When you’re a dab hand at creating a logo or turning an eye to producing a new WordPress theme, then there is always going to be something to do. If you’ve worked for other studios as a graphics designer but have tired of having a boss, then you may wish to launch your own creative studio. This way, only your clients will have a say about what you’re doing that day.
Here are four suggestions for what to do when starting a creative media studio.
Be Remote
While there may have previously been a stigma associated with working remotely from home, the current move for employed workers to work at home has a knock-on effect for you. As a result, it will quickly become quite normal to hear that a person doesn’t have a rented office and conducts business digitally and through video conference calls.
Be sure to have the right technology in place to facilitate remote work. Clients will likely have different preferences for communication platforms, so install several of them like Slack or Messenger to keep in touch with everyone you need.
Don’t Begin Underfunded
While working from home is less expensive than opening an office, that doesn’t mean it’s without costs. Most businesses make little money in the first 3-6 months, so anyone who’s opening their own studio and will eventually hire a (remote) team, needs money for their living expenses. This is because it’s unlikely that any new business will generate enough sales to afford to pay a monthly salary.
If you want to push ahead and are still employed currently, then one way around this is to take a loan out to provide some extra cash in hand. There are personal loans to suit you! – Simple Personal Loans provides them to qualifying people, which will ensure that you can survive while building a small business of your own.
Find the Most Affordable Marketing
Your marketing budget is probably very small. It may even be just time you can invest and no money at all. In which case, spend the time to find the most affordable marketing options.
For instance, talking up your services on business forums can create new opportunities. Meeting in business groups and making the effort to expand your network of business contacts is worthwhile too.
Given that your work is visual, look for ways to get this displayed on other sites. Offer to redesign a company’s logo or create a graphical ad banner that will be seen, and your contribution attributed to you. If it’s striking enough, it may get some referrals there.
Outsource the Small Tasks
When there are non-essential tasks that you don’t like doing, see if you can outsource them inexpensively.
It’s often the case that other people can knock them out faster than you can because it’s not your specialty. Rather than take your focus away from core tasks like marketing and producing new logos or web design, invest extra time in those areas for better results.
Don’t be put off by uninspiring forecasts about the future. These happen periodically and the world keeps turning anyway.
