Tag: Integrity

Availability: Service Provider vs Expert

Sometimes I’m hired for my service. Sometimes for my expertise.

Here’s the difference:

Service Provider

When we offer services, we don’t just get paid by our clients for our work and solutions to their problems.

We are mainly getting paid for reliability. In a competitive market, this is our most important selling point.

Providing a service demands a certain level of availability and flexibility—these are parts of reliability.

No masterpiece serves the client if it’s not delivered on time, and if the client feels that they cannot rely on us, we will be replaced sooner or later.

When I started offering my illustration service, I was aware that ad agencies work fast and on short notice and that magazines have strict deadlines. These are mostly non-negotiable conditions.

It’s my job to align my schedule around the client’s schedule. Not the other way around.

Accepting these conditions is not only mandatory. More than that, we have to find joy in meeting expectations. Making collaboration as smooth and pleasant as possible for all parties should be taken as a personal matter.

Expert

Things change as soon as we get hired as super-specific experts.

We’ll become these experts when we invest significantly more time and effort in a chosen subject than others. We gain a unique perspective through experiences and knowledge.

Experts are hardly outperformed by the competition. Someone who is easily replaceable is most likely not an expert.

When I am invited by companies and universities to give talks and share my experience about creativity or how to establish a freelance business, for instance, I am not the service provider anymore. Then, I’m the expert.

The expert is treated and compensated differently because the expert provides unique and precious knowledge in a specific field.

The expert is asked for availability because expertise will always be demanded and appreciated in any field.