Being the Boss

18 Dec 2012 |  Posted by Elle Phillips |  1 Comment.
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I finally did it! I took a leap of faith (in myself and my business) and went through my first interview process to hire an Assistant Graphic Designer. The process was difficult... I interviewed so many wonderful people who would have been great for the position, but I could only hire one and today, almost 6 months later, I couldn't be happier with the results. Jenny took the bull by the horns on day 1 and hasn't stopped challenging herself to learn, grow and improve every day since. She kept up with the increased volume of work and I saw my business grow to make this the best year for Elle Phillips...



Taking My Own Business to the Next Level

13 Apr 2012 |  Posted by Elle Phillips |  2 Comments.
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There is a time in every business-person's life where they have to decide... am I happy where my business is at, or is it time to move it forward? For about the last year, I've been debating that very question.As of right now (and for the last 6 years), my business as a solo freelancer has continued to be successful. A lone wolf operation that has a solid list of clientele, both revolving as well as a steady stream of new client contacts, with an exceptional image and set of standards. I've been so busy for the last year (for the most part) that I spend more days wishing I had help than not. I did take...



Tutorial: How To Resize Packaging

30 Mar 2012 |  Posted by Elle Phillips |  12 Comments.
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As a professional graphic designer I can honestly say one of the most fun parts of my job is creating packaging. It's truly a fascinating process, creating a two-dimensional design that will ultimately become a three-dimensional object. But while I find it to be a fun and exciting challenge, it can also be a very intimidating and almost daunting task if you don't know the basics of what's needed in order to create and properly set up a piece of packaging for print. If not set up properly, not only will your printer hate your guts and form all sorts of creative and explicit oaths about graphic...



The State of the Economy… From a Small Business Perspective

29 Dec 2011 |  Posted by Elle Phillips |  1 Comment.
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There are a great number of people today who see our economy as being the worst since the 1920's, but I honestly believe five to ten years from now that perspective will change, and people will look back and realize that these were the years of the "Small Business". Reports for 2009 and 2010 have shown the biggest boom in small business creation in 15 years and I have a feeling 2011 will be no different – and in fact, I think we'll see 2011 top the chart. Why do I think that? Simple. I am a small business, and while in 2005 through 2007 I gained my "biggest" clients, it's been 2010 and 2011...



Should you hire an Accountant? YES.

09 Dec 2011 |  Posted by Elle Phillips |  1 Comment.
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When I started my business "officially" in 2005 I was lucky enough to already have a family Accounting Firm in place. Well, not really my family, but my husband's family. They'd been using this firm for 20+ years for their own business and were kind enough to have them take care of our tax needs as well. I thought, "GREAT!" That's one thing we don't have to worry about. I kept my own books to make things easier on the Accountants, and I'll admit I find it sort of fun to keep my own books. I use Quickbooks, should any of you be wondering, and after the initial setup (chart of accounts, invoices,...



Running a business… for the first time.

16 Jul 2010 |  Posted by Elle Phillips |  0 Comment.
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I have no formal business training. Let's just get that out of the way. I'm a graphic designer... and a pretty good one at that, but although some might look down on me for my career choice, I think I've done a pretty good job of starting my own business as a freelancer and pushing it through one of the toughest economic recessions of our lifetime. Could be luck, could be skill -- I think it's about 50% of both. For those of you gearing up to start your own business, whether it be as a freelancer, a writer, a website designer or the like, this article will give you some insight to the mistakes,...



Freelancing 101: Getting clients and keeping them!

17 May 2010 |  Posted by Elle Phillips |  1 Comment.
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BUILD A WEBSITE Let’s be honest and very realistic... If you don’t have a website, you can’t expect to stay in business as a freelance graphic designer. Period. There is absolutely NO reason in today’s world NOT to have a website. You can get hosting for less than $50/year, a domain will cost you $20 or less per year, and as a graphic designer you should be able to design a kick-ass-looking site. Not a web designer? Then buy a “template” site from someplace like Perfectory.com or TemplateMonster.com, customize a Wordpress site, or better yet have one of your web-designer friends...