Top 10 Things I’ve Learned from International Freelancers Day (in no particular order)

Just got finished attending the first International Freelancers Day online conference. It was so informative! Had fun tweeting with other attendees while the presentations were going on. There was so much I learned, and a lot I missed (will catch up when the replays are available). But here are just 10 of the take-aways I can think of right now (my mind is swimming with so much information) that would be helpful to many kinds of freelancers – illustrators, writers, graphic designers, marketers, entrepreneurs, etc.

1. Pricing Implies Quality – Jonathan Fields
2. Paradox of Choice - don’t overwhelm your clients with too many choices – Jonathan Fields
3. Present your pricing from the highest to the lowest, because people will compare the new price in relation to the one mentioned before it – Jonathan Fields
4. FUF: Follow up Forever – Michael Huggins
5. ABP: Always be Pitching – Rebecca Matter
6. NEVER miss your deadlines. 75% of new freelancers Rebecca Matter hired missed their first deadlines. WOW!
7. Get listed on top influencers’ resource directories – Ed Gandia 
8. Milk the freelance life – Peter Bowerman (favorite quote - a t-shirt to be made?)
9. People Don’t Buy What You Do; They Buy Why You Do It – Simon Sinek (by way of Peter Bowerman)
10. Never discount, instead offer economical alternatives by taking out line items. – Michel Fortin

New Halloween Designs on my Pingg Page

I added two more designs to my Pingg page. If you plan on having a Halloween party or get together, you can use these for free!

Lynn Alpert Studios is Now on Pingg.com

I now have a gallery on the pingg site so people can use my art on their invites.  So far, I have baby shower invites and the Halloween one shown here. Check it out here.

Don't Work For Free Under the Guise of Good Exposure

I don't believe in doing spec work, or work for "an opportunity for your art to be seen" or promises of "a lot more work in the future" or "it will be a great piece for your portfolio!" I don't think any other profession has to deal with this issue and I don't understand why people think it's ok to ask graphic designers and illustrators to work for free.

As artists, we are able to create something that someone wants, right? Then why not treat it as any other profession? You wouldn't go to the doctor and tell her you'll only pay her if you like what she says. Hell, if that's the case I would NEVER pay my doctor!!

Ben Crick is the designer of this wonderful image here, as well as three others about spec work, and he has a brilliant post about it here.  I hope he comes out with these images as posters, because I want one! I feel like he should put them on t-shirts and I'm sure he'd have a lot of graphic designers and illustrators wearing them all the time!!