Creative Businesses and the Ethical vs the Unethical

Business ethics, what a can of worms, and only to be opened when well prepared for disappointment. Now, that sounds fairly disheartening and not all days are like this, but creatives do get the short end of the stick at times. Many people do not want to pay for creative work if they can get away with it and stories change in the telling over time. Contracts are the only real way to protect your integrity from unethical business people. As hired guns, creatives are briefed by businesses and their representatives, and if you do not get it in writing, you can be amazed at the lies some people will tell to further their own cause.

Creative Businesses Are Lighting an Ethical Path Forward

Negotiations are grist for our mill in the world of graphic designers, illustrators, photographers and the like. We must come to terms with our paymasters in the commercial sense of that word. We may be working on a cruelty free makeup project or some other ethically driven job, but the challenge can be to get treated ethically well ourselves. Lighting an ethical path forward is a mission for the creative sector, because we have neglected that aspect in our training as designers in the past. Too much emphasis is put on the design work and not enough on the realities of doing business in the real world.

Get Everything in Writing

Only bitter experience has taught many creatives what is required to do business in an, often, dog eat dog world. Contracts and getting everything in writing is a must, if you want to avoid being ripped off regularly. Digital artists and copywriters all need to be prepared to stand their ground when it comes to getting properly paid for their work. Businesses are always on the lookout for short cuts and savings to their bottom line.

Australian Ethical Practices

Australian made products are popular in some circles right now. Australian designers are at the forefront of ethical practices in many of their young industries. Getting it right at the beginning, can go a long way to creating sustainable practices for the long term. Industry associations are important for the establishment of standards and guidelines, so that individual creatives can adhere to them. The artist is sometimes seen as a solitary creature, but commercial applications call for team work and consensus.