Mon, 01 Mar 2010 04:19:33 +0000

I’m planning on attending a job fair at my college to look for Web design interships. I want to bring a portfolio along with my resume but I don’t want to lug my laptop around. What should I do? Should I make an online portfolio for this occassion and supply them a link or print out screen shots/pictures of the work I’ve done on quality photo paper and arrange a portfolio that way?

The people interviewing you probably don’t want to be forced to look at your work, so you are right that bringing along your laptop is a bad idea.

I don’t think carrying a formal portfolio with you is a good idea. It’s a bit pushy. I would hand them a few examples of your work on good quality paper (not photo paper, it’s too bulky). If they seem interested you can then offer to show them some other work.

What you do take depends largely on how well written your present work is. For instance, if you have coded directly in HTML, CSS and javascript then I would put examples of your work on a CD and hand it to them at the interview. Make sure that all your code validates and tell them that.

However, if you have used programs like FrontPage I would avoid letting them see your source code. Such programs create horrible code.

Good luck.

Photo by Tudinh Duong

You’re a graphic design student with a portfolio full of fictitious projects. You want to work with clients to build your experience, but you need a more developed portfolio to attract the clients. A classic catch-22.

That’s when working pro bono proves extremely useful.

Read on to learn why, and for a chance to win one of five signed copies of Logo Design Love: A Guide to Creating Iconic Brand Identities.

What is pro bono?

Pro bono publico (usually shortened to pro bono) is a phrase derived from Latin 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.

What business should you approach?

Contact a small- to medium-sized non-profit organisation. Larger non-profits will have a substantial budget allocated to their brand identity, and are more likely to work with an experienced professional or studio.

Conduct an online search or look in your telephone directory for a non-profit in your locality. The benefit of staying local is you can meet your new client face-to-face. Doing so will not only help build your confidence in business meetings, but it makes it easier to ensure you’re dealing with the decision-maker rather than passing design ideas through a middle-person — adding an unnecessary step to the design process.

There are further benefits with working locally. For instance, once the project is complete, you will have the opportunity to take photos of the finished design in context (e.g., on signage and stationery). It’s these contextual shots that can turn an average portfolio into an excellent one.

Additionally, you’re building your network of local business contacts, and the stronger your network, the more tools and help you will have available throughout your design career.

How to make the approach

It’s important to talk to the person directly responsible for the visual branding. In a small-sized non-profit this is likely to be the managing director or chief executive.

Call or send an email pitching yourself as a talented designer who is about to, or has recently graduated with a design degree. Say it’s your policy to devote a small percentage of time towards pro bono work (for the public good), and that your client’s non-profit mission is one you have a great deal of respect for (this should of course be true).

Detail the savings you are offering your client (your standard rate for an identity project, only discounted by 100%). Doing so will ensure the value of the outcome isn’t underestimated, and helps keep your client motivated.

Arrange a 30-minute meeting, where you will discuss the design needs and set a course of action.

In the meeting

Arrive with a list of pre-determined questions, a notepad, a pen, and your business card (which you will hand over at the end).

It’s possible your client is anxious about the process of having a brand identity created or redesigned. She may see ideas as a risk, and not as a way to secure her mortgage. So the more indepth your initial discussions, the more at ease you will make your client. It may be that it’s her first time working on an identity project, and it’s up to you to show how smoothly the process can flow.

Be sure to time the meeting, and if you haven’t finished within 30 minutes, say you have reached the end of the allocated time, and that you can call or email your client at a later date for any other necessary information — your client will be very busy, and will appreciate you sticking to your pre-arranged time limit.

Questions to ask

The crux of a healthy graphic design brief lies in the questions you pose. Obtaining the necessary answers isn’t difficult. You just need to ask.

If you want specifics, I outline a number of vital questions in chapter four of Logo Design Love: A Guide to Creating Iconic Brand Identities, and I have five free signed copies up for grabs.

Photo by Raja Sandhu

There are two ways to enter the random draw:

1. Either upload one of your favourite self-designed logos to the Logo Design Love Facebook group
2. Or update your Twitter account with the following message:

Improve your portfolio with pro bono design: http://bit.ly/cfkg1m (by @DavidAirey)

Winners will be drawn and notified on Friday 26th February. I’ll also update this page with the winning names. Two signed copies will go to designers who upload to the Facebook group, and three to those who spread the word on Twitter. Double your chances by entering both ways.

Update: 26 February 2010
The winners have been drawn and notified. They are Alex Rogers, Alison Rowan, Wilson Almeida, Jack Franklin, and Naomi Oldfield. Thanks very much to all who entered!

If random draws, Twitter, or Facebook aren’t your thing, the book’s available to purchase now on Amazon.com (or Amazon.co.uk for those in the United Kingdom).

There’s also a free chapter here, and a few book reviews here.

How did you attract your first client in self-employment?

My first design client was actually my former employer — a cancer organisation in Edinburgh. I had been responsible for the company’s print and web management, and when I resigned to spend some months travelling the world, I returned to find that a suitable replacement hadn’t been found.

I asked the chief executive to hire me for three days per week as a design contractor. He agreed, enabling me to spend the remainder of the working week building my online presence and sourcing new clients.

Five years on, and there’s very little I’d change about the path I’ve taken.

What about you? How did your first client come about?

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