Commissioning a professional graphic designer.
Did you know that when you commission a new logo you’re not just buying a design that looks nice and colourful?
You’re investing in one of the most important elements of your brand so it makes sense to commission a professional graphic designer carefully and not be tempted to settle for the cheapest option.
I tend to work through ten steps for my clients and I thought I’d share them with you, so here they are.
Step 1 – Create a brief.
I like to create an outline brief for a project by asking simple questions such as “What is it that you or your company does?” or “Who is your ideal customer?” to get an understanding of where you want to position yourself. I also have a logo design brief which I can go through with you to help create the brief.
Step 2 – Undertake research.
It’s time to research the market and find out who your competitors are and what their brand (if they have one) looks like. Notes are made and sometimes a few scribbles go down on paper too!
Step 3 – Draw out ideas.
Lots of plain paper and time to start sketching, this is the fun bit where any idea is jotted down as it may be suitable for further development.
Step 4 – Create concepts.
Here’s where the sketches and ideas are worked up on screen, fonts are chosen and layouts are put together – normally only in black and white at this stage to see what does and doesn’t work.
Step 5 – Take time out.
Get out of the seat and go and put the kettle on. It’s an important part as taking a break gives me a fresh viewpoint when I return. The amazing layout I first came up with may not look so good the second time around. It’s also a good time to get feedback from other members of the team.
Step 6 – Present to the client.
The best ideas are selected and then worked up in colour ready to present to the client, I like to show up to three options to allow the client to focus on the suggestions.
Step 7 – Get feedback.
The client will always have an opinion and it may be that elements of all three suggestions are liked and it is at this point where I can decide what needs developing further.
Step 8 – Develop further.
When my client is happy with the final concept it’s time to look at other brand elements such as additional fonts to be used in printed and web-based material and a colour palette to enhance the brand.
Step 9 – Prepare the set of files.
Once my client is happy with their signed-off logo I like to prepare a final set of files for both print and web. The set will normally comprise editable vector files such as an EPS and a PDF and a set of web-ready files such as a JPEG, PNG and TIFF.
Step 10 – Add it to the portfolio.
Provided my client is happy for me to do so I will add it to my website and social media sites to promote my client’s brand and my work. That’s what you get from a professional graphic designer.
If you want to find out more about commissioning a professional graphic designer contact us.
