Protect yourself
You are protected under our errors and omissions insurance when you work on DTC projects. When providing any professional service, errors and omissions insurance is crucial.
Paid regularly
Some client work and projects can span over long periods. With end-of-service invoicing being typical in the field, our clients don’t pay until they receive their final deliverable. However, your pay at Designs that Cell is bi-weekly based on hours worked. This means you don’t wait to receive payment for your work.
Financial sense
Running a freelance company can be costly. Professional websites, domains, insurance, marketing, banking and accounting are flat fees that can be difficult to sustain with a part-time freelance business or add significant overhead costs creating high prices for clients. Through our collective, client work is divided between a team of illustrators, and therefore our overhead fees are also divided - this keeps our costs low.
Flexible hours
Working alone or freelancing means you are your team. You have to make yourself available to clients if you provide revisions or expect repeat clients. At DTC, if there is a busy time and you require a break or are unable to complete modifications, other team members can do this for you. This means you can maintain a relationship with a client without worrying about losing them due to other commitments.
Skills training
There are very few opportunities to learn from experts in a new field like sci-art in a small setting (or with them on a project). With so many techniques and skills ranging from data viz to fine art, getting the training and developing the skills can be hard to find. At DTC, we provide opportunities for junior illustrators to practice and learn new skills bi-weekly. All illustrators are also welcome to come to these sessions to lead or learn. This and other opportunities for feedback are plentiful at DTC. Feedback requests are encouraged for work both within and outside of DTC.
Teaching opportunity
There is also the opportunity to teach skills. During our skill-sharing sessions, anyone with confidence in a skill or an interest in learning more about the topic can run a session. This usually includes developing and leading a visual activity.
Variety of projects
With a wide variety of client fields and backgrounds, the topic and the types of projects vary widely at DTC. Through our collective, you can selectively choose projects in your expertise or branch out with new scientific fields or visualization techniques. In addition, working in teams allows you to work towards a collaboratively larger project.
Community
In a niche field, it can be challenging to find like-minded individuals. DTC provides a unique opportunity to engage with others in the sci-art field frequently.
Client management
DTC management deals with all client interactions. From the initial consultation to final invoicing and formatting. We also handle any conflicts that arise during client interaction. With any issues related to our illustrations, we are always on our team's side.