David Airey, graphic designer

Painted Picture 2014

Published on March 27th, 2011 Read the 43 comments »

This is my Painted Picture. It’s the shape of my business in March 2014 when I turn 35. The idea is that by putting it into words, my Picture has a stronger chance of becoming reality.

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Archived under Business, Personal.

Framing your design brand

Published on March 21st, 2011 Read the 34 comments »

Sometimes even the most amazing designers get stuck at communicating their own message.

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Archived under Branding, Business.

The disconcertion of spec

Published on February 24th, 2011 Read the 27 comments »

It’s bemusing to see $1.78 billion retailer JCPenney crowdsourcing its brand identity to a group comprised of “the company’s associates, several design agencies and two art schools.”

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Archived under Business.

You don’t need a designer

Published on February 10th, 2011 Read the 44 comments »

There’s a big difference between the projects designers are capable of doing, and those they actually want.

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Archived under Business.

On unpaid internships

Published on January 13th, 2011 Read the 49 comments »

Some people consider unpaid internships as similar to free pitching/spec work, but they’re not.

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Archived under Business.

Be brilliant at the basics

Published on January 10th, 2011 Read the 24 comments »

Don’t try to accommodate every customer.

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Archived under Books, Business.

Amazon Associates: helping designers look sharp

Published on January 5th, 2011 Read the 22 comments »

It’s hard to imagine someone clicking an Amazon link for a design book, then thinking to themselves, “Mmmm, peanut butter.” But it happens.

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Archived under Business, Web.

iMac buying tips

Published on December 30th, 2010 Read the 50 comments »

I upgraded to a 27-inch iMac. Here are a few tips if you’re thinking of buying one, too.

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Archived under Business, Resources.

Quality vs quantity

Published on November 25th, 2010 Read the 25 comments »

I’d make a lot more money if I accepted every project on the table.

But there’d be consequences.

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Archived under Business.

Responding to spec work requests

Published on November 17th, 2010 Read the 158 comments »

I rarely reply to the weekly email requests that ask for spec work. For whatever reason, today I did. Here’s the pitch, and how I responded.

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Archived under Business.