Ali J

Staying Organised and On Top Of Things

Today I'm feeling fantastic!  I've got a new lease on life and I'm ready to tackle everything head on.  Then I sat down and looked at all the paperwork on my desk and changed my mind about that very quickly.

Still, I need to get things up to date and sadly a few things have been neglected.  So for the past two days I've been working on budgets, projections, a business plan, financial records and everything else in preperation for Mr taxman.  I've been keeping paper records of everything for months, but unfortunately failed to get up to speed with the computer side of it, so I'm finally getting things together.  It's amazing how the stress just starts to fall away bit by bit.  By tackling all the admin work in one hit too means it will leave the rest of the week free to work on some more illustrations - which I can't wait for!

Anyway today I thought I'd share how I stay organised in relation to my work.  The problem with being a freelance illustrator is that there are always deadlines to keep track of.  Deadlines for clients, grants, scholarships, submissions..... you name it and it all has a deadline.  Oh and then there are the projects that have a 'as quick as you can' deadline or a 'soon but no rush' or a 'whenever' deadline.  Deadlines aren't a problem, it is keeping track of them that can be a challenge.  Especially if it is to submit work to a journal that won't be printed again for another year.  Or for a client where your deadline will affect all the other people working on the job as well (which can end up costing you!).  Then there will be the jobs that if you are late, you lose the job.  Then there are the times you find out a few days before that you have three projects due on the same day but you can only complete one within the alloted time period.  What do you do then?  Well first of all you say a very big Oh oh.

I'm going to share how I keep track of my projects.  I like this system, it works for me, although it may not work for other people.  It has taken me quite some time to come up with a tracking system that works for me and my crazy way of working.  I've just used my printer, scrap paper and other pieces from around the house to create it.  I'm so messy that there is no point trying to invest in some fancy system - I'll only scribble and draw all over the pages anyway!

First of all I have a really thick big standard ring file.  In that file I have thick pages with an monthly calendar on each page.  I fill out all the deadlines that are confirmed for that month on the calendar as a quick and easy reference.  This allows me to know very simply when I can accept rush jobs or not, and whether I can squeeze in any special requests.  Or relax by the pool with a marguerita.

Let us use May as an example.  When I the page I will then find myself looking at a series of dividers with plastic sleeves in between.  Using the dividers I separate the current month into week 1, week 2, week 3, week 4 and week 5 if necessary.  If I'm flat out busy and I'm working on a huge variety of projects then I will separate it again right down to each weekday, but for the moment I'm working on big jobs which are a bit easier to keep track of.  It sounds complicated, but it isn't really.

Then between those dividers I have plastic sleeves in which the jobs reside.  Every individual job of any sort has a plastic sleeve of its very own.  It may be an art exhibition, a client job, a scholarship submission... anything I come across of interest or may be contacted about.

I attack each plastic sleeve with big yellow dots.  You can't miss them.  Each dot has important dates.  In this case this sleeve is regarding an artwork submission and requires two dots.  One for when the paperwork has to be mailed in, one for when the artwork is due.

Once I've mailed the submission I'll remove that sticker and refile the sleeve under the relevant month.  Which in this case will be far away in October.  I bet you that I'll forget about this until that month when I see it in the file again!  This filing system allows me to keep track of all of the work I have ongoing and ensure that I won't miss a deadline.  This is a great system especially when you have a client that needs drafts and revisions before a final work because you can just remove the plastic sleeve and place it in the relevant timeframe when you'll need it again.  It means I can keep on top of my chaotic schedule, which has to be a great thing. 

Most of the paperwork is filed as I receive it but for specific client jobs I have what is called a Client Record Sheet.  This has all the contact information for the client as well as the specifics about the job.  Then when I chat on the phone or have e-mail discussions over an ongong period I can note down any details that are necessary.  It allows me to have an easy point of reference to what I am doing.  So these sheets are filled out and also in their own sleeves along with any other information relevant to the job.  This includes quick sketches, reference photographs or images.  It also keeps track of the time spent on the job, any revisions required and whether additional costs need to be invoiced for expenses.

Last of all I have my diary.  This diary repeats everything in my project file in regards to due dates as well as everything else I have going on in my life.  A big mash of everything revolving around me which means one thing = organized chaos.  As you can see I love lists, so I tend to fill my days with lists.  I can never find the right diary for me so I just bought the chunkiest notebook I could find and wrote out all the dates of the year by hand at the top.  Then... magic!  I have a diary perfect for all of my needs.  :)

I'd love to know what kind of systems you may have in place to keep a little order in your life.  It could be something as simple as for shopping or a multi million dollar development.  I'd love to know what system you find works the best for you.

Marketing Your Products

As soon as you start to sell your products, you enter the world of business.  Even if you have just sold one item, you are making a business transaction.  The world of business involves words such as clients, customers, competitors, research, target markets, locations and so much more.  It all sounds very scary at first, but when broken down to simple subjects you will realise that it isn't complicated at all.  As you learn more about it, you can apply that information to your own business and learn how to make it work for you.

You will only get from your business what you put into it.

I work from home.  I have easy access to the television, food in the fridge, maybe I can go outside and play ball with my dog for a few hours, or maybe I can sleep in.  What benefit will those things have to my business?  None - so why distract yourself with them?  Set yourself a time to work, and work every single minute beyond the best of your ability.  You can get a lot done in one hour of hard work then five hours of fluffing about.

I am passionate about the work I create and I put everything into my business which in turn pays off with exposure, amazing opportunities, experience and knowledge.  The more knowledge that I have about a subject, the more confidence I have.  In addition to that my clients can see my passion and have confidence in my abilities to complete the work as specified in the brief and receive the submission within time.  Every client wants to know you can do the work well and work within deadlines.

Submitting work within a deadline is crucial.  Deadlines are more important then the work involved in creating the product.

If you are presenting a proposal to a firm but arrive four hours late - how does that benefit those potential clients?  What reflection will that have on your business or your character?  Deadlines are in place for a reason.  Whatever you do, don't miss the deadline or you can wave those potential clients goodbye.

In order to make a business work you need to market what you are offering.

You have a product or a service and you wish to offer it to potential clients.  Does anyone know that you offer those products or services?  How are you going to let them know?  At the end of the day you need clients to purchase products in order for your business to grow.  Marketing is the only thing that will increase your sales volume.  It doesn't matter how great your idea is.  You may have invented the next best thing to paper-clips, but if no-one knows about your product, how can they purchase it or use it?

Marketing is an attitude

In order to market your products you need to present what you are offering in the best potential light.

1. Attract the customer
2. Display the product
3. Convert it into a sale
4. Turn that sale into a repeat sale so that customer becomes a client.

Clients are a very important part of a business.  Those clients will potentially bring you repeat sales and if you are lucky enough free marketing of the best kind.  That free marketing is known as word of mouth.  In an ideal world a business will have 20% of their sales from new customers as a result of their marketing, 30% of their sales from regular clients which leaves 50% of their sales as a result from word of mouth.  The percentages vary according to the type of business, but at the end of the day the vast majority of sales will be from clients or the result of word of mouth.  How often do you recommend products to your friends?  Great places to dine, a new food item you've eaten - or how about a drink?  We do it all the time and this is known as 'word of mouth'.

Anyone call sell a product

Anyone can take a $300 product and reduce it to $1, then sell it by the truckload.  Your challenge with marketing isn't to get a sale.  It is to generate repeat customers, also known as 'clients'.  You want to meet the needs of your customers higher then your competitors.

In regards to marketing there are many things you need to consider -

• How can you attract a potential client?
• How much do you want to spend on marketing your product?
• How much is that customer worth to you?  Do you want a regular sale of $20 or $200? 
• Who are they?  - age, gender, income.
• Where are they? - in a house, the army, overseas, in a remote village, the moon?  If you don't know where they are you can't market to them.
• How do they think & behave? - can you sell via the internet to them if they don't trust the system? Can you sell via a mail order catalogue, or are they more likely to purchase seeing the product in person?
• How does your customer make a decision?  - Do they need to see the product on display in a representational room?  Will they consider the price factor?  Is it about the designer label, or the name?
• How involved with the customer be in the purchasing process?  - The higher the price = the more involved they will be.  Do you need to consider contracts and negotiations?  Is that customer going to need to approve work in stages?  Do you need to present draft plans and sketches for approval?  Just think about the work involved in building a house.  Are you offering a product with a high selling price point?  The higher the price = the higher the risk to the customer = the more involved they will be in the process.  They will expect certain reassurances from you that they will receive their product on time and in the best possible format.
• What business are you in?  - At the end of the day it isn't about selling, it is about what you are offering. So, what are you offering?
• Who are your direct competitors?  - These businesses are those who offer the same product and service as you.  e.g. You sell a sandpit, and someone else sells a sandpit, both intended for children to play in.
• Who are your indirect competitors?  - These business are those who fulfil the customers needs in the same way as what you are offering.  e.g. You sell sandpits for children to play in.  Your indirect competitors would sell products that your children could play in too such as swimming pools and children's play sets.
• What do your competitors provide that you don't?  Are they relevant to your business? - Is a half price promotion in winter relevant if you sell bathers?  Is offering 100 pencils colours going to work for you if all the pencil types are the same?
• What is your brand?  What expectation are you creating for your product?  What is the perceived value of your product?
• What is your objective?  Are you trying to maximise your profit by offering a lower volume for a higher price?

Finally here are some more points to think about and discuss.

Always under promise and over deliver.

Price is the only decision that will affect your product.

Aim for the target market that will give you the best result from your advertising.

Define yourself against your competitors.