In this series we’re interviewing our top marketplace buyers. We value what they have to say – the marketplaces are pointless without them. And we want to give authors the inside track on what buyers are looking for. So listen up! And feel free to ask more questions in the comments. This week we meet Dean Brady (ice3studios).

Tell us a little about your work. Where are you from? Are you a freelancer or do you work for a company? What sort of work do you do?

What do I do? What day is it? I have been involved in the web since the mid-1990s when I built my first website. That was the old days when animated gifs were “new”. And no, I never put a MIDI file on a site.

I am a freelancer and my services cover marketing, product ideation/development, graphic design, user experience, training/documentation, and web design/development.

I’m a huge software junkie so if there is something my client needs, chances are I can find a tool to do it. Most of my clients are small-medium size so finding them tools that match the expensive enterprise stuff but at reasonable price is my specialty.

How did you discover Envato?

I have no idea. I’ve been a member since May 2010 and I just found it one day. I think I was searching for WordPress templates.

With slashed budgets at many companies, I need a way to speed up the development process. Buying stuff from Envato marketplaces helps me do that. I can pick up something cheap, tweak it a bit and spend far less time than if I had to start from scratch.

What brings you to the Envato marketplaces to buy files? Which marketplaces do you visit? Tell us a little about how you use those files.

I probably spend most of my time on ThemeForest and CodeCanyon, although GraphicRiver is a close third. I do have a number of items from AudioJungle, 3DOcean, VideoHive and ActiveDen.

I have a habit of seeing something “cool” and if I don’t know how it was done, I buy it. I have stuff I’ve purchased from Envato sites that I have never used. I just wanted to see how it was built. Call it cheap education.

Most of the items I purchase get used in client work. I also do a lot of work with non-profit groups like Boy Scouts of America, Lions Clubs International and other local groups and picking up a WordPress theme or graphic for a few bucks can save me hours of time.

I build Corporate marketing materials, training materials, video training, logos, websites, intranets, mobile apps and a lot more so there is always an Envato marketplace tab open in Chrome. Usually 20-30 open just for you guys.

Tell us a little about how you navigate the marketplaces. Where do you start? How do you find the files you purchase? How long does it normally take to find them?

I just dive right in. I usually know what I’m looking for before I get to the site so I go right to the marketplace I need and either search or drill down through the menus. I find it really easy to get to what I need. My problem isn’t finding what I need its finding more than I need.

Do you have any recommendations to authors about how they make their files more suitable for you?

Not trying to get in a shameless plug for my services but clear, easy to follow documentation is key. I have items I’ve purchased that end up not getting used because there was either no documentation or very little.

I understand that the majority of authors are doing this on the side so support is tough but having really good documentation and video training (if appropriate) is a huge help. Makes us buyers happier up front and reduces your support. Win/win.

Are you also an author? Which marketplaces do you sell on? Do you use the files you purchase in your own items?

Not an author yet but I need to get started… I need to get some of my money back.

What do you do when you’re not working?

Wait, people have free time?

I’m in Boy Scouts with my boys, do archery with my daughter, trip over my dog, and mostly, whatever my wife tells me to do.