Things you should not expect from your designer

Don't Expect to Hand Off the Project

It is a collaborative effort and your input is essential to the success of your advertising. The more you convey to your designer the better your end results.

Don’t Micromanage

With the previous being said, you have to trust your designer to design. That is their area of expertise and why you hired them in the first place.

Don't Ask for Spec Work

A designer's business is to present creative approaches to solve your advertising needs. They can’t give away their concepts. Look at their portfolio and see if you like their work but don’t expect them to work on your design without compensation.

Don't Ask for it Overnight

It may look simple when you see the end product but creativity takes time and research.
Errors happen when things are rushed. Think about an upcoming projects in advance, create a realistic timeline and give yourself and your designer enough time to do it right.

Don't Expect Your Designer To Do it All

Your designer has their area of expertise. For example, don’t expect them to be a designer, writer and a photographer all rolled into one. You or the designer may need to subcontract some of the work.

Working with a Graphic Designer is a Team Sport

Every organization has its unique objectives, making marketing, promotions and sales fundamental to every business. The client brings their knowledge and needs of the company, competition and industry. The designer takes the client’s insight and brings in a fresh and original perspective to target their market and impart their business objective.

You can have brilliant ideas, but if you can't get them across, your ideas won't get you anywhere

Lee Iacocca

Your designer is your teammate in the process, not your opponent. They want to make your project get the attention it deserves and help you reach its intended goal.

Your position is the quarterback. You call the plays to meet your needs and let your designer run with the ball. They want to create a marketing piece that shows off your professionalism. Give them as much information as you can. What do you envision the piece looking like? Don’t tell the designer “be creative”. Creativity has infinite possibilities and the chances of the designer making it to the end zone on the first try without your direction are slim. If you have something in mind it usually comes out after the designer gives you the first proof and you say, “that isn’t what I was thinking”. It will save you time and money if you give the designer a rough idea or samples of what you like. Look around at what your opponents are doing and see if you can take a page out of their playbook. You aren't “designing it” but providing a game plan from which they can launch their creativity and polish your ideas.

Give the designer an idea of what you want to achieve. Are you announcing a sale, a new location, a specific product, or just reminding your customers that you are there when they need you? Making your feedback constructive and positive will move the ball in the right direction. The objective is to create a piece that wins the game for both you and the designer.

Attached is a checklist that will help you prepare for the first meeting with your designer and gather the necessary information to start working on your project. Client Checklist pdf

The Written Word

Going into your initial meeting prepared can save
both time and money

Have your notes organized. Don’t arrive with notes written on napkins or your hand. Illegible notes take time for both you and your designer to decipher.

Know what you want to say

Your copy should be organized, unformatted, and saved in a Word .doc file that you can provide to your designer.

The final word

It is best to have your copy written, proofread, and finalized BEFORE getting to the design phase. This is very helpful because your designer will know how much space the copy will require when designing your marketing materials. Adding or subtracting copy can change the entire layout and will require reworking the design.