Ben Hannam - A Graphic Design Students Guide to Freelance

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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data:

Hannam, Ben.

A graphic design student's guide to freelance : Practice makes perfect / Ben Hannam.

pages cm

Includes index.

ISBN 978-1-118-34196-4 (pbk.); ISBN 978-1-118-39621-6 (ebk); ISBN 978-1-118-39623-0 (ebk); ISBN 978-1-118-39704-6 (ebk); ISBN 978-1-118-39705-3 (ebk); ISBN 978-1-118-39731-2 (ebk)

1. Commercial artVocational guidanceUnited States. I. Title.

NC1001.H36 2012

741.6023dc23

2012011012

Book Cover Designed by FourDesign

FourDesign is a faculty-led, student-run digital and print design agency at Virginia Tech, within the Visual Communication Design department in the School of Visual Arts. FourDesign specializes in corporate branding, print design, signage development, advertising, and basic web and interactive design. For more information visit www.wearefourdesign.com. Cover concept and illustration by Drew Ellis.

Accessing Digital Files Online

There are several business forms that you can access online and use to help protect yourself, manage your work flow, and prepare a budget. You are free to modify these documents to fit your needs. However, before using these documents you should consult with a business attorney to make sure they provide you with ample legal protection for your region. To access these forms, you must go to www.wiley.com/go/graphicdesignstudentguide

Preface

For the last four years I've required the students entering my Introduction to Graphic Design class to work with a paying freelance client. I'm one of those annoying teachers who love seeing their students achieve more than they thought possible, and I'm okay with pushing my students beyond their comfort zones.

I was pushed hard at Virginia Commonwealth University, and while it was occasionally painful, it was a time when I experienced tremendous growth as a graphic designer. Sometimes we have to be reminded to work outside our comfort zones because it's easy to become complacent and only embrace the opportunities that are easy for us to complete. It doesn't matter if the change takes the form of writing your first book, experimenting with a new design methodology, or working for your first freelance client. These are all opportunities for growth.

In order to get outside of our comfort zones, we occasionally need a little nudge from behind or must gather our courage and take a running start. Just like entering a cold pool on a warm summer day, once we acclimate ourselves to the initial shock of entering the chilly water, we adjust quickly to our new conditions. As a student in a graphic design program, the question you need to answer is, Are you ready to try something new, or do you want to maintain the status quo?

This book is written for students who are willing to try something new and who are interested in learning more about working as a freelance designer. Throughout this book I have tried to strike a balance between encouraging you to work outside your comfort zones and helping you to minimize your chances of a less than successful outcome. The bottom line is that while I can help you lay out a strategy to work with clients, you have to provide the common sense, motivation, and work ethic. For many of you success will be determined by the amount of energy you are willing to put into your freelancing endeavor.

I asked my students how they felt when they learned that they were going to have to work with a client; 50 percent of the class said they felt nervous, 40 percent said they felt confident, and 10 percent said they were ambivalent about the idea. Strangely, it's the students who said they were ambivalent about the idea who worried me the most. Working with a client isn't something to be taken lightly, and a measured amount of fear is to be expected. Similarly, being confident in one's abilities can help a student power through indecision and lead to success. It's the not caring mentality that I believe is the biggest predictor of a less-than-successful outcome.

I can offer encouragement for those students who are intimidated by working with clients, and I can help those who are ready to hit the ground running understand why it's important to develop a plan before leaping into action, but I can't make someone who is ambivalent suddenly begin to care. No matter how hard I try, I can't push a rope. But I can certainly use one to rein in motivated students. Without self-motivation, you will be dead in the water.