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home > SPEC WORK : WORKING ON SPEC : WORKING FOR FREE : SPECULATIVE WORK

GRAPHIC DESIGN SPEC WORK : WORKING ON SPEC : SPECULATIVE WORK FOR FREE

PRO-BONO (FREE) GRAPHIC DESIGN WORK
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SPOTLIGHT GRAPHIC DESIGNERS FROM OUR DESIGN COMMUNITY

120 Innovative Self Promotional Ideas for Graphic Designers & Freelancers - The biggest list of marketing ideas for designers ever.

Should You Do Graphic Design Work on Spec? - It starts off simple enough. A prospective client calls and says, “Show us a few mock up ideas and we’ll pick which one we like.” Unfortunately that is exactly how speculative work or “spec” work originates, which is immensely frowned upon in the graphic design industry.

A Few Words About Working on Spec - There will be times when it seems appropriate to do spec work. This is always a judgement call and no one can second guess your decision. However, there is always the potential, or apparent potential for getting ripped off. When I was a freelancer, my motto quickly became, I would rather starve to death than work for free.

Beware Spec Work - In 1999, I wrote a column for Jerry Vigil’s Radio And Production magazine extolling the values of spec work. I blathered on and on about how we could not only tell clients what we could do, but we could show them, too!

Don't Design on Spec - Our agency receives its share of RFPs, and sometimes these requests stipulate that our proposal include layouts. Even if the project looks promising, we just say no.

In Their Own Words, Why These Graphic Designers Are Against Speculative Design Competitions - Sometimes the best way to present a subject is to let those involved speak for themselves.

Spec Is So Not Special - "Engaging in spec work is eroding the image of designers. It perpetuates the falsehood that what we do is easy or valueless."

Should Spec Be Pitched? - It's the thrill of the hunt that often convinces agencies to submit speculative creative during new business pitches, but it's a habit many shops want to break

Speculative Design - Some of these prototypes have worked their way into production; some have been stopped after lessons were learned; others are still in the “speculative pipeline”. How have they managed to successfully balance this speculative work along with production release work?

Speculative Work - Speculative Work The debate over speculative work and free design services has have waged even longer than the Mac vs. PC war. Yet, which is a feat unto itself!

Spec Sucks for Everyone - If the entire business community understood the value of good design, and saw the effect we can actually have on their bottom line, there wouldn't be nearly enough design firms to handle all of the business. But when any creative firm reiterates to a business client that it's okay to give away what we do on a gamble of a big payoff, it's a huge setback. So I'm raising the horn again and sounding the rallying cry- if we all band together and tell the business community that, like any other professional service, we provide something of great value that is worth paying for, only then can we win the war. Fellow designers, please join me in saying no to spec work.

Spec Work Arithmetic - The AIGA’s propaganda about spec work has generally concentrated on some sort of a Kantian categorical imperative declaring the practice unethical. It’s refreshing to see that the answers in the current discussion on their site tend toward the real argument against spec work—it is a sucker bet. Maybe we should have had this discussion at the conference three years ago in Vegas.

Spec Work vs. Pro Bono - Working for free - In freelance design and publishing there are right and wrong ways to work for free.

The Problem With Spec Work Revisited - I recently received an email from Maya Sunpongco of DesignInsomnia, who was in a quandary over a spec work request from a prospect. The request was pretty typical — create a prototype on spec, competing against three other designers, with the "winner" getting a chance for future assignments. I was a bit surprised the "chance" for future assignments. Usually these folks dangle the whole carrot, promising a boat load of work down the road. I've know a couple of designers who did, in fact, get a lot of work by starting off with a spec project. But, they're far and few between.

This Week's 4 Letter Word SPEC - I know to some that it would seem that the design world has heard all it needs to about the practice of engaging in speculative work. But if the past week has taught me anything, it’s that we don’t talk nearly enough about it. The reality is that engaging in spec work continues to erode the value of what all of us do as designers, and if any of us want our profession to have even a modicum of respect in the world, we’ll answer the call for spec work with an emphatic “No.”

Why No One Wins Creative Pitches - Doing visual designs “on spec” is more likely to end in mutual frustration than in good design. There are no winners - since the design is finalised before you’ve had a chance to really understand the business issues and develop a relationship with your audience.

Why Speculative Work is Unethical - This article includes a letter that was sent by the executive director of The Association of Registered Graphic Designers of Ontario (RGD Ontario) to the editor of Marketing magazine, regarding spec work.

Why We Don't Make Speculative Presentations - The main product of our business is ideas — creative solutions to the communications problems and opportunities facing our many clients. And good ideas — creativity — can be tough to define, or agree upon. One person's passion is often another's poison. So it's no wonder that potential clients often ask us to take a project on speculation. That is, to try out our creative product in much the same way they may try out other types of products before purchasing.

Why Working on Spec Isn't a Good Idea - Times are tough. Work is hard to come by. So when you get the call from the start-up company that just loves your work, but has no money to pay you, you begin to actually consider it.

Working On Spec is a Disturbing -- And Growing -- Trend - The phone rings. A company heard from a friend of a friend that your firm has done some interesting design work. They'd like to set up a meeting to talk next week. You research the company's history, what they do, and how you can help them out.

Working on Spec - Mr. Spector may be just 19, but he knows this season could be a massive one in his career.

Logo Design Creation Process from Start to Finish by Expert Graphic Designer - Mark Misenheimer
This article was written by the very talented, Mark Misenheimer of Misenheimer Creative, Inc. Mark is an expert freelance graphic designer who has been in the design business for years. He has documented the design of a logo from start to finish in order to help other graphic designers. I know that you will learn something from this tremendous logo design article.

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Jul 17

Getting a Handle on the Creative Process for Graphic Designers
The Graphic Design industry is very competitive, and trust me, it can certainly get stressful and frustrating at times. However, it doesn?t always have to be that way. Here, I have broken down my design process. This is how I create my design layouts from start to finish. Basically, with some focus, structure, and a little bit of talent, creating rewarding and professional design work can be produced more efficiently and with less stress.

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Jul 5

20 Ways to Avoid Graphic Designer?s Block
As a designer everyone has experienced a point where they just can no longer think of anything worth while. It?s in these situations when you have to reevaluate your perception of what works and what doesn?t. Use the following 20 tips to avoid and get through a tough designer's block.

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Jun 18

Free Online Font Tools - Mega List of Web Based Font, Text, & Type Tools
Graphic Design and Typography are deeply connected. For that reason, I figure that most of you are going to love these free online font and type tools. Most, if not all, of these are very useful and I recommend that you use them when you have a chance. Below you will find the huge list of free browser-based font and type tools.

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Jun 13

List of Graphic Design Podcasts on Topics Graphic Design, Web Design, Typography and More
I have found a load of design related podcasts that I am sure will peak your interests. Just think of it as radio shows geared towards you and your love of design. You will even find Podcasts on Photoshop, Illustrator, Typography, Freelancing, as well as Web Design and Graphic Design.

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Jun 7

List of Vector Conversion Software - 30+ Tools to Turn Photos into Line Art and Illustrations
I love Vector Magic, a free online vectorization tool. It is a really cool browser-based tool that can be used to turn a photograph into an illustration. It doesn't always succeed in getting that look that you might be looking for, but it does a pretty good job. I usually just use it to play around with photos to see what Vector Magic can do with it, but it also can be very useful if you want to convert a photo into an illustration. I started to wonder how many other vectorization tools and software packages there were out there and I was surprised to find out that there are a ton o them. Basically, most of these tools turn Raster / Bitmap / Photo Images into Line Art / Illustrations / Vector Art.

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May 28

Free Photoshop Shapes Downloads - Mega List of Free Custom Vector Shapes for Adobe Photoshop - Part I
I am in love with vector shapes right now. I think they are so handy to have around when you are building a site. The way that you can stretch vectors without creating jaggy edges, makes them incredibly useful. Most of the time I just land up breaking them apart to use a curve that I like. I also love using them for as badges or buttons on web sites. I have collected a huge selection of free custom Photoshop shapes. If you download every single one of these, there are probably close to 15,000 free Adobe Photoshop shapes. There are more to come in Part II. Enjoy.

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May 27

A New and More Accurate Search Engine for Finding Free Clipart
As graphic designers, we are always on the hunt for quality free clipart images to use in our designs. The problem is that often searching for clipart often brings back very inaccurate search results. Well, thanks to one of my friends, I have found a new site called Find Free Clipart which will make my life much easier the next time I search for clipart online.

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May 20

Become a Graphic Designer - Design Careers & Design Education Advice from Professional Designer
Whether you?re right out of high school, a Mom looking for a career she can do from home, recently out of the Military or simply someone who feels they have a knack for design and is ready for a career change, consider that you have a few options on how to gain the skills you will need to pursue your dream job. But first, ask yourself some questions

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May 16

Online Drawing Tools & Free Online Painting & Sketching Tools
As Graphic Designers, we are all creative individuals. I thought that most of you would love to know about all of the fantastic online drawing and painting tools that are available online. Not only are they fun, but they are also quite useful for sketching out some of our ideas. Some of these tools can also be used as design collaboration tools to use with your co-workers, clients, friends, teachers, and family. Enjoy and don't hesitate to send me links to online drawing tools that I might have missed.

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