MS Paint and clip-art won’t hack it any more for you or your company. Time to take it to the next level. Let’s make things more professional. In order to create a professional look and feel, you need a professional graphic designer. One that can realize your company’s visions of aesthetic excellence.
Of course you can follow the suggestions below, but should a friend, or colleague refers you to one that they know, or have worked with, more than likely you are going to have a good repoire with them, and they will generally give you a better price.
Where to begin choosing a Graphic Designer:
- Browsing companies and freelancers. Look in the Yellow Pages, Super Pages, and browse the Internet for graphic designers. Create a list of graphic designers to interview and research.
- Portfolio. This is the most important part of the evaluation. Every professional graphic designer has a portfolio online and / or offline. The better the designer, the larger the portfolio will be. Their portfolio should be both designed well and show examples of what you are looking for. The designer should be able to inform you on how they came up with the different designs, its’ purpose, what the objective was, and the inspiration used to get to the final product. Thin down your search to only those graphic designers that have portfolios consistent with the work you want done.
- Presentation. A professional graphic designer will have an excellent work ethic. Evaluate their interaction with you while interviewing them. Do they respond quickly, clearly and in a professional manner? Clear communication is essential, since you will be giving them feedback and ideas for your design.
- References. A professional graphic designer has an excellent track record. The graphic designer should be able to refer you to their clients and/or show you the work they have done for other clients. Ask to contact them, and listen to their experiences with your graphic designer.
- Formal education. Anyone can pirate a copy of Photoshop and say they are proficient at it. You are looking for someone with technical skills, such as special training in multimedia, information technology graphics, computer graphics design and a thorough understanding of the marketing aspects of graphic design.
- Quality. If you are looking for a graphic designer, you’re looking to have it done right. Make sure you see professional quality graphics. Graphics that sell you on what they are supposed to. If you see poor quality images put together or basic clip art graphics being used in a portfolio, then that is likely what you will get.
- Quotes. Price is a big issue with everyone. You could say “You get what you pay for” or you could say “You get more than you could have hoped for”. Getting the lowest price does not always mean getting the least work. IF you choose to use a large company, expect to pay more. If you are going with a freelance designer, expect to pay less. The best way to determine if the price is right, is to check the portfolio, then request a free quote. Compare the quote to the quality of work in the portfolio. If you see good work, and a good price, you have a good designer. Make sure the price matches the quality of the work.
- Response Time. It is important that a designer responds to your requests and queries as soon as possible so you know you are important to them. If it takes days to respond, they are either too busy to work with you, or are simply not very professional. Either way, they are not for you.
- Efficiency and Clarity. Make sure the designer can understand exactly what you are looking for. There is nothing worse than having a mental picture of what you want, only to get samples so different you wonder where it came from, and need to explain it again. A professional graphic designer will read your needs, confirm everything with you and ask questions or provide suggestions before any work begins.
- Gut feeling. If you’re having a bad feeling about someone, then it’s probably best to keep shopping. You need a graphic designer that is knowledgeable and easy to work with. One that can understand your point of view and create the look and feel you want.