u/gcbrook

I’ve worked in the creative industries for around 25 years, and for the last 15 I’ve been self-employed, running my own small video production company in London.

In the last 2/3 years I've found myself longing to move away from the client/agency-based model altogether. Why?

The main reason for me is that the business model itself feels more and more difficult to build a stable life around. Let's have it straight, a lot of clients are unreliable, late-paying, budget-obsessed and increasingly there's zero loyalty. That goes for B2B clients and agencies. I've found the pressure to do more for less, turn things around faster and justify the value of my experience, judgement and craft is increasing year after year. And I'm trying to justify myself to people who I don’t believe really understand or appreciate it what I do. Maybe that's my failure to communicate the value I bring?

And now of course AI has added another unhelpful layer to the situation. Some clients appear to think video work should be quicker, cheaper and easier because tools exist that can generate “good enough” output.

For me, the deeper issue is control. With clients/agencies I do the work, hand over the assets, get paid once and then have to go and find the next project. I’m left with a portfolio piece, but nothing much that compounds or belongs to me in any meaningful business sense. The only hope of repeating revenue is client loyalty, and that is disappearing rapidly IMO. That makes income feel unreliable, and after years of it, I’m finding it stressful and wearing. I can only see this situation getting worse.

I’m curious whether other freelance/self-employed creatives in this group feel the same.

Are you still happy building your career/business around client or agency work? Or are you also looking for another model — a side income, your own product, your own audience, or a way to build something that isn’t entirely dependent on the next client saying yes?

Genuinely interested in both sides. If you’re happy with the client model, I’d like to understand how / why. If you’re not, I’d like to know what you’re thinking of doing about it?

I’ve worked in the creative industries for around 25 years, and for the last 15 I’ve been self-employed, running my own small video production company in London.

In the last 2/3 years I've found myself longing to move away from the client/agency-based model altogether. Why?

The main reason for me is that the business model itself feels more and more difficult to build a stable life around. Let's have it straight, a lot of clients are unreliable, late-paying, budget-obsessed and increasingly there's zero loyalty. That goes for B2B clients and agencies. I've found the pressure to do more for less, turn things around faster and justify the value of my experience, judgement and craft is increasing year after year. And I'm trying to justify myself to people who I don’t believe really understand or appreciate it what I do. Maybe that's my failure to communicate the value I bring?

And now of course AI has added another unhelpful layer to the situation. Some clients appear to think video work should be quicker, cheaper and easier because tools exist that can generate “good enough” output.

For me, the deeper issue is control. With clients/agencies I do the work, hand over the assets, get paid once and then have to go and find the next project. I’m left with a portfolio piece, but nothing much that compounds or belongs to me in any meaningful business sense. The only hope of repeating revenue is client loyalty, and that is disappearing rapidly IMO. That makes income feel unreliable, and after years of it, I’m finding it stressful and wearing. I can only see this situation getting worse.

I’m curious whether other freelance/self-employed creatives in this group feel the same.

Are you still happy building your career/business around client or agency work? Or are you also looking for another model — a side income, your own product, your own audience, or a way to build something that isn’t entirely dependent on the next client saying yes?

Genuinely interested in both sides. If you’re happy with the client model, I’d like to understand how / why. If you’re not, I’d like to know what you’re thinking of doing about it?

I’ve worked in the creative industries for around 25 years, and for the last 15 I’ve been self-employed, running my own small video production company in London.

In the last 2/3 years I've found myself longing to move away from the client/agency-based model altogether. Why?

The main reason for me is that the business model itself feels more and more difficult to build a stable life around. Let's have it straight, a lot of clients are unreliable, late-paying, budget-obsessed and increasingly there's zero loyalty. That goes for B2B clients and agencies. I've found the pressure to do more for less, turn things around faster and justify the value of my experience, judgement and craft is increasing year after year. And I'm trying to justify myself to people who I don’t believe really understand or appreciate it what I do. Maybe that's my failure to communicate the value I bring?

And now of course AI has added another unhelpful layer to the situation. Some clients appear to think video work should be quicker, cheaper and easier because tools exist that can generate “good enough” output.

For me, the deeper issue is control. With clients/agencies I do the work, hand over the assets, get paid once and then have to go and find the next project. I’m left with a portfolio piece, but nothing much that compounds or belongs to me in any meaningful business sense. The only hope of repeating revenue is client loyalty, and that is disappearing rapidly IMO. That makes income feel unreliable, and after years of it, I’m finding it stressful and wearing. I can only see this situation getting worse.

I’m curious whether other freelance/self-employed creatives in this group feel the same.

Are you still happy building your career/business around client or agency work? Or are you also looking for another model — a side income, your own product, your own audience, or a way to build something that isn’t entirely dependent on the next client saying yes?

Genuinely interested in both sides. If you’re happy with the client model, I’d like to understand how / why. If you’re not, I’d like to know what you’re thinking of doing about it?

I’ve worked in the creative industries for around 25 years, and for the last 15 I’ve been self-employed, running my own small company in London.

In the last 2/3 years I've found myself longing to move away from the client/agency-based model altogether. Why?

The main reason for me is that the business model itself feels more and more difficult to build a stable life around. Let's have it straight, a lot of clients are unreliable, late-paying, budget-obsessed and increasingly there's zero loyalty. That goes for B2B clients and agencies. I've found the pressure to do more for less, turn things around faster and justify the value of my experience, judgement and craft is increasing year after year. And I'm trying to justify myself to people who I don’t believe always understand or appreciate it what I do. Maybe that's my failure to communicate the value I bring?

And now of course AI has added another unhelpful layer to the situation. Some clients now appear to think creative work should be quicker, cheaper and easier because tools exist that can generate “good enough” output.

For me, the deeper issue is control. With client work, I do the work, hand over the assets to the client, get paid once, and then have to go and find the next project. I’m left with a portfolio piece, perhaps, but nothing much that compounds or belongs to me in any meaningful business sense. The only hope of repeating revenue is client loyalty, and that is disappearing rapidly IMO. That makes income feel unreliable, and after years of it, I’m finding it stressful and wearing.

I’m curious whether other freelance/self-employed creatives in this group feel the same.

Are you still happy building your career/business around client or agency work? Or are you also looking for another model — a side income, your own product, your own audience, or a way to build something that isn’t entirely dependent on the next client saying yes?

Genuinely interested in both sides. If you’re happy with the client model, I’d like to understand how / why. If you’re not, I’d like to know what you’re thinking of doing about that?