Dear Reader,
I write to you from the stables of a concerned client, and the matter at hand bothers me very much. The outrageous amounts of money 'so-called' experienced graphic designers charge for the creation of an 'ordinary logo' appalls me, particularly for Clients that own very small but promising businesses like me! It seems the good ones all had a meeting and agreed to charge astronomically higher than the 'road-side designers', making it seem like the 'not-so-hard' services they render is some Treasury Bill, how preposterous! If not for the fact that Bode (our family Printer who also designs on the side) gave me ten different designs that made my Real Estate business look like it was an Ewa Agoyin business, I wouldn't have approached any of these supposedly top tier designers in the first place. I mean, Bode charged me just Five thousand Naira for the ten samples he gave me, isn't he a
human being?!
What was even sadder was the fact that after they charged astronomically high, they still had the guts to restrict my REVISIONS! Ahnahn! Yes, we know your works are good, and we know you have a lot of experience, but how dare you limit the number of times I can make corrections?! It should be unlimited! In fact, for the amount I'm paying, I should be able to wake up 6 months from now and command a scrap of what they have done for me, and request another one altogether. I should be able to make changes as I please; additions to detail as I please; and order them around indefinitely! I mean, what if it hasn't popped yet? I need more options; what if I haven't seen what I want yet, I mean I'll know it when I see it! What if it doesn't describe what I do to the letter? My payment should be an indefinite retainer!
.... or should it?
Am I not being delusional?
I mean, now that I think about it, I had to have a bad experience (10 times over in fact- Bode's logos), before I got motivated to step out of the streets into the metropolis, in search of a better experience. Worse still, I did not realise that with a new territory comes a new paradigm, as I expected better and even greater output at a relatively similar cost to what I paid for the mediocre output. In the same vein, instead of realizing that the myopic Master-Servant idea of an ideal creative-client relationship is deeply flawed, I have remained unshaken in a new reality where the package blatantly reads: 'shake well before usage'.
Just in case you are wondering,this is not a letter advocating cheaper logos (or even cheaper creative works at large), instead, it's a letter reflecting a paradigm shift from the old, into the NEW, borne out of being schooled on the fresh realities of a new and beautiful creative world. Here's what I learnt:
In the past few years, a new crop of highly skilled digital designers (graphics, product, web, etc) have emerged in Nigeria, and with them, an incredibly increasing high demand for their services. This has had the consequence of raising the bar in the Nigerian Brand and Design Industry, as it gradually became a trend to patronize creatives within, rather than without. This development has largely contributed to transforming digital design into a respectable trade in Nigeria.
In reflection of this transformation, came a shift in the standard of conduct, because there was a dire need for experienced and well trained creatives to be differentiated from lay informal creatives in every ramification. This new standard of conduct can be highlighted in four characters: Formal communication and customer support; Structure in the conduct of business; Exchange of a higher level of value for money; and A remuneration level commensurate with the value.
These characteristics of new-age creatives set them apart and strategically position them to be appreciated by a market in search of value, and this market, unfortunately, isn't a very large one. Digital design has thus transformed into a value market, and the truth is you can hardly put a price on value... they however like to think that they can try.
So, the crux from all I've been saying, is that when I contacted the design agency for a logo, and they gave me an invoice that almost made my eyes pop out of their sockets, it wasn't a matter of them charging outrageously, but that of selling intangible great value for money. The logo wasn't expensive, I just couldn't afford it... I however am willing to save towards it, you should too...
Yours sincerely,
A Concerned Client.