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How to Choose a Reliable Graphic Design Partner
We provide a guide for small business owners and entrepreneurs on how to choose a graphic design partner.
In previous articles, we provided a guide to crafting a memorable brand identity and explained our entire web design process in detail. In both articles, we discussed how hiring a graphic designer or agency can help bring your vision to light in contrast to using free templates and tools.
In this article, we will share our experience from years of working in the creative field on the important decision of choosing a graphic design partner for your project or business. We will share what has worked well for us and our clients in the past and what might be potential pitfalls to avoid.
Although, in our experience, the understanding among business owners and the public of the importance of good graphic design for a brand has increased in recent years, we still think there is a long way to go. It would be an understatement to say that most of the information we consume on a daily basis is in visual form. It is a typical experience for the first-time business owner to find that they need graphic design assistance for almost every task. From pitch decks to business cards to social media posts, marketing emails, landing pages for ads, product packaging, almost every item needs to be designed with the brand in mind, in order to keep the customer experience great and consistent.
Faced with this reality, business owners tend to react in two general ways – cutting corners wherever possible or making the effort and necessary investment to do things right. Of course, we believe that the first approach is a compromise at best, which rarely leads to satisfactory outcomes in the long run. But what if you as a business owner have recognized the need to uphold your visual brand and adhere to its standards in all media you produce? That still leaves you with far too many ways of approaching the issue. Finding the right designer or agency is by no means an easy or straightforward task.
One of the main choices you will have to make is whether to look for a freelance designer, to hire one for your team or to entrust an agency with your branding project. All three options have pros and cons that you need to be aware of before you decide.
One option is to look for and hire a freelance designer for your project. Freelancers are usually flexible, both in terms of pricing and timelines. You can expect to work with them fairly closely on your project and communicate with them directly. They are ideal for project-based work or for businesses that are just starting out, as they do not require a high degree of commitment from the start. They are also typically the cheapest option of the three, though there are exceptions. If it works out well, a close business relationship can develop over time. They can grow to know your brand intimately, which can help them do more consistent and higher-quality work on it.
There are, however, some things to keep in mind when working with freelancers. One potential issue is that, because they work alone and independently, they might not be suited to large, time-consuming projects or jobs that require a wide range of skills. Some projects are simply too big for a single designer to handle. You should recognize this beforehand to avoid disappointments, delays and projects falling through. If the designer warns you that the project scope might be too great for them, listen. They know best.
Also, requiring a designer to consistently show creativity and produce novel ideas in the same project and for a prolonged period of time can be exhausting and very often leads to burnout. In fact, experienced designers become adept at recognizing projects and clients that are too demanding, too emotionally and creatively draining and often turn them down.
On the other hand, it is not uncommon to stumble upon a highly skilled designer who lacks a fundamental business ethic. Some freelancers are prone to disappear, suddenly becoming unavailable, missing deadlines, causing delays, refusing to cooperate, etc. Before you choose a designer you should read as much feedback from prior clients as you can find. The portfolio itself is not enough and can be misleading. Trust us, we’ve been there.
Finally, a graphic designer will develop a unique working style over time and will often niche down to a few industries, visual styles, and client types. You should review their work to see if a good fit exists between their prior work and what you’re after. Requiring a designer to suddenly shift their style to accommodate you rarely works out well and can become tiresome for both parties.
Another option you have as a business owner is to hire in-house designers to support you full-time. This is, of course, a costlier and more demanding option than hiring a freelancer on a project basis, but it has some pros. Perhaps the greatest benefit of having an in-house designer is their undivided attention. They will be working solely on your projects and won’t be as distracted as a freelancer serving multiple clients. Being a part of your organization, the in-house designer should be able to understand your culture, values and specific needs the best. Ideally, if they fit in well, this will motivate them, make their work easier and better. As hiring a designer involves a longer-term contractual commitment, it becomes even more important to check if they really feel at home in your organization – as a person and a creative professional.
The greatest potential con of hiring an in-house designer is that their designs can become stale over time. This comes naturally from working on the same projects for an extended period. On top of that, if your organization is conservative and uses strict visual guidelines, this can become too constrictive for the designer. They might attempt to propose a new way of doing things and some fresh new ideas, but receiving no support, they are likely to give up. We believe that this is highly detrimental to a brand in the long term as it stifles innovation and limits its ability to adapt to changing circumstances. If you hire an in-house designer, then our advice would be to accept and foster their creativity and give them room to experiment. That way they will have a chance to impress you, and, in most cases, they will not let you down.
Finally, you can entrust your design work to an agency. As they typically comprise a team of designers and other professionals, agencies are better equipped to handle larger, more complex projects that require a diverse set of skills and more manpower. They are also typically better organized than freelancers, relying on more streamlined processes and adhering to a stricter, centrally enforced timeline. The larger your business becomes and the more numerous and complex its graphic design requirements grow, the more an agency gains in attractiveness as a business partner. Agencies can be expected to exhibit a higher creative stamina than individuals as they can draw from a larger set of ideas. As they are subject to employee turnover, their talent pool is usually in constant flux. This allows for new ideas on existing projects.
Because of their size and complexity, however, agencies are typically slower to react when changes to designs are needed. Depending on the project size and its relative importance to the agency, it often happens that junior people get assigned to it. That way, you only get a fraction of the experience you may be paying for. While the agency founders and senior management may be very talented, they may never work on your projects directly. Naturally, because of their higher overhead and labor costs, agencies are typically significantly more expensive than freelancers. While you may be initially satisfied with the results, you may begin to feel that you’re not getting good value for money.
This often happens when an agency grows too quickly without having enough time to adapt to the higher workload and complexity of tasks. If poorly managed, you can expect high employee turnover to mean working with a new representative every few weeks. All of this makes communication difficult, irritating and unpredictable. Projects may begin to fall behind schedule, you might find yourself bogged down in meetings explaining things that should have been known by now, etc. As with all other options, working with an agency is no magical solution.
As we have shown, freelancers, in-house designers and agencies all have their specific pros and cons, which make them more or less suitable for you depending on your business size, project scope and other factors. There are a few things to keep in mind when choosing a designer, no matter what form the business relationship takes.
First and foremost, we believe it is important to treat designers with the same level of respect as all other business partners. This sometimes becomes an issue, though admittedly less frequently in recent years, as some business owners believe that design work isn’t real work, isn’t serious or valuable enough, etc. Of course, nothing could be further from the truth. Treat your designer with respect and they are likely to reciprocate. In addition, given the creative nature of their work, which can be emotionally and cognitively draining in its own unique way, designers have distinct needs that set them apart from other business partners or employees. In general, a degree of creative autonomy is very important to them. They do not like to be told exactly what to do. In fact, we believe, this would be a very bad sign. In short, give your designers the creative freedom they need so they can impress you.
As we said above, you can review their past work to understand their creative style and its limits, how it has evolved over time, and if it agrees with the vision you have for your brand. Realistically, you cannot expect a designer to continuously change their style in a radical way. For example, a designer who has predominantly worked on soft, abstract, feminine designs may have difficulty working on projects that require aggressive, assertive and maximalist design despite them being clearly talented. The same goes for specialization along industry and client type. It is very likely for a designer to attract a similar type of client who responds to their personality and style. Over time, this creates a process, an understanding of how business ought to be done that may or may not agree with yours. This can be hard to quantify, but you can examine how you feel when communicating and working with them – does the relationship “click” or does it feel forced? If so, there is nothing wrong with looking somewhere else. It is usually best for both parties.
As we mentioned before, you should also make sure that the designer you hire has a good business ethic, no matter how talented they may be. Read reviews about them to see if they are reliable, if they respond quickly to requests, if they communicate well, if they are well organized. You will save yourself a lot of hassle. Look for red flags in communication and do not ignore them. See if the designer is proactive, if they solve more problems than they create. A good designer will tell you exactly what they need to get the job done. If the project brief is too vague or unclear, they will make the effort and talk it through with you instead of shooting in the dark. They will be honest with you if they believe your ideas won’t work, they will want the best for your brand, they will go out of their way to achieve it. If you notice that they are providing the most value they can, be prepared to pay for it, reward them for it.
In short, apply common sense when choosing a designer.
As we have shown in this article, finding a great design partner for your business can be challenging, as there are many potential pitfalls that can lead to bad results and disappointments. Most of them, however, can be avoided by applying common sense and following a few simple guidelines.
Crucially, do not expect a magical solution. Instead, expect a strong healthy relationship with the right partner to take time and effort to develop on both sides. Treat them with respect and expect the same. Be clear, define well what you need, set reasonable goals. Give designers room and creative freedom but expect work to be delivered on time.
Ensure a good fit between your vision for your brand and their style. Gain a clear enough picture of their creative abilities and do not expect them to change their style overnight. Be realistic about the complexity and size of your project. If it can only be done by a team of people, don’t expect a single designer to manage. Beware of creative fatigue and burnout. Finally, accept the search for a great design partner as a journey. You will learn a lot along the way.
If we can help you with your next project, we would be glad to assist!
Get in touch today!
