The Free things in life are best.
Public service advertising and design should be a win-win experience. The non-profit client gets professional design and creative services for little to no cost. Meanwhile, the creators get an opportunity to build their portfolio or win industry awards by working in an environment free from many of the usual restrictions that come with "for pay" projects.
Regrettably, many well-intentioned projects have left bitter tastes in the mouths of creatives and clients alike. In the vast majority of these cases, the problems could have been prevented if only there had been a clear understanding up front of each party's responsibilities and roles.
That, in short, is the purpose of these guidelines: To spell out for all concerned how they should approach pro-bono work, to make the process a smooth one, and the results, a success.
Guidelines for Clients
Scroll Down to See Guidelines for Creatives
BEFORE YOU BEGIN
1. Ask to see the portfolio of the creative group you will be working with.
Look carefully for similar projects to the work you're asking for. If you don't like what you see, or sense these people work in a style that's not appropriate for your organization, keep looking.
2. Contact references of other non-profits your creative group has worked for.
Find out whether your creative group has handled pro-bono projects before. If so, get contact info on those clients and then get in toch to ask these questions about your potential creative team: Were they responsive to client input? Did they stay on top of deadlines and budgets? Were they concerned about the effectiveness of their work?
3. Develop a creative brief that outlines your assignment.
If your creative group doesn't have a "start work" or creative brief form, create one yourself. It should cover the following points, ideally in a single page:
> What precisely are you asking to have done?
> Who the audience is for the project; include demographic and lifestyle information?
> What specific action are you asking of your audience (Buy a ticket? Change an opinion? Call for more information? Make a contribution?)
> What is the best strategy to get them to take that action? Focus on the one, primary reason why people should take action--don't ask the creative to try to cover too much.
> What are the budget and timing issue?
> What are the mandatories (logos, credits, legalisms) that must be included?
> What should the tonality of the work be?
After you've prepared your creative brief, have it signed off by every person in your organization that will later have an opportunity to accept or reject the creative work.
DURING THE CREATIVE PHASE
4. Be prepared to give your creative group more time than you would allow if paying for their services.
Obviously, pro-bono work gets less of an agency or design firm's attention because paying the bills must necessarily come first. So, give ample lead time when assigning projects, and build in extra time for the inevitable delays.
5. Give your creative team the maximum amount of creative latitude. This can actually benefit your organization, because more experimental, unusual solutions tend to be more memorable and effective. Moreover, if the work done for your nonprofit generates talk, publicity, or recognition in social media, you are actually further extending the reach of your message.
6. Line up as many of the pro-bono production services as you can yourself.
Agencies and design firms are often glad to help you secure low-cost or no-cost production assistance from video production companies, photographers and illustrators, but they often have a limited number of favors they can call in. If at all possible, use the resources of your organization to seek these in-kind donations.
7. Be willing to sacrifice service for quality creativity.
Since this is not the typical client/vendor relationship, you should consider taking some extra steps to minimize the time your creative group spends on non-creative activities. For example, keep the number and length of meetings to a minimum.
DURING THE APPROVAL PROCESS
8. Have everyone who can say "no" in the room when the work is presented.
It is more efficient, and certainly more courteous, to allow your creative contributors to present to everyone in your organization who can ultimately shoot down the proposed work. This way, the creative team can present and defend their work more passionately than you could.
9. Be clear and specific if you have objections.
If there are parts of the solution that aren't on target, speak up. This is far preferable to letting the project progress and then raising your objection later after more effort has been invested. It's also important to distinguish between your personal dislikes and those parts of the job that might make it less successful. Your creative contributors are (rightly) concerned with making the project work against the target audience--of which you may or may not be a member.
10. If you have an unresolvable dispute over the creative proposal, bring in an arbitrator.
One of the unwritten rules of pro bono work is that the client must be quite flexible when it comes to approving the creative work. Still, there will inevitably be times when you feel the work is not acceptable. If this is the case, and your creatives don't agree, bring in a third party to help resolve the issue. Advertising and design educators, freelancers, or creative directors from other firms could be called in.
11. If you ultimately do not accept the creative proposal, give your creatives the chance to start over.
While your confidence in your creative contributors may not be at its highest after rejecting their first proposal, you owe them the chance to take another shot before turning to another creative resource.
AFTER THE PROJECT IS COMPLETED
12. Be generous in giving credit and recognition to your creative contributors
At the conclusion of a successful pro bono project, your organization may have received work worth thousands of dollars. It's highly appropriate to acknowledge these contributions through personal thank you letters, mentions in organization newsletters, and even appropriately small gifts. This isn't just a matter of courtesy, this display of gratitude will also make it easier for you to secure additional help when you need it in the future.
13. Assist your creatives in using the work for their own self-promotion.
If it's appropriate, put a credit line somewhere on the work. Make sure your creatives receive sufficient reprints for their promotional use. And be willing to assist them in public relations efforts by being accessible to the press for quotes and interviews.
Guidelines for CREATIVES
Scroll Up to See Guidelines for Clients
BEFORE YOU BEGIN
1. Understand the mission and activities of the client organization.
Before you commit to doing any work, have a legitimate understanding of what the client organization does. Make sure you wholeheartedly agree with their philosophy and practices. If they don't voluntarily offer to give you a background presentation on their organization, be sure to ask for one.
2. Contact references of other creatives who have worked for this client.
Ask the client to provide names of other design and advertising people who have worked for them. Call to find out their impression of the client's input and approval process, and if they gave sufficient creative freedom.
3. Show the client your portfolio.
Even if this is your first pro-bono project, show the client representative samples from your paying clients or student work. They should be able to get a very clear picture of your creative style and experience, so questions aren't raised later.
4. Present a creative brief that outlines the assignment.
If you don't customarily use a "start work" or creative brief, develop one for pro-bono projects. It should cover the following points, ideally in a single page:
> What precisely is the client asking to have done?
> Who the audience is for the project; include demographic and lifestyle information?
> What specific action should the communications materials ask of the audience (Buy a ticket? Change an opinion? Call for more information? Make a contribution?)
> What is the best strategy to get them to take that action? Focus on the one, primary reason why people should take action--don't ask the creative to try to cover too much.
> What are the budget and timing issue?
> What are the mandatories (logos, credits, legalisms) that must be included?
> What should the tonality of the work be?
After you've prepared your creative brief, have it signed off by every person in the client organization that will later have an opportunity to accept or reject the creative work.
DURING THE CREATIVE PHASE
5. Insist on creative latitude.
While you should never ignore a client's needs and objectives, it is perfectly appropriate to insist on creative latitude as a prerequisite to taking on the project. This can actually benefit your client, because more experimental, unusual solutions tend to be more memorable and effective. Moreover, if your work generates talk, publicity, or recognition in creative competitions, you are actually further extending the client's message.
6. Establish a schedule and stick to it.
Everyone understands that pro-bono work will take a back seat to paying jobs, but that doesn't give you license to flagrantly ignore a client's schedule. Like any business or organization, your pro-bono client will have deadlines they need to meet.
7. Record your time and expenses.
You should keep track of your work on a pro-bono project the same way you would for any other assignment. You'll not only be able to track your productivity and the actual cost of your contribution, you can also use this information to "bill" your pro-bono client when work is complete so they can know the value of your in-kind contributions.
DURING THE APPROVAL PROCESS
8. Insist that everyone who can say "no" is in the room when the work is presented.
You should present to everyone in the organization who can ultimately kill your work, so they have a chance to hear your best persuasive arguments. Also, if there are objections, you'll hear them directly, without filtering and reinterpretation.
9. Explain your approach completely and carefully.
Remember that your pro-bono client probably doesn't get involved in advertising and design projects on a routine basis. So don't take things for granted. Explain all the steps involved in your thinking process. Clearly demonstrate the difference between comp layouts and final production. Avoid use of industry jargon. Use examples of completed projects where appropriate to help clients grasp the final look you're aiming for.
10. If you have an unresolvable dispute over the creative proposal, bring in an arbitrator.
If you find yourself defending work that the client is completely unwilling to accept--and you feel it still has merit--bring in a third party to help resolve the issue. Advertising and design educators, freelancers, or creative directors from other firms could be called in.
AFTER THE PROJECT IS COMPLETED
11. Send an invoice to show the level of your contribution.
At the conclusion of a project, send a memo invoice to your client showing the value of your services. This way they'll gain a better understanding of the worth of professional design and advertising services, and they may also need to know the value of your contribution for their tally of in-kind donations.
12. Ask to hear about the results of your efforts.
There is a misconception (possibly deserved) that all design and advertising people care about is the work itself and the possibility of winning awards. You can help dispel that notion by making sure you're informed of the effectiveness of your efforts. By understanding what worked and what didn't, you'll also be in a much better position to assist this pro-bono client (as well as all your clients) on future projects.
