We’re introducing a new system for Design Fees that’s fairer to all.

Effective August 1, 2016, we will be modifying the way in which we determine the one-time design/setup fees that apply to each new Design Request you submit. The Design fee is still assessed regardless of whether or not you ever place an order for product using the design.

What’s changing?
In a nutshell: The way we calculate the fees. It’ll be $25 per hour going forward.
For years we’ve used a structured pricing system where the design fees start at $10 and go up depending on if there are mixed materials used (such as glitter + rhinestones), or if there are > 1,000 stones. Feedback has told us time and again that that structure is too complicated and can be too expensive.

Under the new system, all design fees will be simply based on the time spent by our Designers in creating your bling design, preparing your proofs, and communicating with you. It will be a flat rate of $25 per hour and will no longer depend directly on what materials are used. While there’s no mandatory minimum cost, we anticipate the lowest possible cost on a very quick, basic, small design should be 15 minutes ($6.25). Up until this point, our minimum design charge has been $10.

How does this affect me?
In a nutshell: Your overall design fees may go up, they may go down, or they may not effectively change.
BlingFORCE Clients who send clear specs and/or art in their design submissions may enjoy significantly decreased design fees on average. Some Clients may see no overall change, while others who provide poor detail or art are likely to see overall increases. It mostly depends on the complexity of each design and the quality of the info you give us upfront. We studied dozens of past projects and determined that, when GOOD QUALITY art and/or design details are supplied, the average project took about 30 minutes to complete. That’s $12.50 in design fees. And that’s about the average we’ve been charging up to this point based on the structured system.

What can I do to pay the lowest fees possible?
In a nutshell: Provide Detail.
We don’t want you to pay big design fees. In fact, design work is a money-loser for BlingFORCE, and not something we profit from. We want to work together with you in the most efficient way possible.

The clearer you are upfront about what you need us to create, the more efficiently we’ll be able to work, resulting in minimal time spent and the lowest cost to you.

That means:

• Providing starting artwork whenever possible;
• Supplying quality artwork that does not require labor-intensive redesigning/fixing before converting to bling;
• Clearly stating the details of the project when the request is submitted, including which colors are to make up which parts of the design, if a multi-color design and it’s not obvious from any artwork you supply;
• Including font names in the design request if you know them, or detailed descriptions/attributes of desired font styles if you aren’t providing art or font names. For example, any of the following are helpful descriptors of text style/fonts: bold, tall, block, varsity, script, elegant…
• Specifying the desired size if you have a certain size requirement. If you don’t know the width AND the height, just providing one of these is still very helpful.

What Makes Good Art?

 

How can I know what to expect?
In a nutshell: You can check a box on the form and we’ll quote you first.
We’ll be changing our design submission form on Aug. 1 to accommodate the new fee structure, and at that time we’ll add a feature enabling you to request a quote estimate after you submit the project but BEFORE we do any design work on it.

Does the change in fees cover BlingFORCE’s actual design expenses?
In a nutshell: No, not by a long shot. But we’re OK with that.
Design work will still be highly subsidized, and almost half of the actual average cost will continue to be covered by BlingFORCE. Project triage/Project Management is a significant expense that can cost as much as the actual Designer’s time. We don’t plan to charge for the project management time, just that time spent by the Designer working on your individual project.

In other words, we realize that in order for you to be willing and able to create custom designs for your Clients “on spec,” we need to share the design costs with you.

 

I hope this new approach serves to simplify the process, encourage well-thought-out submissions, and reward Clients who provide high quality art and details with lower prices. As always, I welcome your feedback and questions.

-Brian