Print & Web Digital Design

Q. Describe the most common types of jobs you do for your clients.

A. Designing banners for the web, designing of e-blasts. Design of 4 color ads.
Design of postcards.
Design of business cards.
Design of logos.

Q. What advice do you have for a customer looking to hire a provider like you?

A. Please understand that the field of graphic design and digital design is a creative profession just like any other profession.

There are pricing guidelines that are followed in the field that more or less, need to be adhered to.

Know your product, know your service. Understand the realistic timelines needed to design and to produce work. There are no short cuts.

Please try and have high standards for the visions of your designs. It is best not settle for less in producing just any work, I will offer you my best work.

Q. If you were a customer, what do you wish you knew about your trade? Any inside secrets to share?

A. What is the process that it takes to design a project from scratch?

What are the costs to design for my specific project?

What design style will best be a collaborative working project between me and the client?

Do we have similar sensibilities and goals for the work to be designed?

Q. What important information should buyers have thought through before seeking you out?

A. Make sure you know what designer you have hired by asking them to provide you with samples from their previous work. Never assume that because a person says that they are a designer, that they have the necessary skills to accomplish your work goals and task needs.

Also, there are pricing guidelines that I recommend looking at first before any work is started.

Design is a process, not mass production that results in poor design, poor marketing and poor workmanship.

Do your own preliminary research before you hire me or anyone else as this is where the testing of skill sets and competency will be determined.

Know who your competitors are, this way you can put your best brand forward.

Know what it is that you need from the provider of the service. Never assume that because they design one type of product they can also design anything else, the field of design is wide ranging and does not work that way.

Please understand that to design for the web and to design for print are 2 very distinct with some minor overlapping of skills. Design for print has it's confined size measurements, design for the web is much more flexible and you need to design web pages with flexible viewing pages in mind. Design for the web also needs to take into account: where will my website be viewed: I-PAD? Mobile phones like the I-Phone or smart phones? or on a desktop? Design for the web also has an even much higher learning curve than design for print. The hourly rates of pay will reflect this higher learning curve. Does the designer understand and know what are the current web standards are?

Q. Why does your work stand out from others who do what you do?

A. I do a lot of research, I select the most appropriate visuals and content. I then create the ideas to come up with an excellent problem & solution for the client.

I also have a special way of problem solving that can encompass artistic sensibilities as I've also studied art & design.

I've been doing print graphic design for well over 20 years and so, I have the skills necessary to design for print as well as online digital design.

Q. What do you like most about your job?

A. The visual aspects as well as the problem solving aspects. It's great when the client needs of research, design branding and problem solving all comes together when the project has been completed!

Q. What questions do customers most commonly ask you? What's your answer?

A. Can you design just about anything? My answer is this: design, problem solving, research, branding and creative analysis is the kind of work that I will provide you with if you hire me.

Can you design for the web? Yes I can design for the web, but not everyone can design for the web. I can provide you with html/css and a list of other add ons that I can do for the web, found on my resume, please go there and review the material very carefully.

Q. What do you wish customers knew about you or your profession?

A. Customers need to know that because we work on computers, it does not mean that the work gets done with the pressing of buttons, in fact, the design process is lengthy, and involves a lot of research along with prior design schooling. It's also not about designs looking pretty, a lot of the process is about branding, concepting, research, design iteration and then we design taking into account our prior learning and understanding of design principles we learned in school!

Q. How did you decide to get in your line of work?

A. After attending the high school of art and design. I decided that I wanted to specialize in the commercial art field. I also enjoy doing research and I'm finding that more and more, I like learning and researching the field of graphic design and the field of website design and development.

Q. Do you do any sort of continuing education to stay up on the latest developments in your field?

A. Yes, as a matter of fact, I'm looking into learning more about web and print, especially for branding to potentially good and healthy start ups. I also read books, listen to pod casts and keep myself informed, especially for website design & development.

Q. What are the latest developments in your field? Are there any exciting things coming in the next few years or decade that will change your line of business?

A. Some of your appliances will allow you to browse the internet!

html5 will reduce the amount of error that can happen in designing for the web. a person no longer has to know how to mark up content as they did in html4. html5 has made it easier to mark up content even if you never took a coding class!

Q. If you have a complicated pricing system for your service, please give all the details here.

A. If the project is much more lengthy than the hourly rates advertised to do the work, I will step in and supply the client with a contract outlining and delineating the scope of the work. This is the best way to handle costs, handle time lines, communicate the process to the client and walk them through the process so that they can understand the process of designing better.

Q. If you were advising someone who wanted to get into your profession, what would you suggest?

A. Get a design degree, there is a notable difference between the way a person designs without any prior schooling or training and the way a person designs with graphic, advertising, branding schooling for commercial art. Do your homework, learn the design skills as well as the technical skills.

Design is a lifelong learning profession, continually upgrade your skills, especially in the digital, computer world that we live in today.