The below is an extract discussing how to sell logo design, from my book, Make a Living Designing Logos, available through Amazon Globally in Hardback, Paperback, and an audiobook too.
When I started Logo Geek, I was fitting everything around a full-time job with a fairly long commute. The only time I could work on my business was late evenings and weekends. Taking telephone calls during the day was not feasible.
Because I had limited time, if I received an email, I would respond with a fairly long template reply that provided an overview of my process, a price and an estimated delivery time. This allowed me to quickly copy and paste the response, then make a few tweaks to the start of the email so that it felt personalised. Although somewhat impersonal and less effective than a telephone call, it worked more frequently than I expected and since I could only take on a couple of projects at a time, it was more than enough to keep me busy.
As I’ve progressed to focus on my logo design business full-time, my approach to sales has changed considerably. When starting my journey, as I had a day job, money wasn’t an issue, so if my impersonal approach put people off, it didn’t matter. However, once I was designing logos full time, I needed to make money, so every enquiry was an opportunity I didn’t want to lose.
When someone gets in touch, they have probably also contacted a handful of other designers. Some people are looking for the cheapest option, but most are looking for the best they can afford. This means that every interaction is an opportunity to demonstrate my knowledge and instil confidence that I’m the right person for the job. Now, when I receive an enquiry by email, I respond with a short personalised email where I share my excitement for the project and ask if they’re available for a call to discuss it further.
Speaking to the client
I pick up my phone, dial the number, and once they answer, in a positive voice, I’ll say, “Hello, [insert customer name]. I’m following up on our email conversation. Is now still a good time to speak?” If it is, I will then ask a simple question: “Although you’ve provided an introduction in your original enquiry, as this is the first time we’ve properly spoken, do you want to talk through how I can help?”
This allows them to talk through where they are with their business and where they need help, and it makes them feel heard too. I’ll listen carefully and take notes. Once they’ve shared their story, I discuss my process and how I can help solve their problem. I’ll then ask if they have any follow-up questions or want me to expand on anything.
At this point, they’ll usually ask, “How much does it cost?” This is when I provide a price, which I’ll share how I work out shortly. Following that, I explain my payment structure, which involves receiving 50% upfront to schedule the project in, with the remaining 50% invoiced once the design has been approved.
I’ll then pause and wait for their response. Be confident. Don’t feel the need to suddenly reduce your cost. Just wait.
At this point, the discussion can go a few ways. The ideal scenario is that they want to proceed and will ask what the next steps are to get the ball rolling. Other times, they might be very interested and ask more questions to help with their decision-making. Quite frequently, though, they want time to think, or they need to discuss the project with a business partner, team or manager. In these cases, I will send over a proposal document, which we’ll discuss later.
Other times the price is out of their budget and that’s okay. For research purposes, I ask what budget they had in mind. If it’s a reasonable figure and I find the project of interest, I might negotiate, however, in most cases, I will help by pointing them in the right direction and wishing them all the best with the project.
Being friendly and helpful has always worked in my favour. There have been several occasions when the price was way out of their budget, but they appreciated the friendly help and support, and I gained their trust to the point that they pulled together the budget and returned to kick the project off! So never be rude or disrespectful to anyone.
I’ve often heard that you should discuss the budget as early as possible in the conversation to avoid wasting your time (or theirs). But first, I like to dedicate fifteen minutes to listening to their plans and talking through my process. This is so they understand how I’m different from the cheaper options on the market before hearing my price.
How much do I charge?
When you first start designing logos, as you’re still learning and don’t have much experience, you’re unlikely to get paid much. We all need to start somewhere though.
Look at every opportunity as an investment in your future. Opportunities are more valuable than money initially, so be thankful if you can get even a few. You can then gradually increase your prices as you improve. Only when you have a strong body of work and can demonstrate that you’re the best person for the job will you get paid what you truly deserve. But how much should you charge once you do have the experience?
If you look at the market for logo design, the prices vary considerably. They start as low as a few dollars and go up into the millions. However, knowing exactly how much YOU should charge is not a simple question. Everyone’s process, experience and location will differ considerably, affecting the price.
There’s no single right way to do this. For example, you might choose to work on a handful of projects at a high price. Or you might churn out several a week at a lower price. How you position yourself in the market is up to you.
There are also different ways to price things. I’ve met designers who charge a fixed price for every project and I’ve met those who work out an individual price for each client based on the value to the company.
There are many ways to do this. I don’t have all the answers, and certainly not an expert on pricing, although I can share how I do it and what works for me.
I’ve positioned myself in the mid-range market and aim to take on up to two projects per week, which allows me to live comfortably. Since the average time I spend on a project remains relatively consistent, I’ve simplified things for myself by implementing a fixed pricing structure.
I will, however, quote a higher price for larger companies where I know there will be more decision-makers involved and where I want to invest more time, or if it’s a simple project or one that I really want, if needed, I’ll reduce my price.
Supply and demand will affect my prices too. I’ll quote higher if I’m super busy, as I have nothing to lose and want to reduce the demand. If I’m a bit quiet, I might lower my price to close a sale if it’s needed. There’s nothing wrong with lowing your price if you remain profitable.
So let me explain how I work out that fixed cost.
Working Out a Fixed Cost
I start by working out a base price. This is the minimum I can charge in order to earn enough to cover my living costs. By working this out, I can always charge higher but also reduce my price where needed. As long as it’s no lower than my base price, I can be comfortable knowing that I can still afford to live.
This base price is based on the average length of time I spend on a project. While I don’t charge by the hour, knowing how long I usually spend on a project means I can work out a suitable average project price.
Once I know the average time I spend on a project, I can multiply that by my hourly rate. I’m sure you’re now wondering how I work out my hourly rate, so let’s discuss.
Working out my hourly rate
I start by determining how much I want to earn in a year. This can be as high as you want – just be realistic.
It’s helpful to determine your living costs, including your mortgage or rent, bills, travel, food, entertainment, and so on. You’ll want to earn a little more to save up too, but knowing how much life costs will give you an idea of how much you need to make each month to live comfortably. For example, let’s say this is £100k per year. (A nice round number!)
Whatever figure you’ve worked out, divide that by 10 to give yourself a monthly goal. I divide by 10 because I’m subtracting a month for time off and a month for non-billable tasks such as networking, marketing, calls, emails and other administrative tasks. So, for example, £100k divided by 10 is £10k.
Next, I determine how many hours I can realistically work per week. Typically this is 40 hours (8 hours a day, 5 days a week). I then multiply this by 4 to work out roughly how many hours I’ll be working each month. So 40 hours multiplied by 4 means I’ll be working in the neighbourhood of 160 hours per month.
To get my hourly rate, I divide my monthly goal by how many hours I’ll work each month. So if my monthly goal is £10k and I divide that by 160 hours, my hourly rate works out at £62.50.
Working out my base project cost
To determine my base price, I work out how long a project usually takes, including any revisions. I then multiply that by my hourly rate.
If I spend around 3 days on a project (8 hours a day), the time I spend per project is 24 hours. So 24 multiplied by £62.50 equals £1,500. So if I want to earn an annual salary of £100k, the minimum I need to charge per project is £1,500.
Now I know a base price, I can work out a fixed project cost. I want to make a profit, so in this example, I’ll increase this a little to around £1,800.
So it’s clear, this is not what I charge, but I hope it will help you determine what YOU should charge based on your circumstances.
Charge per project, not per hour
This approach is only a starting point. As you get more experienced, you’ll inevitably work faster. So the idea of working out a price based on your hourly rate will eventually make no sense. By that logic, the more efficient you become, the lower your prices will be.
As you gain more experience, it’s advisable to raise your prices. This is where having a project price comes in handy. It’s a fixed amount that you can consistently raise, regardless of the actual time spent on the project. There’s no ceiling to what you charge as long as you can find clients who will pay those prices.
Understand your position in the market
Once you’ve established a reputation, hopefully, you’ll attract clients who will only want to work with you. In that case, you can name your price. However, until you reach that stage, you’re one of many.
Clients will shop around, so it’s helpful to understand what the market looks like. Not so you can be the cheapest, but so you know how you compare with others in the industry, particularly at the price point you wish to target. The market changes frequently, so I can’t give you the answers here. Discover what’s out there on your own, as if you were a client. That information will become invaluable.
Logo Design Proposal Document
You had a great call, but your prospect now needs to decide which provider is the best fit. In most cases, they will want to discuss the options with a business partner or the management team. You can cross your fingers and hope for the best, or increase your odds by sending an impressive Proposal Document that allows you to stand out from the rest. (The Future have a great proposal template).
In the beginning, I didn’t have a Proposal Document. I wrote everything in an email, and if the prospect decided to proceed, I put together a contract and invoice to kick things off. However, after going full-time, I found sending a Proposal Document to be a superb way to impress the client and demonstrate how I differ from the cheaper options. It makes me look more professional and trustworthy than my competitors, allowing me to convert more projects at a higher price point.
What’s inside a proposal document?
There’s no set way of making a proposal, but I like to include the following:
- A brief introduction about me and my experience.
- An overview of my design process.
- An overview of how I can help.
- A price with an estimate of timescales.
- A summary of the final deliverables.
- A few testimonials.
- A few relevant examples from my portfolio.
- My contact details.
Note that this doesn’t include the terms and conditions or any formalities; those are covered in a contract, which I will send at a later date if they decide to move forward. This document is intended to impress and show that I’m the most suitable candidate for the job.
To speed up this process, I’ve created a template in InDesign that I can quickly customise. I recommend you do the same. Unfortunately, you’re not guaranteed to secure every project that comes your way, so the faster you can create a proposal while giving a sense of quality, the better.
Contracts
Once I have confirmation that a prospect wants to proceed with a project, I prepare a formal Contract detailing the project scope and the terms and conditions of the agreement.
As a starting point, I used a contract template I found online. But any contract template should be just that – a starting point. You’ll need to modify and adjust it to fit your requirements.
This usually includes the following:
- The project scope.
- A list of the final deliverables.
- Payment structure.
- Payment details.
- Ownership and rights.
- Details about amendments and feedback.
- Cancellation and project suspension.
An important lesson I’ve learned is to never blame your client when facing a problem. Take responsibility, learn from the experience and change your process to prevent that situation from happening again. A lot of the time, a simple tweak to your contract will help to prevent issues in the future.
One such lesson came about when I had a client who appeared to vanish off the face of the planet, only to return six months later as if no time had passed. As there was nothing in my contract that stated otherwise, I simply continued with the project; however, I immediately rectified this in my contract, adding a note that if the feedback is not received after thirty days, the project will be archived and an additional amount will be charged for unarchiving and commencing the project. Making that change keeps me in control.
I have met a few designers who don’t make contracts and agree on everything on a handshake, although I don’t recommend this approach. A contract outlines the expectations of both parties and ultimately protects you both should the worst happen.
A few years back, I worked on a naming and logo project for a business. They paid 50% upfront, were a pleasure to work with throughout the project, and the solution came together nicely. Although, when settling the final payment, my client made excuse after excuse and eventually went totally off the radar, not responding to any call, email or message for several months.
My contract states that I own the full rights to all ideas and designs presented until the final payment has been made, but they had made the mistake of formally registering the name I created. As it was a breach of contract, I was able to take the business through the UK small claims court and the final amount was settled reasonably quickly.
This is why you need a contract. So you’re protected and in control when the worst happens.
Invoices
Before starting a project, I send an invoice to the client so that they can arrange payment. I send an invoice for a 50% deposit at the start of the project, then a second invoice for the final 50% once the project is complete, which needs to be settled before I send the final files.
The invoice needs to include the following:
- A unique identification number. I organise my project folders with a simple numbering system that starts at 001, so I use the same for the invoice to help keep everything nicely organised. I’ll then add an A to the first invoice and B to the second. For example, the invoice number might be 136A.
- Your name (or company name), address, email and telephone number.
- The company name and address of the customer you’re invoicing.
- The date of the invoice.
- A clear description of what you’re charging for.
- The amount(s) being charged.
- VAT amount, if applicable. In the UK, if you’re not VAT registered, you don’t need to include this.
- The total amount owed.
- I also include my bank details, as a bank transfer is my preferred payment method.
At first, I designed an invoice template in InDesign, which did the job. But as I started to work on more projects, it wasn’t a practical way of working. I now use dedicated accounting software, which allows me to create professional invoices quickly, while also keeping track of all my incoming and outgoing money.
Spotting Red Flags
Another benefit of talking with a business owner on the phone is that you can assess whether you’d like to work with them. How someone acts before proceeding with a project is very likely to be how they will behave throughout the project, so if there’s anything that doesn’t feel right, you might not want to go ahead.
Most people I’ve worked with have been incredible, but sadly there are unpleasant people out there who could become bad clients – the type who will be disrespectful, respond late, withhold information, seek excessive control, steal your work, or consistently delay payments. A brief phone call can help to identify early warning signs.
For example, I once had a call from someone who had a bad experience with his previous designer. I was greeted with an in-depth story about how awful things got. Yes, a designer can sometimes screw up, but that rang alarm bells for me. This guy used the designer’s first name and it happened to be someone I knew. So before taking things any further, I reached out to my friend, only to find out that this particular client wanted everything at short notice. Then, when it came to paying, he’d make up excuse after excuse. I’m glad I avoided that one!
On another occasion, I had a client who asked a lot of questions on the initial call and followed up with a further list of questions before deciding to proceed. While this is understandable, after sending over a contract to start the ball rolling, he followed up with even more questions, repeating some I had already answered in detail! I sensed this would be a continuing trend throughout the project and while he might have been OK to work with, I declined the work as I didn’t feel it would be worth the ongoing hassle.
Then there was the time I couldn’t answer my phone because I was preparing an evening meal for my family. Rather than leave a voicemail, as an average human would, this guy rang my phone repeatedly for nearly half an hour! Imagine that person as a client!? No way.
Trust your gut. No amount of money is worth the suffering that can be endured by working for an unpleasant person, so if something doesn’t feel right, run.
Learn to Say No
Not every client will be a good fit. There’s a market for every buyer and that’s the nature of business.
Just because someone can get a budget logo doesn’t mean you need to bring your price down to match. They’re not buying the same thing. If they’re happy with the cheaper option, that’s their choice. This is no different to getting a handbag from Primark for a few dollars and then expecting Prada to reduce their prices to match. That would be ridiculous. Yes, they’re both bags, but they differ considerably in many ways. As does your logo design service! There’s a market for everything. If someone can’t afford you, that’s fine. Wish them well and move on.
Once you’ve worked out your price, be confident about it. Don’t reduce it because someone doesn’t see the value. Others will. There will always be those who try to get a sneaky discount. It’s common for service-based businesses. Some will accommodate, so knowing that wouldn’t you try this too if you were a client? I don’t blame them.
It’s okay to say no. I’m confident in my prices. I know how I fit in the market. Clients often need us more than we need them, so if I’m asked for a discount and politely decline, they still go ahead anyway. They’re just trying in the hope it might work. It’s also okay to say yes, too, if you want. It’s your business, your choice.
Pay Your Taxes
When you start making money from your skills, you need to play by a few rules. This will differ based on where you live, so I suggest doing your own research to understand the rules that will apply to you, but usually, you’ll need to pay taxes on the profits that you make.
Here in the UK, you can choose to operate as a sole trader or as a limited company. To register, head to the gov.uk website or do a Google search for “set up a business.”
Throughout my journey, I’ve operated as a sole trader, which means I’m responsible for keeping my sales and expenses records. Additionally, I’m required to complete a self-assessment tax return annually, and pay Income Tax and National Insurance. To ensure I have the money to pay for this, I have two bank accounts – one for my business income and outgoings and a separate bank account where I transfer 30% of my monthly profits for the tax man. I suggest doing something similar, as the amount can build up once you start operating full-time, so it’s helpful to have this separate from your other money so you don’t get a nasty surprise each year.
I did my first self-assessment independently and found it confusing, so you might want to invest in a good accountant to help you do this properly.
If you enjoyed this content, check out my book Make a Living Designing Logos, available through Amazon globally.
