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INSIDE / INTERVIEWS : |
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Bio - Jon Seagull:
Jon Seagull has been a professional 3D artist and trainer since 1998, and a freelance architectural illustrator since 2000. Among other places, his work has appeared in coffee table books, Hollywood films, the Autodesk VIZ 5 User Gallery, and the front page of the Sunday New York Times.
In addition to his rendering work, Jon has taught 3ds max in both university and private settings, and was a contributing author on New Riders’ Inside 3ds max 7, widely considered to be the definitive 3rd-party book on the software. He is treasurer of the New York Society of Renderers (www.nysr.com), a professional organization for architectural illustrators.
Jon lives with his wife and cat in Philadelphia, on the east coast of the United States. You can view his work and contact him through his website, www.jonseagull.com.
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Guide to Dealing with Clients
Q. First of all - How does an architectural illustrator attract the client base he really wants ?
A. I think that really depends on the kind of client base you’re after. The main thing is to be visible to the firms and people you want to do business with.
This might mean going to trade shows and industry events, joining professional organizations like NYSR or ASAI, or just being well-known in the right web forums. It also might mean a lot of cold-calling and making presentations at prospective clients’ offices. One sort of unusual way that I advertise is through offering free scripted tools I’ve written for 3ds max/VIZ on my website. Each has an About box with my contact information, which hopefully makes some of the in-house artists at architecture firms aware of my name for when their boss asks them for a referral to a freelance renderer.
Many established renderers get a lot of their business from repeat clients or word-of-mouth. That’s why it’s important to deal honestly and ethically with everyone you do business with. Pulling a fast one may get you one job or a bigger check, but this is a small industry, and word gets around if you leave unhappy clients in your wake.
Q. Is it important to have a website to attract new clients ?
A. Absolutely. Without a website it’s very difficult to show potential clients your work. It’s also impossible to get links to your work from other websites, or for current clients to easily spread the word about you to their colleagues with an email.
I also think it’s very important to keep your website simple, professional, and easy to navigate – Flash intros; “cool,” but unfriendly interfaces; pages related to family or hobbies; “under construction” pages; dead links and the like are a real turnoff to someone evaluating your work. If you don’t have web design skills, hire someone to do it for you rather than make an ugly or confusing site. A real .com or country-specific domain (and email address) is vital for being taken seriously as well.
Remember, though, that just having a website is not enough. You need to market yourself in other ways to make people aware that you exist so they can find your website.
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INSIDE THE MODEL DATABANK
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