Building a Better Relationship with Your Designer

Let me guess… You’re not getting the quality of work you want It’s not on time It’s not within your budget It’s driving you crazy

What your designer thinks Did they just realize they needed this (insert project here) today?!? Do they really think this (insert project here) is going to make a difference? Did they proof any of this copy before I got it? Why am I even working on this if they’re just going to change everything I do? They’re driving me crazy!

Realities Average human attention span is now 8 seconds You need to capture your audience’s attention to get your return on investment Good design takes time, planning, and work by both the client and the designer Good design captures attention

Common ground Understandings Organization’s mission Audience Goals Tools Production schedule Style guide Templates

Keys to production schedule Due dates and responsible parties Info to content producer Final content to designer First pass due Art to printer Mailing list to printer Due in-house Other important info Quantity Budget Special instructions Write it down!

Sample production schedule

Creating a production schedule Work backwards When do you need the job in-house? Minimum 10 days back for art to printer Final content delivered to designer Minimum 10 days back from art to printer date Info due to content producer How long is it going to take to write, edit, proof? Allow padding for exceptions when planning

Realistic timeframes* Final content to designer → art delivery to printer business days Includes all proofing (limit to three passes max) Art delivery to printer → final delivery to client business days *Bigger products require longer timeframes. Plan accordingly.

Style guide Standardizes basic reoccurring elements Font choices Logo sizes and colors Spelling and capitalization Grammar usage Write it down! Make it accessible for all Come to agreement on usage

Involving your designer Regular meeting schedule What’s in the works What’s waiting (what are the holdups?) What’s coming Job-specific meetings Purpose of piece? Audience? Quantity? Components? Deadlines? Delivery method? Content providers?

What does the designer need? FINAL Content* Quantity (and mailing list if applicable) Audience Goals Photography description *Don’t hold up all of your content waiting for just one piece.

Design process Flow in the text Gather photography Start formatting Get bids Produce 1 st proof Make corrections Produce 2 nd proof (should be final) Make corrections Produce 3 rd proof (if needed – do via ) Package art for printer Approve press proofs

Getting print bids Quantity Size (flat) Size (folded) Fold type (if applicable) Color Bleeds Paper type and weight Mailing specs Postage Delivery specs

Lingo RGB versus CMYK Pantone colors 1 color / 2 color / 4 color Low res versus high res White space Bleeds Overs Spread Digital press

Please don’t do this… Does NOT equal a quantity A box Whatever we ordered last time Some When providing text No ALL CAPS No italics No bolding No underlining Expect your designer to proofread…ever!

Things to do Include instructions to your designer in your Word doc “Heading” “Photo of xyz needed here” Retype substantial text changes Provide samples of things you like Give your designer some creative freedom Invest in good photography Think of your designer as a partner in the process

I don’t start with a design objective, I start with a communication objective. I feel my project is successful if it communicates what it is supposed to communicate. Mike Davidson – Vice President, Design at Twitter