The Graphic Designer's Business Survival Guide

Erscheinungsjahr 2012
ISBN: 978-0-8144-3241-9
Verlag: Amacom

Buch, Englisch, 240 Seiten, Format (B × H): 154 mm x 229 mm, Gewicht: 390 g

Graphic design is a crowded, highly competitive world. And it takes a lot more than raw talent and technical ability to make it as an independent designer. Successful graphic designer and entrepreneur, Larry Daniels exposes the weak spot of so many: the critical business side of running even a one-person design firm. Designers often prioritize aesthetics over a client's needs, and ignore basic business skills such as writing, record keeping, and relationship building. This practical insider’s guide explains how to build a profitable, sustainable design business. Packed with sample agreements, letters, forms, and more, it reveals how to: • Create a website and portfolio that highlight design solutions • Do pre-pitch research and deliver winning presentations • Prepare inviting proposals that win lucrative contracts • Establish a reliable system for tracking billable hours (and staying solvent) • Use cold-calling strategies even sales phobics can master • Quantify design decisions in ways that business management can relate to and respect • Break out of “freelancer” mode to highly compensated creative consultant The field of design is littered with failures. To stand out and succeed, you need to be professional, efficient, and focused on the bottom-line results that clients value. The Graphic Designer's Business Survival Guide shows you how.

Autoren/Hrsg.

Daniels, Lawrence

Daniels, Lawrence J.

Fachgebiete

• Wirtschaftswissenschaften Betriebswirtschaft Management
• Wirtschaftswissenschaften Wirtschaftssektoren & Branchen Medien-, Informations und Kommunikationswirtschaft

Inhaltsverzeichnis

CONTENTS List of Figures vii About the Author ix Preface xi 1 Taking The Plunge: a daunting, energizing journey 1 2 Setting Up House: firm fundamentals 21 3 Design Firm Management: tools and templates 47 4 Designing a Relevant Firm Image 65 5 Communicating Credibility 81 6 Effective Business Writing: the cornerstone of firm growth 93 7 Crafting a Winning Proposal 101 8 Time Management: the key to design firm profitability 121 9 Effective Marketing: your passport to success 139 10 Growing Your Firm in Any Economic Climate 187 11 Sidestepp ing Obstacles in Your Firm’s Path 207 Index 223

Über Autor(innen)

LARRY DANIELS is past president of DanielsDesign Inc., a New York based branding and communications design firm that has been a consistent recipient of major industry recognitions for outstanding achievement.