Looking for a famous quote Jul 11, 09, 9:52 a.m.

Who was it that said something like "When man is at work, he is partially engaged. When man is at play, he is fully engaged." ??

I'm probably butchering the exact verbiage, but after spending a couple hours searching I'm coming up with nothing.

Need a good freelance writer Jun 30, 09, 4:43 p.m.

My old standby is booked. I need a solid writer to collaborate with me on a campaign. Nothing too addy or gimicky. Oh and they need have no qualms about working for a Christian non-profit organization. Any/all referrals much appreciated.

When a client says... Jun 10, 09, 1:40 p.m.

"This is a picture of a three fold brochre that I found at last week's conference...heavy stock, 6" x 11" panel size. And the back cover is horizontal and made into a self mailer. I also like the cover....I could see copying the idea so that there are a bunch of pictures of our products in situ with the "elements" of safety signs/labels/tags interspersed....like various symbols, signal words, colors, formats, etc. I know I am stepping into the "creative" aspect of making this brochure again, but when an idea presents itself, I bring it forward."

Is there anything wrong with me saying "Thanks for the example. Given that I don't recommend copying anyone per se, I think there could be something useful about this monochromatic grid approach. Again though, showing me this sort of thing during the initial creative phase is a bit like when someone tries to solve a crossword puzzle over your shoulder. Believe me—the fewer pre-conceived notions I have, the better the final outcome will be. Perhaps you aren't used to working with designers in this way, but rest assured this isn't about my ego. It's about solving the problem I've been tasked with in the most effective way, i.e. you getting the most bang for your buck."

—I've basically already told the guy in a nice way that he's giving me too much creative direction. He backed down after that, but it seems he's used to being in the conceptual and sometimes even technical driver's seat. I think he's having a difficult time reigning himself in, because he's not used to designers who push back.

So, I've got a contract with this company to produce two brochures. We're still on #1. Should I bite my tongue and save the above for a post-mortem assessment, or lay it all out there before things get worse? I'd rather not fire them if I can help it.

InDesign conundrum Jun 6, 09, 1:32 p.m.

So I just tried to draw a white ruled line in InDesign, but it appears black. Change it to another color, still appears black. I don't have overprint preview turned on. I checked the Attributes, seems ok, nothing funky turned on from what I can tell. Never encountered this before... what the bloody hell.

Any ideas?

Type Suggestions May 29, 09, 12:47 p.m.

Looking to buy a typeface for a client that will become their primary typeface for everything. Sans serif, multiple weights and widths. They like Benton Sans, but I'd imagine it's a no-go at nearly $5,000 for 5 seats. I'm looking at Trade Gothic Next as an alternative, it's relatively cheap @ $1,200.

Any other suggestions? They don't really like Gotham, so that's out.

Typekit May 28, 09, 11:42 a.m.

Dunno if this has been linked here before, but after reading this... I'm so excited I think I might throw up.

http://blog.typekit.com/2009/05/…

(link from jaylarson)

Contracts: on letterhead? May 22, 09, 3:19 p.m.

OK so I've been typesetting proposals on my letterhead and then send a PDF to potential clients for their review. Once fees and terms are settled on, do you print designers then send two copies of a contract vial snail mail, that's printed on your actual letterhead? Or do you just stick with a PDF and have them send back one copy with a signature (either faxed or scanned PDF)?

I'm wondering if there's a common practice. Can't remember how former employers used to do it. I'm wondering right now because I've got a bunch of PDF proposals floating around out there, and I need to print letterhead and envelopes if it *is* standard protocol to send contracts via mail. I'm also nearly out of business cards, so I need to decide whether to print letterhead at the same time, or save the trees and only do business cards.

I guess I'm wondering if anyone thinks it makes a damn bit of professional difference. I've got a kind of a high-end personal brand image, but I certainly don't want to incur waste if it's silly.

Sans to pair with Mercury May 19, 09, 8:39 a.m.

I'm tired of using Gotham for my own stuff. I still love it, but every other designer in the world uses it for their own I.D.

I'm looking for a new sans to pair with Mercury. I'm considering flipping the typical sans/serif paradigm and using Mercury Display for heads and subheads, but then using a sans for text.

I want a sans that has text (old style) figures, so that rules out some obvious choices like Benton or Franklin Gothic.

I'm think Avenir Next, but not sure if it really works:

Stealing clients May 12, 09, 11:50 a.m.

Thinking about soliciting a local museum for design work that was a client of my recent former employer. They haven't done any work for the museum in at least 4 years to my knowledge.

Is it unethical to go after the museum as a client? Mind you, I never signed a non-compete with my former employer, but I did have a verbal agreement that I wouldn't solicit any of the former firm's clients for 18 months after leaving.

Since the relationship has been dormant for a few years, I'm not sure what's kosher in this particular situation.

First Contact May 8, 09, 8:25 a.m.

OK so I want to get my foot in the door at certain companies. One example is InterfaceFLOR. Great brand, great products, and they work with a variety of reputable design firms. Would love to have them on my client roster.

The generic contact email page on their site looks dubious and ineffective. When you self-employed people try to get work from such clients (let's say you don't have any inside or outside connections, you just want them as a client), do you call their headquarters and ask for the VP of Marketing? Or do you find out their email address instead of cold-calling? Or—do you ask for their name/address so you can send them a printed promo with a letter?

What works/what doesn't work? All the work I've gotten so far has been through a warm intro of some kind; but it's all St. Louis-based, and the pond here is relatively shallow and probably overfished. I need to cast a broader net. I get a decent amount of traffic on my website, but I feel like I need something else... some kind of hook, something that will make it hard for people to forget about me.

Per Diem rates May 4, 09, 10:57 a.m.

How do you figure your per diem rates? I'm thinking about travel, lodging and other such expense. Do you charge a different per diem rate for each project, depending on where you have to travel? I know there's a gov't website with max per diem rates for each part of the country, but wondered if there are other costs that you guys build into your rates, that wouldn't be covered on this website:
http://www.gsa.gov/Portal/gsa/ep…

Not to be confused with a day rate for design services. I've already figured that part for myself.

Ah Didnae Come up in a Paper Boat. Apr 28, 09, 8:25 p.m.

Acht.

Business Plan? Apr 21, 09, 4:17 p.m.

So I was advised to write a business plan for my 2 month-old studio. I'm 8 pages into it and wondering if this is a daft exercise for a designer. I mean, I know how to market myself for crying out loud. I don't need to do market research and show stats since probably no one outside of myself will ever read it. I don't see what use there is in writing it all down, especially since I'm not trying to get a loan or anything.

Anyone here ever written a business plan for a design studio? Was it useful?

Un-Sync? Apr 16, 09, 2:04 p.m.

Got a new MacBook couple months back, need to transfer songs from my iPod. It's still synced with my old work computer that I had to give up when I left my last job.

Anyone have a suggestion for a program that helps dump the songs without deleting them, so I can sync to this computer? Is iDump any good?

Cheers.

Useful or crap? Apr 14, 09, 8:42 a.m.

Anyone try this service for design studios yet, or anything like it? Or is it an overblown sham? Notwithstanding the fact that their website is utter shite.

http://blog.styleapple.com/brand…

I need to step up my sales game somehow, the potential client connections are coming slow and tedious. I know what everyone says: network, network, network... but it feels like the old-fashioned method of getting warm introductions from friends and contacts is too slow.

Have tried to find an agent, but there are not many who rep designers, and the ones I've contacted aren't responding.

It is Finished Apr 10, 09, 9:38 a.m.

Happy Easter all.

Is there... Mar 24, 09, 12:06 p.m.

Any sort of professional organization that exists for the sole purpose of pairing designers (legitimately self-employed designers and studios, I mean) with potential clients? Besides the typical headhunting goons like Aquent, I mean.

I'm considering joining my local chamber of commerce. I've been to some of their events, and the pure shonkiness of some people made me want to throw up... but a man needs clients. I'm starting to think going to AIGA events will amount to squat in that regard.

What sort of networking do the self-employed here get involved with? What seems to actually work for you, vs. wastes of time?

The Economy of No Product Mar 24, 09, 11:54 a.m.

Brilliant article here in Metropolis (linked via Design Observer).

http://www.metropolismag.com/sto…

I wonder how this economy of no product would translate into graphic design? Obviously there are packaging needs for these once-for-a-lifetime products, but I wonder how else designers can morph into people who actually have something to contribute to people who don't want to buy anything... and still make a living.

Contacting agencies Mar 14, 09, 2 p.m.

I'm trying to solicit agencies for freelance work and have a question for those of you who do the same. If I use the generic "info" or "contact" email on a large agency's website, will it ever make its way into the right hands? Or do I need to get directly plugged in to a CD somewhere?

Anyone use an agent? Mar 10, 09, 6:54 p.m.

Now that I've launched my new website, I'm giving serious thought to full-time freelance and eventually becoming LLC or Inc. or whatever. Partially because of the shitty economy, and partially because it's what I've always wanted to do.

Thing is, in my 6 years of professional experience I've only freelanced sporadically. Three years ago, the last time I was on the job market, I sent out a ton of self-promo packets that got plenty of attention from design firms and agencies, but none of the companies I contacted looking for freelance work. So, I'm not sure what the best way is to go about all this. I have one client right now, a pretty good one that will bring in consistent work, but there are specific sectors I want to target and have no idea how best to go about it.

Do any of you freelancers use an agent? If so, has it been worthwhile? If not, what methods of finding clients seem to work for you?

Thanks in advance.