Chapter 11. Marketing Yourself and Finding Good Clients

One of my biggest worries in business is where the next client will come from. It was a worry when I started, and it’s a worry seven years later (albeit to a much lesser degree).

When one approach doesn’t work, you need to learn from it and move on to the next idea. For instance, my cold calling door-to-door with nothing but a stack of flyers and a positive attitude was woeful. It soon became obvious it wasn’t working. So I stopped.

One approach that did work, however, was to scan through local newspapers and trade magazines, looking for the adverts with the worst design (there were plenty, and you’ll probably find the same). I’d cut out the ad and send it to the company who placed it along with a mockup of how I could make their ad look more appealing within the same space confines, coupled with a few sentences about hiring me or buying the artwork’s copyright. In many instances, all it took was a follow-up call to get a foot in the door and earn some cash. It led to the start of some local business relationships, too, and they can be vital for generating word-of-mouth referrals.

Marketing yourself is about demonstrating that you have the talent, skills, qualifications, and experience to make a real difference to your potential client’s business. Thankfully, there’s a huge array of approaches you can employ when trying to clinch your next deal. In this chapter, I share smart ideas from experienced design business owners.

Go pro bono

Many designers in employment are bound by their contracts so they can’t show designs they did for their employers in personal portfolios. It’s a standard condition in employment contracts; the employer retains full rights to the work.

So I’m often asked how designers in this situation can build a portfolio. After all, how do you attract clients if you can’t show them your work?

That’s where pro bono design plays an important role.

What is it?

Pro bono publico (usually shortened to pro bono) is a Latin phrase meaning “for the public good.” The term is generally used to describe professional work undertaken voluntarily and without payment as a public service.

Unlike traditional volunteerism, pro bono uses the specific skills of professionals to provide services to those who are unable to afford them.

I recommend offering your skills to local nonprofits, because international organizations will have a dedicated budget for their design work and are much more likely to hire a designer or studio with a comprehensive portfolio.

When Connecticut-based Gary Holmes started out, he made a conscious decision to work with local companies at first. He offered to do some pro bono work for Noah Webster House, a local history museum. The museum team liked his work and was soon hiring him to do paid design jobs. And as the museum was highly visible in the local community, the exposure quickly led to other client referrals for Gary.

Oakland-based Lita Mikrut was starting her freelance career when her daughter joined a youth golf program run by a national nonprofit with local chapters. Lita could tell it had substantial potential to reach children and teach core values.

Lita was receiving the program’s announcements via email, usually Word documents sent as attachments. A two-page document arrived one day, and curiously, the second page was completely blank. She could see an opportunity and contacted the program’s executive director, offering her services pro bono.

“This was one way I could give back to this program, which was in its infancy locally, and truly needed support,” she recalls.

Over the course of a year, Lita created a few thousand dollars worth of pro bono work, creating a set of branded collateral that could be repurposed with each new fundraising effort.

“The executive director was moving across the country, so I introduced myself to the new director, and continued my role as their designer. The role became a paying gig, I think because of my sincere dedication and the fact that our collective efforts did increase their funding, and has, in part, kept the program alive.”

In addition, the original executive director ended up taking the same role for a chapter in her new city, and she brought Lita on board as the chapter’s designer.

So, what started out as pro bono work to help her daughter’s after-school group ended up becoming two paying clients who are doing great educational work with youth.

Although Gary and Lita ended up with paying clients, it’s important to remember that pro bono design is for the greater good, and that a sense of “doing good” in your community (with no ultimate financial reward) is a feeling that is hard to top.

For two years running, London-based designer Jenny Theolin set aside four months of her extracurricular time to devote to the Design Business Association’s Inclusive Design Challenge, when she would work with care centers and nursing homes to develop a new generation of inclusive products, services, environments, and communications. Here she explains why:

“Described as the ‘combined Oscars and Olympics of the inclusive design world,’ this is not to be confused with a normal design industry award. The Challenge didn’t offer me any promise of an end product beyond the satisfaction of taking part and designing ‘for the greater good,’ ‘for our future selves,’ and of being at ‘the cutting edge of innovation.’

“The Clinic London trio I was part of won the 2010 Challenge, and our work was featured in the resulting exhibition in London’s V&A museum and has since traveled all around the world.

“However, we made absolutely no money. Nor did we win any new business as a direct result. In fact, as an agency we lost both money and agency time (quite ironic considering the Design Business Association had organized it).

“From a business perspective, it made no financial sense to take part. But not only did the Challenge inspire the individuals on the team, it also fired up the rest of the agency I was working with—we were doing a project that really meant something.

“So why dedicate your time to getting involved in an unpaid challenge such as this? Well, I can without a doubt say, and hopefully I speak on behalf of the others who took part, that it got us out of our habitual design processes, and ultimately made us better and happier designers and creators. We rose to the occasion, stretched ourselves, and through hard work satisfied this burning desire to create something we were happy with.”

Pro bono design doesn’t get those important bills paid, obviously, so let’s look at some marketing efforts that led directly to designer income.

Love the ones you’re with

Karishma Kasabia of Australia-based Kish+Co understands that marketing today needs to be savvier than traditional marketing methods, especially when it comes to keeping relationships with existing clients flourishing.

“No one wants a shitty flyer or an average postcard. We need more to catch our attention, and even more still to be loyal and to love a brand.

“The best and often most unloved place to start is with existing clients. We’re used to their attention; we’re much more sugar coated when we meet the potential new ones. That’s not right.

“For Valentine’s Day, we had custom cupcakes made for our studio, then mapped out our existing clients, from the outer suburbs of Melbourne and all the way back into the core of the central business district.

“One hundred cupcakes, with orange and brown icing based on our corporate colors, individually boxed with a Kish+Co seal were delivered. We started at 9 a.m. and finished at 6 p.m., hand delivering to suppliers as well as clients. I drove and double-parked; my partner Agnes did the delivery.

“That same day we got Tweeted and Facebooked, and received calls for new work, recovering our marketing costs for the day’s effort with one single job.

“The best thing is how memorable we made our brand.”

You’ll discover that owning a small business makes you very stringent when it comes to expenses. But as Karishma recommends, you need to measure the results of your marketing, whether it’s tracking hits with a pricey placement in a marketing magazine or a creative treat costing you about $500. It can often be the cheaper, more creative endeavors that bring the best results.

Market for free online

Mark Bloom of London-based Mash Creative spent more than 12 years working for other people before deciding he wanted to be his own boss. The problem, Mark said, was finding the work, but he didn’t let that deter him.

“When I complete a new project I will often approach design blogs with a view to getting it featured. I will also upload it to my Behance account. Showing off your latest work allows potential clients and other designers to see that you are constantly trying to push the boundaries or better yourself from your last piece.

“Ever since setting up Mash I have firmly believed in the power of social media and design blogs. Around 25 percent of my clientele is based in the United States, most of whom approached me after seeing my work on the Behance network or on a design blog. I have been fortunate enough to have several of my projects featured on the front page of Behance over the years. This exposure takes your work outside of the country you’re in, showcasing it to a worldwide audience.

“Black Watch Global, an American intelligence and risk management consultancy, approached me to rebrand its existing identity after seeing one of my featured projects on Behance. The rebrand was quite extensive, consisting of identity, stationery, and a 40-page brand-guideline book. I wouldn’t have got the commission had my work not been added to Behance.”

Mark and I have both found the incredible value of sharing your projects online, as nowadays (and for the past four or five years), the vast majority of my clients find me through my online presence.

A little research, a lot of return

Antoinette Marie Johnson of Philadelphia-based At Media made a list of all the companies she knew that were just starting out or that needed great improvement to its brand messaging. She researched each entry on her list, and with that information in hand, her team designed its marketing collateral and Web sales materials to speak directly to those on the list. Then Antoinette set out on a mission to reach them both in person and online. Since then (2009), At Media has continued with that strategy, resulting in an average annual growth rate of 84 percent for the small agency.

Here are some of Antoinette’s tips on how to compile your own list.

1. Subscribe to local business journals, blogs, and so on. These publications are sources of relevant industry news regarding businesses in the area. They sometimes also provide a yearly “Book of Lists” that details the most successful businesses to know in the area, their decision makers, and industry and recent new businesses.

As an example of how this pays off, At Media attended a “40 Under 40” business event that highlighted local executives under the age of 40. One was the CEO of CheapCaribbean.com. Despite the dot-com’s incredible success and a valuation of over $500 million, At Media knew it could still use an agency’s help (it had poor Web design, little advertising, and no mobile app), so Antoinette personally mailed the CEO a congratulatory letter. One week later, she was sitting at a meeting with the co-founders, and her team was enlisted to start branding the new client’s newest project.

2. Scope out any businesses in your immediate area that look like they need your help. Even if they seem difficult to track down, you’re likely able to help them in whatever expertise you can find. Look for a mutual friend who might work there or already be a vendor.

Antoinette compiled a list of the top five businesses in her immediate area that could use At Media’s help. She went to several events these businesses might be attending and just mingled as a regular networker. She handed her card to the vice president of one of the businesses, and two months later received a call to discuss graphic design and a new Web presence. The firm has been an At Media client for more than three years now and has since grown tremendously.

3. Know potential clients’ needs and don’t push them into things they don’t need/want. Know what these companies are doing, and what their brand message is, as well as their key focus and income. Find out if they’re launching any new divisions or areas of growth. It’s important that you demonstrate that you’ve done your homework. Just like at an interview for a job, you must show that you know why you came through the door (rather than just showing up to make the sale). Listen carefully; you might not land the deal you were expecting now, but there could be excellent opportunities later.

4. Identify the decision makers. The “about” page on the company’s website is the first place to look for any leadership in a company. Sometimes you’ll even get lucky and find direct contact information. Don’t hesitate to use it. LinkedIn adds new business-to-business search features every day. Use them. Search for the company, any connections, and most important, any mutual connections you might share. Maintain good online etiquette: Don’t connect with someone just because they are connected to another person you know and then privately message the unknown party to make an introduction. Just seek out the connections through existing connections, and you’ll be surprised how fast referrals will come.

It’s who you know

Stellan Johansson of Sweden-based 1910 Design & Communication shared how he struck up a relationship with his first clients.

“During our last two years of in-house work prior to becoming self-employed, we saw a trend of game developers needing services like ours, almost to the point of companies competing over the relatively small number of user interface (UI) designers with AAA game development experience available.

“Our initial business plan centered on using our established network of people to offer services like identity design and UI design for games and creative developers as a starting point for our business.

“Of the 12 projects we’ve completed during our first 6 months, 10 have sprung from connections, recommendations from former co-workers, and the kind words of friends.”

Similarly, most of the first projects I worked on after going it alone were the result of people I knew from my time in employment or through friends and family—a website for my uncle who owned a pub, and a range of posters for a music event organized by a friend of an old boss, to name just two.

Make use of your address book. Tell people you know that you’re in business for yourself. It can really help get you started.

Reach out to other design agencies

Steven Key of England-based Key Creative was previously employed in a studio for many years. During those years, he found there were always peak times in the year where work was liable to get outsourced in order to make deadlines, such as when coworkers were out on holiday leave.

“When I first made the jump to self-employment, I figured that this could well be the case for a lot of design companies. So I made lists of localish agencies and printers and sent them letters, a business card, a little contact form, and a self-addressed stamped envelope. I would send these out a week or two before the peak holiday periods, and would always get a much higher success rate when compared with mailing out at other times of the year. The timing is key as it sows a seed in people’s minds. And, when the rush jobs hit and people are on holiday, it seemed to trigger the memory for the possible solution—that is, the letter I sent.

“I still receive requests for work from literally the first set of these I ever sent out over six years ago.”

Zig when others zag

Others might be marketing with postcards or flyers or websites. Wouldn’t it make sense to head off in a completely fresh direction?

England-based designer Andrew Kelsall is another professional who targeted design agencies. He made a list of a few he’d like to work with on a freelancing basis and spammed them. Literally. He mailed Spam by putting the agencies’ addresses on the cans of meat along with a stamp. That was it. Nothing else. He repeated the process after a few days until the companies he targeted ultimately received about five cans each.

The next stage of Andrew’s marketing plan was to mail a Spam-branded folder showing a photo of a can of Spam bearing the words, “You’ve been spammed.” Inside was a copy of his résumé and a cover letter that explained who he was and what his design skills included.

Andrew was invited to work on a freelance basis with Leeds-based Wobble Design, and when he turned up on the first day, he was told it was his Spam marketing that got him the contract.

Offer a real gift

Cincinnati-based Adam Ladd has been a professional designer since 2003, and in 2011, he took up self-employment. At that time, he had barely any exposure or online presence. His passion was creating brand identities, so to play to his strengths and promote his business he produced a short video that he could share with potential clients. It showed a variety of well-known company symbols. As each was displayed, he asked his five-year-old daughter Faith for her opinions of the symbols. Faith’s commentary proved to be a delight in a video titled “Fresh Impressions on Brandmarks (from my five-year-old).”

After Ladd uploaded it to YouTube and shared the link with a few design blog authors, it proved a huge hit. It attracted more than 1,000,000 views in one week and became a “trending” video. Soon, it was featured on websites for Adweek, Brand New, Huffington Post, Time, Wolff Olins, LinkedIn, PSFK, Business Insider, Jezebel, Shutterstock, Branding Magazine, swissmiss, and many more.

Adam increased his Twitter followers from 80 to 1,080 in just one week, and he received multiple Q&A requests from a variety of blogs. He even landed a video interview on the TV show Right This Minute. And, of course, quote requests for his services came in from around the world.

Think fast

When Tom Actman and Phil Cook started Mat Dolphin they made the conscious decision not to use a single piece of design work created while working for their previous employers. Tom recalled, “Awkwardly, we had no website and no work to show people, let alone much to talk about. We knew that in order to get recognized, we needed great work, or a great client list. Those can take time to nurture, though. So in the meantime, we realized we needed to exploit other avenues to raise our profile.”

That’s when the duo made use of Twitter and social media. Using social media and writing a blog are two quick ways to help establish your voice and opinion. They slowly but surely started interviewing people in their “Ten Questions” series on the blog and were sharing content from other designers and studios on Twitter. Bit by bit, they were connecting with the people they respected.

In February 2010, Tom was stuck at home suffering from the flu. While checking the Mat Dolphin Twitter feed, he noticed that Creative Review (CR) had tweeted celebrating its first year on the social media platform. It gave him an idea.

“At the time they were one of only a handful of magazines exploring social media, and they were sitting pretty on some 50,000 followers. That’s a lot of people listening and reading content away from their website. I called Phil and told him we needed to design, print, and drop round a poster congratulating the magazine on its achievement. We knew the publication was based around the corner from our studio, so it seemed like a nice way to say well done and possibly a way of letting them know who Mat Dolphin is. Phil designed the poster in record time and ran around the corner to get the poster printed while I tweeted them that we had a celebratory surprise coming. In less than two hours from seeing their tweet, we’d designed, printed and delivered a poster to their door. Thirty minutes later, they’d replied to us on Twitter and sent around a photo of the poster on the wall of the CR office. Not quite instant fame, but we’d made some friends and they thanked us by email. The poster cost us £20 and a little bit of creative time.”

Mat Dolphin kept in contact with the CR team and let them know when they had any news to share. Things got interesting in May 2010 with the launch of a new Mat Dolphin website. The designers told CR about it, and the staff tweeted the launch to what was now a CR Twitter following of almost 100,000. The traffic they drove that day not only crashed the new site, but every other one that was also on the shared server. By the end of that day, Mat Dolphin had some 5,000 hits and suddenly people knew they existed. The design firm’s own Twitter following increased as a result, and people were reading their blog and liking their work.

“Since then, our relationship with Creative Review has blossomed. In May 2011, once again via Twitter, they ran a competition to guest edit their Twitter account for one day. Leap at the chance? Of course we did. After getting through the first round of questions, we were narrowed down to the final against three others. We eventually won, and on Thursday, May 26, we were in charge of the Creative Review Twitter feed, reaching some 374,000 followers.

“It didn’t stop there. Suddenly Mat Dolphin became a name people knew. In July 2011, we were invited to take part in CR’s Blast/Bless Tate Britain exhibition and have since been invited to numerous other show and events. In addition, Design Week shares the same publisher and office space as Creative Review, so we’ve been able to make friends there and have been featured on the Design Week website, offering opinions and feedback on design-related news.”

All of this for spotting an opportunity, making the most of it, and investing just £20 to get a poster printed.

Do business where you shop

Independent designer Suzana Shash has been freelancing for two years. She kept a lookout for businesses in her neighborhood that were starting up, or who didn’t have websites or compelling brochures or menus.

Her first client was a salon in a trendy area—one that had no website but was always offering group buying coupons. Suzana made an appointment to get her hair done and talked to the owner about it while he was working on her. She ended up getting hired to create a website and a business card design. Since that first client, a lot of Suzana’s website traffic has come in from the salon website, as she still has her “designed by” tag in the footer, and she has received design requests from other spa owners in the city who followed the link from the salon site.

When things go wrong...

Karishma Kasabia of Kish+Co shared another marketing experience, but this one didn’t give the intended results. It took place in August 2011, when the studio changed its business name from Miss Kish to Kish+Co. She planned a launch party that would include an artists’ exhibition, some food and drink, and hopefully, lots of new clients in attendance.

Long story short, too many artists (and their friends and family) were in attendance, enjoying the spread, and far too few clients showed up. In fact, AUD $30K (USD $29K) later, exactly no new clients were secured.

Looking back, Karishma reflected, “Sometimes, I feel our existing clients have really breathed life into Kish+Co, and we hadn’t really celebrated them. I would love to lavish our profit on them and on our team. Those are the people who really deserve it. Now, I’m careful to measure up the numbers and be honest with myself about outcomes prior to embarking on any marketing exercise. It was a hard lesson to learn, but it’s been the best thing that has happened to me since I started the business. I can now call myself a savvier business woman.”

Lee Newham of London-based Designed by Good People is another who learned from a marketing plan gone wrong. He thought it would be a fantastic idea to go to trade shows in an attempt to win business from the exhibitors. The problem was, everyone he approached was too busy selling their own services to potential clients. That plan was quickly abandoned.

Even when things don’t go according to plan, you can still learn valuable lessons.