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We explore the ten questions Designers will ask you and why they are essential.
Last month, we looked into Why Brand Identity is so important. Today, we take a step back to the beginning of your communication with a Designer. Designers typically call this the initial interview stage, more commonly referred to as a Design Brief. A design brief gives you and the designer a chance to get to know each other on a slightly more personal level. Any information you can provide the designer about your business, the better. It is time to put on your thinking cap and learn why these questions are necessary.
We want to know the who of your brand when we ask this question. What makes your company tick? What inspired you to start the company in the first place? This information makes it easier for the designer to understand you and how your business operates. It also gives us content to include in the history (or about us) section. The information also provides us with a clearer picture of your vision statement (if you do not have one currently). Additional questions asked include: What is the History of your business? Why is your Business meaningful to you?
The nitty-gritty of a design project: the Scope of Work (SOW). What are you hoping will be the outcome when the project is complete? This question creates the framework that will be the Scope of Work document your designer presents to you, along with all the deliverables they can provide (See Timeline and Budget further below).
What makes your business special closely aligns with the who of your business. What about your business makes it stand out from your competitors? Knowing what is unique about your company allows the designer to tailor your brand more effectively and provides content for your brand identity.
Now that we know what sets you apart from your competitors, who are they? This section is the research portion of the design brief. Knowing who you are competing against gives the designer more information on the industry your brand is a part of. Knowing your competitors allows the designer to understand what you do differently from other companies, which ties directly into what makes your business unique. Doing this additional research provides even more content for your brand identity and allows the designer to create a logo that stands out from the competition.
Tone: Noun: “the general character or attitude of a place, piece of writing, situation, etc.” – Oxford Dictionary.
Establishing the tone of your business in tandem with your designer is ideal. Knowing the tone of the company sets the precedence of your entire brand identity. Working with the designer allows you to both be on the same page. A designer can do all the research in the world on your industry, but what if you are more of a traditionalist and less into modernism? You could end up with a complete design package that does not speak to what your business is all about.
When creating a Brand Identity or logo, it’s important to keep your target audience in mind. Your audience is the group of people who will be using or interacting with the end product, and their needs and preferences will guide the design choices the designer makes. Designers will consider factors such as age, gender, location, interests, and habits. Understanding your target audience can help ensure that the design is effective, engaging, and meets their expectations. By tailoring your brand to your target audience, you can create a product that truly resonates with them.
Seems like a no-brainer, no? Knowing what you like and don’t like adds to the refinement process of the final design. Likes and dislikes can also be added to the Dos and Don’ts section of your Brand guideline. It is important to let the designer know what you like or don’t like when it comes to Colour, Themes, Tone, Shapes, Imagery, Etc. Providing a “Mood Board” of the vision for your brand is an additional tool that can be utilized and aid the designer in the design process.
It is important to have a reasonable timeline when it comes to your design project. Unfortunately, technology has not caught up to the point where Designers can press one button on the computer and poof! Your design is ready. There is a lot of background research, referencing, and administration that goes into the entirety of the design process. Additionally, a design is rarely approved within the first round of design proposals. Typically, 3 to 5 rounds of revisions are fairly common but not average as it entirely depends on the Designer / Client relationship and how well they are communicating. Please keep this in mind when proposing a timeline to your designer. If you have given yourself enough time to get through the design process, the timeline on the scope of work should be reasonably on par.
Time is money, and designing a brand identity is not cheap. As mentioned before in the Timeline section, there is a lot of administration work that goes on behind the scenes. A designer takes into account the amount of time it will take to produce the design multiplied by a flat hourly fee, often determined by the designer’s experience. The more experience the Designer has, the more the hourly fee. The trade-off for a more experienced designer is that your timeline will often be shorter than someone with less experience. Other items included in a designer’s fee are administration costs (invoicing, writeups, emails, etc.), software costs (Design Programs, Payroll, Webhosting, etc.), and other work-related costs (internet, workspace rental, office supplies, etc.). Think of it this way, you pay a plumber for their skills in their trade to fix your sink, so why not hire a professional to design the brand identity you are putting out to the world and your target audience? Your Brand is an opportunity to make a great first impression to your target audience, make sure you are putting your best foot forward.
Once all of the required information is completed, your designer will start on the Scope of Work and Design Proposal. These forms include:
An overview of the design project
Information on how the design process will proceed
the deliverables from the designer (the projected timeline for the project and the anticipated cost of the project as a whole**
**Please note that some designers have a “Revision Fee” which means that multiple revisions after a certain amount may incur a fee above the original proposed budget cost. Typically, Designers will require a percentage of the budgeted cost as a deposit for the initial first draft design. Once you have signed off on the design proposal and paid the deposit, the design process can begin!
Your designer will inform you of how long it will take for the initial design draft to be ready. In the meantime, take this time to do your own research. Researching your competitors and your industry as a whole gives you content that you can bring back to your designer or store when the time comes for you to hire a marketing professional. Think about what you want your brand to be applied to. Are you looking to get stationery done? Do you have a storefront that will require a sign? This is also important information to bring back to the designer so that they know how your brand is going to look in different scenarios. The more information you provide to your designer, the better the outcome will be.
Next month: Basic Design Do’s and Don’ts
Ready to start on your Brand Identity Journey?
