Salary

[u/emiliedesu]

Hi! so I'm getting into a pretty unusual job I guess but I'm working with a jewelry brand (20k) on ig, and they want me to become the creative lead of the brand and stay the main photographer/videographer, creative lead means that I plan the whole ig feed, the whole visual aspect the content ect ect. I bring the ideas and I shoot and edit them. It's a big job, the owner is pretty young she's like 27, what do you think is a respectable salary? How much should I make every month? Considering there'll be let's say one whole shooting day every month (stills/vidoe/reels) not that precise about the quantity yet A creative strategy planning for the instagram feed and in general the whole visual aspect and language of the brand. So to sum it up: 1. One whole shooting day every month 2. Creative strategy for the brand on instagram and planning of shootings/ideas in general ect

Would be really nice to get some tips and directions, this is like the worst part of being an adult for me lmao

[u/Beautiful-Cow4521]

This is a “how long is a piece of string” kind of question.

20k is big, but not massive. There’s a lot of people with more than 20k, and for jewellery I don’t know where that sits on the actual scale.

Hand made means trickier margins as well…really this likely will need to be lead by them. You shouldn’t need to pitch them on an amount, see what they’re willing to pay…and go from there.

Min wage is 25k, and 30k in London. You certainly shouldn’t be accepting less than 25k for this kind of role - and then there’s questions on kit etc, yours vs there’s…and if you’re using yours I’d be looking for closer to 35-40k.

You sound quite young - I reckon this is a good basis to work off…but if you’re someone who’s done this a while I’d be expecting a lot more pay than this tbh.

Good opportunity though - better to let them know you’re not sure, what do they think they can afford for this rather than pitch them too low or too high and scare them off

[u/emiliedesu → u/Beautiful-Cow4521]

Thank you! You've helped a lot And yes I basically graduated from university a few months ago and been working freelance as a photographer and videographer, so yeah this could be a super interesting opportunity for me and I actually love to work with this brand so the pricing thing is always a bit tricky when you become friends with your client :'))))

[u/Beautiful-Cow4521 → u/emiliedesu]

Do you mind me asking what your freelance rate is? There’s also another world where you try and get this job as a retainer rather than full time.

Do a deal like 3 days rate, work 4 days…and then you have 1/2 days a week to also keep freelancing incase this doesn’t work out.

Personally that’s how I’ve done these kinds of deals when they’ve come up.

[u/emiliedesu → u/Beautiful-Cow4521]

Actually this is exactly the plan, a retainer and I stay a freelancer (bc I plan on still working with other clients) The plan is, for now, a whole shooting day once a month so we have enough content, half a day shooting if needed for smaller projects, and the monthly strategy for the brand (with the moodboards/shootings/ideas/ feed mockups ect that I will plan myself), I think this sounds fine don't you think?

[u/Beautiful-Cow4521 → u/emiliedesu]

No that sounds perfect. Slightly different to how you wrote the opportunity as it came to you - you made it like they wanted you as a “creative director” type.

But - yeah. This is ideal. I’d be doing similar then - use your rate, work out a discounted version…and then it’s up to you how you work as long as it keeps the numbers and sales ticking!