans and c-o-l-o-u-r for most other parts of the world. I'm in Canada. And any time I'm looking for a printer or supplier, I'll take note of the spelling on their website. If I see "color," I'll know it's an American company, and I may continue my search to find someone in Canada. Make it count. You only get one chance to make a first impression. And if you fail at that first chance because of poor writing, there's not much you can do to regain someone's trust. So I suggest you take some time and closely go over your website and other marketing material. Or have someone else do it for you. Identify any problem areas or areas that could be improved and make changes. The better you sound, the more professional you'll appear, and the better the chances are that a potential client will hire you. Don't lose out because of poor writing.

Hi there, it's Mark here. I'm sorry, but there won't be a typical podcast episode this week. But I will be back next week with more great content to help you with your design business. In the meantime, I have a proposition for you. If you know anything about website ranking and SEO, you know the importance of good quality backlinks. How would you like to get a backlink to your website from a very well-established site in the design space? I'm talking about https://resourcefuldesigner.com If you visit the Resourceful Designer website, you'll notice that it's divided into two sections. The podcast, and the blog. I started it that way with the best of intentions of maintaining both. And although I've done a great job of putting out new podcast content over the past 6 years. The same cannot be said of the blog section. And I'd like to remedy that. However, I don't have the bandwidth to produce a podcast and write a blog post every week. That's why I'm reaching out to you. I'm opening up the Resourceful Designer blog to guest authors and I'd love to give the first opportunity to listeners like you. If you have an idea that would benefit designers who are starting or running their own design business and want to write an article about it, please reach out to me at feedback@resourcefuldesigner.com and I'll send you the specifications to get started. I'll give you full credit for your article, including a do-follow link back to your website in your author bio. If you're interested, please reach out at feedback@resourcefuldesigner.com. Thanks for your time. I'll be back next week with another great episode of Resourceful Designer. Until then, stay creative.

The local tourism board where I live, a client of mine, in partnership with one of the local newspapers, produces a 72-page visitor guide every year for people visiting the area. The tourism director hired me to design a countertop display stand for these guides that they will place in various stores and businesses in the region. These visitor guides are an odd size. So I started researching companies that produce custom cardboard countertop display stands. And let me tell you, I was super impressed with one company I contacted. While browsing their website to see if they offer what I need, a chat bubble popped up saying, "Hi, I'm Frank. I'm available right now if you need to chat about anything." I took Frank up on his offer and asked what my best option was for the display stand I needed. He replied by requesting my phone number and asking if it was ok for him to call me, as it would be easier to discuss my needs over the phone. I agreed, and I was on the phone with him a minute later. Frank listened to what I needed, made a few suggestions and said he would email me a price by the end of the day. In my opinion, Frank and his company went above and beyond to impress me, a potential new client. But it didn't end there. Within a couple of minutes of hanging up the phone, I received a welcome email from Frank thanking me for agreeing to talk to him. In the email, he briefly outlined what we had discussed. And he attached an intro packet outlining the company for me to read. This intro packet upped my impression of the company tenfold. A couple of hours later, I received another phone call from Frank. He tells me he just emailed me the quote and asked if I have time to go over it with him. At this point, I felt like royalty. I was so impressed with the way they were treating me. I had never heard of this company before, and now I couldn't wait to tell everyone about them. Frank walked me through the various charges involved with my project, such as the price for a custom die, among other things. But when we finally reached the cost per unit, it was higher than I had hoped. Not overly so, but still more than I wanted to pay for them. When he asked me what I thought, I hesitated for a moment. And that's when Frank goofed up. Offer excellent customer service. Before I get to what Frank said, I want to emphasize the importance of excellent customer service and how it affects you and your design business. You may think of yourself as a designer, but designing is a small portion of what you do if you're running your own design business. And it might not even be the most critical portion. If you're working for yourself, your most important skill is the ability to sell yourself. Running your own design business requires you to be a good salesperson. Every client who agrees to work with you does so because you successfully sold them on you and your ability to do the job. They agreed to your price, had confidence in your skills, and trusted you to complete their project because you sold them on these things. This ability to sell goes way beyond the monetary aspect and is part of every interaction you have. It's what makes people like and what to work with you. Sometimes, even despite the price. If you lack this ability to sell yourself, you will be hard-pressed to find clients. I've said it many times before. Clients would prefer to work with a good designer they like, then work with an amazing designer they don't like. And it all comes down to your ability to sell yourself. What you should never do. Anyway, back to Frank. So as I said, the price per unit he quoted me was a bit higher than I hoped. And Frank sensed my hesitancy. And what he said next changed my impression of this company. When Frank sensed my hesitation, he told me, "Don't worry. All prices are negotiable." And at that point, the pedestal I had placed this company on crumbled. Frank had presented me with a reasonable price for what I needed, although higher than expected. But now he was telling me that price was negotiable. In other words, he was admitting that his company could do the job for less. So I asked him about it. My response was something like, "Are you telling me that the price you're showing me is not the best price you could have given me for this job? That you inflated your quote hoping that I would be gullible enough to agree to it?" Frank quickly went on the defensive, saying no, this is how much the job costs. However, if I wanted to negotiate, he would hear me out. I replied, "You're telling me that you would consider lowering the cost if I negotiated with you. That tells me that this price isn't really what this job costs and that you could easily do it for less. Otherwise, why tell me the price is negotiable? And even if you agree to take 5, 10 or 15 percent off the price, I will still wonder if you're conning me, and I could have gotten it for even less." At this point, I thanked Frank for the quote, told him I would get back to him if I had any questions and then ended the call. All the fantastic work this company did to win me over as a client went down the drain. What's the big deal about negotiating price? You may be wondering, what's the big deal? People negotiate prices all the time. This is true. In fact, I love haggling over prices. It's a skill I learned from my mother, and it drives my wife crazy when I ask for a discount or rebate from anyone. The way I see it is there's no harm in asking for a lower price. If they say no, I can still purchase whatever it is at the displayed price. And if they agree, I feel good about my actions because I got a better deal. But this situation is different. I wouldn't be upset if I were the one who had asked if the prices were negotiable and Frank had said yes. But the fact that he presented me with the price and immediately told me they were negotiable means he didn't have my best interest in mind. Frank was trying to get the most out of me he could. And when I showed hesitation on the price, he tried to save the sale by offering to negotiate. This company that I thought was so amazing now makes me wonder if I should consider working with them. Your prices are non-negotiable. But what does all of this have to do with you and your design business? You don't want people to think you're taking advantage of them. But any time you offer a discount or agree to lower a price, that's precisely what you are doing. If you lower your price just one time, that client will forever question any future price you give them. They'll always wonder if you're trying to take advantage of them. And even if you provide them with another discount in the future, they'll wonder if it's the best discount, or could you have offered more? Think about anything you've ever bought on sale. In your mind, if you purchase a $399 item on sale for $249, is it worth the sale price you paid for it or is it worth the original price? Most people feel the sale price is its actual value. You never want your clients to think your services are not worth as much as you charge because you offered a discount. Let's use hourly rates, for example. If you usually charge $100/hr and offer a client a discount of $70 per hour. They'll feel resentful should you ever charge them your standard rate in the future because they'll know you can do it for less. When are discounts ok? This is not to say that you should never offer discounts. There are times when lowering your prices is in your best interest. Pro-bono work Pro-bono work is an obvious example. Offering free or discounted work for a charity or non-profit you believe in doesn't diminish your perceived value. I highly suggest you invoice the charity for your services showing the total price with an applied 100% discount. Or better yet, and this is what I do, I charge the charity the total price for the project. And agree to donate the entire amount back to them after they've paid. This way, they get to claim the project as a business expense since they're paying for the work, and you get a tax receipt for the donation you make back to them. An added benefit of invoicing for your charity work is that should staff at the charity change; any future person will know the value of what you provided them because of the invoice. Friends and family Friends and family are also acceptable recipients of discounts. Doing something for a friend at a discounted rate or even for free shows them you care. Again, let them know the total price and that you're discounting it. My rule of thumb for family and friends is to offer more significant discounts for personal work. Offer smaller discounts for businesses they own. And no discount for companies they work for or if they own it with a partner. I don't mind cutting a deal for someone I care about, but there's no reason for collateral people to get a discount because of them. Retainer agreements And, of course, discounts are a significant selling factor with retainer agreements, where you presell your time or deliverables at a discounted rate in exchange for guaranteed monthly income. Other than these three scenarios, charity work, friends and family and retainers. There's no reason for you to offer a discount. What if a client questions your price? What do you do in a situation where a client questions your prices or asks if they can get a discount? This scenario is bound to happen to you at some point. You give a client a fee, and they ask if there's any way you can do the job for less? First things first, your price is never wrong. You chose whatever price you presented because you believe that's how much the project is worth. If you thought to yourself, "there's no way anyone would pay this much." you would never present that price. So stick to it. Tell the client you're sorry they feel that way, but that's the price for what they're asking of you. However, if you think you may lose the client, offer to negotiate. Never on price. Instead, negotiate the scope of the project. Offer to cut out parts of the project to lower their cost. On a website, for example, Instead of every offered service having a landing page, offer to create one "Services" page that lists everything they do. This makes less work for you and can shave off a bit of the price. If it's a printed booklet you're designing, You could suggest they reduce the number of pages to bring the price down on both design and printing. Or suggest they have it saddle-stitched instead of perfect bound. Anything you can do to reduce the scope of a project will, in turn, lower the price, which may help the client with their decision. And, it doesn't compromise the value you bring to them. By showing clients how much they can save by eliminating options, they learn the value of those options and feel less conflicted about paying for them. My personal experience is that most of the time, the client will appreciate the effort but decide to stick to the full scope at the price you originally quoted. Think of it in terms of buying a new car. How would you feel if the dealer said they could offer you the same make and model vehicle at a lower price, but it won't have air conditioning? The original price won't seem as bad anymore if you want air conditioning. So allow your client to lower the price by reducing options on their project. If they accept the lower price, you're still getting paid for your work at the price you deserve. And if you're lucky, they'll decide they don't want to lose those options and choose to pay your original cost to keep them. What if you can't reduce the scope of the project? For projects such as logo design, where you can't reduce the project's scope, I suggest using the three-tiered pricing system. Offering three different price options, each with an expanded scope gives clients a choice and minimizes their chances of going elsewhere. You must be ok with losing clients. I must point out that you have to be prepared to lose clients. There's always the possibility that the client doesn't like your price, and instead of asking for ways to lower it, they decide to go elsewhere. And you know what, that's ok. Any client that doesn't see the value in what you do isn't worth having as a client. Again, think of cars. Many people buy Toyota Corollas, while others prefer to drive a Mercedes-Benz. Some design clients can afford your services, while many can't. It's up to you to focus your energy on those who can. One last tip on clients who think you're too expensive. If a client ever tells you your price is too expensive, you may want to respond like this. "I'm sorry you feel that way. I understand that for some people my prices may seem high. But I assure you, I charge what I'm worth, and I have many repeat clients who are very happy paying for the services I provide them. I know, that hiring a designer is a big investment. And not everyone can afford my prices. No hard feelings if you would prefer to find a less expensive designer." You'd be surprised when you answer in this manner how many people will decide to work with you anyway. All of this to say, your prices are non-negotiable. You deserve every cent you charge and more. So never compromise your principles or values just because a client is hesitant about the price you present them. It's your business, after all, and you know what you're worth much more than they do.

I had a conversation recently with fellow designers over how we refer to ourselves. This conversation started when one designer asked another why they referred to themselves as a freelancer? We then talked about the impression and stereotypes associated with the word freelancer. In the end, the designer acknowledged that it was in their best interest not to use the term freelancer anymore when referring to themself. And it would be best if you did the same. Stop calling yourself a freelancer. Why you should stop calling yourself a freelancer. There's a stigma associated with the term Freelance or Freelancer. In episode 17 of the Resourceful Designer podcast, I discussed how calling yourself a freelance graphic designer could hurt your business. I shared a story of when a company approached me for an in-house position. I turned them down, but I shared the name of a designer I knew would be perfect for the job. The company's CEO later told me the designer I told them about had all the right qualifications. However, The title she used on her resume was Freelance Graphic Designer, and they were looking for someone more serious than that for the position. She didn't get the job because she listed herself as a freelancer. I know it's crazy, but it's true. You see, the term freelancer is popular among designers. When I was in school, my classmates and I talked about how great it would be to be a freelancer. But outside of our sphere of peers in the design industry, the term freelancer is not as familiar. Or maybe I should say it's not as "prestigious" as we like to think it is. The term freelancer is akin to being quick and cheap, which reminds me of episode 71 of the podcast Good Design, Quick Design, Cheap Design. Pick Two. For many business people, freelancers are people you hire if you want something done fast and for a reasonable price, not necessarily if you want something designed well. For this reason, I tell designers who work for themselves to stop calling themselves freelance designers and instead say they run a design business. Even if you only do it as a side gig. In an article titled Stop Calling Yourself A Freelancer, author Andrew Holliday says that a company commands more respect than freelancers. And that freelancers are perceived as commodities. Meaning they're interchangeable. If you need a quick design job, hire a freelancer. In the future should you require more design work, you could hire the same freelancer, or you can hire someone else. It doesn't matter because freelancers are interchangeable. Anyone will do. And usually, the cheaper, the better. Hiring a freelancer is kind of like purchasing fuel for your vehicle. You know that all gas or petrol stations are basically the same, so you pick and choose where to fill up based on price. That's how many business owners perceive freelancers–as commodities. However, if you want a partner to help you develop your brand and marketing assets, someone you can work with long-term, then hire a design company, even if that design company is just one person. Holliday made another interesting point in his article that freelancers often fight for hourly work. Whereas companies typically get paid by the project. And therefore, your earning potential is much higher if you refer to yourself as a business owner and not a freelancer. But don't take his or my word on it. Earlier this week, I posted a poll in a large entrepreneur community where I'm a member. It's a community made up mostly of solopreneurs to mid-size business owners. In other words, the type of people you want as design clients. Here's what I asked. Who would you prefer to hire for design work: A: A graphic designer who runs their own design business? B: A freelance graphic designer? I know. It's a trick question since both answers are the same, but I wanted to see what people would say. Two hundred four people responded. 176 (86%) chose A: A graphic designer who runs their own design business. Compared to only 28 (14%) who chose B: A freelance graphic designer. What's even more interesting are the comments on my poll. Aren't they the same thing? But if I had to choose I would pick A. It sounds more professional. I would hire a freelance graphic designer. I'm just starting out and don't have a large budget and option A sounds more expensive to me. If I knew exactly what I wanted and just needed someone to implement it for me I would choose B. If I needed someone to help me develop new ideas I would choose A. Isn't hiring a freelancer kind of like hiring an employee who doesn't actually work for you, so it's less paperwork? I think the difference between the two is confidence and trust. I could trust that a design business owner is competent and knows what they are doing because they took the time to start a business. I know they'll be around for a long time should I need them again in the future. I wouldn't feel the same way about hiring a freelance graphic designer. I have a background in design, and I choose A. Most freelancers I know are only doing it until they can find a full-time job. And there were many other comments just like these. And they all came to a similar conclusion. If you want someone cheap, someone you can tell what to do, and you're not interested in building a working relationship with them, then hire a freelancer. However, if you want someone knowledgeable, someone who can help you solve the problems you're facing, and someone reliable who will be around for a long time, hire a designer who runs a design business. I think these people make my point for me. Stop calling yourself a freelancer. Let me simplify it. Let me simplify it by creating another distinction between a design business owner and a freelancer. If the projects you work on are for someone other than the person or company paying you, you are freelancing. For example, if an agency contracts you to work on projects for the agency's clients, you are working as a freelancer. They may or may not have in-house designers, but they need to hire you to fulfill their commitment to their clients. It doesn't matter if you work directly with the client or deal with someone at the agency as a go-between. If the end client is not the one paying you, then there's a good chance you're freelancing. However, if a client hires you to do work for them and pays you directly for your services, you are not freelancing. You are running a design business. Take my Podcast Branding business, for example. Podcasters hire me to design their artwork and websites. That's not freelancing since the client is paying me. But I'm also the designer for a large podcast agency. This agency sends their clients to me for their podcast artwork. In this case, I'm working as a freelancer for the agency since they pay me to create artwork for their clients. Another thing to consider is if you charge fixed, project-based or value-based pricing, then you are running a design business. Since freelancers typically charge by the hour. And finally, If you don't plan on ever being employed or working for a boss. Then you are running a design business. It's up to you. In the end, you can call yourself whatever you want. It's your career, after all. But I hope I've given you something to ponder. I know I was surprised by the response I got from the poll. I figured Design Business Owner would prevail over Freelance Designer, but I didn't know by how much. And if those who responded are the people who represent our ideal design clients, then why not heed what they are saying. Call yourself a freelancer if you want. But if you take yourself seriously and, more importantly, if you want others to take you seriously, then why not drop that moniker. Stop calling yourself a freelancer.

On Monday, when I sat down to start my week, I had an email in my inbox from a client giving me their approval to launch their new website. I anticipated this, and the site was live within an hour and a half. Satisfied with another completed project, I opened Plutio, my project management software of choice, to see what I was to work on next. And what I found was nothing. I had no website projects. I had no podcast cover artwork to design. My to-do list of client work was blank. I can't remember the last time this happened. I didn't even have proofs out with clients that may come back. I had nothing, nil, nada, zip, zilch and whatever other ways I could say it. I had no client work. It's now Friday afternoon as I write this, and not a single new project came in this week. For the first time in over a year, an entire week went by without a single order from my Podcast Branding website. For the first time in an even longer period, I didn't have a client website on the go. This lack of work is a situation that many self-employed designers may face. It doesn't only happen to new designers trying to grow their business. It can happen to anyone at any time. Maybe it's how the planets have aligned, or Lady Luck decided to take a vacation. I don't know, but it happens. It just happened to me. And it can happen to you. But experiencing a lull like this shouldn't make you worry. I've been in this line of work for a long time, and I can tell you, lulls never last. Give it a little time, and once again, you'll feel overwhelmed from having too much on your plate. What to do when facing lulls. The best way to face lulls is by embracing them. Please take advantage of the time they provide you because it won't last. This past week was one of the most productive for me in a while. I had no client work to hold me back, allowing me to accomplish many things. On Tuesday, my daughter asked if I could build her a website. She has an Etsy store but wants to move off that platform to one of her own. What she wanted was very simple. And there was no rush. She told me I could get to it whenever I had the time. Well, guess what? I had the time. So I got right to it, and in a matter of hours, I had completed her new eCommerce website. I did say what she wanted was very simple. So it didn't take long. And the look on my daughter's face when I showed it to her that same day was priceless. You got to win those parenting points whenever you can. Am I right? But that wasn't all. I met with a client the week before this. They're looking for a website redesign and expect a proposal from me. I have a multi-page website proposal template, which makes submitting proposals very easy. I open the template, update the information about whatever project I'm proposing, save it as a PDF file and send it to the client. Easy peasy. I've been using this template for a few years now, and it was getting a bit dated. But I never had the time to update it until now. It would typically take me 20 to 30 minutes to complete a proposal like this one. Instead, I devoted a couple of hours to redesigning my proposal template before sending it to the client. I've been thinking of redesigning it for a long time, and because of this lull, I was able to scratch it off my to-do list. I also had the opportunity to look at my Podcast Branding website and make many minor changes. I changed some wording here and there and updated a few of the images on the site. I also decided to eliminate one service I wasn't keen on doing anymore. And I added some clarification to the other services to increase conversion. I closed many of the browser tabs I had opened by reading articles I was "saving for later" or watching tutorial videos for various things. And I didn't feel guilty about any of it because I wasn't taking time away from client work. After all, I didn't have any. And of course, I did take the time to reach out to several old clients that I haven't heard from in a while, to get in touch and let them know I'm still here should they need me. Every day this week, I worked from 9-5, and I wasted none of that time even though I had no client work. I didn't feel self-pity or down in the dumps. Because I knew this lull wouldn't last, and I wanted to take advantage of every minute of it. We often put off working on our own business. And then we forget about it when we have a bit of time we could devote. I usually say you should treat your own business as a client and block off time to work on it. But a lull is the perfect opportunity to get as much of it done as possible. It helps if you have recurring revenue. I would feel much worse if I didn't have recurring revenue streams in this situation. In episode 216 of the podcast, I talked about offering website maintenance to earn extra income. This service provides peace of mind for my clients since they don't have to worry about the security or maintenance of their websites. If they have a blog or podcast, all they have to do is publish new posts or episodes, and I do everything else. I have a virtual assistant who handles the weekly maintenance for me, so other than checking in once per month; I only need to get involved when there's an issue. And to be honest, that rarely happens, thanks to the many preventative measures I have in place. But this also means that even though I had no client work this week, money was still flowing into my bank account. Retainers are another form of recurring revenue that could help you get through lulls. I don't currently have any retainer clients, but it will help you get through slow times if you do. Check out episode 32 and episode 255 to learn more about retainer agreements. Lulls are a normal part of running a design business. Lulls will happen. In your early years, you may experience them more often. As your reputation grows and you gain more and more clients, you'll experience fewer lulls. But that doesn't mean you'll never experience any. I hope you don't. But that's the reality of our industry–There's no guarantee of steady work or income. But in my opinion, that trade-off is worth it so that you and I can do what it is we love doing, designing. So the next time things slow down, remember these five things. Lulls offer an excellent opportunity to reconnect with past clients They allow you to work on what you've neglected in your business. They allow you to catch up on the many to-do items you keep putting off. They give you the time to improve your design and business skills. And most importantly, remember that lulls don't last. So please take advantage of them when they present themselves. Just because there's no client work doesn't mean you should stop working.