How to handle personal graphic design jobs?

No offense, but I probably wouldn't pay for that work either. I don't say that to be mean, just saying that maybe the quality of work was not up to the standards they were expecting. And so they chose not to pay for the final product.

Going forward, try to work out an agreement ahead of time. Specify the work being done, how many revisions are allowed, how much the customer is paying, who owns the intellectual property, etc. And try to get some type of down payment up front. This is sometimes a touchy issue, since the customer doesn't always know what they are getting until after the work is done. But you as the designer should be able to show samples of your previous work. If the customer is not satisfied, they can walk away at that point and no harm is done. If they are satisfied, they should at least be willing to make a 25-50% deposit.

kimura-mma said:

No offense, but I probably wouldn't pay for that work either. I don't say that to be mean, just saying that maybe the quality of work was not up to the standards they were expecting.

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Many times people confuse quality with what their taste in design might be. Two totally separate issues. Contracts for design work should specify "in the style of" followed by your name or your studios name. If you have shown them a body of work that is somewhat consistent in style and approach then they know what your are selling. In this day and age doing whats right unfortunately means having the right. So if these buyers can get away with something they probably think they have done no wrong. It's just business. I find it amazing that people have two standards of ethics. It's like saying I only abandon my ethics if there's money in it, or I only commit adultery for the sex. Oh, well live and learn. Fool me once shame on you.... By the way your work is not to my taste, but I think it is certainly salable commercial design. If these guys saw your work, and know what your style is, and didn't try to work with you on revisions, I doubt they were very serious to begin with.

p.s. artists are trail blazers, chin up and keep the faith

QueendomApparel said:

I'm versatile from the stand point of being able to break away from my likes to cater to a client's needs. You can't put me in a box.

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What I was trying to say (and I hope I wasn't misunderstood) was that when criticizing another persons work, a lot of people mistake their likes and dislikes for an objective evaluation of the relative strengths and weaknesses of a piece.

pyrophire said:

I agree with Tim, out of those 150 some designs... I wouldnt pay for any. There is no variation in quality, all lack luster so I can understand why clients are unwilling to pay for them.

Before worrying about clients not paying, you should take a few courses to get a full understanding of color theory, aesthetics, balance and perhaps some standard business practices.

This reply isnt to offend, just being outright honest. You need to have a hard skin to be in the design business.

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While I am sure the creative community as a whole greatly appreciates your self appointed role as "Skin Thickener", one thing you might consider is itemizing specific weaknesses in another persons work. This gives the individual a chance to try and understand another point of view in the context of growth and learning. Blanket disapproval says more about you than the object of your criticisms. There is a great difference between critique and criticism, perhaps you should take a few studio classes at a college level and see how instruction is given in a nonjudgmental fashion, if in fact you wish too continue instructing other artists.

kimura-mma said:

My original point was not meant to impugn the work of the OP, just to objectify the actions of the customer (aka "eye of the beholder").

It would be short sighted to assume that the customer liked the art but simply chose not to pay for it. If this were the case, then a written agreement would be all that is needed to ensure payment.

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I know what you mean Tim, on a personal level I didn't like the OPs artwork nor would I be inclined to pay for it, but that's just me because I have a wife who is a very good artist and my personal preferences, some of his designs look like nothing more than some clipart elements stacked on top of each other....but evoking the eye of the beholder point of view it's sell-able artwork if it's what the client wanted.

I think all of us just starting out in business make mistakes, I know that there was a time when we were so happy to have customers/orders that we either didn't charge for our artwork design or thought that the cost of the printing would cover the hours it took to develop the art....we were wrong. Today we have a multilevel approach to artwork we either spread the cost of artwork development out over the cost per shirt or the client pays a artwork fee (either flat or per hour) on top of the printing costs.

We have also had artwork stolen because we didn't protect ourselves and nothing is more upsetting than to see your design on a shirt that you didn't print...so nothing leaves our shop in any form of sample, or digital proof that isn't copyrighted and or watermarked, nothing is verbal, all agreements are in writing, and new customers pay upfront for artwork & printing.

I appreciate the responses to my inquiry. The criticism stands out like a sore thumb but it motivates me not discourages me because I get positive feedback on my various designs ALL THE TIME. Not only that but my designs concepts and shirts are doing pretty good on the market.
With that being said I will happily challenge any one of my critics to be given a design that we can both do in our own way and let the people decide or fellow artist whos work is of a better quality. Excuse my competitive spirit for those of you who didn't respond negatively but that's part of who I am lol. That must have started in college football or the army somewhere. I am relentless in my pursuit of perfection and I constantly review my work so I am my own worse critic anyway lol.

The lack of luster as one critic said, trust me, i know that's there but did you ever ask yourself if that was my objective. When i design i have to consider the cost in what i do so knowing that it maynot be all shinny and what not because the more complex your artwork is with multiple colors and all, the more expensive it will be and the more it will cost your customers which will give your competitors a upper hand if they are creating similar work. Just something to ponder my friend.

As artist we all have things to improve on and of course I'm no different. The link that I reference does not cover the depth of my skills, just a preview of what I am capable of and work that i am proud of. Even with that being said I understand that people view art differently. There are some million dollar pieces out now that has me scratching my head trying to figure out how they come up with such a figure. But normally it's the viewers lack of understanding of the art, the appreciation of it and the time that it took to create what some too maybe many consider a masterpiece. We must also look at the time period of the art.

I converse with different artist all the time to discuss various methods and trends of the art world. Overall, the experience of these last two customers along with your helpful input made me realize in a different way that a detailed conversation intially has to be conducted where I can truly get a total feel for what my clients want. After that they will know how I operate and I will express the expectations of the work along with the kinds of payments I will accept. In this case i just tried to give these two people that benefit of the doubt and my heart wanted to help them. One of my clients was unemployed and the other one was a 22 yr old kid. To the lady that is unemployed I might just give her the design free of charge. Thanks people for your critical and positive feedback.