The Marriage Between Design and Marketing // Michael Janda and Tom Ross discuss how marketing and design contribute to one another and how combining the two disciplines can dramatically improve the reach of your business.

Run Business in 3-Month Increments // Businesses are run in 3-month increments. Any long term contracts should have a 3-month reassessment clause. When you look at your financials, you should consider things with a 3-month window. When you hire someone, you should consider it a 90 day trial. This video…

Will Robots Take Your Design Job? Michael Janda and Cassi Nicole // Low cost design solutions, pre-made templates, downloadable themes, Wix, Squarespace, oh my! There are a lot of ways for clients to solve their design needs for cheap. To combat this, there are two options for designers to retain…

The Motherland of Value with Michael Janda and Cassi Nicole // Clients often come to a creative person to help solve an assumed problem in their business. They want a new website, more sales, a new brand. But is that their real problem? Every designer’s goal should be to grow…

You Need a Rush Fee Clause. Michael Janda with G’day Frank // Whether you use it or not, your contract should include a “rush fee clause.” A rush fee clause will empower you to push back on a client who has an unnecessary rush project…or to charge more money if…

Retainers and Buckets of Hours // Traditional retainers are difficult to manage and require the right type of client if they are going to work. An alternative solution for clients who want a discounted rate by providing you with guaranteed work is to engage in a “bucket of hours” relationship….

Over the past couple months both Tom Ross and Michael Janda have been sharing their thoughts and strategies on Instagram about niching in your business. In this video clip they both discuss their perspective and approach to finding a niche for your business and how it affects your marketing.

Managing Stress & Worry // This simple technique has helped me one million times during my creative career. It is easy to get burdened with stress and worry. Clients are frustrated. Deadlines are looming. Employees haven’t fulfilled assignments. Cashflow is tight. All of these worries can pile up and create…

Line-item Price Breakdowns. Michael Janda with G’Day Frank // Giving you client a proposal with line-items broken down by deliverable is giving them a menu of items they can pick apart to reduce the price to a budget they are comfortable with. But giving them line-items broken down based on…

When a Client Wants to Pay with Trade, Michael Janda and Cassi Nicole. // How to handle a client who wants to pay with a trade of services. // Clients offer to trade all kinds of crazy things for design services. I once had a client offer my agency a…

Focus on Your Strengths, Michael Janda and Cassi Nicole. // It seems we breed self-judgement, comparison, and insecurity right from the first day in design school. “Ok, everybody put your designs on the wall for the rest of the class to see and critique. Now, go out into the world…

Keeping your billings balanced with completed work is the best way to keep animosity from entering into the client relationship. This video is an excerpt from a coaching call with Bryan Jimenez, a super talented designer and agency owner based in Austin, Texas.