Tired of wrestling with two choice ‘f’ words?
No, I’m not talking about FUDGE … but yes, please, if you have some.
And no, I don’t mean FUN … but yes, please, go ahead and have some.
Instead, I’m talking about the infamous two ‘f’ words fuelling your entrepreneurial rage: Facebook and Fiverr.
If you are a designer (which you are) and have Facebook (ah, who doesn’t?) you would have seen this type of post appear in your feed before …
WHAT’S BETTER THAN FIVERR FOR MAKING LOGOS?
Or
HI LADIES, I NEED A SIMPLE LOGO DESIGN MADE CHEAP. CAN ANYONE HELP ME OR KNOW WHERE THERE’S A FREE ONLINE SITE?
Or
I HAVE AN IDEA FOR MY LOGO, I JUST NEED A DESIGNER TO CREATE IT FOR ME. SHOULD BE QUICK & SIMPLE.
And then the comments start rolling in.
Try Canva.
Give Fiverr a shot!
I made my logo for nothing by using this app!
And then, amazingly, hundreds of graphic designers dive in with their own comments, fighting for the job like a bunch of seagulls over a hot chip.
It blows my mind … and yours too, I bet!
Don’t get me wrong: I use to comment on these posts when I was starting out. And, hell, if you met me when I was 18, you would have seen what a feisty FIGHTER I was back in the day.
Before the whole internets thing I use to get really passionate about articles in music magazines.
Yes. I am old. Yes, I was a bit emo.
Back then, I would get so fired up that I would write letters to the editor, like proper snail mail letters, fighting for my opinion. And they even got published a bunch of times in Australian Rolling Stone – I was cool for a fleeting moment.
But that was when I was full of energy and opinions and hormones and, obviously, didn’t have much else to do.
I thought I’d left that white-knuckled, opinion-led rage behind me … but then I grew up, started my own graphic design biz, and stumbled across the aforementioned posts again and again and bloody again.
It used to infuriate me. Every new post requesting cheap design made me want to hurl something. Sometimes my lunch, other times a choice piece of crockery. And the humans recommending Fiverr and Canva as real design options? There was a special place in my digital boxing ring just for them.
So I would get put my fighting fingers to the keyboard, and battle it out in the Facebook groups.
Then, one day, I just stopped.
Sure, it still annoys me. BUT. With age and wisdom, I know that it’s not worth my time or energy fighting with these people.
Why?
Easy: They aren’t my ideal client.
Not only that, but I am better than discounting myself for someone who just doesn’t get my value or worth.
So if you feel like flipping a few ‘f’ words and fighting with people in Facebook groups over Fiverr, keep this in mind.
How to tame the ‘f’ words and reclaim your sanity
They are uneducated
They might have a medical degree and a PhD, but when it comes to graphic design, they don’t know fudge. The people out there who are openly devaluing our profession have not been educated as to why investing in professional graphic design is valuable to their business. It is like a five-year-old wanting to pay $2 for a ticket to Disneyland. Kids don’t get how much it costs to go to Disneyland! Neither do these people.
They are not ready to invest in a pro designer
The people who are asking for cheap design options are not ready to invest in you yet. So it is in your & their best interest that they don’t work with you. There are people out there further along in their business journey who are more aligned with what you offer and what you charge. Spend your time focusing on them instead.
Fighting with strangers on the internet is not good for your soul
Oh, this is a big lesson! The good thing about the olden days was when you argued via “letters to the editor” people couldn’t fight back straight away!
The internet has made fighting really easy and you know what, there are so many people – good & bad – out there that think their opinion is right.
It is not worth wasting your emotion and stress on. Do not feed the trolls!
They do not represent everyone!
Just because these people are looking for cheap design options, it does not mean everyone is the same.
They are just a small percentage of the business world and there DEFINITELY entrepreneurs out there who understand the value of professional design and are willing to pay it.
Phew – so don’t sweat Facebook groups or Fiverr lady, you are above it!
