How to Talk to a Graphic Designer – 5 Helpful Tips

by Myra Stacey | Feb 17, 2020 | Print Design, Services, Web Design

When it comes to the successful completion of a design project, one of the most crucial factors is effective communication between the client and the graphic designer or designing team. Follow these helpful tips on how to talk to a graphic designer to bridge any awkward communication gaps, avoid delays within the project, and achieve the desired outcomes.

1. Be Specific

Be specific and clear with the designer about what your expectations and preferences are. Avoid ambiguity and state exactly why you disagree with the outcome or what changes you need to be done. For example, instead of saying that the design looks unprofessional, clearly state why you think so and what changes would like to see to make it less so.

Be ready to come with styles, fonts, examples, and layouts which you would want the designer to refer to get a firmer grasp of what your expectations are.

2. Keep the Tone Positive

A little bit of positivity can go a long way and keep the morale of the design team high as they complete your project. Choose your words with consideration. Instead of commenting on mistakes, talk about what improvements can be made. Instead of saying that the project outcome was unsatisfactory, state that the graphic designers certainly have the potential to do better. When the environment is positive, so are the results. You can read more about giving feedback to your designer here.

3. Think it From the Designer’s Perspective

Ultimately, some of your expectations on the project and that of the graphic designer may differ. If a designer disagrees with your suggestion, it is likely that they may have already considered it. Instead of getting frustrated with them, think about it from their perspective and what limitations they may be facing.

Ask the designer for their reasoning behind their decision and work with them to find solutions to any limitations or obstacles they may be facing with regard to meeting your expectations.

4. Give Feedback Often

In order for the project to go more smoothly from start to finish, give feedback early and often. This is will ensure that mistakes that occur through the project cycle are remedied on time and give the designing team the needed time to make the desired changes without compromising quality.

5. Avoid Jargon

Unless you are working with a very specialized designing team that only serves clients in your field, avoid technical jargon in your communication with them. Sure, their meaning and context will come to you naturally but such words will be really confusing to your designers, making them more susceptible to misunderstanding your feedback and making mistakes.

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7 Best Practices in Graphic Design

by Myra Stacey | Feb 17, 2020 | Print Design, Services, Web Design

While creativity and skill will get you far, these two alone don’t make a great graphic designer. Just like a pro-athlete focuses as much on technique as on sheer skill, a graphic designer needs to be aware of the industry’s best practices to really take their productivity to the next level. In this article, we share some of the industry’s best practices in graphic design.

1. Choose Appropriate Typefaces
Your choice in fonts and typefaces can make or break the impression of your designs. Use fonts that are appropriate for the target audience e.g. It wouldn’t be a good idea to use comic sans in a design for a major financial client. Avoid using too many fonts – sticking to only those that go well with each other.

2. Imagine your Target Persona
Before you start working on your design project, it is important to create a mental image of the demography, preferences, and background of the target audience that the design will be aimed at. For some projects, it will be easy as your target persona would that be of your clients, while in others, it would be worth it to do some research and understand what your target persona is like.

3. Don’t Be Shy With Asking Questions
Many skilled graphic designers fail to deliver the desired results because they tend to be shy about asking questions from their clients. While asking too many questions that only waste the client’s time is a big no-no, asking none at all can be even worse as the success of a design project requires that the design matches the expectations and preferences of that of the client.

4. Don’t Copy
Take inspiration from other people’s work but don’t copy. Not only is it unprofessional, but it can also possibly lead to you losing client retention as they find out about it and even legal lawsuit if the original design was copyrighted.

5. Focus on What Your Good at and Outsource the Other Tasks
You have limited time and energy and these can be more efficiently utilized if you focus your efforts on what you are good at and outsource the rest of the tasks to others e.g. If you need to add HTML coding into your digital design, hire someone who is good at it and work together.

6. Keep It Simple
Remember that the attention span of a human being, especially in this busy age, is extremely short. If you clutter your design with too much information, it will only end up confusing your target audience and making them lose interest in it. Keep the design clear and simple so to effectively convey the message you want across to the audience.

7. Lastly, Don’t Play It Safe
At its core, graphic designing is all about unleashing your creativity and outshining expectations. Make use of guidelines but don’t be too rigid.

Want to work with a team of designers that go above and beyond in meeting your expectations? Then look no further than the designing pros at Print and Web Designer. Get in touch through our email Info@PrintandWebDesigner.com or call directly at (919) 891-0545.

How to Give Feedback to Your Designer in an Organized, Effective Way

by Myra Stacey | Jan 23, 2020 | Print Design, Services, Web Design

Proper communication with your designer lies at the core of getting the desired results by hiring their services. However, if there’s too much back and forth between you and your designer and you are still not even close to getting the results that you wanted, chances are that they are unable to understand your requirements.

If you want it to be a fruitful collaboration, it’s important to know how to give feedback to your designer in an organized and effective manner.

Here are the top tips for providing constructive design feedback that your designer can actually work upon.

Be Precise About the Changes Required

The obvious way to ensure that your designer understands your needs and preferences is to define them precisely.

Avoid vague statements like ‘make it pop.’ Pinpoint what needs to pop more. Is it the text? The images? Or the color scheme itself?

It is a commonly received comment for many designers. But what you need to remember is that making something ‘pop’ can hold different meanings for different people.

For your designer, it might mean brighter, more attractive colors while all you wanted was the make the titles and subheads bigger and bolder.

Try Not to Micro-Manage

This may seem to contradict what we just said, but there’s a fine line differentiating the two points.

While you definitely need to be specific about your design requirements, it’s important that you try not to be too specific. Laying down the framework down to the minutest detail only prevents you from leveraging the designer’s expertise on the subject.

Tell them about the problem and analyze their suggestions. For instance, you can say that you don’t like the font type because it looks too casual for a site that addresses business owners, and then see the solutions that they come up with.

Use Visuals Where Needed

Providing your designer with links to other sites that you like is never a bad idea. It gives them a fair idea of what you want your own website to look like and thus, allows them to interpret and implement your request for revisions more effectively.

For example, if you feel like the proposed site layout isn’t very easy to navigate, send your designer the link to one that has a simple user interface. This helps them understand what you have in mind.

When you know how to give feedback to your designer, rest assured that you will get a website that is truly exceptional yet completely in line with what you had envisioned.

If you are looking for a professional web designer to help you create an attractive website, get in touch with Print & Web Designers today!

Drop us an email at info@printandwebdesigner.com.

5 Questions To Ask a Designer On A Free Consult Call

by Myra Stacey | Jan 15, 2020 | Print Design, Services, Web Design

From designing your brand logos to your campaign banners to templates for your marketing effort, designers are an integral part of your business success. Before you consider working with one, here are 5 questions to ask a designer on call to make sure they are the right fit for your needs.

1. Can You Tell Me More About Your Design Process?
It is important to get the designer to go you through their entire design process. Not only will this help you understand exactly what you are paying for, but will be able to better coordinate with your designer in meeting the project needs and deadlines.

2. Who Will Own the Design?
Who will be the final owner of the end product is something you should definitely ask the designer you will be working with. If you do not have ownership of the design, you would be severely limited in what you can or cannot do with it.

3. Who Will Be the Person of Contact?
Since a designer may be working with numerous clients or be part of the designing agency, other individuals may be acting as a liaison between you and the designer. It is important to know exactly who you have to contact in case of any emergencies or whether the design project requires any revisions.

4. Can I Get a Quote?
Some designers may list their prices on their websites while others won’t. In the case of the latter, it is important to get an estimate from them to make sure you plan our budget accordingly and don’t get surprised by any unexpected extra charges.
Be sure to also ask them on exactly how they arrived at their rates so you know you aren’t being charged unreasonably.

5. How Will We Be Communicating?
For the successful completion of any project, communication is crucial. You should ask them how communications will work between you and them as well as through what mediums (phone calls, emails, VOIP). The easier it is to communicate with the designer, the better.

Looking for a reputable professional designer for your design needs? Get in touch with the design pros at Print and Web Designer. For further details on our service or any queries, email us at info@printandwebdesigner.com.