Hiring a illustrator

06d5bfd2 · ‎07-22-2020

Hi I'm new to Upwork. I've got a task of design of 1,000 images for £400. £400 is all we have for the designs so that's why I figured I'd pay that on completion of the work. I have asked for a sample of work from an illustrator and I am pleased with the one design sample they created. What do I do next. Do I interview? Do I ask for more samples? Or do I hire? I can't really keep asking for more samples, but it would be nice to know that they'll do the work well once I hire them.

Any advice would be appreciated.

petra_r · ‎07-22-2020

Da B:wrote:
Hi I'm new to Upwork. I've got a task of design of 1,000 images for £400.

You want to pay $ 0.40 for per custom created design?

Da B wrote: I am pleased with the one design sample they created. What do I do next. Do I interview? Do I ask for more samples? Or do I hire? I can't really keep asking for more samples, but it would be nice to know that they'll do the work well once I hire them.

You can't actually ask a freelancer to create any free samples at all, that would be a violation of Upwork's terms of service- If you are happy with the choice, hire the freelancer (if you find someone who is willing to work at your price)

prestonhunter · ‎07-22-2020

Da B:
I have hired dozens of artists on Upwork. I really love using Upwork as a place to commission original artwork. I have been able to get amazing results. I'm very pleased with the work done by nearly all of the artists I have hired.

You do NOT need to do what I do. But here is what I do:

I don't interview artists.

I don't ask for samples.

When I post job postings, I BLOCK the "cover letter" feature. Because I have no intention of reading whatever an artist posts there.

I will typically ask one question such as "Do you understand the job posting?" or "Are you able to start work on this project now?"

I like to ask a simple yes or no question. Because (once again) I have no interest in reading what the artists write.

I hire almost entirely based on the artist's portfolio.

When I hire artists, I really do not know if they speak English or not, and I don't care. I write the task descriptions in English, and they follow the directions. I don't know if they use Google translate to figure out what I wrote, or if they speak fluent English, or if their cousin translated the description for them.

There is no way for a client to know for certain - ahead of time - if a given artist will work out.

If I hire an artist and they don't work out, then I just close the contract and stop working with them. Upwork literally places NO RESTRICTIONS on my ability to close a contract at any time.

franks_tim · ‎07-22-2020

It would help if you spoke with the artists before hiring them to make sure they understand the brief.
That would alleviate the chances of miscommunication, causing you to terminate a contract, in turn, putting out the freelancer .

"When I hire artists, I really do not know if they speak English or not, and I don't care."

If you're not speaking to them or don't care if they can speak English, you can't really be put out if the deliverable doesn't turn out how you expect.

Remember, freelancers can't see what's in your head, hence the need for open and clear communication.

prestonhunter · ‎07-22-2020

re: "If you're not speaking to them or don't care if they can speak English, you can't really be put out if the deliverable doesn't turn out how you expect."

I have hired artists from all over the world, without ever speaking with them.

I provide very good task descriptions. The entire brief is contained right in the original job description. So artists know everything there is to know before they even apply to the job. If they DO ask additional questions, I tell them "It's up to you."

The deliverables have been fantastic.

re: "Remember, freelancers can't see what's in your head, hence the need for open and clear communication. "

I appreciate where you are coming from, and I agree that such advice would be important in many contexts. But I am not talking about hiring "freelancers" in a general sense. I am talking about commissioning work from artists. I don't have something in my head. I have a general concept... a subject... and I want artists to produce truly artistic work that reflects their own ideas and styles. I like to be surprised and delighted by what they turn in.

prestonhunter · ‎07-22-2020

re: "I've got a task of design of 1,000 images"

Well, you probably already understand that you can't really hire any artist to create 1000 pieces of artwork and expect that scenario to succeed.

If you are serious about getting this project done, then I recommend that you hire ten different artists, using their hourly rates and hourly contracts. Assign them each to create ten pieces. Then compare the work that they do.

Who provides you with the best value? The work that is of sufficient quality for the project, yet produced quickly enough that you can minimize cost?

Then continue working with the artist or artists who are the best fit for your project's needs.

petra_r · ‎07-22-2020

Preston H wrote:

If you are serious about getting this project done, then I recommend that you hire ten different artists, using their hourly rates and hourly contracts. Assign them each to create ten pieces. Then compare the work that they do.

He's got a budget of $ 400 for 1000 pieces of artwork. He can't AFFORD to hire 10 freelancers, let alone at their hourly rate. That's plain nuts.

It makes no sense at all. It will only further deplete his already entirely woefully inadequate budget so there is even less left.

prestonhunter · ‎07-22-2020

Petra, I am not sure if there is any way to get 1000 pieces of original artwork for the budget that he specified.

But the most affordable way to actually accomplish his goal would be to hire many artists for a small portion of the project and then use that information to determine which artists will provide him with the best value.

Maybe he could save even more money by using fixed-price contracts.

So my suggestion is a way forward to successfully completing the task, while minimizing cost. I do not know how to successfully achieve the original poster's goal for his stated budget.

What I can NOT recommended... what I do NOT think can succeed is hiring only a SINGLE artist - who he has never worked with - to do all 1000 pieces, in a single shot, as part of a single milestone. It is hard to imagine how he could possible find somebody who is certain to deliver on such a deal, especially given the amount of money being offered relative to amount of work required.

If that is his entire budget for the artwork, he might end up committing it to a freelancer who provides work he can't even use, and then not be able to get any of the money back.

If his budget can not go higher, then he should consider hiring somebody to find usable images from free sources.

06d5bfd2 · ‎07-24-2020

Hi Preston

Thanks for the advice. And how would I hire someone to use images from free sources?

prestonhunter · ‎07-24-2020

re: "And how would I hire someone to use images from free sources?"

post a job stating exactly that. State that you need 1000 images for a project. State you want someone who is familiar with free-to-use image archives, who will find images you can use for each item.

Hire about four to eight freelancers and give them each 25 image descriptions.

Continue working with the freelancers who are the very best, who provide you with the most value.