Starting a design company (need advice)

[Nogol]

hi, i've been playing with photoshop, flash, illustrator for a few years now, i have a little knowledge on design.

2 days ago, my friend told me to register a company name, to start a design agency with some other friends. he want me to do this because his friend wants to start a big company, which do some entertainment stuffs, and my friend has already registered a company, which does the music, and he wants me to do the designing.

and my friend says that if i start the company, he'll recommend some clients to me.

well, i've never been to art school, or design college, i'm just worried that i cant give the clients some quality work.

i need some advice, should i just go ahead and start the company? or let someone else do it?

some of my design works can be found here:

www.jason122.com

[BlackAdder]

I can't see anything on your site, the flash is just pure black with no images. Might be a FireFox issue or something else..

However i can say this much that if you have any worries at all that you're gonna be able/capable of satisfying your customers needs and requests for quality work then you shouldn't start your own business yet. You have to be sure you can satisfy your clients with every job you do for them so they'll return for more, otherwise you're quickly history on the market as the competition is tough with plenty of talented artists out there.

So you could let someone else start the company, and then later on if you feel comfortable enough you can start up your own business. And be sure you actually own the software you're gonna use to work with, because if you're gonna work using illegal copies then you're quickly digging your own grave as some clients check these things before they hire you to work for them. I've seen that happen numerous times, and also experienced it myself.

[DrNoXx]

ok, the preloader is great :)

I love the music. So if they use music like that... well, I would work together with them... gimme their addy, mate

You have a good sence for colors I see - yeah keep it simple that would come near. The fonts are well chosen for display too.

Now...

ahem first of all the site looks to me as if it was a template and not a flash site you have created. The patterns of a twenties noble etablissement wallpaper isn't really new, ya know...

I get the links to elevate down some pages, but when I hit the pictures in let me say " my art" well, then nothing happens... it this one shoe everything you have to show to interessents?

Oh, now I get it you work with popups... NOT a good idea nowadays... most people have popupblockers working.

Ok, openeing the link... and wtf happens? A picture, sticking to the left side of the corner within a white page... that's not style to be honest. You have to stay on it... there has to be a line.

Hmm, it is nice what you have done to the shoe though :)
Let me say so... the music starts to bore me now as the loop is cut too short... use at least three or four songs and give them time to load... but that with the shoe... I would advice you to be their designer for articles they and you can sell to some companies together... so you will be fine.

BUT

You should seriously study the subject if you think you want to go on like this... so choose the half time job to be able to study and learn the real necessary things. Templates... LOL everybody can use them. It is to make the page yourself... completely and then stay with the style keep a line.

I think it is good you asked. and I would advice you to make money with your design ideas... and - this is very important now - con't let the professors brainwash you... just do whatever they need that they see you are "in progress" and hold on with your own stle to have character of your own. Neither let anyone have the credits on your ideas but cooperate with friends that make the music for your presentations and so be a commnity that helps each other.

Hope this helps, even it is hard words

Noxx

[snothanger69]

Originally Posted by BlackAdder

And be sure you actually own the software you're gonna use to work with, because if you're gonna work using illegal copies then you're quickly digging your own grave as some clients check these things before they hire you to work for them. I've seen that happen numerous times, and also experienced it myself.

How would a customer actually check something like that?
Do they contact the software companies and ask for serial numbers?
Isn't that private information?

[BlackAdder]

It's quite easy to check if someone owns a legal license of a software, just drop a email to a software company and tell them who you are and what you want and why you're asking. Some companies can share this information while others won't share it. Everyone's different. But there's one other side to this coin, the moral side. IF you earn money or use your software for commercial purposes you should own it (buy it). Ask just about anyone with a hint of common sense and they will, or should agree with me on that. Because using illegal copies for commercial work is a big no no.

[snothanger69]

I'm not saying it's moral.
I'm just curious about how they would be able to verify something like that.

I never register any of my software with the company that made it. whether I buy it or not.
So I'm just curious how the software company would even know?

[BlackAdder]

Well obviously illegal copies won't show up in a software manufacturers list of sold licenses so if they crosscheck your name with whatever software you use when you work then they see if you're a legal owner or not. That's all they see. And as i said, these types of checks can happen, they're not all that common but sometimes with some companies (clients) they do occur.

[DrNoXx]

well, you can see it like this... any file will have a header of the program that has written the file some tag that says "created with..."

Now if you want to follow official contests like when some citiy wants to build a new townhall and you reach in your constructions and presentations. Then you shoule NOT use an illegal copy at all... or like when big companies give you an order to render their stuff... and you render with illegal programs... mate they sometimes control if the copy you use is a legal one... such seen not only once. Then there is this new Computer generations that will send any information about your programs to the entities - that is fine as long as you do not use them for commercial puposes. But then if you use them for commercial purposes you will have a big problem if you do not own a legal license. This counts more in the western countries at the moment, but it will close up in the rest of the world soon.

[snothanger69]

But how would the software company know you bought the software if you didn't register the serial#?

I never register my software because I don't want their spam mail.
So wouldn't that make me invisible during a name check at the software company?

I would never give anyone my serial#. No matter what the job was.
That would be insanely stupid.
So what would the client say if that was the case?

[fishly]

I'd venture to say that it's highly unlikely that you won't get
a project because you don't own a license of a particular app.

The majority of companies paying a freelancer for a jobb
only care about the job being finished on time and that
it's as cheap as possible. Then there are the big companies
who don't care that much about the cost as long as the quality
is the best there is.


Imho, the big reason it's good to get a valid license of an app
you use on a daily basis to make a living is that IF you are
working on a project for a client and something happens
and you can't get immediate phone support to fix a problem,
bug or whatever you may be in deep shit having to pay tens
of thousands of $ to your client in damage for not having
delivered on the time you had agreed on.

Being able to get quick help from the app creators is vital when
things go bad when under a deadline.

If you mess up a deadline once you are very likely to lose that client
and if you're really unlucky they will tell others that you can't
be trusted to deliver what you promise.

I don't want to scare ppl, only tell about how serious things can become
once you start working for big clients.

Heck, I learned on cracked software, and still do Nothing wrong with that imho,
since 99% of the world population can't afford to buy the major
apps untill they start to use them to make a living.

One single job can pay for Adobe's Master Collection :)