Module 5 / Lesson 5.3: Pros & Cons
The Pros & Cons of being represented
Yes, it’s not all pros when it comes to being represented by an agency. They are cons as well, but they might differ from person to person. The pros will probably be the same for any illustrator who is represented but I’m pretty sure my cons are going to be very specific to my situation. This part of the module is quite important as it needs to be shown that getting an agent isn’t for everyone and it won’t necessarily get your career to the next level. I deeply believe you could do that on your own…if you work hard enough and build the right connections with the right people. Anyway, let’s have a look at those pros and cons!
I had a little studio swich up recently…
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The Pros
• Getting more work and more opportunities
• Getting bigger clients
• Being paid bigger fees for projects
• Not dealing with the nitty gritty
• Having someone have your back when problems arise
• Having a work support system
• Being part of a supportive rooster of illustrators
• Having support on personal projects and ideas
• Getting more visibility through your agent’s channels
• Having someone else put your name out there
• Feeling less lonely on the crazy freelance journey
The Cons
• Deducting 10% off projects you got yourself
• Having to share all projects with your agent and have them involved at all times
• Not being the sole focus of your agent, as they have other illustrators to get work for. In a way, for them, it doesn’t matter who gets projects as they’ll always get their commission
• Being in “competition” with other illustrators within the agency for certain projects
•Having someone else involved in the process can make things slower (if your agent is busy and can’t answer in time for instance)
•Having an agent can scare off little brands that you’d maybe want to work for as they’ll expect huge fees. This has been something that I really dislike about having an agent!
•Not being on your own anymore means a tiny bit less of freedom
Cons specific to me:
• My agent’s english isn’t really good so I always cringe a little bit when they send emails to english-speaking clients. Their grammar is awful and I find it incredibly difficult to look past as I think it makes us look unprofessional. The thing is, there isn’t much I can do about it. That’s what you get for choosing a French agent!
• Similarly, my agent always quotes clients in Euros as well as demanding to get paid in Euros. This can get tricky as I live in the UK and we use Pounds. Sometimes, if a client is American, we will go from figuring out the US Dollars fee, to Euros and then to Pounds. The worst situation was when we worked with an English client who paid my agent in Euros (so it went from Pounds to Euros) and then my agent paid me Euros which translated to Pounds in my account…which meant I lost some money in the process because of the conversion and bank fees. I know this sounds confusing but you know what I mean! It would be much easier for me to have an UK based agent…
In Conclusion
I hope that you now can see that getting an agent is not necessarily for everyone. It IS great and can take you to new heights but it also has its downfalls. I’ve found it incredibly helpful this past year as I became a new mum but I don’t think it’s going to be for me for the rest of my career. I’m going to stick with it a bit longer to see how things work out and I’ll keep you updated. When it comes to you, have a good think about it. Do you really need it or are you capable of growing on your own? Do you want the support and the community or do you like being a lonewolf?