Free pitch creative

No professional gives away their work free. I am no different.

I cannot afford to treat design concepts as ‘loss leaders’ against my future income. I do believe that design is an area everyone should invest in since visual perception supports sales and marketing.

Design created for a pitch isn’t 100% perfect, it’s completed to ‘win’ not to meet the needs of the business, product or service through the tested methods of a a good relationship, a collaborative brief, research and communication. It’s free work provided to a brief that could easily express creator bias.

Without dialogue, research and development, design becomes a ‘stick a finger in the air and guess the direction of the wind’ exercise. Successful designs are created with thought and exploration.

Selecting a designer or any service because they provide free or low cost work maybe cheaper upfront but the work is superficial and lacks the talent and depth of skills. Many studios may ask the intern or junior team member to work on pitches which can be unethical if they are unpaid or on low wages. Free work contributes to unethical wages and a cost of living crisis.

Designs always works best when the designer can tell the client what the problem is, how to solve it and vice versa without the risk of the client taking the work to a cheaper firm. In free pitches, it’s impossible to be honest and to gain any insight into values or build a communication.

If invited to pitch, this is what I can bring:

  1. Proofs I understand the brief and objectives;

  2. Share initial thoughts on what needs to be done;

  3. Explain what I would need in terms of time and strategy to develop creative work;

  4. Outline my process and expected results;

  5. Provide credentials including relevant client testimonials and case studies which are also on this website;

  6. Reassure you that I’m the right person for the work.

Of course, I would be disappointed if I missed out as others have provided free work. I will continue to collaborate with clients who do not expect this. Should you change your mind, you’ll know where to find me!

If you’ve got a project you would like to discuss just get in touch!