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Testimonials
"In the time we've had TimeFox, I've been completely floored by the customer service provided and the professionalism of their sales team. It has been very refreshing working with a company that knows what customer service and tech support truly mean."
Mike Adams
Ervin Group
www.ervin-group.com
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"We LOVE TimeFox and have already recommended it to a design shop we do a lot of work with. It is easy to use and has been a great tool to help us keep track of our time and communicate better with clients."
Heather M. Smith
de Novo Alternative Marketing LLC
www.thinkdenovo.com
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We are already a customer, and huge fans of your product. TimeFox has helped us be more efficient in billing, which is critical, since business is booming for us right now. We have contracted a freelancer in another state to help us bleed off a little production work, and it took no time at all for us to train her to use TimeFox. So, TimeFox is helping us grow our business…seamlessly. Thanks!
Lori Sallee
Deford Designs
www.defordesigns.com
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FunctionFox is committed to helping smaller creative companies improve their business. TimeFox, our web-based time and project-tracking tool, is designed to help smaller advertising, design, marketing and PR firms manage their business, and do more with their valuable time.
This month, our feature article provides advice from industry gurus on how to develop the right client mix for your design business. Our March 27th webinar continues on the theme of finding the right clients as business development consultant Blair Enns discusses the perils of pitching free ideas, in the
free 30 minute webinar, “How To Win Without Pitching”.
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Feature Article: Balancing Your Business
FunctionFox Webinar Series: How to Win Without Pitching
Sneak Peak: TimeFox Premier
Advertising and Design News
Creative Resources
FunctionFox Referral Program
Contact FunctionFox
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Balancing Your Business
by Heather West
How many clients should you serve? In what categories? And where? Three consultants who work exclusively with creative firms offer advice to help you develop the ideal client mix for your business.
Just as a balanced financial portfolio provides a thoughtfully planned sense of security for your fiscal future, a balanced client portfolio can offer creative-services firms a stronger, healthier business outlook. Like a solid investment mix, your ideal client roster may include a strategic blend of large and small companies. Some accounts may appeal to you for their potential fiscal and professional rewards, while others may bring personal benefit and artistic merit that boosts your design team's morale. And you may pursue a few national customers to complement your local clientele.
But have you ever really thought—strategically—about which prospective clients are right for your firm? Or do you answer every new-business call that comes in? If you're in the latter camp, you're not alone.
"Unfortunately, most designers don't take time to breathe and assess their strengths, their weaknesses and the success they've helped their clients achieve that's going to lead them to more work," says Emily Ruth Cohen, a consultant to creative professionals who's based in East Brunswick, NJ. "Many designers do a poor job of selling themselves because they're too busy doing the work and meeting deadlines to think about their businesses."
Brent Hodgins, partner and director of client services for New York City-based Mirren Business Development, also sees creative firms take this reactive approach to business development. "Too many agencies attempt to grow their roster by feverishly running from pitch to pitch, desperately trying to bring in new work. This random, undisciplined fashion leads to a tremendous waste of resources and a roster with no particular core strength or long-term plan."
The time has come for designers to get smart about building the right client roster, warns David C. Baker of ReCourses, a consulting firm in Nashville, TN, that advises on creative businesses. "When the tide rushes out, most firms will find they've been accidentally successful and are very poorly positioned to gain new ground," Baker says. "Sure, they're competent, but they weren't selective. When you have more choices, you have the option of saying ’no' to things that aren't the right fit. When you have more options, you have more...
This article has been reprinted with permission from HOWdesign.com and written by Heather West. For more information, please visit their website at
www.howdesign.com
For more articles and resources, see
www.functionfox.com/resources.html.
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Enmark Performance Development presents:
How to Win Without Pitching
Thursday March 27, 2008
4PM Eastern | 1 PM Pacific
Business development consultant and Win Without Pitching founder Blair Enns examines the roots of the free pitching problem (why clients ask creative services firms to part with their thinking for free, and why agencies agree to it) and all its implications. He then lays out a three-step path to help small firms compete with the big boys, without pitching free ideas.
This 30 minute webinar will be followed by 15 minutes of Q+A.
March 2008
 for this free webinar.
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Thanks to our valued customers, TimeFox has long been the time and project tracking system of choice for thousands of creative professionals. And it’s about to get better…
Coming soon to a design firm near you: TimeFox Premier.
TimeFox Premier takes all of the great time and project tracking features that creative professionals love about TimeFox, and adds a powerful new level of project management and scheduling.
Features of TimeFox Premier include:
- To-Do List with integrated stopwatch timer
- Detailed Project Scheduling
- Action Assignment and Resource Allocation
- Group, Project and Action Calendars
- Project Blog, Email alerts, iCalendar integration and much more…
Stay tuned to next month’s issue of the About Time Newsletter for further details.
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ReCourses – Resourcing the Creative Process | Managing Pricing, Deadlines, Budgets, Quality, and Capacity | Nashville, March 3-4, 2008
This was a new seminar last year, and no seminar has ever sold out this quickly. (If you can’t attend on these dates, catch the one on November 10-11, also in Nashville. It is the only seminar they'll be repeating this year.) In spite of that, it has been revamped and expanded to two full days.
This seminar is ideal for principals responsible for setting the system up, or anyone directly responsible for resourcing (traffic, production management, pricing, or even some account service roles if they are combined with this function). The sessions are a mix of presentation, hands-on exploration, exercises, and roundtables.
Resourcing, their name for the nerve center of the firm, includes estimating/pricing, traffic, production management, quality control, yield management, profitability, resource allocation, deadline management, etc. This course, unlike any other available, will look at workflow, roles, procedures, software, staffing, and systems.
The foundation is built on the ReCourses Functional Model (RFM) and their system for a Profit Based Management Environment (PBME). Research underpinning the RFM began in 1998 and continues today.
While resourcing isn’t taught in preparation for a career in the creative services field, it’s a critical foundation for doing work that is effective and profitable, and this seminar is meant to bridge that gap.
For more information, a complete agenda, pricing, lodging, venue, and registration information, please download this PDF:
www.recourses.com/media/pdfs/2008rcp.pdf
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 MacTribe Magazine Filling void in Mac Media Space
Enhanced coverage of the Mac market was long overdue
MacTribe Magazine has just launched their reformatted magazine. They’ve updated all the content with a new generation of Mac users in mind - people who use their Macs as creative devices, entertainment systems, and symbols of all around good taste. If you use your Mac to access the world - MacTribe is for you.
Discover exciting in-depth features on Apple products, interviews, design, photography and multimedia, and innovative coverage of all things Apple. For a free issue and trial subscription visit: www.mactribe.com/promo_sub or check them out at www.Mactribe.com.
Get Creative, with CreativePro
 Because things happen at warp speed in the creative sector, it’s hard to stay on top of all the latest developments – all the new hardware and software, emerging media, innovative websites, hot products, and influential people.
If you’re looking for a simple, fun way to keep up, check out an engaging, highly relevant podcast from creativepro.com. In each episode, industry expert Shellie Hall reviews the latest industry news, gives you her top 5 websites, takes you onsite to events, and interviews key industry figures.
Check out the latest Get Creative episode today:
www.creativepro.com/story/news/26424.html
Looking for more industry info, management tips and tricks, or ways to get your creativity flowing? FunctionFox has a wide range of resources waiting for you at
www.functionfox.com/resources.html. |
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If you refer someone to FunctionFox, and they purchase a TimeFox subscription, we'll give you a month's subscription to TimeFox! Refer 12 new customers and you'll get a whole year's subscription on us!
Don't miss this chance to pass the word and realize considerable savings!
Here's how: Ask the person you refer to enter your name/company under 'Referral (Client or Friend)'
when they sign up for a demo at
www.functionfox.com/demo
or tell a friend at
www.functionfox.com/referral_program.
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For a TimeFox Demo, go to:
www.functionfox.com/demo
To arrange a guided tour of TimeFox, please send your request to:
info@functionfox.com
To order a TimeFox subscription, go to:
www.functionfox.com/purchase
If you would like your company to be featured in a TimeFox
newsletter, on our website or in our promotional package,
please send your request to:
info@functionfox.com
You can opt out of the About Time Newsletter at:
www.functionfox.com/newsletter/no_thanks.asp
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