Typessential

As a freelancer newly started in the design business, I’ve been on the receiving end of many such a comment from helpful, if somewhat jaded friends and co-workers. T perception of business as a sphere of life where values are not just out of place but in fact detrimental to success is a surprisingly persistent one. Call me naive but I do There is no reason why values should not be a part of a business strategy, particularly that of a design business.As designers we find ourselves in a field rife with loose Having worked for the last year in the property advertising industry I can personally testify to the sorts of subtle deceit and exaggerations that we perpetuate every day for what are all too often products, services and ideas of no particular benefit to anyone. Applying a system of values and ethics in your design practice is almost certai something you’ve thought about at some point or another, probably in some hypothetical question relating to doing work for a cigarette manufacturer, oil company or th However I think a fuller more complete approach is necessary. In this article I’ve briefly examined a few of the issues that all designers should seriously consider. Choos from an Ethical Standpoint Touched on in many a university course and perhaps the most obvious ethical issue in the creative industries, this can be quite a dilemma fo struggling agency. In my own experience I was once approached to produce a string of adult sites complete with all the latest bells and whistles and with the prospect large sum of money. I immediately said ‘yes, lets have a meeting!” but as the day proceeded my conscience started to kick in. I tried to convince myself that as long as creating the content I could stay neutral, and that if I didn’t do the job somebody else would. In the end, though, I decided I couldn’t feel right about it and called the wh off. While not everyone might feel the same way about adult sites, it’s important to have some general guidelines as to the sort of projects you think are ethically sound. part is sticking to them no matter how much money is waved in front of you. It’s tempting to give in to the money, or the alluring idea that it doesn’t really make a differe you do, but for your own sake, be prepared to take a stand on issues you care about and to draw the line on projects which you think detrimental to society. In the end, community is made up of nothing more than individuals making small decisions every day, but its these decisions that affect us all. As a designer you have a lot of pow your hands. You have the power to make almost anything seem desirable or even essential, to change the way people see whats around them. This may sound exagge consider how important Hitler saw his propoganda ministry. It was paramount to his success in getting Germany to its pre-WW2 attitudes. While you will doubtless neve involved in anything so overtly wrong, you should bear in mind the implications your work has the potential to have. Here are some examples of the sorts of projects I p would stay away from. This is by no means a definitive list, but some areas our practice chooses to avoid: - Anything detrimental to the environment - overfishing, urani etc. - Gambling, Cigarettes, Alcohol - X-rated adult projects - Marketing aimed squarely at children for products which have little real benefit - Companies on the global list (companies that use child labour in the making of their wares, take advantage of developing countries, or grow genetically modified ingredients) I have been amazed many creatives have sung the praises of certain multi-nationals for their huge budgets and creative thinking without a minutes thought to where this money is coming fr companies can often seem like a dream client, until you realise that their huge budgets are made off the back of child labour or shoddy environmental practices. Creatin just making money This is by far the most subtle issue and involves a bit of mindshift. When considering your business it is very tempting to think of everything in terms bottom line, to measure success only in monetary terms. Now I am by no means saying you should forget that aspect of business, particularly if you want to last out the However there is more to what you are doing than just bringing in money, there are a variety of benefits that you and your business will be providing for those around yo way to illustrate this idea is with an example. Imagine a hypothetical business, lets call it Anderson & Sculthorp Design (ASD) with ten employees in various capacities. N ASD were to only be just breaking even every year the business would still have value, and I’m not referring to the business assets. There are ten people whose livelihoo provided, who are gaining experience and living off ASD, and there are clients who have a relatio and rely on the ASD team and so on. aking this to its logical conclusio thinking of a business as an entity interconnected with those around it. Rather like a parent might provide for their family, in the same way a business provides for its em and clients. My own agency Good spends a significant amount of money for web hosting every year. While we on-sell much of that hosting we also provide free hosting organisations who we think shouldn’t have to pay, or put another way, who have better uses for that money. Thus our agency is providing a service to the community an regardless of its profitability has created value. Free Pitching Every design practice is called on at some time or another to provide a free pitch for a job. You know the s client, big project, you could really use the cash flow, but they have asked for some ideas and mocks up front - for free. It may seem harmless enough, especially if you but what you are doing is effectively crippling the design industry. Every time an agency pitches for free they are creating the impression that design is cheap and that it necessary to pay for their or any other design agency’s time. No other service based industry provides a sample of their services for free. Have you ever been to a mech said they’d do an oil check for free in the hope that you’d get them to permanently service your car? or how about a doctor who gave you your first visit to see if the “re gelled”? Of course not, but this is the sort of thing that design agencies do all the time, and unfortunately clients ask for constantly. By all means show your portfolio, ch client, give costings and quotes, but don’t work for free. Sustainable Materials Interesting designs and formats with unusual materials are probably the highlight of print However, its important to bear in mind when choosing stocks, sizes and materials the environmental cost of what you are doing. There are a variety of things you can d regard too, for example choosing recyclable materials over non-recyclable, biodegradable over non-biodegradable, keeping paper sizes relatively standard to prevent h wastage in offcuts, selecting a printer or manufacturer that has a commitment to the environment and so on. The key factor to remember is that in virtually any print job be a run of thousands of copies, so a small change will make a large difference. It may cost slightly more (though certainly not always), but you can simply pass this cos client, explaining the reasoning. If you aren t proposing anything outrageous and they are a reasonable sized client, they will more than likely accept, no sweat off your b you can sleep better at night knowing you ve made a contribution Telling it like it is Now we all know that advertising is about glossing over a product’s failings and focu strengths and this is a great way to market things. Occasionally however advertising falls into the domain of outright lies. I once built a website for a property developm being the ultimate in design and location. The property itself, a perfectly ordinary looking building in an ordinary location near an airport with planes constantly flying ove Now I dutifully went about my job and listening to the client went about cropping images in such a way as to only highlight parts of the building, zooming in on the view coastline to make it seem closer and so on. Who loses out in such a scenario? The average guy on the street who is out buying a home. Maybe he’s a bad guy, maybe guy, maybe he’s you. We all hope that once the guy gets there he’ll make his own decision, but this stuff works, so it seems he doesn’t. Why do sports cars have half na draped over them? Why do they then sell so well? We are all so much easier to fool than we’d like to admit. The point is, advertising is all well and good, but you should your best judgement in marketing products and services and keep things in check, exactly the way I did’ t. Ethically Sound These few points are just the tip of the icebe there will be issues that you believe in as an individual more than others. But hopefully the distinctions that we at Good believe in have got you thinking. If our businesse ethically sound, we will have a more prosperous community. As a freelancer newly started in the design business, I’ve been on the receiving end of many such a comm helpful, if somewhat jaded friends and co-workers. The perception of business as a sphere of life where values are not just out of place but in fact detrimental to succes surprisingly persistent one. Call me naive but I don’t agree. There is no reason why values should not be a part of a business strategy, particularly that of a design busin designers we find ourselves in a field rife with loose ethics. Having worked for the last year in the property advertising industry I can personally testify to the sorts of sub and exaggerations that we perpetuate every day in our work for what are all too often products, services and ideas of no particular benefit to anyone. Applying a system and ethics in your design practice is almost certainly something you’ve thought about at some point or another, probably in some hypothetical question relating to doin cigarette manufacturer, oil company or the like. However I think a fuller more complete approach is necessary. In this article I’ve briefly examined a few of the issues tha designers should seriously consider. Choosing Projects from an Ethical Standpoint Touched on in many a university course and perhaps the most obvious ethical issue creative industries, this can be quite a dilemma for the struggling agency. In my own experience I was once approached to produce a string of adult sites complete with latest bells and whistles and with the prospect of a very large sum of money. I immediately said ‘yes, lets have a meeting!” but as the day proceeded my conscience sta in. I tried to convince myself that as long as I wasn’t creating the content I could stay neutral, and that if I didn’t do the job somebody else would. In the end, though, I d couldn’t feel right about it and called the whole thing off. While not everyone might feel the same way about adult sites, it’s important to have some general guidelines a of projects you think are ethically sound. The hard part is sticking to them no matter how much money is waved in front of you. It’s tempting to give in to the money, or idea that it doesn’t really make a difference what you do, but for your own sake, be prepared to take a stand on issues you care about and to draw the line on projects w think detrimental to society. In the end, the global community is made up of nothing more than individuals making small decisions every day, but its these decisions tha all. As a designer you have a lot of power held in your hands. You have the power to make almost anything seem desirable or even essential, to change the way people around them. This may sound exaggerated, but consider how important Hitler saw his propoganda ministry. It was paramount to his success in getting Germany to its p attitudes. While you will doubtless never be involved in anything so overtly wrong, you should bear in mind the implications your work has the potential to have. Here ar examples of the sorts of projects I personally would stay away from. This is by no means a definitive list, but some areas our practice chooses to avoid: - Anything detri the environment - overfishing, uranium mining, etc. - Gambling, Cigarettes, Alcohol - X-rated adult projects - Marketing aimed squarely at children for products which h benefit - Companies on the global offenders list (companies that use child labour in the making of their wares, take advantage of developing countries, or grow genetica ingredients) I have been amazed by how many creatives have sung the praises of certain multi-nationals for their huge budgets and creative thinking without a minutes where this money is coming from. These companies can often seem like a dream client, until you realise that their huge budgets are made off the back of child labour o environmental practices. Creating value, not just making money This is by far the most subtle issue and involves a bit of mindshift. When considering your business it is tempting to think of everything in terms of the bottom line, to measure success only in monetary terms. Now I am by no means saying you should forget that aspect of particularly if you want to last out the year. However there is more to what you are doing than just bringing in money, there are a variety of benefits that you and your bu be providing for those around you. The best way to illustrate this idea is with an example. Imagine a hypothetical business, lets call it Anderson & Sculthorp Design (ASD employees in various capacities. Now even if ASD were to only be just breaking even every year the business would still have value, and I’m not referring to the busines There are ten people whose livelihood is provided, who are gaining experience and living off ASD, and there are clients who have a relatio and rely on the ASD team and aking this to its logical conclusion means thinking of a business as an entity interconnected with those around it. Rather like a parent might provide for their family, in th a business provides for its employees and clients. My own agency Good spends a significant amount of money for web hosting every year. While we on-sell much of th we also provide free hosting for organisations who we think shouldn’t have to pay, or put another way, who have better uses for that money. Thus our agency is providin to the community and regardless of its profitability has created value. Free Pitching Every design practice is called on at some time or another to provide a free pitch for know the story, great client, big project, you could really use the cash flow, but they have asked for some ideas and mocks up front - for free. It may seem harmless eno

Typessential The designer’s pocket guide to typography

Rule #1

Kerning and tracking Kerning is the adjustment of the space between individual characters.

Good typographers adjust kerning by eye for visually balanced spacing.

Tracking is the adjustment of the overall spacing between characters and is useful for larger amounts of text (often referred to as body text).

There are many different approaches to kerning and the space between characters depends, to a degree, on the style or type of design you are working on. Whether your spacing is very tight, very wide or somewhere in the middle, making sure they are visually balanced is the key.

Tracking is a unifom adjustment of character spacing. In theory, a well designed typeface shouldn’t need to be ‘tracked’ as it should already be well-spaced when designed, but this isn’t always the case in the real world. Tracking has a direct impact on the legibility of text. Set tracking too high and the text will look ‘loose’ and unrefined, set it too tightly and characters will merge into one another and be hard to read.

Good kerning takes a lot of practice, but once you can spot bad letter spacing, you can’t help but notice it.

Rule #2

Leading

Leading, or line spacing, refers to the space above and below lines of text. Its name is derived from when type was set by hand by type-setters, who manually added strips of lead to increase or decrease the spaces between text.

Leading is measured from baseline to baseline and uses the same points scale that is used to measure type.

Text is referred to as being 9/11pt or 10pt/12pt when being specified by typographers and designers.

As with tracking, leading greatly affects the legibility of text. Set your leading too small and your text will become a clumsy, solid block. Set it too large and lines of text feel disjointed and difficult to read.

It really comes down to personal preference and what you are trying to achieve. Tighter leading can be useful for smaller text that has to fit within a small area, like terms & conditions, whereas larger leading can often add a premium feel to an invite.

Rule #3

Hierarchy

A typographic hierarchy implies the organisation of content, emphasizing some elements and subcoordinating others. A visual hierarchy helps readers scan a text, knowing where to enter and exit and how to pick and choose among its offerings. Each level of the hierarchy should be signaled by one or more cues, applied consistently across a body of text. A cue can be spatial (line spacing, placement) or graphic (size, style, colour etc.).

paragraphs are traditionally marked with a line break and an indent, a redundancy that has proven quite practical, as each signal provides backup for the other. To create an elegant economy of signals, try using no more than three cues for each level or break in a document.

Emphasizing a word or phrase within a body of text usually requires only one signal. Italic is the standard form of emphasis. There are many Writers are trained to avoid repetitions alternatives, however, including as seen in the expressions “future boldface, small caps, or a change in plans” or “past history.” In typography, color. A full-range type family such as some redundancy is acceptable, Helvetica has many weight and style even recommended. For example, variations designed to work together.

Rule #4

Alignment

Choosing to align text in justified, centered, or ragged columns is a fundamental typographic act. Each mode of alignment carries unique formal qualities and aesthetic risks.

Centred text is formal and classical.

It invites the designer to break a text for sense and create elegant shapes.

Centring is often the simplest way to place a typographic element, but used without care it can look rigid.

Justified text makes a clean shape on the page. Its efficient use of space makes it the norm for newspapers and books. Ugly gaps can occur, but can be avoided by adjusting the line length.

Flush left text respects the organic flow of language and voids the uneven spacing that plagues justified type. A bad rag can ruin the relaxed appearance of a flush left column.

That’s where designers must strive to create the illusion of a natural edge without resorting to excessive hyphenation.

Flush right text is used for captions, side bars and other marginalia, it can suggest affinities among elements, but can also annoy cautious readers because it is unusual.

Rule #5

Widows and orphans Named such to describe type that is stranded and alone – away from the rest of the pack. They are very ugly and make reading text difficult.

A widow is a line at the end of a paragraph that falls at the beginning of the following page or column; separated from the rest of the text.

An orphan generally refers to a word, or very short two-or-three-word line, that appears by itself on it’s own line at the end of a paragraph.

An orphan can be essentially the same as a widow, but in reverse: a paragraph-opening line that appears by itself at the bottom or a page or column.

Rule #6

Baseline grid The baseline is the imaginary line upon which a line of text rests.

In most typefaces, the descenders on characters such as g or p extend down below the baseline while curved letters such as c or o slightly extend below it. Also, the baseline is the point from which other elements of type are measured, like x-height and leading.

The baseline grid can help to set all lines in the correct register; the lines on all the pages are placed to exactly the same line, also known as keeping to register. The width of the baseline grid is based on the line spacing of the basic text.

The baseline grid begins at either the upper edge of a page or the type area.

As a rule, only the basic text is set to the baseline grid.

If the type area contains pictures, the baseline grid is shifted upwards by the size of the space between the upper edge of the type area and the ascenders of the text lines.

Rule #7

Hyphenation The difference between “just okay” typography and professional-level typography is usually in the details, like hyphenation. Often overlooked, proper hyphenation is essential for optimum readability and getting your message across.

� Don’t have more than two hyphenations in a row.

Hyphenated words are considered a necessary evil in typography, but proper hyphenation allows for a better looking, tighter rag. Hyphenation also allows more words to be fit in a line, which saves space.

� Check the rag for any glaring holes or words that stick out unattractively. The ideal rag is a gentle wave that makes slight in-and-out adjustments as the eye travels down the text.

Here are some “rules of thumb” to use when checking the hyphenation of typeset copy:

� In justified text, check that the text looks natural. Avoid spacing that looks squeezed or stretched.

� Don’t have too many hyphenated line endings in a single paragraph.

Too many broken words reduce the readability of the text.

s a freelancer newly started in the design business, I’ve been on the receiving end of many such a comment from helpful, if somewhat jaded friends and co-workers. ThA erception of business as a sphere of life where values are not just out of place but in fact detrimental to success is a surprisingly persistent one. Call me naive but I don’p here is no reason why values should not be a part of a business strategy, particularly that of a design business.As designers we find ourselves in a field rife with loose etT Having worked for the last year in the property advertising industry I can personally testify to the sorts of subtle deceit and exaggerations that we perpetuate every day inH or what are all too often products, services and ideas of no particular benefit to anyone. Applying a system of values and ethics in your design practice is almost certainlf omething you’ve thought about at some point or another, probably in some hypothetical question relating to doing work for a cigarette manufacturer, oil company or thes However I think a fuller more complete approach is necessary. In this article I’ve briefly examined a few of the issues that all designers should seriously consider. ChoosinH om an Ethical Standpoint Touched on in many a university course and perhaps the most obvious ethical issue in the creative industries, this can be quite a dilemma for f truggling agency. In my own experience I was once approached to produce a string of adult sites complete with all the latest bells and whistles and with the prospect ofs arge sum of money. I immediately said ‘yes, lets have a meeting!” but as the day proceeded my conscience started to kick in. I tried to convince myself that as long as I l reating the content I could stay neutral, and that if I didn’t do the job somebody else would. In the end, though, I decided I couldn’t feel right about it and called the whoc ff. While not everyone might feel the same way about adult sites, it’s important to have some general guidelines as to the sort of projects you think are ethically sound. To art is sticking to them no matter how much money is waved in front of you. It’s tempting to give in to the money, or the alluring idea that it doesn’t really make a differenp ou do, but for your own sake, be prepared to take a stand on issues you care about and to draw the line on projects which you think detrimental to society. In the end, ty ommunity is made up of nothing more than individuals making small decisions every day, but its these decisions that affect us all. As a designer you have a lot of powerc our hands. You have the power to make almost anything seem desirable or even essential, to change the way people see whats around them. This may sound exaggeray onsider how important Hitler saw his propoganda ministry. It was paramount to his success in getting Germany to its pre-WW2 attitudes. While you will doubtless neverc nvolved in anything so overtly wrong, you should bear in mind the implications your work has the potential to have. Here are some examples of the sorts of projects I peri would stay away from. This is by no means a definitive list, but some areas our practice chooses to avoid: - Anything detrimental to the environment - overfishing, uranium w tc. - Gambling, Cigarettes, Alcohol - X-rated adult projects - Marketing aimed squarely at children for products which have little real benefit - Companies on the global oe st (companies that use child labour in the making of their wares, take advantage of developing countries, or grow genetically modified ingredients) I have been amazed bl many creatives have sung the praises of certain multi-nationals for their huge budgets and creative thinking without a minutes thought to where this money is coming from m ompanies can often seem like a dream client, until you realise that their huge budgets are made off the back of child labour or shoddy environmental practices. Creatingc ust making money This is by far the most subtle issue and involves a bit of mindshift. When considering your business it is very tempting to think of everything in terms oj ottom line, to measure success only in monetary terms. Now I am by no means saying you should forget that aspect of business, particularly if you want to last out the b However there is more to what you are doing than just bringing in money, there are a variety of benefits that you and your business will be providing for those around youH way to illustrate this idea is with an example. Imagine a hypothetical business, lets call it Anderson & Sculthorp Design (ASD) with ten employees in various capacities. No w SD were to only be just breaking even every year the business would still have value, and I’m not referring to the business assets. There are ten people whose livelihoodA rovided, who are gaining experience and living off ASD, and there are clients who have a relatio and rely on the ASD team and so on. aking this to its logical conclusion p hinking of a business as an entity interconnected with those around it. Rather like a parent might provide for their family, in the same way a business provides for its empt nd clients. My own agency Good spends a significant amount of money for web hosting every year. While we on-sell much of that hosting we also provide free hosting fa rganisations who we think shouldn’t have to pay, or put another way, who have better uses for that money. Thus our agency is providing a service to the community ando egardless of its profitability has created value. Free Pitching Every design practice is called on at some time or another to provide a free pitch for a job. You know the stor lient, big project, you could really use the cash flow, but they have asked for some ideas and mocks up front - for free. It may seem harmless enough, especially if you gc ut what you are doing is effectively crippling the design industry. Every time an agency pitches for free they are creating the impression that design is cheap and that it’sb ecessary to pay for their or any other design agency’s time. No other service based industry provides a sample of their services for free. Have you ever been to a mechan aid they’d do an oil check for free in the hope that you’d get them to permanently service your car? or how about a doctor who gave you your first visit to see if the “relas elled”? Of course not, but this is the sort of thing that design agencies do all the time, and unfortunately clients ask for constantly. By all means show your portfolio, chag lient, give costings and quotes, but don’t work for free. Sustainable Materials Interesting designs and formats with unusual materials are probably the highlight of print wc However, its important to bear in mind when choosing stocks, sizes and materials the environmental cost of what you are doing. There are a variety of things you can do H egard too, for example choosing recyclable materials over non-recyclable, biodegradable over non-biodegradable, keeping paper sizes relatively standard to prevent hur wastage in offcuts, selecting a printer or manufacturer that has a commitment to the environment and so on. The key factor to remember is that in virtually any print job, tw e a run of thousands of copies, so a small change will make a large difference. It may cost slightly more (though certainly not always), but you can simply pass this costb lient, explaining the reasoning. If you aren t proposing anything outrageous and they are a reasonable sized client, they will more than likely accept, no sweat off your bac ou can sleep better at night knowing you ve made a contribution Telling it like it is Now we all know that advertising is about glossing over a product’s failings and focusy trengths and this is a great way to market things. Occasionally however advertising falls into the domain of outright lies. I once built a website for a property developmens eing the ultimate in design and location. The property itself, a perfectly ordinary looking building in an ordinary location near an airport with planes constantly flying overb Now I dutifully went about my job and listening to the client went about cropping images in such a way as to only highlight parts of the building, zooming in on the view oI oastline to make it seem closer and so on. Who loses out in such a scenario? The average guy on the street who is out buying a home. Maybe he’s a bad guy, maybe het uy, maybe he’s you. We all hope that once the guy gets there he’ll make his own decision, but this stuff works, so it seems he doesn’t. Why do sports cars have half nakm raped over them? Why do they then sell so well? We are all so much easier to fool than we’d like to admit. The point is, advertising is all well and good, but you should ad our best judgement in marketing products and services and keep things in check, exactly the way I did’ t. Ethically Sound These few points are just the tip of the icebergy here will be issues that you believe in as an individual more than others. But hopefully the distinctions that we at Good believe in have got you thinking. If our businessest thically sound, we will have a more prosperous community. As a freelancer newly started in the design business, I’ve been on the receiving end of many such a commene elpful, if somewhat jaded friends and co-workers. The perception of business as a sphere of life where values are not just out of place but in fact detrimental to successh urprisingly persistent one. Call me naive but I don’t agree. There is no reason why values should not be a part of a business strategy, particularly that of a design busines esigners we find ourselves in a field rife with loose ethics. Having worked for the last year in the property advertising industry I can personally testify to the sorts of subtld nd exaggerations that we perpetuate every day in our work for what are all too often products, services and ideas of no particular benefit to anyone. Applying a system a nd ethics in your design practice is almost certainly something you’ve thought about at some point or another, probably in some hypothetical question relating to doing a igarette manufacturer, oil company or the like. However I think a fuller more complete approach is necessary. In this article I’ve briefly examined a few of the issues that c esigners should seriously consider. Choosing Projects from an Ethical Standpoint Touched on in many a university course and perhaps the most obvious ethical issue ind reative industries, this can be quite a dilemma for the struggling agency. In my own experience I was once approached to produce a string of adult sites complete with ac atest bells and whistles and with the prospect of a very large sum of money. I immediately said ‘yes, lets have a meeting!” but as the day proceeded my conscience startl n. I tried to convince myself that as long as I wasn’t creating the content I could stay neutral, and that if I didn’t do the job somebody else would. In the end, though, I dei ouldn’t feel right about it and called the whole thing off. While not everyone might feel the same way about adult sites, it’s important to have some general guidelines asc f projects you think are ethically sound. The hard part is sticking to them no matter how much money is waved in front of you. It’s tempting to give in to the money, or tho dea that it doesn’t really make a difference what you do, but for your own sake, be prepared to take a stand on issues you care about and to draw the line on projects wh i hink detrimental to society. In the end, the global community is made up of nothing more than individuals making small decisions every day, but its these decisions that a t ll. As a designer you have a lot of power held in your hands. You have the power to make almost anything seem desirable or even essential, to change the way people sa round them. This may sound exaggerated, but consider how important Hitler saw his propoganda ministry. It was paramount to his success in getting Germany to its pra ttitudes. While you will doubtless never be involved in anything so overtly wrong, you should bear in mind the implications your work has the potential to have. Here are a xamples of the sorts of projects I personally would stay away from. This is by no means a definitive list, but some areas our practice chooses to avoid: - Anything detrime he environment - overfishing, uranium mining, etc. - Gambling, Cigarettes, Alcohol - X-rated adult projects - Marketing aimed squarely at children for products which havt enefit - Companies on the global offenders list (companies that use child labour in the making of their wares, take advantage of developing countries, or grow geneticallb ngredients) I have been amazed by how many creatives have sung the praises of certain multi-nationals for their huge budgets and creative thinking without a minutes thi where this money is coming from. These companies can often seem like a dream client, until you realise that their huge budgets are made off the back of child labour or sw nvironmental practices. Creating value, not just making money This is by far the most subtle issue and involves a bit of mindshift. When considering your business it is ve empting to think of everything in terms of the bottom line, to measure success only in monetary terms. Now I am by no means saying you should forget that aspect of but articularly if you want to last out the year. However there is more to what you are doing than just bringing in money, there are a variety of benefits that you and your busip e providing for those around you. The best way to illustrate this idea is with an example. Imagine a hypothetical business, lets call it Anderson & Sculthorp Design (ASD)b mployees in various capacities. Now even if ASD were to only be just breaking even every year the business would still have value, and I’m not referring to the businesse here are ten people whose livelihood is provided, who are gaining experience and living off ASD, and there are clients who have a relatio and rely on the ASD team and T king this to its logical conclusion means thinking of a business as an entity interconnected with those around it. Rather like a parent might provide for their family, in the a business provides for its employees and clients. My own agency Good spends a significant amount of money for web hosting every year. While we on-sell much of thaa we also provide free hosting for organisations who we think shouldn’t have to pay, or put another way, who have better uses for that money. Thus our agency is providingw o the community and regardless of its profitability has created value. Free Pitching Every design practice is called on at some time or another to provide a free pitch for at now the story, great client, big project, you could really use the cash flow, but they have asked for some ideas and mocks up front - for free. It may seem harmless enouk