Affinity Express
New Member
Hey FrankenSigns.biz, thanks very much for the recommendation. We appreciate it!
Thanks!
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looking for designer
- Thread starter Hog Wild graphics
- Start date
Thanks!
BobM
New Member
I've used Jill for several jobs and had great results. Nice clean work.
TyrantDesigner
Art! Hot and fresh.
If I were still freelancing I would send you a PM.
Sadly, like others said ... if you want someone "on-staff" it will be hard.
Freelancers are generally going to be just as busy as yourself or have odd hours. Just plan ahead and expect a 1-2 day turn around.
Sadly, like others said ... if you want someone "on-staff" it will be hard.
Freelancers are generally going to be just as busy as yourself or have odd hours. Just plan ahead and expect a 1-2 day turn around.
Graphic Design Help
Ace Signs has a team of graphic artist that would be able to help out anyone needing proofs done.
Ace Signs has a team of graphic artist that would be able to help out anyone needing proofs done.
Biker Scout
New Member
I can't figure out for the life of me why so called "designers" take forever to get stuff done? To WOW a client is really simple... all you have to do is come up with something better than what they pictured in their head. No need to over design, especially if you are not getting paid to do so. And never work on spec. I can still charge (and get) $60 an hour. But you know what, stuff rarely takes me an hour. Even a seemingly complicated menu. I just made it up in my mind years ago, that if I'm going to do something, it's going to be awesome (and fast just came with the years of experience)
But I hear that same 'ol thing from people all the time about how slow or flakey designers are. Maybe it's because of the "Artsy Nature" of the people in the field?
But I hear that same 'ol thing from people all the time about how slow or flakey designers are. Maybe it's because of the "Artsy Nature" of the people in the field?
TyrantDesigner
Art! Hot and fresh.
I know half my time freelancing is communication. In house it would take 5 minutes of discussion and 10 minutes of proofing to get an idea roughed out to be completed in next to no time. If you're not able to have that, it ussually takes about 3 times to 6 times longer to get to that stage just because of how long it takes them to respond, then you to respond to them and back and forth ... then you design blind ... get your proof sent out and wait ... that can sometimes take upto a few days for a client to respond ... meanwhile you need to be working on other things which again takes more time than normal ... all in order to get around to the next round of revisions tweaks or exports for that original customer. An active freelancer like myself can get you what you need in a few days but it solely is because of the delay in communication ... not because of producing the work. It's the same reason why some shops take a few weeks to produce simple jobs but others are same day. the more steps involved in producing work no matter the company, industry or product ... the longer it takes.
With a standard 15 minute meet and greet design consult I can get a logo cranked out in an hour or two because i've already sketched 4-6 things out in front of the customer, gotten his/her likes and dislikes for the logo and what the feel should be. I can lay out that logo in a half an hour to an hour, proof it out, (delay for customer to look over the proof and suggest changes) and about half an hour to an hour to tweak (possibly proof again) and export the artwork for use.
Imagine taking that and drawing that out by 3 to 6 times longer ... Most freelancing designers I know aren't lazy ... just busy. If you need it stat, ask them about getting it done faster. if they can't because they are actually slow .. find someone else. Any designer worth their salt can bump jobs slightly to prioritize a rush job. might cost you a little more ... but not by much and if time is money ....
With a standard 15 minute meet and greet design consult I can get a logo cranked out in an hour or two because i've already sketched 4-6 things out in front of the customer, gotten his/her likes and dislikes for the logo and what the feel should be. I can lay out that logo in a half an hour to an hour, proof it out, (delay for customer to look over the proof and suggest changes) and about half an hour to an hour to tweak (possibly proof again) and export the artwork for use.
Imagine taking that and drawing that out by 3 to 6 times longer ... Most freelancing designers I know aren't lazy ... just busy. If you need it stat, ask them about getting it done faster. if they can't because they are actually slow .. find someone else. Any designer worth their salt can bump jobs slightly to prioritize a rush job. might cost you a little more ... but not by much and if time is money ....
Maybe everyone is not as awesome and amazing as you. Majority of the time we know exactly what to do. Other jobs take more time and thought. Right now I'm working on redesigning a large messy storefront, and you know what? Its taking us longer to find a great solution than might seam reasonable. Who cares? Its looked a mess for years, waiting a week or two to get a new layout doesn't matter.
I don't like to bad-mouth other designers or sign shops for taking too long. Creativity isn't always instantaneous. Perhaps the "designers" you speak of actually care about the work they produce, and would prefer to take a little longer than show sub-par work.
Gino
Premium Subscriber
This thing is 2-1/2 years old. I'm sure they met their needs by now, or would've rekindled this thread themselves.
However, it really isn't too hard to come up with good stuff for customers over and over again as mentioned, without hitting 'creativity block'. No one is gonna see each and every design you come up with except you and your staff. You can easily steal from your early 'thoughts' from years ago as well as get ideas from any grocery aisle in the store. Look at some of the great designers here at s101 and their posts or threads dedicated to show off their accomplishments....... most of their work can be identified almost instantly upon seeing it either here or in a magazine. One's style or creative juices just all have a flare about them and it becomes you. It's really easy to become labeled when your works says who you are before your name is seen. Ever notice, getting new blood into designing isn't easy, if you only have one or two designers on staff ?? Maybe every 10 years or so, you have to announce you're gonna make a change, because becoming stale is not a very appetizing feature among designers.
However, it really isn't too hard to come up with good stuff for customers over and over again as mentioned, without hitting 'creativity block'. No one is gonna see each and every design you come up with except you and your staff. You can easily steal from your early 'thoughts' from years ago as well as get ideas from any grocery aisle in the store. Look at some of the great designers here at s101 and their posts or threads dedicated to show off their accomplishments....... most of their work can be identified almost instantly upon seeing it either here or in a magazine. One's style or creative juices just all have a flare about them and it becomes you. It's really easy to become labeled when your works says who you are before your name is seen. Ever notice, getting new blood into designing isn't easy, if you only have one or two designers on staff ?? Maybe every 10 years or so, you have to announce you're gonna make a change, because becoming stale is not a very appetizing feature among designers.
It's a little hard to re-invent the wheel over and over again, huh ?? 
Rick
Certified Enneadecagon Designer
Being a freelancer...
While I tend to agree with Gino that the wheel can only
be reinvented so many times. In my experience, creative
block usually has little to do with making up something but
the distractions or boredom of siting in a desk for hours
on end. I have a massive book collection to get ideas from
and thousands of unused ideas and logos. But in the end...
I like trying to re-invent the wheel - as frustrating as it
may be.
I hope we never have a "style" though I do tend to like retro,
many many sign designers and freelancers do have a style...
and can work out for a while, but in my opinion a freelancer
will only reach a certain audience and will not have as many
opportunities to make money as a sign designer with a wider
range of work/styles/sign types.
Not all freelancers are slow, not all sign shops are the same.
I noticed that most sign freelancers specialize... which I
find odd since signs are a speciality of graphic design. Now
we has sub-specialties.
As fun as it is to make logos and wraps, I make 99% of my
money on architectural signage, wayfinding and environments.
I'm a good logo and wrap designer, decently fast at it. But for
some reason, I have been cast as an architectural/environmental
sign designer. One thing for sign freelancers to consider... you
may get paid 100-200 bucks a logo, or wrap, most of the
architectural sign jobs I work in are in the thousands in billing.
I think it would be smart for a sign shop to have a few
freelancers on call. That way they can direct a job to an appropriate
designer.
Right now we have 3 regular clients, all sign shops. We are going
all in on being a design firm specializing on brand/logos,
advertising and environments. Freelancing has been great for me,
but not as artistic as I would like to be since my clients usually
add their own interpretation, the work is not as satisfying. We are
still going to service freelance clients, but looking to design directly
for the client.
While I tend to agree with Gino that the wheel can only
be reinvented so many times. In my experience, creative
block usually has little to do with making up something but
the distractions or boredom of siting in a desk for hours
on end. I have a massive book collection to get ideas from
and thousands of unused ideas and logos. But in the end...
I like trying to re-invent the wheel - as frustrating as it
may be.
I hope we never have a "style" though I do tend to like retro,
many many sign designers and freelancers do have a style...
and can work out for a while, but in my opinion a freelancer
will only reach a certain audience and will not have as many
opportunities to make money as a sign designer with a wider
range of work/styles/sign types.
Not all freelancers are slow, not all sign shops are the same.
I noticed that most sign freelancers specialize... which I
find odd since signs are a speciality of graphic design. Now
we has sub-specialties.
As fun as it is to make logos and wraps, I make 99% of my
money on architectural signage, wayfinding and environments.
I'm a good logo and wrap designer, decently fast at it. But for
some reason, I have been cast as an architectural/environmental
sign designer. One thing for sign freelancers to consider... you
may get paid 100-200 bucks a logo, or wrap, most of the
architectural sign jobs I work in are in the thousands in billing.
I think it would be smart for a sign shop to have a few
freelancers on call. That way they can direct a job to an appropriate
designer.
Right now we have 3 regular clients, all sign shops. We are going
all in on being a design firm specializing on brand/logos,
advertising and environments. Freelancing has been great for me,
but not as artistic as I would like to be since my clients usually
add their own interpretation, the work is not as satisfying. We are
still going to service freelance clients, but looking to design directly
for the client.
Joe Diaz
New Member
I think it all depends on what you include into the design process. I have found that the brainstorming of unique and fresh new ideas in addition to the back and forth correspondence with clients are the most time consuming parts of the creative process. After a game plan has been devised and I know what it is I'm designing, the mouse pushing and keyboard tapping part is actually the fastest part of the entire process for most designs we create. And since we do much more than just basic sign layouts, many projects we work on take more than an hour to design.
So I'm wondering if Biker Scout is talking about the entire process or just the part where you are using the software. Because it's bad enough that so many people out their underestimate what some of us do for a living, it's always a shame when I hear people in our own industry do it.
"To WOW a client is really simple..." That might be true for some clients, but then I've never thought the goal of my job was to "Wow" my customers, but to "Wow" theirs (in the most effective way), and that is not always that simple.
Lastly, I've been taught by many of the really great designers I look up to, who also happen to be great business men and women, that one shouldn't price out design work by the hour, it punishes you for being good at your job when you achieve a final product faster than others, and faster than you once did as you improve over time. I realize that is easier said than done, especially in the sign industry. We still look at some design work based on an hourly rate, normally the every-day, basic sign layouts, but larger design projects that require a bit more, like logos for example, are valued differently because they are more valuable to that client as the face of their business.
I think one of the best things we have done at our shop in the last 10 or so years was develop a pricing guide for design that illustrates what a client gets within a given budget. They can see different price ranges: a min, mid and high for the many different services we offer, however the important part is they see designs that fit within those min, mid and high categories. This gets them in the mindset that they are shopping for results, not by the hour.
So I'm wondering if Biker Scout is talking about the entire process or just the part where you are using the software. Because it's bad enough that so many people out their underestimate what some of us do for a living, it's always a shame when I hear people in our own industry do it.
"To WOW a client is really simple..." That might be true for some clients, but then I've never thought the goal of my job was to "Wow" my customers, but to "Wow" theirs (in the most effective way), and that is not always that simple.
Lastly, I've been taught by many of the really great designers I look up to, who also happen to be great business men and women, that one shouldn't price out design work by the hour, it punishes you for being good at your job when you achieve a final product faster than others, and faster than you once did as you improve over time. I realize that is easier said than done, especially in the sign industry. We still look at some design work based on an hourly rate, normally the every-day, basic sign layouts, but larger design projects that require a bit more, like logos for example, are valued differently because they are more valuable to that client as the face of their business.
I think one of the best things we have done at our shop in the last 10 or so years was develop a pricing guide for design that illustrates what a client gets within a given budget. They can see different price ranges: a min, mid and high for the many different services we offer, however the important part is they see designs that fit within those min, mid and high categories. This gets them in the mindset that they are shopping for results, not by the hour.