NTB: Graphic Design Agent
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- halfnoise0
mm i guess my situation is kind different, but i'll just refer different marketing clients from my day job to a small group of designers that I respect/like working with. being someone's official agent sounds crappy.. i mean shouldn't you just refer people because you sincerely think it works in the favor of both parties involved?
- gpop0
In this sense, the Agent is more a
'New Business Director'
and is the liason between clients and designer. Inthis case... I wouldnt have thought Mike At Build woulld need a liason or someone to get him new work as he seems sorted in both departments. I woulld guess its more.. soeone to cover the holiday periods!
- gpop0
and someone to sort out my spelling!!!
Wanted:
'Graphic Spelling Agent'!
:g
- Lop0
how much paper you snatch per project?
- rabattski&rabattski0
i have an agent. not all the jobs are generated by them, i still get my own jobs. but having an agent is nice. less stress, less worries, e.g. you don't have to look for work, no price negotiations, if you have problems with a client you could always let your agent handle it etc.
there are a couple of downsides though. one side problem with using an agent is that in the end the client always tries to bypass the agent and gets in direct contact with you to lower the costs. however that can cause some problems depending on how you deal with it. i'm always super strict. if it's my own client it's no issue but if it's a client that my agent got me than out of respect i'll always handle it thru my agent even if that would mean losing the client. so stress.
and another problem, you really can't work with more agents (depending on your work, if one agent doesn't represent illustrations and only design you can hook up with an agent for illustrations). so you're sort of limited. basically you're agent has sole right to represent you. and you have to hope that your agent generates enough work to justify that sole right for representation.
oh, and this could be an ok agent for build based on the work i know from him (dunno where he lives so could be very well off):
- rabattski&rabattski0
oh and they do creative management as well (if i'm not mistaken):
- Lop0
that kinda sucks if you're only limited to one agent then.
how much money is your agent taking per project?
- tfs__mag0
if it's like agents in a lot of other fields probably about 10%
- 2cent0
anyone know of agents/reps in canada or even north america for that matter?...or where to start looking?
i have spent the better part of the day searching online and haven't really found much for designers.
thanks.
- ********0
if the agent gets 10 percent will he earn enough to work exclusively for you?
does he work for other designers as well?
rabattski, in your folio i see a lot of illustrations, is your agent solely specialised in this field?
- kodap0
In this field, there are a lot of differences from agent to agent.
It varies depending from the method of the agent.. so its almost unusefull pointing directions.I'm represented in illustration but I still keep my old clients in my hand. For future new clients, I redirect them to my representant, he only makes a commission of my prices, but he handles everything about billings, contracts, marketing, agreements, lawfull issues, etc, keeping everything ~straight and clean so i'll only have to worry about my creative and technical work.
As it was said before, if a freelancer designer can handle with billings and contracts and all these issues doesn't even need an agent, as we all know that the project prices and tasks need to to be calculated by the freelancer/company itself.
so why wasting money with an agent? - only when the agent has his own rich Client wallet and works like a consultant company...That's my perception of this, hope that's usefull.
- kodap0
I'd say more about it... but I'm lazy today.
- ********0
tis funny.. cuz i am getting at a point that either i am becoming an agent myself and do more outsourcing or find a damn fine agent who can pitch like mofo..
i'd love to read some more experiences, if anyone has them..
- Lop0
well yeah it's only worth it if the agent knows people, somebody who can bring your quality work and fill your pocket, only then would it be fair to be only represented by him/them
an agent agency in germany
http://www.designerdock.de/dd/en…
share some experience fellas we know you're reading this
- ********0
i work with a team of photographers who are my agents: they include digital production (photoshop) with each quote and proposal, they are keen on working my service into the budget so that nothing will get left out in the process...
i pay 10% or less 10% on the jobs i bill them, that they land
they have two reps, who strictly try to find work, by sending their hard copy folio out to agencies and creative directors, they will then handle all of the preliminary stuff including: quotes, budget proposals, organizing locations - virtually managing the project
im sure it will vary per outfit / designer... hope it helps
- rabattski&rabattski0
wow. this thread jumped back to life.
supa: it does suck, unless they generate you enough work so you can't think about the suckiness of it all anymore. but, see it from the agent pov. if you work with more agents then they can get in problems if a client calls 'em up to book you and you're not available. that's why the whole exclusivity is a big deal.
tfs: varies, normally 10% but my agent charges about 15% but that's on top of my fee and not deducted from my fee.
2cent: agency for designers are in some countries rare i think. although it's changing. makes more sense. if you have agents for photographers why not for designers. try to look / search for creative management instead of agent.
4cy: nope. that's not enough for an agent. i don't know any agent who only has 1 creative. they all have more. some are huge, some don't. hunkydory (amsterdam) for instance is way too big, more like a temp agency if you ask me. mach1, unit (all amsterdam) have a good size.
regarding my folio. my work has shifted more towards illustration. my current agent doesn't rep illustrations just art direction, copywriting, design and web. maybe i should look for another purely for illustration. not a bad idea.
kodap: "... if a freelancer designer can handle with billings and contracts and all these issues doesn't even need an agent..." you're right and also has to generate work by themselves. but i don't know many designers who are capable or really eager to that by themselves. however i do know a lot of designers who quit being freelance and went back to a "regular" job because either taxes fucked them over or they weren't capable of generating work. i mean. in most cases it's creativity vs business,
4cy: actually. it's quite interesting to be an agent. it's not that difficult. low overhead. and you make money while other people work. isn't that great?
supa: allright, designerdock! in what city? i heard there are big differences in dayrates. is that true? i went to designerdock in berlin to find an agent here. and i got kinda scared when i heard the day rates. very very very low, but it seems to be a berlin thing though.
- rabattski&rabattski0
there's another thing with agents (on a side note, i think that agents use the term creative management more because the term agent sounds too small, creative management however sounds big and corporate) the reputation of such an agent is quite important. for the agent as well as for the creatives it represents. it's quite a symbiotic relationship. the agent needs creatives to make money but also to create a certain reputation that certain reputation also depends on the quality of the creatives. the creatives need an agent with a high and consistent reputation in order to get the jobs. in the end the creatives does make the agent. if you as an agent have the best, let's say, illustrators and have a good selfpromotion then it could very well work. but you have to start somewhere. no one knows you if you start out. it's something that has to grow. during that period there isn't that much work. so as a creative you have to believe in the future of that agent.
what i notice around me in the last couple of years is that there is more network based agencies (not agents) and it's really project based. i've done quite some projects with a group of freelancers. where that group would differ per project. what was that tv show (cartoon) where they would assemble a specific task force everytime to get the job done? anyways, such a group would always include a project manager slash traffic manager. that is far more interesting than a regular agency or working thru an agent. regular agencies are less flexible and expensive. working thru an agent is most of the time very solo based, you are called in to do one thing. you know, just the website, just an illustration etc. when you work thru a network based agency than there's the whole project. from scratch to finish. which for me is more interesting. i do think that in the future that will grow and regular agencies, as well as agents, will have trouble to survive. there's this one agency in amsterdam, i think it's strawberry frog (or the other one) that has a small core and only works network based.
- gpop0
haha.
funny.
im sure I read a review in Creative Review Stating that the simplisity of this site was excellent and the PV-AN was for short quick snappy awnsers only!! so much for that!
- rabattski&rabattski0
:) really? oh man. i guess i fucked it up then. sorry.