Contracts and invoices and horses... Oh my!

[picky-very-picky]

Cute Chick

[katrina_suzanne]

Originally Posted by picky-very-picky

Cute Chick

thanks picky, how did you know ;-)

[tommylogic]

JESUS CHRIST!!! Did anyone even bother reading that big ol' cluster f*ck of a mess???

Lead, you ever consider going through a service that handles all your contracting and peripheral services? Might be an easier option. If you're interested let me know.. I'm ALMOST ready.

[flick]

Originally Posted by katrina_suzanne

If you go in at a loss to save face, and she recommends you - you may end up in a vicious circle. If she shops around she's likely to find your prices are competitive anyway.

that is good advice and a very good point :)

[LeadMagnet]

Originally Posted by tommylogic

JESUS CHRIST!!! Did anyone even bother reading that big ol' cluster f*ck of a mess???

Lead, you ever consider going through a service that handles all your contracting and peripheral services? Might be an easier option. If you're interested let me know.. I'm ALMOST ready.

To be honest i've only been doing the odd job here and there as they crop up since i haven't really had time for them.
If you want to get me a few freelance gigs, then by all means do and i'll let you handle my contracts and all that.

[tommylogic]

Originally Posted by LeadMagnet

To be honest i've only been doing the odd job here and there as they crop up since i haven't really had time for them.
If you want to get me a few freelance gigs, then by all means do and i'll let you handle my contracts and all that.

Well if anyone ever wanted something coded.. esp scripted.. you are the FIRST on my list due

[zumojuice]

Fact is, until you've done a few projects of different types, it's hard to be spot on with the times. Also, as you get better, both at working more effectively and also working out what the clients wants first time, that will reduce and you rates can begin to rise, such as to value your experience...

Understanding the client is a major one. So many clients seem to come to the table with a clear idea of what they 'think' they need. It's the job of the designer to understand the needs and then value their 'expected' outcome against this (if they have one). It may be they have a clear idea of the finished visual and simply need someone to create it. This can be helpful if they idea is good and well researched, but also can be poor so they may simply pick what they have seen around them and therefore want to just the same as everyone else, or something radical inapprorate for thier market place.

[tommylogic]

Originally Posted by zumojuice

... It's the job of the designer to understand the needs and then value their 'expected' outcome ...

I might argue that point.. that puts the designer in a role outside of what they should be expected to do. If you were a race car, should I expect the car to understand the dynamics of the track or the temperament of the driver or the disposition of the other drivers at any given moment? I think NOT!!!

I would argue that designers should be treated as high performance machines and should only be expected to perform as such. Any other expectation is quite frankly... unrealistic. At least if you want a good one. The good ones don't do everything perfect... they do one thing, PERFECTLY!!!

[zumojuice]

Using your metaphor for a second, the designer would be a mechanic/engineer - which has elements of all those things - the driver will tell him how he wants his car, but that it balanced with the track/conditions of the race (market)

I agree that much of it might fall outside of the role of the designer, but more I see it as evolution. Designers have always needed to understand their client's needs and the audience - if you are not factoring those, they are you truly a designer?