The Pitfalls Of Spec Work
Whether you’re getting started in the world of design, or you’ve been for years, there’s one aspect of the business that plagues us. The plague I’m talking about is the idea of spec work. I’m sure you’ve heard of spec work before. If you haven’t, consider yourself extremely lucky. Spec work is when a so-called client approaches you, wanting you to do design work in exchange for the possibility or promise of payment. This is a huge trap, and usually no one ends up happy except for the swindling client. We’ll take a look at spec work, its different forms, and how you can gain real exposure for your design skills.
If you ever been approached by client who’s asked you to do design work, promising you big exposure in return? Avoid this at all costs. It sounds good, but nothing ever comes of it. This is a business’s way of trying to get you to do design work for them for free. In the long run, these companies will never hire you, and you always be looked at as replaceable. Why pay you to do something, when they can just swindling another designer and doing it for free in exchange for the promise of “exposure”?
Spec work is the bane of real designers everywhere. The reason is because of the vastly negative effect it has on our profession. Spec work hurts our profession in several ways:
- It takes away from the value of our work.
- It gives our profession the appearance of being trivial or unimportant.
- It makes it harder for designers to get paying work.
- It undercuts professional designers, basically taking money out of their pockets.
- Businesses feel like they can get away with it if designers keep doing it.
Students and Rookies
Businesses that are looking for spec work, or for designers to do work for free, will prey on students and inexperienced designers. They know that you don’t know any better, which makes you an easy target. They also know that you’re hungry for exposure and to get your foot in the door, so you’re more likely to go the extra mile to make a name for yourself. It’s important, whether you’re fresh out of college, or you are a you are a freelance designer, to educate yourself and be prepared for when businesses try to get you to do spec work.
Spec work comes in many forms
Businesses will blatantly ask you to complete projects for them in exchange for exposure. They’ll say things like “this will get your name out there” and other rubbish like this. Another way spec work comes around is the promise of future employment. They may say something like “we need to try you out and make sure that your skills are what you say they are. Once we see that you can handle the work, will bring you on full-time.” This is a huge red flag, because they want you to complete the project, with no obligation of payment or employment.
Design Contests
I speak from experience, because a decade ago I tried this, too. Not knowing any better, I wanted to acquire real world projects for my portfolio. I entered several design contests online, hoping to land new clients and promote my work. The problem is, when you’re competing against 200 designers for the same client, you are at the mercy of fate. I say fate, because there’s no skill involved. The people that are looking to hire someone from one of these contests has no idea about the world of design. They don’t know what good design is, and if you want just give them what they want, they’ll find somebody who will. A real-world client can be guided help to make good decisions. However, when you enter one of these design contests, you deliver what they ask for, with no influence on the project at all.
A Better Route
I don’t know about all design schools, but most of them require that you work and internship in order to graduate. This is the time to develop real-world projects for your portfolio. If you really maximize this opportunity, you won’t have the need to succumb to spec work in the real world. You already have professional projects for your portfolio, which will impress potential employers and freelance design clients. An internship will give you the mentorship that you need in order to build your confidence in the world of graphic design.
Conclusion
Have you ever been in a situation where possible client or business wanted you to do design work for free? I would love to hear about your experiences. It’s important that designers understand the destruction that spec work causes to our industry. Be sure to share your experiences in the comments section below.
Wow! I am so glad to have read this article! For so long I have been guilty of doing this activity, but I had no idea what it was called. I am at the point wereas if I feel that I am doing any degree of “Spec” work, I just do not have the energy; motivation; or interest to complete the project, and finalizing something under those circumstances is very unhealthy for a graphic designer in regard to financial expectation and personal motivation and creativity.
I once had an experience with a client wereas I was told that they did not like my finalized concept. I made the mistake of letting the client keep the work that I had produced thinking that my work was useless. Too my astonishment a couple of months later I would see the same client marketing his product with the concept that I had designed for him as the main graphic on his brochures, car stickers, and item packageing. I felt like a fool, but it was a valuable lesson in regard my own perception of client behavior as well as my own personal pespective and interpretation of my work and self-worth.
Thanks for posting this article, it was extremely helpful.
I see this sort of stuff on Craigslist and other public job posting sites all the time: Client is looking for a designer to put together an exciting new project – possibly leading to full time future work, you contact them with folio details and they respond asking you to send through a mockup of their project to help them “get a feel for the right design”.
Don’t even put pen to paper until they’ve agreed on payment – your folio is all a client should need to secure their decision and if they ask for more they’re essentially pitting all the applicants against each other and getting hundreds of combined hours of designers work for free. Additionally they can pass all these mockups to a low bidder and get your designs made for cheaper.
I see this sort of stuff on Craigslist and other public job posting sites all the time: Client is looking for a designer to put together an exciting new project – possibly leading to full time future work, you contact them with folio details and they respond asking you to send through a mockup of their project to help them “get a feel for the right design”.
Don’t even put pen to paper until they’ve agreed on payment – your folio is all a client should need to secure their decision and if they ask for more they’re essentially pitting all the applicants against each other and getting hundreds of combined hours of designers work for free. Additionally they can pass all these mockups to a low bidder and get your designs made for cheaper.
I had a Client who just absolutely was digging into me about getting the project done. Then would state that if you do this for me I can show this to all my clients and get you a lot more exposure. Needless to say it never happened and a lot of extra work for no pay. Lesson well learned.