The joy of timesheets

Timesheets. We all hate them. We’ve all got to do them.

Why can’t we just get on with being creative?

But we need to remember that design is a business, and like any other business, to be able to stay in business, we need to remain solvent.

Unlike manufacturing where you can measure the number of units produced, and then price them accordingly to cover your costs, as a professional service we creatives can only charge for our time.

Only if we know the value of our time can we know whether we’re working efficiently, and only if we know how efficiently we work, can we know how much time to allocate to a project.

Allocating time to a project, and thus knowing when we’re under budget and when we’re over budget is the difference between profit and loss.

And measuring time also provides structure to our day, telling us when we’re over-servicing a demanding client (so maybe we should talk about additional fees), and when we can afford to go the extra mile (maybe to help build a relationship with a new client).

Measuring time also informs our professional development by telling us when we’re taking a bit too long to do something, maybe something that requires new software, or more training, or could be passed to a junior, or should be outsourced to a specialist?

So for example, my local garage charges me £25/hour to service my car. I could do it at home, but I haven’t got the right kit, it means getting a bit oily, two trips to a parts supplier and most of Saturday afternoon spent lying in gravel.

Assuming the average design freelance rate of £36/hr, clearly it’s more cost effective to outsource the work to a specialist. However, if I do the work myself (for my own satisfaction), at least I’m doing it in the knowledge that I’m making a small loss (but maybe acquiring new kit and developing a new skill in the process).

It’s an informed cost/benefit business decision that is only made possible thanks to timesheets.

Love ‘em.

UBS - asking the right questions

UBS is a global firm providing financial services to private, corporate and institutional clients.

Their new brand strategy aims to adopt a more thought-provoking and personal approach to clients with a clear tone of voice that cuts through the clutter of a busy financial marketplace.

The rebranding is a full redesign that includes all elements apart from the logo, using both sight and sound with the introduction of an audio tone developed in conjunction with Leicester University.

The first expression of the new brand is a new campaign that demonstrates the power of a simple proposition - the first step to making the right choices is focusing on the right questions.

Client insight and research into what motivates clients across countries and across all client groups identified that some questions stay pretty much the same.

Thus questions form the foundation of the creative concept.

The narrative structure poses questions from different life stages - family, our values, the impact we have on other people - and suggests that asking the right questions can make things a little clearer.

The brand film of simple black text on a while background shows hypothetical questions asked by clients, whilst press adverts, using images shot by Annie Leibovitz in a muted colour palette, present personal stories as case studies.

The questions and case studies form a powerful story arc that engages the viewer by allowing them to project their own answers into the narrative.

And of course there’s a great emotional hook at the end.

A simple concept, based on solid research, well structured, gracefully executed.