>When a designer does work for hire, there are several risks. The biggest is
>that someone else may be hired down the road to modify a web site, and it
>may end up looking nothing like the artist's original. In fact, it may be
>something of an embarrassment. A graphic designer's portfolio is all
>important: it is how we sell our services. With print work, there's no risk
>of alteration. I simply put the printed piece in my portfolio, and that's
>that. But Web sites are never fixed, so when the client alters a Web site,
>I may lose a valuable component of my portfolio. I may have spent 3 to 6
>months on creating a Web site for you that could serve as evidence that I
>know how to do all the latest bells 'n whistles. If you change the site so
>that it's no longer something I'd be proud to display as my work, then I
>end up with a huge hole in my visual "resume."
Suz, I hear what you're saying and agree, but the fluid nature of the web
means that it is unrealistic to think that once you put a site up for
someone, it will stay that way for perpetuity (I realize you know this! I'm
just making a point).
My solution is this. I keep a copy of the original site. If in the future,
the client no longer uses my services to to maintain the site (and of
course this has happened more than a few times after 3 years doing this) I
still have the original. What I do is, from my online Portfolio page at
http://www.totheweb.com/portfolio.html
I link to my copy of the site, which I keep on my server. That way, when I
refer people to the site, I can show them how it was instead of how it is
currently. And believe me, I have _never_ had a client take over running a
site and improve it! <G> Invariably, they really screw it up. I don't want
people to associate me with my clients bad taste. It astonishes me what
people do.
And of course, when I'm no longer running a site I've built, I remove my
company credit from the homepage!!!
Barry
--
Barry Lee Brisco <mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Web Design & Development - Online Marketing <http://www.ToTheWeb.com>
Connecting Businesswomen in Asia <http://www.women-connect-asia.com>
The Pan-Asian Online Underwater Magazine <http://www.asiandiver.com>
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