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Steve Elci and Friends release a new song for Earth Day, available for free. Photographer Brandon W. Mosley collaborated with the group on a photo shoot for press materials last week. Steve Elci and Friends perform children’s music and frequently visit local area schools.

The concept is linear. Fresh red rain drops decorate what can be perceived to be a window overlooking a city skyline. Or, perhaps the viewer is a passenger in a car on a rainy day. The photograph was actually taken in Manhattan, overlooking the Chelsea area from the High Line and was reversed to create a cold and somewhat eerie illusion. This is the second design to make use of the new IZZ logo, which was edited to look like breath lingering on a cold window pane.

The song is now available on iTunes.

Before submitting your agreement, you should run it by a practicing lawyer to make sure all bases are covered. As one who has written many of my own agreements, I have several tips that will help you start your own.

#1 Declaration of Who’s Involved
A. State who you are, the name of who or what you are doing business as and your title.
B. State the name of the client, the name of who or what he or she is doing business as and his or her title.
C. If there are any contractors or third parties involved, state their names and who they are doing business as.
Describe all obligations your client will expect the other party or parties to fulfill.

#2 Details of Cost and Billing
Describe your fee(s) and all things considered billable time. You may include a statement about how your fees are calculated. List all other things you want to be paid for, such as phone consultation, travel, stock photography or audio, rentals, press viewings, etc., including late fees and charges for returned checks. You should also consider client’s obligation to pay you for fees associated with damages made by any third parties or contractors, should you be hired again to make repairs.

#3 Estimates
As what was agreed during the initial consultation with your client, describe the scope of the project, its turnaround time and a cost estimate. You’ll want to indicate the fluctuating nature of time and cost estimates as variables change, especially if you are charging hourly. That will give you leeway for additional compensation if the scope of the project grows.

#4 Obligations

Describe all obligations the client is expected to fulfill. Usually, the client is obligated and held responsible for ensuring the accuracy of their content. While you don’t want to be responsible for typos and mistakes made on their watch, you should also be fair and correct the mistakes you make free of charge.

Web designers in particular will need access to servers, usernames and passwords, which the client may or may not be obligated to give you, depending on who is launching the finished product. Indicate that here. If you are granted access to confidential information, you should obligate yourself NOT to disclose any of that information.

#5 Ownership
Some designers retain ownership of their work until they have been paid in full, after which, the ownership of the creative then transfers to the client. That’s ultimately your call, but a clause as such can protect you should your client be a little slow to pay up. In some cases, you might provide or generate your own content, which you’ll probably want the rights to, even after project is completed.

#6 Limitation of Liabilities
You should limit any liabilities that can leave you in hot water. There could be a situation where a client asks you to illegally use copyrighted content. A statement that holds the client responsible for securing any copyrights or permissions necessary (and assumes that they have) makes them liable for  legal prosecution.

Misfortunes and delays outside of your control may also occur, so declare yourself unaccountable for such issues. This clause tells the client that they must pay for the work, even if there are unexpected delays beyond the control of the designer.

#7 Expectations
You can use your agreement to manage a client’s expectations by setting realistic goals, creating plans, declaring who gets final approval and detailing your work process. For example, launching a website doesn’t automatically warrant a high-raking search engine result. This type of an expectation is not thing you want hanging over your head, so you can describe what the client can expect from you here.

#8 Terms of Termination
The relationship between client and designer may hit a few speed bumps a long the way and cease. Include a clause that obligates the client to pay you for all of the work completed up until termination of your services. If you’re nice, you’ll release the unfinished artwork to them after you’ve received your payment.

#9 Parameters of Time
Set time parameters in which the terms of the contract will be met. Consider declaring the agreement “completed” upon full payment. Otherwise, it may remain open. You might find it a good idea to give the client 30 days to make a decision to sign it before the agreement renders void. Should your client hire you again for something else, you’ll have an opportunity to open a new agreement and make adjustments.

#10 Payment Terms
Describe preferred payment options (e.g. cash, check, PayPal or credit), late fees and billing procedures. Most invoices are payable within 30 days. You may describe how you handle late payments — via late notices or legal prosecution.

#11 Closing of the Agreement
Both you and your client should sign and date the agreement. This is also a good place to collect the client’s address and contact information because you’ll need it for billing later. Don’t start any labor until you receive a signed copy. Otherwise, you can put hours of work into an assignment only to have the client change their mind and cancel.

Keep your language professional, but simple because some people don’t understand esoteric legal terms. If a client doesn’t understand what you want them to agree to, they’ll be less likely to agree to anything. Plus, you may have to defend or explain the terminology in your agreement and you should be prepared to do so.

If you have any other good tips or want to discuss, please do! Good luck!

- Brandon, Manji Designs

PEPA was founded in 1917 and was established by concerned citizens who sought to protect the public’s well-being by assessing strategies for land reservation and local development.

PEPA's original logo.

Logo and Color Palette
The typography of PEPA’s original logo was set in alternating small caps and accompanied by an abstract tree. The forest-green logo was also given a drop shadow. Executive director Anne Gold felt as though PEPA’s logo was outdated and ineffective and wanted to develop a new visual identity that would reinvigorate the residents of Purchase. The logo was reviewed for its effectiveness and a plan for a new visual identity was developed.

PEPA's new logo.

The acronym “PEPA” is familiar among the residents of Purchase. However, it loses its meaning outside of the geographic area. Therefore, it was important to include the full name of the organization so audiences old and new could recognize it. Furthermore, there was no need to emphasize one letter over the other using small caps and the entire acronym didn’t disclose much information about the organizations initiatives.

The new color palette reflects a more accurate representation of Purchase’s environment. The earthy shade of brown represents the area’s healthy soil and abundant population of deer, chipmunks and other ground dwellers. The olive shade of green represents Purchase’s undisturbed vegetation. Together, this color combination gives PEPA a more environmental image, but also presents a modern and friendly organization.

To strengthen its visual impact, a more linear and identifiable tree was created, which better represents the type of trees found in the Purchase area.

Typography

In order to make PEPA’s family of publications more consistent, a typography palette was strategically selected to present a modern and friendly image, while keeping its history and traditions alive. In order to achieve a modern-yet-traditional image, a classic old style typeface containing a few nontraditional characteristics was selected as the primary typeface.

Print Publications

The development of PEPA’s new publications was designed in consideration of the environment. Uncoated, environmentally responsible paper that was manufactured with biogas energy helped to lessen PEPA’s environmental impact. Rose Press, Inc., an FSC-certified printer located in Mount Vernon, NY, produced all of PEPA’s print publications. FSC, or the “Forest Stewardship Council,” is an international non-profit organization established to promote responsible management of the world’s forests.

Web site

In addition to an aesthetic redesign, PEPA’s Web site required a major reorganization and reconstruction of information. Outdated and uncategorized information was removed or repurposed in other areas. Pages that were too long were trimmed or split into multiple page, subsequently making things it easier to read and find.

Some people confuse hypercriticism, also known as nitpicking, with constructive criticism. Others confuse “I don’t like it” as sufficient feedback. Not quite so. These kinds of things can and will drive a designer crazy. That’s not to say designers need to be babied and coddled with words that are soft and pink, but there is true power in motivation and allowing the creative process to happen. Simply put, a designer who enjoys the work will produce something great.

In order to avoid frustration and misunderstandings, we’re going to look at some strategies for being a constructive critic.

COMMENTING ON SOMETHING YOU DON’T LIKE

It’s easy to say: “I don’t like it,” but that doesn’t really tell your designer anything because it raises ambiguities in what you’re trying to say. The key is to be specific. Perhaps a there isn’t enough ethnic diversity represented across a publication or perhaps the reason why a design doesn’t work is that the company logo needs to be more prominent for better recognition. Those specifics give more direction to your designer.

REQUESTING MODIFICATIONS

People often lose sight of the fact that designers are not decorators. The tendency to ask your designer to “move that here” and “make this red” should be left up to your designer. Why? Because graphic designers are trained professionals with industry standards to adhere to — they know what works best. Besides, no one likes to be told how to do his or her job.

When you give your designer feedback, keep the project’s original objectives in mind. You can do that by asking yourself a series of questions:

Does the design achieve company goals and messages?
Does the design carry and support the company’s brand and visual identity?
Is the design cost effective, well produced and able to meet customer needs?

If you answer “no” to these questions, your designer needs to know and why. A statement like “The color palette is a little too dark. Since we are a children’s company, an energetic and youthful color scheme better supports our brand,” is far more effective and meaningful to a designer.

PERSONAL PREFERENCE

It is important to put personal preference aside. Ultimately, a design affects the company you work for, not you. “The company logo should be red because I hate blue,” is a statement that does not support the strategic goals of a company; rather, it’s based on someone’s personal preference about the color red. Getting hung up on small details such as that ultimately wastes time and hurts the parent company.

LANGUAGE AND TONE

Maintaining positive interpersonal relationships is important. A negative attitude can often be contagious and spoil a lot more than you may think. Using a positive tone while communicating will help to keep emotions from destroying the creative process. For example, “I think we can beef that up a little by adding a second color” is a lot more constructive than “This looks weak and boring. It needs more color,” which is more dismissive. You can catch more flies with honey than you can with vinegar. The bottom line is, people need respect and motivation — designers are no different.

HAVE A CONVERSATION

Have a conversation with your designer about some of the choices he or she made. It is not helpful nor productive to assume he or she made a mistake because you don’t understand a choice they made. Trumping a design choice can come off annoying, especially when it’s based on personal preference aside. Sometimes, it’s helpful for a designer to know why something isn’t working. That way, the same mistake won’t be made twice.

More tips and advice can be found on Seth’s Blog: “How to live happily with a great designer”