WEEK TWO
- Angie Moyler
- Jul 19, 2022
- 5 min read
Updated: Oct 4, 2022
Business Models, Studios, Estimating, Invoicing and Budget Management.
Test and Rehearse.
Most of those words still manage to make my head hurt. However, from memories I would rather blank out, a creative head cannot progress without them.
The challenge for this week is;
Map a resourcing model for budget and staff allocation to deliver a project or creative initiative of your choice.
My choice for a project to fulfil this challenge is the proposed project outlined in week 1.
I see this concept proposal as a self published app or website developed in my own time. For the purposes of demonstrating the financial implications, how this idea will be funded and generate revenue, the focus will be on a self published app.
The following links provide some interesting stats on the value of free apps and how they will generate revenue;
The implications of finding sponsorship in terms of finances would have direct consequence to ownership of the end product. So, in order to make the most of this initiative the majority of the initial development of this idea would be in the designers own time, using their experience and collaboration skills. This then feeds in to the whole area of design entrepreneurship focused on towards the end of this module.
In order to map a resourcing model to deliver this initiative I need to work through the details of the outcome and therefore the practicalities of setting it up.
On cost and value;
In terms of time to develop the initial concept in order to secure investment for further development, this is difficult to put a number on. Invariably creative designers will need to work at their own cost in their own time to develop ideas. Assuming an experienced designer with a reasonable level of business acumen is working around a full time job and family commitments, the amount of development time available per week I would estimate to be an average of 10 hours. And that will require a lot of self belief and drive.
In terms of cost you're looking at £400 per day for a middle weight graphic designer. To develop this idea sufficiently to present to possible business partners or investors I would guess that the time needed would be a solid 20 days or £8,000.
None of this includes the initial and ongoing thinking time, processing, networking and collaboration skills from life experiences. This is why I prefer to think of value instead of design costs as Chris Do outlines neatly in this video; https://youtu.be/jE53O1PzmNU
IMAGE 1
To place value on the development of an original idea that has yet to be tested is again almost impossible. The continued development of an idea relies on the belief, research, drive, spare time and purpose of the designer - at their own cost. In this case the value can only be realised after it has been launched and tested. Therefore a huge risk.
Having thought through cost and value the development of the idea continues.
The first proposal presentation would be to a group of educators, design practitioners and art and design students. Feedback given would then be translated to a further development presentation. This I would introduce to possible investors, again applying feedback to finalise the end proposal with detailed business plan.
SKOPE OF WORK.
Concept development.
Initial designs.
Write initial content.
Write a promotion and marketing strategy.
Write and deliver presentation for feedback.
Design progression.
Commission website/app build.
Commission initial outside contributors.
Trial draft website/app design.
Apply changes.
Source initial users.
Launch of product and marketing strategy.
Ongoing management of product and contributors submissions.
Monitor use and plan for growth and development.
From here I have enough information to how it will be implemented.
BUSINESS MODEL
In my initial research in to relevant business models which can be used for what I am proposing, my first mindset must be to know that I am building a network with a product. Not primarily building a product for a network. The ability to collaborate must come first. This approach along with developing a free app fits well with my personal philosophy and the desired outcome of this project.
Having read up on what a Platform Business Model is I can now say that this will fit all that I aim to achieve with this initiative. First of all a platform is not a piece of software but a model for conducting a business. This is a revelation to me - I am sure not to others!
Platform businesses do not own the means of production but instead create the means of connection. The product lead model is known as a linear model - as opposed to a hierarchical model I would imagine? If so that is also a perfect fit to my world view. I will unpack this later.
The images below are quotes from the referenced website which has supported my understanding that this model is an ideal approach for this initiative.
Looking in to the platform model has lead me to explore the network effect from which this model totally relies. This feeds directly into my personal ethos which is inspired by others and has a love of people and their ideas and therefore fits well in to the rise of collaborative business structures.
To create a successful platform model with a growing network depends entirely on getting the core 'transaction' or factory right. In the case of my proposed initiative that is the interactive circular curriculum as the plan is to get users to repeat the process over and over again as demonstrated in this diagram.
IMAGE 2
Although a platform can enable a transaction it cannot control the behaviour of the user. So the challenge in thinking through how a core transaction will work is the detail in ensuring that it will direct its core community to respond exactly the way you want them to.
This to me puts the onus directly on understanding of human behaviour translated to the user experience or UX, and a customer experience - CX design. In my experience these roles are necessary for all successful designers to understand and be proficient at. I would argue this is a reason for introducing design anthropology as a core subject within the teaching of graphic design.
IMAGE 3
Questions to resolve;
how will revenue be created to fund the ongoing management and development?
Initial thinking is through licensing to education providers and creative communities. This doesn't sit well with my personal ethos and does this still make it a platform model?
The beauty and attractiveness of any initiative is in its authenticity and transparency. If making money is the main driver that will come across in its presentation. If the main driver is providing a service, creativity possibilities, collaboration, freedom of use and inclusivity the revenue will come. Therefore in order to develop this initiative the designer must have alternative financial stability and sufficient available time. An ever present barrier towards success in design entrepreneurship.
The more I think through this project the bigger it gets. How and where do I reign it in for the purpose of this module? My aim is to perhaps use other modules and the dissertation to develop it further.
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