What’s a ‘fair’ wage?

The ebook fills an information gap about how much designers should be paid, for what expertise, and with how much flexibility.

Pay rates in the creative industry have always been arbitrary. Our industry has never been unionised or under a relevant State award so salary packages are often based on hear-say and market-demand. That makes deciding what makes for a ‘good’ wage difficult for the employee and the employer.

Added to that, COVID taught us that rewarding good staff is not just about the money – there are other ways to be rewarded for a job done well.

That’s why we’ve written a guidebook to rewarding creatives. We’ve researched and gathered facts from a variety of resources to write an ebook that is as valuable for freelancers and employees as it is for studio/agency owners.

It includes:

• benchmark wages – we quote definitive figures. Our research combines our knowledge (from mentoring and coaching) with research from
  • Artisan;
  • Become;
  • The Brownbill Effect;
  • Creative Natives;
  • Creative Recruiters and
  • The Creative Store.
  We document definitive wage ranges for 28 different positions in the creative industry.
• why employees should get promoted – we describe the skills needed to move from the bottom to the top of a salary range.
• benchmark freelance rates for 28 positions range of positions in the creative industry.
• and because it’s not all about money, we describe five alternative ways to reward employees and why they’re successful.

We also talk about the importance of clear, robust job descriptions because they are the glue that holds these figures together.

Finance in a design studio

It’s a sad fact designers generally don’t fail because they can’t deliver good design. They fail because they don’t manage their finances to remain viable. The fact is, managing finance and accounting is not usually part of a design curriculum.

Added to that, in a many sectors, business owners hire and work alongside financial experts. That doesn’t usually happen in many creative businesses because the majority have less than five employees, many with less than three. It means our financial expert is most likely a subcontractor, someone outside our business. That makes it imperative creative business owners need to know how to brief, and debrief with confidence and clarity. So, it’s no longer an option, creatives need to understand finance.

Finance in a design studio is a practical guide to managing the finances of a creative business. It includes all the factors creatives need to run a profitable, sustainable business.

Information like:

• how to understand a profit and loss statement
• how to calculate hourly rates
• understanding different cost structures
• understanding different revenue streams
• discussion about the four most common problems in a studio: cash flow, debtors, profitability and capital finance.
• how to develop short and long-term financial measures.

This is the type of information that will make you more confident when you talk to your accountant.

At $30 plus GST this 48 page ebook is an essential reference tool for any designer.

“I really struggled to comprehend the finances in my studio before I found this book. I didn’t do much maths at school and my family aren’t in business, so I was just lost trying to read profit and loss statements, let alone understand the language. It sounds overly dramatic, but this book saved my life. It’s now my bible. It  sits permanently on my desk. It’s must go-to reference guide, especially useful when I speak to my accountant.”

Suzanne, Design studio owner, Sydney, New South Wales