• Work
  • Blog

Category: Freelancing

Home Category: Freelancing (Page 2)

Why I Renamed My Design Business

July 25, 2013SheilaBusiness Tips, Freelancing, Random6 Commentsbusiness, freelance, graphic design, professional, rename

Introducing…Apex Creative Hi all! To my loyal followers and fans, thank you for all of your continued support, and for your interest in what I’ve been up to. As you may be wondering, why the heck would I change my business name now? Especially as my brand equity has grown and organic search results are up. All I can say it, it’s been a long time coming. Ever since I started freelancing, I’ve struggled with…

Read More

How to Graciously Turn Down Projects

June 28, 2013SheilaBusiness Tips, Freelancing, Graphic Design2 Commentsbad fit, clients, fire, good fit, no, projects, red flags, yes

Clients turn us down all the time. Aren’t we ever allowed to return the favor? I say, heck yes! Sometimes, for one reason or another, we get that feeling in our gut that something just isn’t quite right. And it’s always best to heed rather than ignore those red flags. But let’s say you’re in the middle of your meeting with a potential client, and then you realize you should turn down the project? Do…

Read More

Firing Clients: 6 Red Flags to Watch Out For

June 16, 2013SheilaBusiness Tips, Freelancing, Logo Design14 Commentsadvice, audience, bad fit, business goals, clients, emotion, motivation, pixel-pusher, professional, red flags

I just walked away from an $8,000 project. “What, are you crazy?!” Is probably what you’re thinking right now. Yes, I am crazy. Crazy enough to put my sanity and happiness before profits. The reason I want to share this with you is to encourage all other designers out there that it’s okay to say “no” sometimes. In fact, the ability to say “no” is an important part of what we do. But if you’re…

Read More

5 Big Boosts for Creativity

June 5, 2013SheilaFreelancing, Random3 Commentsbody, book, brainstorm, creativity, distraction, hobby, ideas, innovative, laugh, mind, new exeriences, project, relax, work

Last week we talked about the importance of avoiding the things which only serve to deepen your creativity rut. This week, I’d like to introduce some ideas which should increase your creativity by giving it a nice little boost. While this is by no means an exhaustive list, feel free to substitute activities for others which sound more appealing. Have fun!   1. Laugh Go to a comedy club Take an improv class Go see…

Read More

7 Surprising Ways You Might Be Killing Your Creativity

May 30, 2013SheilaFreelancing, Random7 Commentsboredom, brain, competition, creativity, graphi design, mind, problem solving, rewire, solutions, steve jobs

If you need to be creative, avoid doing these 7 deadly sins Steve Jobs once said, “Creativity is just connecting things.” While being creative can certainly be fun, it can also be hard to find those new connections sometimes. Whether you’re a fellow graphic designer, a student, an engineer or a manager, I’m sure you have run into the problem of trying to solve a problem creatively. And if you’re like most people, you’ve probably…

Read More

15 Books Every Designer Should Own

January 30, 2013SheilaBusiness Tips, Freelancing, Geeky Stuff4 Commentsblair enns, books, brand, color, david airey, graphic design, grid, ilise benum, john jantsch, letterhead, library, logo, marketing, pricing, psychology, reading, referral, shel perkins, talent, type, typography

After being around the design block for a few years, I’ve come across some really great resources, usually in the form of books. And after years of reading, collecting, buying, and even returning some, I think I have a pretty solid collection now, of which there are 15 that I consider share-worthy. These 15 books are the crème de la crème of design reads; whether they are the most useful, the most inspirational, or most…

Read More

How to Snag Quality Clients

December 18, 2012SheilaBusiness Tips, Freelancing, Marketing8 Commentsbudget, find clients, marketing, money, phone calls, proposal

Qualifying clients isn’t easy… But luckily I just recently revamped my process for selecting clients. Revamp as in, actually having one instead of winging it or hoping that the phone doesn’t ring. My problem was, that when it came to dealing with established clients, I was fine. But when someone emailed me or called me out of the blue, asking about my services, I had no idea what I was doing. I froze up. Finally…

Read More

10 Reasons Why a Logo Should Never Cost Less Than $200

September 28, 2011SheilaFreelancing, Logo Design93 Commentsbranding, business, cheap design, college, computers, education, experience, foundation, hours, investment, Logo Design, process, relationships, skills, software, time, value, work

Run, don’t walk from cheap logo design. I got a phone call not so long ago from a prospective client asking about having a logo designed. Great, I thought, that’s what I do! Unfortunately they found out that I was way outside of their budget. Now, I get it…even the starting price of what I charge for logos isn’t exactly cheap, but you’d be hard-pressed to find a professionally designed logo for much less than…

Read More

3 (Good) Reasons to Hire a Freelancer

July 13, 2011SheilaBusiness Tips, Freelancing, Graphic Designclient, custom, freelance, investment, money, personal, process, project, schedule, trustworthy

I’ll give you a hint: saving money’s involved. Hiring any kind of professional to do work for you can be a big investment of time, energy, and of course, money. So it follows that you would want to make the best possible decision when choosing someone to design your new logo or business card. Many people are understandably anxious about hiring a freelance Graphic Designer over a design agency, but the odds are definitely in…

Read More

Posts navigation

< 1 2

Recent Posts

  • The Real Reason Why Your Emails for Design Jobs Are Ignored
  • How a Mobile-Friendly Website Keeps You in Business
  • Smart Brands Use These—and Why you Should Too
  • What Star Wars: The Force Awakens Got Wrong
  • 25 Ways to Tell if You’re a Graphic Designer

Popular Posts

How Long Does it Take to Design a Logo?

14 Proven Ways to Find Clients

10 Reasons Why a Logo Should Never Cost Less Than $200

Good, Fast, Cheap: Yes, You Can Only Pick Two.

Don't Fall for These 6 SEO Mistakes

How to Snag Quality Clients

The Importance of Color in Logo Design

Categories

  • Branding
  • Business Tips
  • Case Studies
  • Freelancing
  • Geeky Stuff
  • Graphic Design
  • Logo Design
  • Marketing
  • Random
  • UX
  • Web Design
  • WordPress

Tags

audience bad logos blog brand branding business business goals cheap design client clients college color competition custom customers design economy education experience freelance freelancing Google graphic design history identity investment logo Logo Design marketing money niche process professional project red flags SEO simple skills social media unique value versatile website websites work

© 2016 Apex Creative. All rights reserved.