Designers: get it right from the beginning

Set Realistic Expectations.

Good design takes work and collaboration. Establishing realistic expectations with your designer from the start will save a lot of headaches.

Establish a list of goals in a design brief.

A well-written design brief will make everybody happy. It can establish goals, clarify your brand message, outline likes, and dislikes and provide any other information relevant to the project.

Understand quality work will take time.

A lot of strategic thought, sketching, more sketching and brainstorming go into the creation of logos, ads and marketing materials. All of these things are necessary steps in creating effective graphics that speak to customers. Knowing that, within reason, good design takes time will ease tension between you and your design team.

Say no to spec work.

Clients, don’t expect it. Designers, don’t do it.

Designers are business people like everyone else. Asking them to produce “speculative work” that they may not get paid for trivializes that business. It’s like going to several bakeries and eating a cookie at each of them. Then, after eating all of them, deciding which one you will pay for. No business owner would let you get away with that. Since it is highly unlikely that you would give away your services for free, you cannot expect others to do the same.