Alexey Druzhinin: “Work professionally, expensively and slowly”

Alexey Druzhinin is a designer who has worked on both Russian and Western companies. Therefore, he knows not by hearsay what freelancing is “there” and freelance “here”. And what is the difference between Western customers and ours, Russian.

But not only Western freelancing became the subject of our conversation. What is design and who is a designer - the eternal questions that how much is not discussed, still remain questions. How to become a popular and highly paid designer? How to sell your services expensive? And what is the value of design as such? The secrets of the profession - in the responses of Alexei.

Sersh: The first question I want to ask right away. Perhaps he will seem a little naive. Nevertheless, I have never met a clear answer to it. And I really want to get it. Explain to me, as a person far from design, what is the essence of your profession? And how does a designer differ from an artist?

Alexey: It seems that a long conversation is planned. The first question and immediately want to write a book. I will answer in order: the essence of the profession "designer" is the ability to "look - and see," "listen - and hear," "think - and understand." A designer, any designer is first of all a person who sees, hears and understands what other people will see, hear and understand, looking at his work.
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How does a designer differ from an artist? Let me retell the story told to me by one very famous designer Igor Gurovich:

“In London some time ago there was a competition among designers to redesign one of the streets of this city. A large number of designers, artists and just around creative people were invited. The task at first glance is simple - to redesign one of the oldest streets in London. After several months of work, several papers were submitted to the court. Among them there were a lot of graffiti, a lot of suggestions on what to paint at home, the road and shops with kiosks - in general, a lot of very interesting, but precisely artistic projects. The woman won, the Designer, who instead of being engaged in decorating the street and houses, first walked over it, talked to people, asked them about the essence of the problem. She came out to defend her project not with a bunch of boards and beautiful pictures, but told the commission that on this street, within the allocated budget, you can do the only thing right from the designer’s point of view - put a new asphalt on the road, because the old one is completely bad. This is - I think the work of a professional mature Designer with a capital letter. She won the competition. ”

Sersh: It seems to understand. Then how can you become a designer? What do you need to finish, read or do?

Alexey: You can become a designer only by learning to think. You can become a designer of pieces of paper, events or items by completing an art school, a course on photoshop or 3D-Max.

Sersh: Is it possible to independently master this profession?

Alexey: It is possible. I advise you to start with the design of your own life. After that, you can no longer be ashamed to go into the "big design". It is possible and vice versa - but much more complicated, I know from myself.

Sersh: Designers get paid for something. And, apparently, not only for the beautiful design of something, but also for something else. For what? What tasks should design perform?

Alexey: Do not interfere. Design will not be able to help, for example, in business, its primary role is not to cheat a good business (which there are many examples), but a minor one is to give life to a bad one. Everybody knows the truth - if the product is good, it will be in demand even if the design is not very good, but if it is bad, you cannot do without design on the market. The greatest success is achieved, as a rule, by partners, one with a high-quality product, the second with a high-quality design (for which there are also many examples).

Sersh: What, for example?

Aleksey: You don’t have to go far for examples on how a design can harm or help a commercial business. One of the most prominent examples of the harm and benefits of design in modern business is the design of chocolate candy packaging “Loyalty to Quality”. The first design, made unconditionally, with good taste and excellent “decoration”, did not bring any benefit to the business, since it did not meet the requirements of the market. The redesign of the packaging has increased the sales of chocolate several times. This means that the work was done not as a “design for the sake of design”, but as a design that works for the benefit of the client. I call designers who help business as partners, and those who are making beautiful but incapable design are designers of interesting, but their own ego.

Sersh: Then by what criteria can you evaluate the design?

Alexey: Design today is a business. And the criteria for its assessment are the same as any other business, with one amendment - the design is responsible for the development of the visual culture of society. Business valuation criteria - income. Today, the first rule is very simple - you earn more if someone earns you more. Rule number two is often more important for us designers, this is responsibility. I will not dream deeply, but I believe that “money is not all in life”. That is why I often refuse my clients to work that in my opinion can harm the visual culture of our children.

Sersh: But a little higher you said that design cannot help in business. Then what can he help? In simple words, why can one layout cost $ 300 and the other $ 600, although both are, at first glance, made neat and beautiful?

Aleksey: Design can increase “added value”. One and the same vodka, decorated in different ways, has a different price on the market, and often only through branding and design. A company with a well-made identity - causes more trust among customers. But a quality identity should correspond to the level of services provided by this company, otherwise the most terrible thing that can happen in the design world is the inconsistency of the contents of the package. Meet on clothes, and escorted by the mind - remember this proverb? Imagine: an expensive real estate agent comes to you, dressed in an expensive suit, clean-shaven, with an elite watch and clean shoes, greets you when you meet with a slight French accent and suddenly gives you a dirty business card printed on a printer, where 21 pins are written “FufelEstate! 100 years on the market - we should be trusted !!! ”- at that moment the very disparity that I mentioned above will arise.

And about the work done for 300 USD and for 600 USD - here, unfortunately, no one is insured to get candy for 300 and “very bad” for 600. You have to look at the designer’s portfolio and be able to understand why he asks for a certain amount do not hesitate to ask - what is included in the price of work? A very common phenomenon in Russian freelancing is the question “How much does it cost for you to make a logo?”. One freelancer says 300, the second 600, the third 3000, and the work at first glance in the portfolio of the same level, who and how to choose? .. Let's see, What “usually” (80% of all work) goes into work on the logo for 300 USD ? The designer sits down and in an hour or a day or two, depending on qualifications, makes 3-4 options of beautiful, but very often “not working” graphic works, but earned 300 USD with pure ones!

What does a professional do? He spends about half of the budget, for example 600 USD, for initial research: the company itself and its structure, brand values, its competitors, business specifics and the industry in general, the history and style of previously completed work, the target audience, etc. Then he offers several directions in which the client can work (not even while drawing), if the client doubts the direction - sketches are made, one of them is chosen - and then work is already underway to fine-tune the logo to a good graphical embodiment. And also earns net USD 300! Feel the difference? It is because of the cost of the analysis of work, competitors and the right direction - logo design can cost several times more expensive than 600 or 3000 USD, and last several times longer than 2 days. But the result - as a rule, is also very, very different, it turns out ... A designer who does not carry out the preparatory part of the work - unfortunately, can be called either a “designer” or a “artist”, therefore, such designers are paid less. So - “neat and beautiful” - this is a very small part of an iceberg, which is usually not even discussed - and so it is clear that “ugly and ugly” nobody needs ...

Sersh: How do you feel about using clip art?

Aleksey: Using good clip art is good. Bad - bad. All must be used wisely and to the point. I consider common sense to be the basic principle of life.

Sersh: Let's move from design to design. What designers do you single out, as the most professional, in the West and respectively in Russia?

Aleksey: I will single out not designers, but rather countries. The point is not that I do not recognize the person. In my opinion, it is the visual culture of the environment that promotes personality development. England, Holland, Japan, Scandinavia - these are my professionals. As a rule, design champions are countries with a harsh climate and a small territory. Most of all, they have to try so that the paper is not soiled irresponsibly, the furniture is cheap and functional, and the cars and equipment are reliable. At first they did all this for themselves - then they became idols for the rest. Russian designers - above all, people who enjoy pleasure, fame and money from the result of their work, Japanese and Scandinavian - who receive the same from the process of work.
And ... I still can not help it - the most authoritative person for me from design in Russia is my teacher, Leonid Feigin, art director of Direct Design studio.

Sersh: A question that many freelancers are interested in. How to increase your value in the market? And how can a designer sell their services expensive?

Alexey: Here, I repeat, you first need to do for yourself. Then - become idols for the rest. You can increase your “real” value on the market only with your own face and professional honor. And how "just" to sell their services expensive? Just - raise the price.

Sersh: You managed to work in the West and in Russia. Accordingly, you can compare the earnings of experts "there" and "here." In your opinion, what is the ceiling of earnings designer in the West and in Russia?

Aleksey: Designer is one of the most interesting professions in terms of having a “ceiling”. He is not. The “ceiling” is set by the designer himself, assessing his position in the market. If you take the position of the designer "in the state" - the difference is not large, in Russia the salary "fork" for a professional designer in a large advertising agency is 1500-4000 USD net (depending on the region), in the West - 2000-4000 EUR, but with less depending on the region. It should be borne in mind that an additional income freelance is 90% of designers in Russia and in the West. But: the level of wages “there” is due to the developed competition and the professionalism of the candidates, and the level of wages “here” is due to the developing and growing economy. Different things, yes?

Sersh: Then where are the most paid designers in Russia?

Alexey: In Moscow. Profile design studios (corporate identity and graphic design) and branding agencies (packaging and branding), plus, of course, advertising business (advertising concepts, ATL, BTL).

Sersh: And if you compare freelancing and office work? Who earns more - a designer in the studio or a freelance designer?

Alexey: A successful professional doesn't care. There is only one big difference: a freelancer in the West - as a rule, a person who has grown out of the studio - therefore he earns incomparably more, a freelancer in Russia is more likely a loser, whom the studio did not accept, so he earns a freelance a little less than he could earn studios. In my opinion, the most "freelancers who earn" in Russia are either people with a name, of which there are units, or people who have regular earnings in the staff of the studio and "earn money" at home or during working hours as freelancers.

Sersh: Alexey, how did you find out about freelancing?

Alexey: Translated from English. Check in the search engine.

Sersh: And how was your first experience as a freelancer? Who was the customer?

Alesya: Well, of course, friends. Who else can order something from a designer who has just begun his journey?

Sersh: Where are you looking for orders, if not a secret? And how can you get from Russia to Western customers? And in general, is it real or not to take orders from foreign companies while in Russia?

Alexey: I do not like to search for customers. That is why I did not make a career in sales. But I love to work, create. Until now, I perceive the law of conservation of energy as something that concerns me personally - “if you created something beautiful just like that, it will return to you with a triple impact”. I did some of my first works not for money, but for the name and the real portfolio. And the fact that I gave my time and energy for this has returned to me both as Russian clients and as Western ones.

Working with western clients from Russia is hard. My first clients from Poland, Luxembourg and Sweden appeared only during my residence in Europe, so I can’t advise you how to work with them from Russia, but I can’t find interest in me regardless of location: find ugly website any western company on the Internet and make for it a redesign and logo, and style, and website. Will you do well? They will respond. I can say for sure - working with western clients is still much more pleasant and safe than with Russian ones. Probably, this is due to the fact that “done-paid” is common for western clients, while for Russian companies it is still “subject for discussion” with the designer.

Sersh: You have experience with western companies. I wonder how the western customer differs from the Russian one?

Alexey: 100% legal and legally binding contract. Also - the desire and duty to pay taxes for the benefit of the country in which he conducts his business. It has been brought up over decades and is worthy of trust and respect.

Sersh: There are people among freelancers who openly dump, take on work with any payment. How do you feel about freelancers who break prices in the market?

Alexey: They will grow up and stop. They dump not because of the desire of someone to deprive of work, but simply because of professional scarcity. I think this is not dumping - this is a fact of life, customers are not fools, nobody will buy this for expensive (here is not quite a literary expression - approx. Sersh).

Sersh: Another problem is deception by employers. How do you protect yourself from customers throwing?

Alexey : I protect myself from them with the quality of my work and registered letters to my address for upholding my rights later. I am sure - good work - even if it is not paid, it will never disappear - in any case, it will decorate my designer portfolio.

Sersh: There are standard questions that I ask all the heroes of the interview. What is your personal motto?

Alexey: Statistics is an exact science, some of us will not live to see tomorrow.

Sersh: What are your wishes for freelancers?

Alexey: Never lose your face. Work professionally, expensively and slowly.

Sersh: Thanks for the answers!