let's go pro

mdx pro practice by Olga Pikalova

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Invoice template.

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Self promotion piece for Phil Cleaver. I have used some of my work to design a pocket calendar. You can tear out the month card and place it in your wallet. Convenience. I have also designed a package for the calendar book, it was fun crafting it and figuring out the template.

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AOI by pros for pros.

The Association of Illustrators came for a visit. They are an association that supports illustrators and helps them with their contracts and jobs and tricky clients. They covered multiple topics regarding the industry and career choices. 

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Collectives for pros

Once we graduate we will most likely go our separate ways, but that might be not ideal for everyone. We’ve spent 3 years building a strong community and we’ve made great connections with people we know we get along with, which can be hard to do anywhere else. The studio environment had us working together, and that is a familiar feeling that would be hard to let go off. 

But perhaps we don’t have to let go just yet. Alex Moore is a graduate from the same course, and she has shared her story with us. Once her year has graduated they have decided to make a collective known as A Drawn Chorus ( https://drawnchoruscollective.co.uk). They invited people from the course that work well together and started planning. 

Their first step was to throw an exhibition. They figured out a theme and started producing work for it, then they started to deal with organisation of the event. They had to find a venue, and find funding and etc. It was tough but they managed to pull it off and it was a huge success. 

They then moved on to the new projects of making a book, and a zine and even another exhibition.

It can be challenging to keep the people together, but it might be worth it at the end of the day.

Collectives are a good opportunity for you to get noticed but also stick with the people you like, and meet many more new people. It is all good at the end of the day.

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The Future of Illustration for pros

As the years pass everything changes and evolves. A lot of new features and techniques get discovered and added to your arsenal. Perhaps in the future everything will go digital, or maybe there’ll be a break and the demand for traditional artists rise instead. It is hard to predict the future but we can do is follow the present. Be on the lookout for new things that come with the years, and adapt them for your benefit. 

For example if you are a painter, use photoshop to play with your colours, or do crazy changes without ruining your work. Or if you are a digital artists, use traditional media to inspire your work. 

It is good to be able to adjust your work to the project. Depending on the mood the client wants it might be better to use traditional media over digital. Have many options in your arsenal, so you are ready to counter anything.

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Marketing and Promotion for pros

In the industry the job doesn’t look for you, you have to go out there and get it. First you have to establish your brand, who you are, and what you are capable of. Then start researching agencies and directors and possible clients that you’ll want to work with. Which field you choose is also important and depends a lot on the work you want to produce. But sometimes what you want to do is not what you are best at, so figure that out too. 

Then start thinking about how to market yourself, and what audience do you appeal to with which merchandise. People should be able to recognise that you’ve made that work, so it has to be memorable and striking, preferably something that stands out from everything else. Although that can be challenging.

You have to keep constantly putting yourself out there, so you become a person that people notice and recognise. Things like competitions and fairs are crucial. Keep participating.

Your online presence is also important, have a professional and personal social media accounts. Clients are not interested in your beach photos. 

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Websites for pros

To be successful it is important for people to know who you are. For that you should create a website that shows the clients who you are and what kind of work you produce. There are multiple platforms for this purpose that you can use such as; wix, squarespace, wordpress etc.

Your website/portfolio should be tailored to each client, depending on what field you want to work. For example if you want to go into editorial illustration you should have a page on your website with work in that field. If you do not have any work yet in that field start producing it, even if there’s no client yet, produce it so you can show it off.

The design should be slick and easy to navigate, after all directors won’t spend much time figuring out where to go to find certain work. It is important to have multiple images of work on the front page, something to catch directors eye.

It is also crucial that it looks professional, this is not grade school anymore. You should be seen as a business and a responsible adult, who meets deadlines and gets the work done. 

I had a go at making my website through adobe portfolio:

 https://olgapikalova.myportfolio.com/

I didn’t buy my domain, but I am planning to eventually, although the sooner the better.

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Blogs for pros.

Instagram is not a blog!!!

Blogs give you a writer to reader experience, and if people are on your blog, they REALLY want to invest their time in you. Blogs are more thorough, they end up being your long term reflection and really shows your growth. Can be used for more official reports in the future. Hold your educational projects on there, really benefits yourself at the end of the day.

 Have a notebook that you store your ideas in, and also a sketchbook to draw constantly! REFLECTION AND ANALYSIS. 

DO NOT BE AFRAID TO TAKE CRITICISM, JUST TAKE IT, IT’S FREE! (only costs 30% emotional damage, but we used to that) 

Go into the world, and don’t wait for it to come to you. NOBODY’S LOOKING FOR YOU, YOU SHOULD BE LOOKING FOR EVERYONE!

Other blog possibilities:

vlogs and podcasts. 

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Pricing for pros

So, first you get a brief telling you to do this impossible illustration but you still accept it (survival at its finest). From the brief you should know who your client is, how they want the work done, by when they want the work done, where is it going to be used, and how are they going to use it.

Copyright protects the work, not the idea, so you’ll get robbed for that. But copyright belongs to you, unless. you sell it to your client. they can do full buyout or temporary which lasts 2 to 3 years, depending on the client. after that the copyright goes back to you.

Does the company has any extra money? maybe you can raise a price. ALSO, do not reject your clients, just set an insanely high price, and they’ll reject you instead (ouch) , but they’ll still keep you in mind for other jobs.

Prioritise the jobs that will come back and feed into your career, never miss a deadline!!!! Do not upset your regular clients (if you get any, lol)

NOT EVERY JOB IS A GOOD JOB, IF YOU CAN’T DO IT, DON’T. (even if you are starving and need money)

If the client can’t make up his mind, or is too fussy and keeps demanding changes, raise your fee.

Do not sign anything without reading it first, even if it takes you hours to read stuff.

Where and how is work gonna be used, YALL CANT EDIT MY WORK.

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Taxes for pros.

Taxes Are hard to understand.

If you are a freelancer then you are a sole trader - your own boss.

Don’t earn a lot of money, thank you.

Self employed- have a business account in bank

business uses only. 

Write off 1/6th of bills 

WE ARE SMALL FRY TO THE GOVERNMENT 

Keep personal tax records for at least 6 years, in case somebody wants to start a fight.

Taxes are cursed, please save me. 

Go citizens advice, they are called that for a reason.

Get a tax code. 

always ask for more money

Spreadsheet 

Job    invoice number    client     pay    material cost    deadline   

  art complete     invoice sent          paid?       pay received 

Get paid within 30 days. 

Shipping costs. 

Keep track of business expenses 

Make exciting invoices  + use images 

Everything has to be exciting n creative 

What needs to be on invoice

Name

Address

Date of invoice

Clients number

Business name 

Fee

Purchase order number, illustration march 2019, 

Job expenses

N/A

Total

vat% 

Terms of payment from 28 days of receiving the artwork 

Bank account and vat no.

include invoice at some point. 

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First steps for being pro.

In the first session we had an introduction to the module by Louise Weir and she talked about her professional practice and how she has grown and developed as an artist. 

So, what does it take to be professional? Have lots of links!!!

Connect with everyone everywhere, give them your business cards, all the contacts will be useful, you never know.

More prepared + more ready = MORE SUCCESS 

so be ready to counter any phone calls that may be coming your way (aghhg!!).

Make sure you got a website, since that’s how we all roll nowadays. Promote yourself a bunch, through social media and emails, and to potential employers.