[thelist] Spec Work...?

[Eric Langlitz]

Hi all.  Time for a healthy philosophical discussion in design, as there has
been a ton of tech talk today.

The Situation

Prospect Client A comes to you and wants to have a web site designed built.
But they have been burned in the past by "paying designers tons of money,
and still not getting what they want."  So, they say to you "I want to see
two or three designs before I will pay anything.  I am sure you are a great
designer, and your work shows it, but I am not sure you can grasp what I
want.  And I have already paid too much for other qualified designers who
couldn't do it either."

Now, if you have not had a meal in three days, and the rent is two months
over-due, this may be very tempting.  But, how many diners can you go to and
ask to try two or three different plates before you will pay for "one" meal?
True, this is not a clear example of the work a designer does, but you get
the point.

The worst part of this whole miserable e-mail, is that this happens
everyday, and designers engage in this activity every day.  I don't know
about you, but I don't like to spend my time doing free work.  If this were
my prospect client, the first words out of my mouth would be "I have the
number of a developer that I think would be great for you, let me pull it
from my file here and......."

Any thoughts/comments/experiences?


--
Eric Langlitz
Principal
Chicken3
3409 NE 62nd Ave #164
Vancouver, WA 98661
360.906.7195
feed at chicken3.com