Trouble landing clients?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Now that the lovey-dovey mood, which Valentine’s Day brings has come and went, I start wondering what can I do to catch the wanted client who is still passing me by.  Do you ever wonder what makes a client choose one designer over another? There are some big lies out there on how to get a client, but there are some exciting facts that show what clients really want from a designer.

“Repetition does not transform a lie into a truth”.  FDR

Lies, myths and false statements

It’s important to understand a few myths we as designers have come to believe about being hired by a client.

Clients only want experience

Designers (especially recently graduated) think they don’t have a chance to be hired by a client because they have no real experience. Don’t let this lie stop you from finding great clients who are looking for a young, fresh approach to their design process.

A lot of clients would prefer to hire someone they feel has a lot to learn, rather than, someone who is set in their stubborn ways.

Clients hire designers who have a great portfolio

Similar to the first lie, a lot of naive designers think that unless they have a vast portfolio, no client is  going to hire them.

In fact, it’s the opposite.  Choose a few really strong projects, highlight them effectively in a portfolio, and show them off with pride. If you do this right, a smart client will hire you.

Clients only hire cheap designers

Most designers feel like they have to have the best bargain in order for clients to hire them.  The truth is, most clients are willing to pay a little more for quality designs.  Most clients are also willing to pay more money for a designer who is easy and enjoyable to work with.

Find ways to add quality to your client/designer relationship and you won’t have to lower your prices in order to get hired.

All truths are easy to understand once they are discovered; the point is to discover them. Galileo Galilei

Facts, truths and real statements

 Clients hire responsible and easy to work with designers

Clients are usually more interested in the working relationship they will have with you than almost anything else.  If they can’t work with you, if you won’t listen to them, or if you’re rude, they won’t care how great your designs look; you’ll never get hired.

Make sure you present yourself as a responsible and agreeable person, that way you’ll be more likely to get hired.

Clients wants designers who are respectful

You can have your own opinion, but when you intentionally insult, degrade, or talk down to your clients, you’ll quickly have a one-way ticket to unemployment.

Clients look for designers who respect their opinions. Be respectful.

Clients look for designers with the skills needed to complete their project well

You may not be the best designer in the world,  but your potential clients may not be looking for that.  They are looking for someone who possesses the skills necessary to complete the job well and on time.

That doesn’t just include design skills or a fancy portfolio either. They are looking for someone with a good work ethic, a personable attitude, great project management skills, and superb people skills.

These are some lies and facts of what clients want from a designer.  What are some other pointers that will guide us to reach more clients, effectively?

What other tips and pointers would you add to this list? If you were a client, what would you look for in a designer?

I love to KISS!

We are in February and my friends like to call it the “month of love”; I guess that’s why I feel like talking about KISS.  My husband tries to use it all the time and lately I found myself applying KISS to most of my designs.  You don’t know how to?  It’s basic, just Keep It Simple S(weetheart)…naaaa, Keep It Simple Stupid!

As graphic designers we should apply this rule for many reasons, but the most important, is for our own mental health.

 

Let me show you why I love to KISS:

 

Communication

Graphic design is a form of creative communication and KISS is the key ingredient of communication.  When you speak with fewer words, usually your point is more clearly addressed and when you design with fewer elements your message does not get lost by everything else going on.

The moment you have to explain your design to anyone, the whole purpose of creating it is lost.

Google

Google is a great example of KISS.  As one of the biggest companies, they simply have a logo above their search box on a blank white page; as simple as it gets.

Being Different

There is plenty of advertising clutter out there and if you’re trying to stand out amidst all the colors, flashy images and more, then you need to do something different, you need to KISS.

KISS Sells

When everyone’s trying to be a pioneer, they are overlooking the primary reason for their designs and creativity –  to sell.  If your product doesn’t sell, an award winning design will get you nowhere.  You can have the coolest business cards and the craziest letterheads, but if they don’t match your company’s image, it means nothing.

Since all of this is completely true and despite their apparent simplicity, effective graphic design is not created randomly or by chance.  When designs are simple they are well created – they last indefinitely.

“Any fool can make things complicated, but it takes a genius to make things simple”  E.F. Schumacher

In this month and for the rest of the year, how will you KISS?

Sketching can take your designs to another level

Technology is ruling the world, that’s been evident for a long time now (if it doesn’t already). Which leave the good old pen and paper forgotten in the attic.

In this article I will address why you should turn off your computer, put away your tablet, and go back to the basics during your design process, at the same time you will be provided with some tips on how to get started in effective sketching.

Why should you sketch?

When you start a project, there’s a tendency to automatically start coming up with various ideas. These ideas may seem great, but there’s a big chance that your first ideas are pretty obvious.
Sketching lets you get all the obvious ideas out of the way, so you can start coming up with interesting, more innovative designs. Plus, you never know what will inspire you – it could be one of those obvious sketches that spark a great idea.

You can sketch where ever you are

Taking a sketchbook and a pen is even more convenient than carrying your laptop. You might end up finding yourself in more interesting areas like the beach or a  park, as well as museums and subways.  You will also be exposing yourself to different environments, which will inspire your designs and bring you new ideas.

Find the artist in you

There’s something about holding a pencil in your hand that activates your creativity in a much different way than holding a mouse. When you get used, the movements of your hand become much more fluid and it becomes really easy and natural. You may also start seeing some ‘artistic’ influences in your design work.
The more you practice, the better you will become at sketching.

Get in touch with your designs

For me, one of the most important benefits of sketching is that it gets you in touch with your design work on a whole new level. By spending so much time developing a solid concept, you have a stronger understanding of the elements that go into your design.

Let’s sketch!

Word lists
These come very handy when you’re starting a new project, or completely stuck with one you’ve been working on for a while. With word lists you basically list every possible word that’s related to the subject of your project. When I use these for my projects, I first come up with all the words I can think of, then circle the best ones and create sketches of them to get things going.

Draw, it doesn’t matter what, just draw something
Often, facing a blank page can be a bit intimidating. It’s hard to know where to start and what you’re supposed to sketch.

Just sketch something!

It doesn’t matter. Just let your mind and your hand wander together.  As long as you’re sketching something, you’re on the right track to coming up with your next great design. Don’t forget that your sketches don’t have to be the a piece of art. You don’t need to fall into the perfection trap…every ‘mistake’ you make is really an opportunity to get better and learn.

Remember this: no one has to see your sketches, so don’t be shy!

Sketch out of the box
I try to designate specific sketchbooks for specific things. “This will be the sketchbook for these designs and that one for these other sketches” Unfortunately (well, maybe it’s not unfortunate), it doesn’t always happen that way.

Sketch anywhere and everywhere. Ideas come to us at unpredictable times, and in unpredictable places. It’s hard to keep track of which sketchbook is for what, and which one you’re supposed to be carrying around. That’s why you should use whatever’s available, even napkins.

Free time
To start falling in love with it try sketching in your free time, too. Sketch things for fun, big things, tall things, buildings, clocks, fluffy animals.

Be creative
Find what works best for you. Try using different tools like pens, pencils, watercolors, charcoal, and chalk as well as different surfaces. Use ones with which you feel you can express yourself in the best possible way and you enjoy most. The more fun you make this for yourself, the easier it will be to stick to it.

In times of where a pencil sounds like an obsolete tool, do you still make time for sketching before your designs?  If so, what are your techniques?  If not, would you try it?

Clients…are they dictating your designs?

There is a point in a designer’s career, that  you will, if you haven’t already, come in contact with a client that wants to rule the entire project. They pick on the colors, the layout, and the typeface (Comic Sans anyone?). Everytime you try put in your two sense, you’re shut down. I mean,  you wouldn’t hire an mechanic to fix your car and tell him that he is doing it all wrong, would you?

Before you give up and drop every curse word in the book (hopefully after the clients leaves or hangs up the phone) continue reading for ideas on how you can bring some light on a difficult, mindset client.

Education . . . when does this happens?

Before signing the contract! It’d be easy to say that education happens all the time during a design project. While that may be the case,  if you haven’t set expectations properly up front, you are probably going to have problems later on. Learning how to educate your clients certainly will be the key of your success on the “battle for designs”.  When a project begins, it’s important to establish that you are an expert and that your opinion is grounded in research and professional experience.  Why? Because establishing your own credibility is important to getting them to understand that there is more than just a “gut feeling” behind your decisions.

Clearly explain your concept, just after taking the time of listening to the clients concept

Lack of communication and miscommunications can often destroy an entire project. When your client have a concept in mind, you should be able to take their ideas into consideration. They chose you because you are the right person for the job and you must treat it this way. Make sure to listen to their ideas and make sure they listen to yours. And hopefully come to a happy medium.

Your client have a “listening time”, use it wisely

Carefully listen to their idea, immediately after your time has come and you most use it effectively.  Explain them why you will like to use certain fonts or how your color scheme would be more effective than the ones they had in mind. Explain your ideas and reasoning carefully. Use the basics; who, what, why and how. Please don’t use your fancy design jargon. Save that for the playground! Act professionally and simple on your explanations,  this will increase your chances of having more say with the outcome.

Visual explanation…

You can show them a comparison of the two concepts, their idea and yours. This would require more time and effort but it would help them visually see the difference. Show them books or other examples of good, effective design which would assist helping them gain a broader, more visual idea of design. While showing these examples, follow the same procedure as above, and provide them with precise detail on why and how they work.

A big challenge for any designer is to learn how to manage clients successfully.  Educating them has always been the smartest way to maintain good relationships.  It is very important that you take the time to do this regularly in order to develop a pleasant experience for yourself and your client.

Graphic Design Trends for 2012

Graphic Design Trends for 2012

While there are key classic practices that should make your designs safe every year in terms of projection and content, you will not be able to guarantee its effectiveness if it stays static.  The key to continuous success with your work,  is for you to always develop them with the current trends in mind.  In this special guide, we will go through some of the most important trends that you will want to include in your custom designs this New Year 2012. If you can integrate this properly enough, there should be little issues and more success.

Design trends for this year are bold and aim to grab audience attention.

Logos: Create streamlined logos and graphics – For 2012, all designers are upgrading their logos and graphics to more streamlined variations.

Simplicity rules: Simple designs are in right now, and the reason for that is, well… simple.

Type can be design: In the absence of complicated visuals, typography is playing a larger role in design. Those designers who know how to put typefaces to work to their best advantage will come out on top.

As we move together into a new year, we are promised some amazing advances in the world of technology and design. Evolving your brand through web design, print design and even architectural design are ways that you can stay ahead of the competition and encounter new demographics in your market.