Accidental Logos and what to do after the fact

[inthesignbiz]

Say I have a customer come in for some magnetic signs.
They say they want a backhoe in the center and their colors
are yellow and green.

I come with a nice design for them that they like.
They get thier mags and go.

Shortly after that, the newspaper, phonebook, or some such other
calls and asks for this guys logo.

Logo?
I didn't realize that it was going to be a logo.
Now what?

This has happened more than once.

How do I ensure that we don't leave money on the table?

Is the design the property of the customer or is it still mine once it
leaves if not otherwise specified?

 

[Malkin]

This happens all the time. I would also like to know how others handle (or prevent) it.

 

[Williams Signs]

This is at the bottom of everything I send out the door. I have had to enforce it before with copyright lawyer. It is your intellectual property until it is paid for and released.

All designs, layout formats, or artwork appearing on any form of advertising or other articles produced by Williams Sign Shop or any of its authorized contractors or suppliers, are and remain the copyrighted property of Williams Sign Shop unless otherwise specified in writing. Reproduction in any form is unlawful. All new signs are guaranteed for one year against chipping or peeling. This warranty does not apply to materials supplied by customer. No guarantee will extend beyond one year whether expressed or implied.

 

[iSign]

let it go...

Illusion is correct, but you have to tell them in advance, or you just look like a jerk if you whine about it.. and you will look like more of one if you fight it...

...but if you make it clear up front... then & only then should you enforce the right to be paid additional money to transfer over more liberal usage rights, or unrestricted usage rights

 

[JasperST]

If they just want some clip art I'll add it on for a fee. If they want to then use that as a logo, it's fine with me, I have no invested interest. If they want me to send them artwork, we get back to the fee thingy, which equals what I charge for logos.

 

[Pat Whatley]

You didn't charge them for the artwork the first time....you've already left the money on the table.

I just send it the first time. If it's just lettering and a piece of clip art I tossed together I'm not going to try and hold it hostage.

After the first time (or two) I tell the customer that I've got to start charging them for the time it takes to stop what I'm doing, convert the file to whatever format is needed, email it off, and answer 20 questions from the printer who needed the art. I usually tell them it will cost $25 each time for this service OR I can put the file on a CD for them in every major digital format, along with PMS color numbers, for $50 and they can send to to everybody they want to.

Logo design is a whole different process with a lot more thought and care.

 

[GoodPeopleFlags]

If you put clipart in a layout, that's not a logo; at least to us it's not. To them it is. If they want to adopt it as a logo, send it to the customer in a .jpg and let the other companies charge him for cleaning it up. Don't start sending it to every company he deals with; he'll then expect you to do that every single time from now until the mayan calander runs out. Tell him you'll email it to him to have. Wouldn't it be illegal to put it on a cd and sell it to him?

If you create something custom, tell them that you will be happy to give the artwork to them on a cd in several formats for an additional fee. This is in addition to the design fee. Hopefully you didn't create something custom for them without a design fee. The additional charge is for the cd and the time putting the files on it. The $25 or so for the cd he will save time and again on setup fees from other companies.

But sometimes a simple, 5-min layout - no images or fancy stuff - the customer will want to adopt as a logo, too. In that type of situation, there probably wasn't a separate design fee involved. In that case, I would still follow my 2nd paragraph.

 

[JasperST]

That's a good point, put it on a CD. That way you can exchange money for art instead of sending them the art and hoping for payment.