Hi,
I am contemplating starting a logo design company for equestrian companies and Barns. Is there a market in Hunter Jumper world this sort or work? I am an event rider and we don’t do as much logo gear. Here is an example of the sweatshirts i did for my own farm: http://s984.photobucket.com/albums/ae326/BHfoxrun/Logos/
I draw/design the logo, transfer it onto a computer program, and then can email or put it on a CD or Thumb drive.
I think there is definitely a market for “entry level” logo design… I know there are a few places that do equestrian logo design, but it seems to me that it’s pretty pricey if you’re not running a big training barn. There seems to be a lack of places for individuals and small barns to get logos done without it costing an arm and a leg. In my case, I found someone in my $50-$100 price range, but many places I’ve seen are closer to $500.
What Pattnic said. I’m just a little one-horse amateur, but I do some shows alone, and would love to have a logo for (e.g.) my stall drapes. But my budget is about the same as hers!
Thanks for the feed back!
I would probably charge that exact price bracket depending on the time and intricacy of the design. Right now i am trying to decide if i can take the risk of putting out the money to buy the computer software i would need ( It costs about $500).
Reported
I had a little business with equine logo/promotional stuff for about 10 years. Couldn’t compete with the rise of internet. Most logos are easily available or free clip art that can be downloaded and modified to suit a client.,or the client can do it themselves. Font styles are also stock, you used to get a disc or tape with the finished design the printer or embroiderer uses on their machines to reproduce your logo. The mass production outfits don’t give you the original disc copy or use your copy on their machines to keep you ordering exclusively from them. Designing a logo completely from scratch then digitizing to work with embroidery and printing macines is prohibitively expensive and many embroiderers andsilk screeners won’t work with custom designs ( even if they say they do custom, they do not mean your from scratch design), their machines aren’t set up to replicate often complicated one of a kind designs.
Embroidery is priced by the stitch and according to how many items, silk screening is the same. Of course there are design and set up charges. If it’s apparel, the more pieces you buy, the lower the cost. Buying 10 personalized things will cost you at least three times more for each item then buying at least 50.
Almost all of apparel used to personalize for promotional use is handled by an outfit called Port Authority, they have catalogues online, give you an idea. IIRC they also do large batch embroidery and silk screening. You must set up with them to do business with them and won’t get good prices on small orders, those shirts and jackets are designed to take a logo, most off the rack clothing doesn’t, particularly embroidery.
I was associated with a guy who piggybacked my orders with his under his big business account, used him as a designer, used his embroiderer and silk screener, he took a cut but it enabled me to offer a lower price point as well as personal service, I visited client home or barn, handled all the ordering, payment and delivery. Unfortunately he lost his large accounts to huge companies able to untilize the 100% online ordering and fulfillment capability…one offshore…the embroider lost so much business she retired. Just unable to compete with internet based companies offering the same services so I folded my little business in 2012.
If you want to try to compete in this space anyway, suggest you set a price before you do any design work at all, get at least 50% up front and get square or something and go CC only, no checks. Even people you know will drop you in a heartbeat if they find a better deal after you have started the design work. What happens is you end up educating them as you take their order so teach them how it works and equip them to go bargain hunting. Don’t do it.
If you do this, please encourage your clients to get their logo copyrighted or TM’d. My husband just had another “professional” all but steal our logo. What a PITA. He doesn’t have a stellar reputation, so we are slightly concerned someone might confuse him with my husband. Our logo is pretty unique, so no doubts where he got his idea. BTW, we also paid someone to develop it. We paid $100 for our farm logo and $100 for my hubby’s business logo. We are thrilled with both.
You might get more repeat business if you expand your offerings a bit. I do a little side work designing ads and sales fliers. The sales fliers in particular seem to be popular, and they’re quick to make if you have a basic template you start with. Just something to consider. I started off just doing them for my barn but I started getting calls from a few trainers who’d seen my work and wanted something similar. Trainers like it cuz I charge a flat rate they can either roll into the commission or charge straight to the client, clients like it cuz it feels like a good proactive way to promote the horse (more tangible than digital promotion).
Reported
Although I reported the post above for advertising, there is a solid point in it. Crowd sourcing for these smaller, one-off, low budget design jobs is very, very real. And most of the designers are offshore.
I am a marketing executive and former creative director, and the last time I needed a one-off logo, I did not reach out to any of the myriad graphic designers I knew and had worked with in the past. I crowd sourced.
For my $100-150 I got 25 design concepts from 10+ designers in under five business days, picked my favorite and worked with that designer to tweak the concept slightly. Final files, including the all-important Vector, were delivered by cloud within minutes of me signing off. Copyright transfer included.
Graphic design has become commoditized. If you’re just interested in providing an embroidery or custom labelling service, you will definitely make your $500 back.
If you are hoping to build a design business you will probably end up disappointed in the process.
As @findeight says: “Even people you know will drop you in a heartbeat if they find a better deal after you have started the design work. What happens is you end up educating them as you take their order so teach them how it works and equip them to go bargain hunting. Don’t do it.”
I’m a Creative Director who has designed numerous logos for corporations, foundations, retail, in all industries. I have also designed logos for smaller organizations and equestrian businesses. IME the clients who have decided to crowdsource always come back to me asking to rework the $100 logo, because it doesn’t withstand the rigour of all their intended applications. Or it looks too much like someone else’s identity. Or the colour they chose doesn’t work in Hex/RGB/CMYK/whatever.
Go buy the software so you can start custom printing/embroidery, but I would price the design separately from the execution.
I would like to add something here: I have been operating as a freelance graphic designer since 1989, adding website design and construction in 2008 when the economy tanked.
I am proud to say that I have clients who have been with me from day one (30 years!), and others who have been with me for 10, 15 and 20+ years. I am not the most talented, not the most expensive or the least expensive… I am just, well, ME. People do business with people who offer a fair product for a fair price, and deal with them honestly and professionally. I’ve run across many people in this profession who are talented, but have no idea how to talk to a client or negotiate a deal.
So while there are clients who will go to the cheapest bidder, my clients are proof that it’s not the only factor. People skills are paramount in this field.
I used a lady I found on Pinterest to do my farm logo. She was extremely professional and skilled. I provided a photo to be used as the model, and then 3-4 “this is the kind of thing I want” logos off the internet. She gave me three excellent options, we refined the one I liked most, and within 2 weeks I had my perfect farm logo. This whole thing cost me less than $100.
So with the scads of Pinterest pros out there, I think you could compete well in that price category, but I doubt you’d be able to make it a sole means of employment at those price-points. And if you charge the $1K range, you’re not going to get enough jobs. The businesses that cater to that level of client are working with big corporate enterprises, not equestrian businesses…
By submitting your email, you agree to our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. You may also receive promotional emails from The Chronicle of the Horse. You can opt out at any time.
For Customers
Company
Terms of Use
