I recently ran across a link to the London-based Association Of Illustrators AOI Report: Illustration Fees and Standards of Pricing (2007). To sum up what this AOI Report is all about, I’ll quote from them directly:
The information presented in the various tables in this document indicate examples of fees charged in relation to particular jobs or services, based on the AOI’s research and recent survey of the industry. The tables provide information about the variables in costs and gives examples of what factors should be considered as illustrators and clients negotiate fees. It should also be borne in mind that illustrators and clients have agreed fees outside the ranges surveyed here.
There’s a lot of great info here (and be sure to adjust the numbers in your head to your local currency — the pricing on the AOI Report is in UK pounds). It’s always helpful to get an idea of what others in your field are charging for their services to determine of you are charginot too little or too much.
Continue reading 'AOI Report: Illustration Fees and Standards of Pricing'
by George Coghill -
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Another blog post by illustrator agent Lilla Rogers where she answers a question from a commentor on her blog: Can artists make a living?.
The artist who asked the question brought up the idea that many freelance artists/illustrators in fact have a spouse with a full-time job with benefits, and therefore the income from their freelance work is all secondary. The questioner wants to know — from an agents perspective — if a solo freelance artist can indeed make a real living. We’re talking heath care, retirement, the whole deal.
In short, the answer is yes. Rogers is straightforward with her answers with real numbers from her experience as an agent. It’s inspiring to know that she does feel it’s more than possible.
Continue reading 'Can A Solo Freelance Artist Make A Real Living?'
by George Coghill -
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Illustrator agent Lilla Rogers has a nice short post by artist Trina Dalziel on the positives and negatives of making a living as a freelance artist.
It’s nice to hear an honest expression of the frustrations and pleasures of doing what you love and working for yourself. Also inspiring for those freelance illustrators out there to let you know you aren’t alone in your thoughts and experiences.
by George Coghill -
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I know I have been in this situation many times — and email comes in and someone has a project with a small or non-existent budget. Usually it’s a personal project. Usually it’s for an existing piece of artwork.
Since most of the work on my website and blog are commisioned projects for clients, it’s easy enough to say no — the artwork they’re asking about was created for a client’s logo or mascot character and is not available to use by someone else.
But I do have some non-client work on my site, and this is where the free use issue comes in.
Tom Richmond, quoted over at The Daily Cartoonist, says
It would be so easy to just say, “Yeah, go ahead and use it”. After all, it’s already done and will take you no more time, right? So therefore it has no value?? That is the perception of many would-be users and sadly of some creators.
Continue reading 'Cartoonist/Illustrator Tom Richmond On Why You Should Never Give Away Your Artwork For Free'
by George Coghill -
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Vandelay Design has a great article discussing pricing issues for freelance creatives. The article talks about design services, but it can apply to illustrators, cartoonists – probably any freelancer out there.
More than just a nuts & bolts calculator, the post gets into the nebulous about preceived value, psychology of clients and more. Nothing needing a PhD, but some nice brief insight into the process.
A good read and some good links at the end as well.
12 Realities of Pricing Design Services | Vandelay Website Design.
via The Graphic Mac
by George Coghill -
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The Designer’s Toolbox looks to be a handy one-stop shop for free templates, specs, dimensions, and information for standard postcards, envelopes, CD/DVD layouts, HTML characters, and more.
Continue reading 'The Designer’s Toolbox: Free Print & Web Design Resources'
by George Coghill -
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I stumbled across this very informative tips for freelance illustrators blog post by illustrator Nate Williams. He gives a nice overview of the process he uses not only on the business side of things, but also on the creative side.
Continue reading 'Tips For Freelance Illustrators: Nate Williams'
by George Coghill -
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Just a quick tip for the freelancing and self-employed — that pain you feel paying all your taxes at once because you’re too lazy or forgetful to dole out your quarterly tax payments to Uncle Sam? It’s over. If you’re like me, and 99% of your banking and bill-paying is done online, there’s a tax payment solution for you.
Continue reading 'Automated Online Estimated Tax Payments For Freelancers & Self-Employed'
by George Coghill -
View my cartoon character and mascot illustration portfolio
Contact me to get started on your own custom cartoon illustration projects.
It’s going to happen you you eventually — a client who doesn’t pay their bill. And unless the project was for a significant amount of money, the unfortunate truth is that many times it isn’t worth the cost of suing. The legal fees can very quickly outweigh the money you’ll get, and that’s the positive side!
Because of this, I make it a standard practice to ask for a 50% deposit for all work before starting a project. But this only covers you so far. I also do not transfer any high-resolution or vector art until the final balance is paid, but sometimes this doesn’t cover your butt — for example, the client may only want to use the art on their website, or may have no clue about proper printing resolutions and will go ahead an use the low-resolution JPEG preview images you’ve been sending them.
Continue reading 'Avoid Non-Paying Clients With Watermarks'
by George Coghill -
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