1) I Keep My Overhead Low

The great part about working with a freelancer is that you get more for your money. Typically, when you pay an ad agency for work you are also helping to cover the costs necessary to run the agency. Office space, equipment and upgrades, staff salaries, benefits, and the list goes on and on… Of course I also have expenses associated with running my business, but they are much smaller. I can work from anywhere and equipment upgrades are a lot cheaper for one person than an entire staff!

2) I Help You Control Your Costs

How? I have a lot more flexibility on the size and scope of projects I can take on than a typical agency does. If your project doesn’t have enough return on the investment an agency will have to spend for your project, most will be reluctant to take your project at a price you can afford. If you happen to be a start-up business that can’t afford to divert all of your resources into your advertising, using a freelance designer is a great alternative.

3) You Don’t Have to Keep Me On the Payroll

What if you only need graphic design on a seasonal basis? The flexibility of being a freelancer allows me to be there when you need me and be somewhere else that doesn’t cost you money when you don’t!

4) I Make Decisions Based on Circumstances, Not Policy

As a freelancer, I’m my own boss for better or worse. I don’t have to get approval from anyone to make financial or scheduling decisions. While I do have personal guidelines in place for running my business, I also have the freedom to go against them if the situation warrants it! For example, I’m willing to work on an hourly or project basis. It really just depends on your needs and circumstances.

5) I Don’t Charge You the Same Price for Everything

Many agencies will charge you the same rate for burning a CD as they do for coming up with your creative concept and I don’t think this is fair. I use tiered pricing for specific tasks, so you’re not going to pay an outrageous amount to get that CD with your project on it. Which leads to…

6) I Believe in Transparency

I’m transparent about everything from whether I am truly a good fit for your project to managing your budget. I despise design jargon that keeps you off balance and covers my butt if something is not working out right. I use professional software to provide you with a detailed invoice that shows you exactly how and where your money was spent down to the quarter hour and to facilitate project management and communication.

7) I Keep a Short Client List

I intentionally keep my client list relatively short to ensure that I am able to meet deadlines. I want to give your project as much attention as possible and give you the best customer service I can.

While adding as many clients and projects as humanly possible may seem like a great way to make a lot of money, it is actually a short-sighted game plan that is doomed to fail. I truly believe that having too many things going on at one time will cause the quality of work and customer service to suffer and lead straight to dissatisfied customers and personal burnout.

8) I Don’t Work a 9-5 Job!

While I try to keep the hours I spend working as reasonable as possible, being a freelancer allows me the flexibility to adjust to special circumstances. This is not always the case when working with an agency and your project may have to wait until the right people are in place, the right meetings are held, etc.

9) Working With a Freelancer is Usually Faster

Working with a freelancer is oftentimes faster than working with an agency because we will be working together directly for the most part. I don’t have to wait for the creative director to get back from vacation to approve your job and your project does not have to go through multiple layers of employees or systems to move forward.

10) Timeliness is Next to Godliness

(Or something like that!) The bottom line is that I have every motivation to get your job done in the required timeframe. Why? To impress you as a customer and earn your repeated business of course. Also, I am well aware that missed deadlines and incomplete projects = no money.

11) I Am Directly Responsible for Your Project

As a freelancer there is no one else to pass the buck off to if something goes wrong. Talk about motivating!

12) I’m Not Going to Fire Myself

This is a benefit to you because I will be working on your project from start to finish. You don’t have to worry about something going wrong behind the scenes and your project being passed off to someone else midstream.

13) You Know Who You’re Dealing With

With an agency, you may not know who your project will be assigned to. Could be a senior designer, could be an intern…

14) Single Point of Contact

You won’t get passed from the secretary, to the account executive, to the art director, to the designer to talk about your project. If you’ve ever encountered a situation like this, you know how easy it is for things to get “lost in translation”. You get to talk directly to me about what we are working on for the duration of your project.

15) I Stand Behind My Work 100%

If you’re not satisfied with my work at any time during the development of your project, I guarantee that I will do what needs to be done to fix it. If you are unhappy with the work I produce for you and don’t want to use my designs – there is absolutely no charge to you whatsoever.

16) You’re the Expert

You talk. I listen. You know your business better than anyone. I may have suggestions based on my experience, but I will look to you to inform me on your goals for your project and as the source of the information I need to craft a winning design.

17) I’m Motivated!

One of the coolest things about being a freelancer is that I have fewer limitations than I had when working for an agency. But being a freelancer takes a lot of self-motivation. Motivation to keep up with what I need to learn and know to do my job effectively. Motivation to prove my worth. I know new jobs and clients aren’t just going to land in my lap because someone else did the legwork and brought the job into the agency.

18) I Appreciate My Clients!

You’re the Rock Star to me! My clients help me to feed my family and further my career. I work hard to get them and to keep them and I’m very grateful for each and every one!

Thank you for reading and considering the benefits listed above. I’d love to know more about your next project and how I can help you! If you are curious and would like a free, no-obligation quote on your next project, please fill out a few basic details on my handy “Get A Quote” request form and I will get back to you ASAP!