Off the Cuff: How Freelancers Can Contribute to Your Bottom Line — Part 2

Follow these tips and tricks to find and hire the right freelancers.
Feb 13, 2009

By Mark L. Venit, MBA, Contributing Writer

In Part I of this column, we discussed some of the challenges in finding freelance artists. Now we’ll explore where to focus your search.

1. Colleges, universities, art institutes

Institutions that offer curricula in graphic arts and fine arts are likely to have freelance talent on campus, including day students, night students, part-time students, professors and instructors. Most of them are not actively looking for freelance work, but many will welcome an offer or refer others to you. After all, you are offering something more than just a part-time job, working in your shop gives students real-time, on-the-job experience they can list on their resume and work samples to include in a portfolio.

You can call the institution or it placement office to speak with teachers and department administrators about supplemental employment opportunities for them or their students. You also can write to the individual department heads, post free online ads (Craigslist), and/or simply hang printed notices about work available on old-fashioned bulletin boards in the buildings (with appropriate approval).

Also check the campus newspaper and the public relations/marketing department, both of which employ people who know computer graphics and may also find a person in these departments who also has illustration skills.

2. Advertising Agencies and Art Studios

Hey, they do artwork, right? They get big fees, too — but only from regular advertising clients. Your assignments are ideal for a freelancer who’d like to moonlight doing what she knows best. It’s an opportunity to do some quick work with less stress than she usually faces in her day job. All it takes to find out is a phone call.

Oftentimes a newer or younger employee is happy to take outside assignments and usually with management’s blessing, provided it doesn’t interfere with the position or present any conflict of interest.

3. High school art teachers and students

Virtually every high school offers art classes, many of which now feature training in computer graphics. And today, some of the students know more about these things than their teachers! Contact the art teachers and explain that you have part-time positions available and/or freelance work for the teachers themselves, if they're interested, or for talented students.

Also consider creating internship positions for students whose talents need sharpening and who work cheap — at least while they're learning. When they graduate, your company may be a place for them to work full- or part-time. And for those who go to college, they can work at a distant location and submit work online.

Visit the school’s Web site, check with the guidance department for possible assistance (since they help place students in part-time jobs), and where you might be allowed to post or distribute work-related employment notices in the school.

You’ve probably already seen — in your own back yard — some pretty sophisticated work done by high school students. If you haven't, it’s probably because you’re too old to know what’s going on. Note that neither students nor their teachers know what they’re work is really worth in the marketplace and will in most cases charge considerably less than you’d pay in the trade or simply accept what you’re offering to pay per assignment.

4. Art Supply Stores

When it comes to buying art supplies, artists have their favorite haunts and, over time, development relationships with store personnel. In turn, those folks become familiar with various artists’ chosen media, their strengths, general skill level and style.

Contact art supply retailers in your area, asking for referrals. Several stores help their customers by posting notices in the stores where artists and assignments can come together.

5. Art Galleries

While art galleries deal primarily with fine artists, the owners and managers of these establishments are very likely to know artists who also do commercial work and illustration. A few phones call should yield additional contacts for you.

6. Advertising

Classified advertising in local newspapers yields mixed results, depending on seasonal factors, readership demographics and other variables. Free ads on Craigslist fulfill much the same function. Wherever your classified ad appears, it should mention specifically what you are looking for: illustration skills, computer graphics skills and list what software programs you use in-house, the hours needed (flexible is good), and wages or project fees. Putt your company’s name in the ad because artists at other decorator shops are more likely to call if they know who you are.

7. Other Local Sources

Several companies in your area also have artists and art departments, most of which won’t conflict involve conflicts of interests with their operations. These potential sources include local printers (as in paper), newspapers and sign companies. And while few promotional products distributors have an in-house art department, they’re likely to have relationships with freelancers, so call them for referrals, too.
 
8. Sponsor An Art Contest

This involves a variety of promotional techniques to succeed, ranging from paid advertising to notices sent to high schools, colleges, art supply stores, and other sources. Determine a theme (local attractions, civic pride, wildlife, fashion, sports, etc.) and the contest rules; give details on specs such as the maximum number of colors and finished size for submission, and perhaps different classifications of entrants (students, seniors, professionals, etc.). Be sure to send press releases about your contest to local newspapers with particulars.

Determine the top prize, usually cash, and make it clear in the contest rules that prizes are paid in exchange for copyrights. Draw up a brief contract detailing the terms of ownership (from blanket to limited) in what is commonly referred to as a “purchase award.” The winner gets cash, you get to use and keep the art in a preprint line, local promotion, limited edition print, etc.

Sponsoring a contest also provides good exposure for your company in general, will generate enhanced contacts among the art community in your area, and gives you lots of room to brag in the press releases you’ll issue when you announce the winners and all the other entrants. Another major benefit of the contest goes way beyond determining a winner: dramatically increasing your contact list for potential freelancers – because while many of those whose work didn’t win the contest, many indeed demonstrate the skills you’re seeking, beefing up your on-call artist.

Implementing some of the above methodologies will preclude you from continuing to sing the “Can’t-Find-An-Artist-in-My-Own-Backyard” blues.

Mark L. Venit, MBA, is president of Apparel Graphics Institute Ltd., Ocean Pines, Md., which provides management and marketing consulting and proprietary research to apparel graphics companies throughout the Americas and Europe. He also is the chairman of ShopWorks Software LLC, a provider of industry-specific business software. Venit teaches pricing, strategic marketing, salesmanship and other business management topics at the Imprinted Sportswear Shows. You can reach him at markvenit@cs.com.