I’ve never worked with a Branding or Graphic Designer before. What are the first steps?
Working with a Branding or Graphic Designer is an exciting and insightful process. One that should be both easy and enjoyable.
In this post, I cover some steps you can take to get the process started and how to find a Designer who’ll work with you to achieve your business goals.
01 - Consider your goals
When we invest in anything in life, we should always be clear on what our goals are first. Design is no different.
“I need a creative partner who will guide, understand and challenge us to get the best results”
or
“I know what I want, I just need someone to make it for me”
Both statements point to two very different types of design experience.
The first is a partner. You value their expertise, creative process, inquisitive mind and time.
The second is a designer who will follow a set of instructions and take creative direction from you.
Start by defining which statement resonates with your goal.
02 - Look local
Take some time to research local business, women’s or creative network sites in your area, as well as using Google My Business.
Look at customer reviews as well as reviewing their portfolio. What are customers saying? Is their portfolio up to date and current? Do I like their work and style?
Do you know someone in your own network who has used a designer that they would recommend? It’s great to be able to work with a local designer as they’ll know who you are, the demographics of the region and what challenges you may be facing as a local business.
03 - Visual search engines
Pinterest and Instagram are amazing visual search engines and you will be spoilt for choice! A lot of the content that’s on Pinterest is uploaded by creatives themselves, so when you click on something you like, chances are you will be brought to their website. There you can find out more about them, where they are and what services they offer.
You can also save images into Pinterest galleries. This can be a source of inspiration, identify a designer you’d like to work with or use as a talking point in a consultation.
By opening up Pinterest, you also open up the possibility to working with a designer from another part of the world. Working with someone from a different country may bring a whole new set of opinions and outlook to your brand or project.
04 - Reaching out
Once you have found a designer that fits the bill, follow the below advice when reaching out for the first time.
Use their website contact form
This way you can guarantee that your message will be sent directly to their inbox and won’t be hidden away in a spam folder in Facebook or Instagram
A good contact form will cover any questions a designer needs to know before they meet you
Know your business and goals
If a contact form isn’t available or it only has a comment area, focus on the following in your message:
Talk about why you started your business and what you love about it
List any barriers or problems you’re facing with your brand / image
Give them an overview of what your project is about and what results you want to achieve
Give a budget of how much you are looking to invest - this gives the designer a starting point to have a budget conversation with you early in the process
As a bonus, if there is a piece of work they have done that inspires you - let them know about it
