ANYONE CAN BE A GRAPHIC DESIGNER.

Warning: This list may seem snarky, self-entitled, or just plain whiney. I promise it’s not meant to be. We absolutely love our jobs; we live and breathe design and wouldn’t have it any other way. That being said, it can be helpful to see things from the other side. As a client, we know you need to keep your costs low, you want a return on your investment, and you want everything to look great. We do too! But here’s a few things you might not know about graphic designers:

Not everyone is a graphic designer. Being a graphic designer requires dedication and a lot of effort to learn and master the necessary skills for the job. It takes patience, attention to detail, knowledge of print and production processes for a variety of media. It requires a commitment to continual learning, both in the world of design, and the industry trends of our clients. This combination of earned experience and fresh eyes are what makes a great graphic designer so valuable, yet rare.

Working with a graphic designer is a partnership; a game of give and take. Sometimes we hit it out of the park on the first try, but every once in a while it takes a few practice swings. No one knows your product better than you do, so part of our job is to help you communicate your value to us. The more open our communication, the easier it is to take your vision and craft it into something extraordinary; it’s what we love doing. Want to make something together?

GRAPHIC DESIGN DOESN’T TAKE MUCH TIME

Graphic design is a complex job that requires a lot of time, dedication, attention to detail, and understanding of the client and/or service a project is associated with.

Not everyone is aware of the complexities of making “simple” changes to a particular project. “It will only take you a few seconds.” “It’s not a big change, it shouldn’t take you long.” “I know I’ve had this but I just had a chance to take a look… you can make it by deadline, right?” are a few of the things graphic designers hear on a regular basis and are usually quite far from the truth.

Depending on the complexity of a project, some changes will take a long time to complete and may have to be scheduled within the rest of a graphic designers schedule. Have you ever noticed how bad designs tend to look cluttered? This is because designing with simplicity and clarity is actually much harder than it looks.

If we’re sounding negative, we promise we aren’t. We love our jobs, and we love making great work for our clients; we’re used to skipping lunches and burning the midnight oil, but we also ask that you be patient. Good design takes time, but we promise it’ll be worth it.

IT’S GOOD TO BE A STARVING ARTIST

Graphic Design costs money. While that seems obvious, sometimes people fall into the trap of believing graphic design should be free; or worse, that the fulfillment we get from creating is somehow an offset for a fair wage. Sometimes potential clients believe that a project can’t have taken much time (and therefore money) to create because it only took a few minutes to critique and approve. Like we’ve mentioned in other myths, good design takes education, experience, research, and time (see myth 1). Graphic designers have to pay their bills, buy tools for their trade, and eat – just like you and me.

IF I JUST HAD PHOTOSHOP I’D DO IT MYSELF…

This is a popular myth across a lot of creative industries: that all it takes is the right tool. While Adobe Creative Suite is a set of software we use a lot in our profession (and for good reason – it’s an awesome set of programs that has become the industry standard), it’s still only one arrow in a designer’s quiver.

Most of our ideas and concepts start in a sketchbook, on a post-it, or scribbled on napkins after a burrito lunch. Just getting the right inspiration is tough enough, but that’s not the end of it. The initial concept is then reworked, taking shape as it passes through a multitude of processes involving a wide range of programs, technologies, and skill sets.

We believe every single person has great ideas to contribute. We also love when clients are interested in design, and welcome their input. That being said, just like owning a Kitchen-aid mixer doesn’t make me a baker (as anyone who has tried my charcoal briquettes masquerading as cookies will attest), I doubt owning Photoshop will make anyone a graphic designer.

GRAPHIC DESIGNERS CAN READ MINDS

While we would love to proliferate the idea that all graphic designers are a strange breed of sketchbook wielding psychics, it’s simply not true. We’re normal people just like you (most of us, at least) – and we can’t read your mind. We work with our clients to help them communicate what they want to see on a particular project or design; and if they don’t like it, we want them to tell us! At The Ad Group, our primary focus is to make our clients successful, and communication is one of the best ways to accomplish that goal. We accept all forms of ideas – scribbles on paper, emails, phone calls and good ol’ fashioned meet and greets.