Choosing the Clients and Projects You Want
How to Put yourself in the position to choose who you work with
I’m So Glad You're Here! - Thanks for sticking with me!
When you first start out as a freelance designer you’re going to be very eager and anxious about every potential client and project that presents itself.
As a new designer in the industry you’re not going to be financially stable and you’re going to be thinking am I going to earn enough money this month? When will the next pay check be coming in?
When you have this mind-set as a new freelance designer it’s quite easy to treat every opportunity like a golden ticket.
But with experience comes knowledge and an understanding that each time you invest your time into a client and their project that does not go as well as you had hoped for can turn out to not only be frustrating but also costly to your business.
When vetting a new client and their project consider these two criteria’s:
PAYMENT & VALUE
These will help you determine the amount of time you’re going to have to devote to this client and their project.
PAYMENT: The total amount of money the client will pay you to complete the project.
VALUE: How much does this client value your work or how much of a personal passion you have for this project?
Your first priority is obviously to clients who value your body of work and pay you well.
Never take these clients for granted!
Then you have those type of clients who do indeed pay well but don’t value your work. These types of clients are an absolute pain in the...Everything!
Then you have to be cautious of clients who really value you and praise you to the moon and back, but the money is not good at all.
These types of clients are not necessarily bad clients they just don’t have the budget to work with you which is understandable it happens. You have to make that call and judge the situation, just ask yourself the question of
“Money aside is this worth doing? And what else will I gain from it?”
On the other hand it could be a client who promises that high paying projects will come eventually for your good will on this one low paying project.
Don’t bite! as those projects will never come, they never had the money in the first place so why make such a promise, well it does not take a genius to figure out that they want you to do the project because they see your work as good quality but they don’t want to pay you good money for that good work.
My advice is to keep a big distance between you and this type of client. Or put them to one side until they have the correct funds to pay you adequately for your time and services.
So this brings us to the question of:
How do You Put Yourself in the Position of Choosing the Clients and Projects You Want?
Let's take a look at several areas you need to focus on to get yourself in that position, it’s not going to be easy. I will tell you that, otherwise everyone would be doing it.
It’s going to be hard work and if you just see design as a job to earn money and not a day to day passion I’m afraid you won’t make it far in this industry.
Get out what you put in!
When you're passionate and you put in more than you get back sooner or later you start to see that what you have put in starts to pay off and the more you devote your time and life to it the more you will start to see it come back to you.
A lot of people expect results within weeks and months, try doing it for years without anything.
You have to give everything you have for years to come before you qualify for the real golden tickets.
You have to be prepared to scratch and claw your way to a position that will allow you to choose what you want only then can you make it in this industry.
You will never become a millionaire in this industry and if you have congratulations you have my respect!
But with hard work, determination and passion you can make it a good career that is fun and enjoyable.
So let’s take a look at what you need to focus on.
Your Own Vision Needs to be Clarified
You may have had the same vision as you have always had from the start, but over time it may have evolved and shifted in response to changes you have seen over the years.
Determine your brand positioning statement and your vision for the future, or at the very least take another look at it: does it still represent how you operate your design studio?
A solid vision will direct you into key decision making, such as what you want to specialise in and the type of clients you would like to be working with.
This will give you a framework that is well-thought out on how you should be running your business.
Delivering Great Value to Your Clients
Delivering value is not just about delivering work that the client asked for and is willing to sign off on.
It’s about giving them something they can’t get anywhere else and giving them a reason to keep coming back to you.
It’s about delivering a genuine, unique quality solution that has been thoroughly thought out with a process that has been a real eye-opener for your client that has opened doors to new aspects of their business they never thought about or experienced.
For example at The Logo Creative we don’t just design them a logo, we give them a full brand identity with a style guide so all members of the business have access at all times to how the brands visual aspects must appear to stay consistent and how they should be used correctly.
This also makes it easier for your client when commissioning a sign maker for example as they will be able to provide them with the style Guide when making the signature or an interior designer who will need access to the brand colours.
If we work on a digital project such as a website for a full branding project, we don’t just design a website and end off there, now we teach them how to use it and keep it updated, and we also arm them with a social media strategy and teach them the basics of putting themselves out there and increase their marketing opportunities.
When you’re working with a client do something similar: Give them what they ask for and provide extra value to what is relevant in their industry or things that relate to their needs.
Differentiating Yourself
Running a full-service design studio is not necessarily a bad path to choose, but it won’t make you or your studio memorable to clients.
Being known as a jack of all trades will just add you to the ever growing list of other companies who are also off every service under the sun.
I ran a full-service design business for a long time and I found that most of the time the deciding factor was price.
Potential clients just see another design business and who can give them the best deal.
I did not want this and decided to specialise I now find that the potential clients that contact me are the ones who want to work with me because of the work I do not do because of looking for the best price.
In fact, price is never really the first thing they ask for, that comes a little later after they have got to know me better.
The work draws them in and then they want to get to know me, and to be honest it’s normally me who brings up rates after that.
Think about what makes you special, what do you think your team does the best? What is your brand identity?
Do you emphasize a human touch, do you have an in-depth communication between you and your clients?
Do you offer something unique in your process that clients can’t get anywhere else? I can’t share mine as that is my uniqueness but you can figure something out that will work for you.
You could specialise in a certain industry this way you learn more about the chosen industry and your clients realise this and see you as the best go to for their needs because you have dedicated your specialisation to their industry.
Whatever it is, you must own it, and own it well! Promote it, and strengthen it as much as you can.
By doing this consistently you will start to attract the type of clients and projects you are looking for.
Be Proficient in the use of Modern Technology
I hear you scream at me,
“Well Andrew unlike you I don’t have a teach background”
Sure, I understand not every designer is going to be proficient in using modern technology and I’m certainly not suggesting you go out and earn a degree in computer science.
To give you a little background about me. I started in design when I was at school earning A Levels in Art and Graphic Design and other subjects.
I followed it on later with technology.
I wanted to combine both design and tech and a lot of people in the industry said I could not do both and I had to choose one over the other.
I have always been head strong and nobody tells me what I have to do or what I can and can’t do, so I told them I would do both and eventually I would work for myself doing both as this was always my goal to work for myself.
I went to college and university earning distinction level diplomas after diplomas on various areas so I had the paper to stick in their face.
I set up my business working part-time doing design and tech while also working full-time for someone else.
I got my foot in the door at a local school as the lead IT and network technician, then got a senior level position within the area’s top school, was promoted to senior lead contact and project manager to look after a region of 15 schools I was in charge of infrastructure, digital design such as school websites and hubs, budgets and a team of technical staff.
Within this position I was also required to attend some of the council’s biggest meetings regarding technology, and at times had to stand on stage in and present in front of 500+ kids and staff about technology with schools.
I proved a lot of people wrong and I’m so glad I did, but most importantly I did it for me, not for them. They just added to my motivation of achieving my goals.
Eventually some years later I decided to leave my position within schools and focus on my own business as it was demanding more of my time as it grew.
My ex-manager at the school is one of my best friends now you can read a little more about it here in one of my first newsletter issues.
I understand not every designer is great with technology, and that’s ok but try to be tech savvy.
I know it can be overwhelming to keep yourself up to date with everything, but it’s important that you try to make it a priority.
By knowing the latest and greatest in terms of technology, it puts you in a better position to deliver the best solutions for your clients.
Not only that, you will be better equipped with knowledge to implement your own internal solutions to make your operation run smoother and more efficient and profitable.
If your too busy yourself to take on this task delegate it to a team member who can also keep other members of the team updated, there is a high chance someone will be happy to take this on and off your plate.
Even though I’m good with tech and do most of this myself including web design.
I have two freelance developers on hand when client issues occur or I need to delegate technical issues to, this way my time is not taken up resolving digital issues.
Become as Efficient as You Can
The biggest result of bringing yourself up to date with technology is managing your efficiency.
I’m not saying go crazy and build your own server even though it is beneficial, what I’m saying is brush up on your tech terminology and understand the basics.
If you feel more confident with tech, take a look at automating some of your social media tasks to take some weight off.
Investing in automation systems that will take a load off and make your working day a little easier is worth the time and investment.
You can also learn small new tasks you can perform on the backend of your website such as performing backups both automated and then a secondary manual one to store off-site.
Set up remote access to your computer in the studio so you can remote in and work on it from home when you’re away from the studio.
Look at setting up an onsite automated backup solution in your studio that performs regular backups of everyone’s computers keeping client work and documents safe.
You could also set up a central storage solution that is accessible to all team members for file-sharing to improve work flow.
Look at tightening up your project management systems, by tightening up your internal systems of operation both on and offline your business will run smoother saving you money in the long run.
Knowing about tech and feeling comfortable around it will help in running your business and helping clients further.
Making Connections with Talented People
As I mentioned earlier, I have two developers who I have known for years. They are always available when I need them and they have helped me with some really frustrating technical issues with websites, databases and servers over the years.
This has helped me and my business move forward and grow, and also knowing they are just an email away is reassuring.
In fact, my friend Jonathan Wilcock who is a copywriter and subscriber to this newsletter helped me with some advice the other week and I was extremely grateful. So thanks again Jonathan.
If you’re looking for a copywriter Jonathan is your man! Check out his website: sowhatif.co.uk
Designers and friends who I admire, Radim Malinic and Drew de Soto who are also subscribed, have passed on leads and valuable knowledge when needed. Which i am always grateful for, so thanks again to both of you.
Check out their website: brandnu.co.uk | navig8.co.uk
My point is making connections no matter how big or small are valuable connections.
Also when you start to grow your studio you need to look for employees who share your passion, vision and goals.
People who have spirit, a good work ethic and the potential to help grow your business in your vision.
Steve jobs once quoted:
“Great things in business are never done by one person. They’re done by a team of people”
Now that’s true having a great team of people allows you to do great things but on the other hand you don’t have to have lots of employees to do great things.
I look at it as input from more than one individual that will create and increase the chance of a better outcome. Two heads are better than one sort of scenario.
You ask for advice, you get solid advice, this helps you move forward better than you would have on your own without the advice and the end result is you achieve a better outcome.
Someone recommends you to a client, the client engages you and you create a great design that helps the clients business grow.
Without the recommendation there would be no project or outcome.
These tiny things are all forms of team work in my eyes helping each other move forward regardless of if they are your employee and you’re paying them.
Picking and Choosing Your Clients and Projects
We are all looking for clients and projects to work on, but we can’t say yes to everything that is presented to us.
The clients we work with define us as much as they help us to survive, and by taking on a client that does not fit into our companies vision, will set us back even further from where we envision and aspire our corporate identity to be positioned.
How do we as designers evaluate a potential client to understand if our time is worth investing?
Aside from our initial gut feeling at The Logo Creative, we have a process that helps in determining if a client is a good fit.
I wrote an issue about it called “Do Designers Choose Their Clients, Or Do Clients Choose The Designer?” This issue includes my 6 P’s Checklist we follow when validating and declining projects.
It’s a good idea to invest in a similar process for your own design business, something that you trust that is fixed and reliable to adhere to. Trust in Your Process!
I know current times have not been fair to businesses and it’s true that a lot of professional service companies have been affected recently due to these current hard times.
I have always worked hard, valued and appreciated what I have, but if there are things I have learnt more than anything from current times, they are that I value them even more and I feel blessed that I am in the position I am with my business.
I also feel that now more than ever there is a greater value in being efficient in specialising to differentiate my brand from the competition, and giving clients a memorable experience that makes them confident about investing in our brand.
Let me know in the comments how you select your clients to work with? Do you use a similar process or something entirely different you don’t mine sharing to help others?
As I always say - “Stay curious & enthusiastic, and good things will happen!”
Thanks for reading. 🙂
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