“It’s you — Picasso, the great artist! Oh, you must sketch my portrait! I insist.”

So Picasso agreed to sketch her. After studying her for a moment, he used a single pencil stroke to create her portrait. He handed the women his work of art.

“It’s perfect!” she gushed. “You managed to capture my essence with one stroke, in one moment. Thank you! How much do I owe you?”

“Five thousand dollars,” the artist replied.

“B-b-but, what?” the woman sputtered. “How could you want so much money for this picture? It only took you a second to draw it!”

To which Picasso responded, “Madame, it took me my entire life.”

I love this lighthearted anecdote, most graphic designers do as well. It perfectly illustrates the amount of dedication and energy devoted to a love of art, which is sometimes not appreciated by clients. I know a lot of graphic designers that are seriously annoyed by this; they get upset that clients don’t appreciate their craft. The question is, should they be upset? The answer is, no.

In our previous example this woman hired Picasso for art, and that's what he's created. That’s what most graphic designers create – art. Business owners, unless they sell art, don't really want art from a graphic designer - that's not what they are buying.

I know, you’ve got to be saying, “What? If they’re not buying art, what are they buying?” From talking with business owners, both clients and non-clients, I've found that more than any other reason, business hire graphic designers to grow their business, make them more successful and MAKE THEM MORE MONEY. That's not what art does, that’s not what Picasso does – so as a business owner, maybe you shouldn’t hire Picasso for your graphic and web design. And if you’re an artist, I would suggest you spend more time working on the function of your craft rather than form.

So what does this mean? Well, it means that smart business owners are not going to look for Picasso sitting in the park or Starbucks to design a logo, collateral materials or a web site for their business, instead they're going to hire someone who can help them make more money. Graphic designers (artists) are only a good investment if they can help you grow your business, attract the customers you want and help you make money.

Let’s say for example that you hire a graphic designer to create a full-color advertisement in a local magazine. You have what you feel is the absolute best ad in the whole publication, you run the ad for 6 months and the ad doesn’t generate inquiry even though your ads in the past have. Do you feel you’ve wasted your money?

The Bottom Line for Smart Business Owners:
Smart business owners are less concerned about the price of a designer and more focused on the return they’re going to get on their investment. Instead of shopping and ultimately selecting a designer on cost, they should be asking themselves, “If I invest XX dollars in this person, will I be able to recapture my investment?” If you’re a smart business owner, you want to get past just looking at cost. Now this doesn’t mean give Picasso $5000 freely, but look at investment, ask yourself, will it make you more money in the end than what it is initially going to cost? If the answer is yes, make the investment. If $5000 is going to get you a piece of art that’s not going to help you make more money, don’t make the investment unless you like collecting art.

There are 3 main ways to make more money:

1. Get more customers
2. Charge a higher rate to your customers
3. Sell more to the cu
   Interview Like A Champion
   Maybe you have decided that you deserve more money than you are currently being paid or maybe you have decided that not having a job and not being paid anything must come to an end. You may be looking for a new position in the company you are in or you may be looking to jump companies and possibly even industries all together. Whatever you situation is, you must face the inevitable…The Job Interview.Why so many people have given this process a negative connotation, is because they do not know the proper steps to take to interview like a champion. Being a cha
   ife.”
   
   I love this lighthearted anecdote, most graphic designers do as well. It perfectly illustrates the amount of dedication and energy devoted to a love of art, which is sometimes not appreciated by clients. I know a lot of graphic designers that are seriously annoyed by this; they get upset that clients don’t appreciate their craft. The question is, should they be upset? The answer is, no.
   
   In our previous example this woman hired Picasso for art, and that's what he's created. That’s what most graphic designers create – art. Business owners, unless they sell art, don't really want art from a graphic designer - that's not what they are buying.
   
   I know, you’ve got to be saying, “What? If they’re not buying art, what are they buying?” From talking with business owners, both clients and non-clients, I've found that more than any other reason, business hire graphic designers to grow their business, make them more successful and MAKE THEM MORE MONEY. That's not what art does, that’s not what Picasso does – so as a business owner, maybe you shouldn’t hire Picasso for your graphic and web design. And if you’re an artist, I would suggest you spend more time working on the function of your craft rather than form.
   
   So what does this mean? Well, it means that smart business owners are not going to look for Picasso sitting in the park or Starbucks to design a logo, collateral materials or a web site for their business, instead they're going to hire someone who can help them make more money. Graphic designers (artists) are only a good investment if they can help you grow your business, attract the customers you want and help you make money.
   
   Let’s say for example that you hire a graphic designer to create a full-color advertisement in a local magazine. You have what you feel is the absolute best ad in the whole publication, you run the ad for 6 months and the ad doesn’t generate inquiry even though your ads in the past have. Do you feel you’ve wasted your money?
   
   The Bottom Line for Smart Business Owners:
   Smart business owners are less concerned about the price of a designer and more focused on the return they’re going to get on their investment. Instead of shopping and ultimately selecting a designer on cost, they should be asking themselves, “If I invest XX dollars in this person, will I be able to recapture my investment?” If you’re a smart business owner, you want to get past just looking at cost. Now this doesn’t mean give Picasso $5000 freely, but look at investment, ask yourself, will it make you more money in the end than what it is initially going to cost? If the answer is yes, make the investment. If $5000 is going to get you a piece of art that’s not going to help you make more money, don’t make the investment unless you like collecting art.
   
   There are 3 main ways to make more money:

   1. Get more customers
   2. Charge a higher rate to your customers
   3. Sell more to the cu
      Online Backup Or Tape Backup - Confused About Which To Choose?
      We work in an increasingly data driven business environment where your business critical data is the core of your business. It is estimated that 60% of companies that lose their data shut down within 6 months. We are all aware of the pitfalls of inadequate backups - the problem is what to do about it. What's the most effective way to backup and secure your data?Online backup or tape - what's the answer? As with a lot of things in life the answer is not straightforward and the solution probably falls somewhere in the middle. In other words a combinati
      om talking with business owners, both clients and non-clients, I've found that more than any other reason, business hire graphic designers to grow their business, make them more successful and MAKE THEM MORE MONEY. That's not what art does, that’s not what Picasso does – so as a business owner, maybe you shouldn’t hire Picasso for your graphic and web design. And if you’re an artist, I would suggest you spend more time working on the function of your craft rather than form.
      
      So what does this mean? Well, it means that smart business owners are not going to look for Picasso sitting in the park or Starbucks to design a logo, collateral materials or a web site for their business, instead they're going to hire someone who can help them make more money. Graphic designers (artists) are only a good investment if they can help you grow your business, attract the customers you want and help you make money.
      
      Let’s say for example that you hire a graphic designer to create a full-color advertisement in a local magazine. You have what you feel is the absolute best ad in the whole publication, you run the ad for 6 months and the ad doesn’t generate inquiry even though your ads in the past have. Do you feel you’ve wasted your money?
      
      The Bottom Line for Smart Business Owners:
      Smart business owners are less concerned about the price of a designer and more focused on the return they’re going to get on their investment. Instead of shopping and ultimately selecting a designer on cost, they should be asking themselves, “If I invest XX dollars in this person, will I be able to recapture my investment?” If you’re a smart business owner, you want to get past just looking at cost. Now this doesn’t mean give Picasso $5000 freely, but look at investment, ask yourself, will it make you more money in the end than what it is initially going to cost? If the answer is yes, make the investment. If $5000 is going to get you a piece of art that’s not going to help you make more money, don’t make the investment unless you like collecting art.
      
      There are 3 main ways to make more money:

      1. Get more customers
      2. Charge a higher rate to your customers
      3. Sell more to the cu
         Payroll Georgia, Unique Aspects of Georgia Payroll Law and Practice
         The Georgia State Agency that oversees the collection and reporting of State income taxes deducted from payroll checks is: Department of Revenue Withholding Tax Unit 504 Trinity-Washington Bldg. 270 Washington Street Atlanta, GA 30334 404-417-2311 http://www.etax.dor.ga.gov/withholding.shtmlGeorgia requires that you use Georgia form "G-4, Employee's Withholding Certificate" instead of a Federal W-4 Form for Georgia State Income Tax Withholding.Not all states allow salary reductions made under Section
         make more money. Graphic designers (artists) are only a good investment if they can help you grow your business, attract the customers you want and help you make money.
         
         Let’s say for example that you hire a graphic designer to create a full-color advertisement in a local magazine. You have what you feel is the absolute best ad in the whole publication, you run the ad for 6 months and the ad doesn’t generate inquiry even though your ads in the past have. Do you feel you’ve wasted your money?
         
         The Bottom Line for Smart Business Owners:
         Smart business owners are less concerned about the price of a designer and more focused on the return they’re going to get on their investment. Instead of shopping and ultimately selecting a designer on cost, they should be asking themselves, “If I invest XX dollars in this person, will I be able to recapture my investment?” If you’re a smart business owner, you want to get past just looking at cost. Now this doesn’t mean give Picasso $5000 freely, but look at investment, ask yourself, will it make you more money in the end than what it is initially going to cost? If the answer is yes, make the investment. If $5000 is going to get you a piece of art that’s not going to help you make more money, don’t make the investment unless you like collecting art.
         
         There are 3 main ways to make more money:

         1. Get more customers
         2. Charge a higher rate to your customers
         3. Sell more to the cu
            What's After Starbucks?
            It would be fair to say that Starbucks has penetrated the cultural fabric of America quite extensively. Now, it is also attempting to do the same with the rest of the world. It has become a place to get together with friends, an extended office, a pick-up joint, and many other things - different things to different people.Starbucks is a consumer concept that was pretty much unimaginable until it was implemented, scaled, funded, and scaled further. Howard Schultz envisioned the concept after experiencing the popularity of coffee bars in Italy. For those who were
            lecting a designer on cost, they should be asking themselves, “If I invest XX dollars in this person, will I be able to recapture my investment?” If you’re a smart business owner, you want to get past just looking at cost. Now this doesn’t mean give Picasso $5000 freely, but look at investment, ask yourself, will it make you more money in the end than what it is initially going to cost? If the answer is yes, make the investment. If $5000 is going to get you a piece of art that’s not going to help you make more money, don’t make the investment unless you like collecting art.
            
            There are 3 main ways to make more money:

            1. Get more customers
            2. Charge a higher rate to your customers
            3. Sell more to the customers you have (frequency of purchase)

            If your designer doesn’t help you achieve one, two or all three of these ways to make more money for your business – you need to look into working with another designer - period. That's why it only makes sense to hire business-savvy designers who do more than design, they can help you grow your business, and they guarantee their results. Between a business savvy designer and Pablo Picasso, whom would I personally give $5000 to design for my business? The one who could make my business more money – sorry Picasso.