Life as a Visual Storyteller—Episode 23—23rd July, 2015: Three Steps to Getting More Work as a Creative (Untested and Unproven)

Good, cheap, fast

I saw a tweet about business a couple of days ago. It read, "Good, cheap, fast. Choose two."

Part of me likes that*.

I worry, though, that clients have stopped caring about 'good'. Instead 'good enough' is, well, good enough. In fact, when it comes to creative work, are we in the realm of 'good enough, free, now'?

If we have, we should do something about that.

Three steps to beating the market (may not work)

Step 1: Don't blame the client. It's pointless. Besides, it's not their fault. If they think quality creative work is cheap, it's because it is. The market is flooded with creatives producing great work that they are selling at bargain-basement prices. Don't blame them, either. You don't know their circumstances and you can't change them anyway, so move on. Concentrate on you. That's where the solution lies.

Step 2: Produce distinct, brilliant work that clients can only get from you. Be true to yourself. Develop your vision and cultivate your voice. This takes a lot of work. It has to be done, though.

Step 3: Learn how to communicate effectively why you are the best fit for their needs. That means you have even more work to do, because you have to figure out why you are the best fit for their needs. A good start is to seek out clients who share your value set. Or to look at what is useful and valuable to them.

There is no guarantee that this will work for you. It's merely a three-step plan that appeals to me. Besides, and I can't say this enough, don't do anything I suggest to you. My track record is pretty rubbish.

• The other part of me thinks we should be marketing ourselves as "Good, what it costs, when it's ready".