Get a Rolex for $50

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Sound fishy? That’s essentially what a very good majority of people expect, if you substitute a Rolex for a logo.

You can’t get a Rolex of a logo for $50, or $100. I’m using a Rolex as an example because it’s made with care and quality and takes a while to make, and the price reflects that. So if you’re a designer and you work for a price that is low, the assumption is your product is cheaply made and won’t last and you didn’t take the time to research and craft an exceptional product. I’m not saying you have to charge $50,000 for a logo. Be aware of fair market standards. If you have no experience and need a starting point and thinking that doing low-budget work will help you get a foothold, the reality check is once you get there, that’s all you’ll get. Your word-of-mouth referral would be “hire this guy, he’s cheap”, so you’re never going to be able to raise your prices without losing that customer base, and if that’s all you are depending on, you’re going to get screwed.

The best thing you can do is work for a company. If you have no experience, plenty of places are open to hiring an intern.

As a client, you need to be aware of why you need good design.

Adam Swan had a very nice write-up on Forbes about the Era of Design, where he stated,

“What is certain is that the design bar has been raised and design-oriented businesses are winning.

Think how swiftly and strongly a design experience shapes our opinion of that brand, company or store, for good or bad. For instance, we know quickly when a website is bad. And we associate that feeling of frustration, or worse, disappointment with that brand.

Design-oriented organizations invest in thinking this stuff through. They put design at the heart of their company to guide innovation and to continually improve products, service and marketing. They recognize that a great design leads to differentiation, customer loyalty and higher profit.”

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Tales of Orinda Novel Covers

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I designed these covers for my novels to be more recognizable and hopefully attract a higher traffic.

Lady From Day

https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/142489
http://www.amazon.com/Lady-Day-Tales-Orinda-ebook/dp/B006LMDQ48

Finding a cure for an ill princess is harder that it seems.

Traveling through the lands of Aelisonia, Lia and her band of adventurers hear a tale of an unusual illness that has caused the land of Feyris to go into famine and the disappearance of Queen Daylat.

On Lia’s journey to find the cure through the world of Orinda she runs into the hands of the vicious gorlags and the heart of the Prince of Feyris, Rowan. Will she be able to find the cure for the princess before all hope is lost?

Lunamae

Marriage between the clans can keep the peace for only so long.

In the world of Orinda there are countries surrounding a central land that is under small clan rule. Kyrie, a republican government to the north had been at war with one of these small clans when Chief Leofric of Frys was killed.

There was a song of a rhymester in Kyrie that spoke of a girl born on the fifth day of the fifth month under a full luna and under her rule, the lands of Orinda would be at peace and the clans within it would be united as one.

Lunamae was born on such a night to Chief Dame Angharad, wife of the late Leofric. It is through Lunamae that the clans decide to unify – if only she is married to a Kyrian, to further secure the bond. Angharad still holds hostilities even though the corrupted officials which caused the war had been thrown out into exile. Can Angharad get past the hate that has been haunting her since the death of her husband?

“Pin-falls” of Pinterest

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I’m sure most people are aware of the social media-based image bookmarking tool called Pinterest. I’m sure most people aren’t aware of the terms within their site. These terms basically put the burden on the user to be responsible for getting permissions to the content displayed. For most people, including myself, I thought this would be covered under fair use (editorial/personal use), however I am not willing to take that risk. Even though Pinterest has stated that the site isn’t to be used for self-promotion, their terms of use essentially require one to only pin their own content. There are very few obviously pin-friendly sites out there (oh and for the record, I give permission for you to pin my work, as long as you credit me…which is kind of a given since it should link back to my site).

What could be a great tool is now a controversial mess, and one that I wouldn’t want to be zapped into.

The Spatula

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Suppose you were presented with two products such as a spatula. They both obviously do the same job. One is made out of plastic and one is made out of stainless steel. The one that is made out of plastic is cheap. The one made out of stainless steel is more expensive. The plastic one will break easily and melt on direct heat. Would you be willing to pay more for a spatula that would last or pay less on something you will need to replace because it can’t handle the job?

The same can be applied to design. Plenty of times I’ve heard someone asking for a logo design, and only wanting to pay $100 because it’s simple. They don’t understand why they should pay more. A professional makes simple functional, correct, and long-lasting. Why would you invest into something that needs to be frequently updated and replaced?

ADDY Awards 2012

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I know I won something for the Dare to Prepare Today Campaign and that’s the extent of my knowledge. I’ll find out what level at the local Hermes Awards at the end of February.