Written by: Anwaar Saleh
Design process for any project is way too far from being a random work.
Real designers go through full process of design thinking first.
It’s not a random process and it’s not a half production process. Many designers show half of the process because it’s way too long. That’s why, often they create a case study where they explain exactly their design process from A to Z. Else, designers post videos constantly showing their way of designing and handling projects.
Below are some common comments designers receive that don’t define a real design whatsoever.
1. It’s all premade designs!
Even premade designs were designed by a designer! I remember at early years of finding my own design studio, I received such comments a lot. Not knowing about the design and art processes doesn’t mean there is nothing going on! People who don’t know about graphics and visual and say such comments are not to blame but not wanting to know about the process is another story. Whereas knowing will enable clients to choose the best designer that will best represent their work. And knowing about the process will grow trust between the designer and the client.
2. There is no effort in doing design work!
Again, this is similar to the first comment.
If design and art processes are effortless, then why are there specialized designers and artists? And today, more specializations appeared with the rise of technology. Motion graphic designer is only specialized in motion graphics (creating animated clips), but that doesn’t mean he cannot design other projects. The rise of social media on the other hand did help designers specialize in more than one design field.
The other point is that if designs are effortless, why do small businesses and start up reach out to graphic designers for their design projects? Each field has its specialized users and clients.
3. Designs and design work is overpriced!
Some designs may be overpriced but a client has to know whom to reach for in the first place. There is a lot of effort in each designed project. Each project has its characteristics thus making it a customized work. Designs are created from scratch, so the price varies a lot because of that.
4. Designers all do the same work!
It’s easy for any person to claim to be a designer. Real designers are proven designers, because they have experience already and are skilled. Their work, collaborations, and continuous activities are enough proof for their experience.
5. I can get the work done at a very low cost!
True, there are people who claim to be designers where in reality they use premade cliparts and present them to clients as a logo design. Clients are happy to get a logo design for a very low price and less time but in reality that’s not a real logo design and it won’t be a surprise to see that clipart being distributed to many other clients. There are hundreds of videos on Youtube explaining logo design process from the beginning until the end. The effort put on a design project requires hours and probably days! Big projects may even take months. The full branding for a company whether rebrand or a new brand requires heavy research, brainstorming, and a team of skilled designers. Each team member is specialized in a specific field so that together the full picture becomes clear and connected. In later posts, I can explain even more about this since it’s a very broad topic that I find important to talk and write about.
6. Design process takes no time!
Real design process do take time. Even 10 days sometimes are not enough but working full-time will enable designers to meet up the deadline. It takes team members to collaborate on a project to provide better results. Clients don’t know about this whole process so they expect their design to finish in less time. Only sketches can be done within 2 days!
These are some of the comments and short replies to them. I can write detailed posts on each point and if you have anything to add to the list, please feel free to do so.