Listen to the full episode below or on the Logo Geek website. A snippet’s transcribed after the embedded player (edited slightly because I’ve never been great at speaking while thinking).
How do you get higher-paying design clients?
“It comes down to trust. That’s not a new thing when clients get to a certain size — even the smallest clients are right to be cautious before hiring you. Any time you spend a hefty amount of money on something, before you receive what you’re paying for, you do your research on the seller. Design clients do the same. More so when they’re spending tens, maybe hundreds of thousands of pounds.
“Always expect your potential clients to see every detail there is about you online. They’re highly unlikely to see it all, but you’ve got to show that you’re a professional, and be consistent about it, for years.
“Growing my business has been a gradual thing, and if you happen to land a multinational in the first couple of years, you’re doing better than I did. It was about three years in when Yellow Pages emailed me out of the blue, so there was probably an element of luck in how they actually found my portfolio. The company’s brand manager paid an interest in the design posts I was publishing, and liked how I showed my sketches. I quoted them a single figure for the project, meaning their choice to hire me was either a yes or a no, but today when I send a quote I generally include three price options, so instead of deciding whether to hire me, clients choose in what way to hire me. It makes it a little more likely that they’ll say yes.”
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Apologies for the echo from my side. Ian and I both use a Blue Yeti mic, but I need to try some sound diffusion techniques for flat surfaces in the room. And a massive thanks to Ian for being such a gracious host.
Full interview here, and browse through all Ian’s episodes.
Comments
Great post, thanks for sharing your experience. Very valuable.
I’m grateful, David!
Having being a silent observer and protégé of you, I’ve learned a lot from your blog posts and most of all your two really useful books—“Logo Design Love” and “Work for Money, Design for Love”—and I strongly believe that, there is more to share with us (the community of Logo/ Brand Identity Designers).
Great advice — “Always expect your potential clients to see every detail there is about you online…”
A pleasure, Eva, Simon. Thanks a lot for reading/listening.
Thank you very much for helping us, the beginning designers! Your books and publications are very valuable to me.
Always amazing to get such insights, a big fan of your work. Thanks a lot being an inspiration to me and many. :-)