At some point in your business career, you are going to need to hire a graphic designer. From logos to nearly everything else you put on your site or marketing materials, graphics speak volumes about your company. So it makes sense that you should be very picky about the designer that you hire, but that can be much easier said than done.
If you’re currently in the position of hiring a graphic designer for your display graphics, here are some ways to make sure that the person you’re hiring is the best person for the job.
- The right kind of experience. With the goal of hiring a designer for display graphics, you should skip over any designers that only have experiencing with Internet logos. Or, look for someone that has done both print and virtual work. Designs don’t often translate from one medium to the next, so keep this in mind.
- Make sure the designer you hire understands what you do. You’d be surprised at the failed logos and display graphics that can come from a designer that doesn’t have any idea what you do. The person you hire doesn’t have to know all the details of your complex technology, but they should have a basic understanding of what your company stands for.
- Clarify your company’s voice, mission, and culture before hiring a designer. There’s a good reason why two companies selling the same thing have very different logos and print designs, and that difference is often based on company culture. If you’re running a really laid back office, you probably don’t want a design that says the opposite.
- Keep cost in mind. Typically, freelancer designers do not charge as much as agencies, but there’s a capping point. If the freelancer you want to hire charges the same rate as the design agency you’re thinking about, you may want to go with the agency. Why? You may get an entire team of designers instead of just one guy. Then again, a freelancer may have a unique edge, and that’s why that person can charge those super high rates. In the end, it will come down to what you can afford. Remember you get what you pay for.
- Go with word of mouth. It works for home improvement projects and contractors, it will work for hiring a designer. Ask your network about a designer that can get your job done right. If someone has worked with a designer that they love before, there’s a good chance that they will quickly recommend that person to you. Of course, the opposite is also true. If someone has worked with a designer that turned out to be a total nightmare, you’ll probably hear about this negative review quickly.
- Make sure that the designer you want to work with has the time for your project. Find out how many other projects the person is currently working on, set your deadline, and send out that contract. If you have to meet a specific deadline, you don’t want your design to be completed way after the deadline has been set.
- Get all of the originals, and make sure that this is part of the deal. There have been numerous lawsuits between companies and the designers that create company logos. This is one instance where you may want to hire a lawyer to draft up a solid contract stating that you own all of the rights to all the original artwork created for your company.
Our Trade Show Work
The Blazer team is here to help make sure that any exhibit you bring with you to an upcoming show stands out – design and all. Our team of designers can work with you to understand your company culture, what you need to make sure that your company is far above the rest when it comes to trade show designs, and we can also help you set up and take down (and store!) any displays that you have.
Take your time to find the right designer or design team for your project, and contact us for any additional information you need when it comes to trade show exhibits and designs. You can also find us on Facebook.