Why Should You Hire a Graphic Designer?

Your business needs graphic design services. If overlooked you could be missing out on clients, attracting the wrong ones or wasting time and money. By making graphic design a focus in your business you'll be receiving benefits well worth the initial investment. Below are some important reasons you should hire a designer.

Look Professional

Do you remember a time when you received a flyer or visited a site and thought "I would never hire this company"? You're not the only one, customers are more likely to read and react to something that looks and feels professional.

Build Confidence

Handing out business cards or a marketing piece that you're proud of and you feel accurately represents your business makes a huge difference in your confidence. That confidence could be the difference between getting or not getting a sale.  

Build Trust

Your customers care about design, to them it symbolizes credibility and makes you instantly more trustworthy. When you invest in great design, customers take notice. If you're a small business owner this is especially important, by investing in well-crafted marketing materials your customers will know you're serious about what you do.

Save Time and Money

Many business owners make the mistake of creating and printing their own marketing materials. Not only does this waste valuable time that could be better allocated to working on your business but the end result isn't always very professional, creating a need for a redesign/reprint down the road. By selecting a talented designer from the start, your materials have longevity and won't need to be constantly redesigned.

Solve Problems

Great design can help you solve a lot of business related problems. Are people not responding to your ads, not reading your materials, think your services are too expensive or confused about what you do? Great design can help solve these types of problems.

Get Attention

A great redesign can instantly help recalibrate customers perceptions of who you are and what you do, getting you the attention you deserve.

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4 Alternatives to a Standard Tri-Fold Brochure

Companies often use the standard tri-fold brochure as the "go-to" format to deliver their message to potential clients. While this tried and true format can deliver on many levels, does it accurately represent you and the unique ideas, products, or services you offer? The goal of a printed piece is is to deliver information, but taking it a step further can make a fun, useful and distinctive piece that a potential client will want to look at, read and keep. And that is what you really want! Below are four memorable ways to get your content in their hands.

Booklet

A booklet is a great way to deliver information. It can be pocket sized for easier transportation, you aren't limited to 3 panels and depending on how you design it, it can be a useful tool for your potential clients to hang on to. Maybe the first few pages are promotional and then the rest of the book is lined for note taking or is useful in some way. If you're an event planner, perhaps it's a simple checklist for a dinner party or tips on planning an event. If you're a personal trainer maybe it's a place for clients to jot down their progress, or a food diary. There are so many ways to design and bind a booklet, here are some examples.

Origami Style Folding

If you're going for something really unique an Origami style fold is a great choice. Using this technique, you can create some really one of a kind, eye catching pieces that potential clients won't just toss.

Pop out using a simple Die Cut

Using a die cut you can really change the feel of a simple piece. In these 2 examples below, the die cut creates a pop up effect which makes these brochures feel anything but ordinary.

Interesting Shape/Fold

An unlimited budget can get you all kinds of fancy things, but say you're looking for something a little more economical that still accomplishes the same goal. Using a different shape, orientation or in the case of the last example, folding  in a unique way, won't add too much to the cost but will definitely add a lot of style.

Creating something a little more unique completely changes the tone of a piece and will create a lasting and memorable impact on your potential client.

BONUS! Generate the best ideas using my free Brainstorm Like a Pro ebook, get it here for FREE! 

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Want more Design advice?

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Stock Photography | The good and the bad

When you're using stock photography a lot can go wrong. The trick to using these photos is selecting pictures that feel natural and inviting. When you use photos that feel artificial or uninviting, all of a sudden you feel less trustworthy to the client which can hurt your business. The goal is to use images that your customers and potential clients can relate to. Let's quickly breeze through what you shouldn't be using and why.

Things that could never happen

One of the most important aspects of picking photos is making sure they feel realistic and appropriate for your business. Most conceptual images are impersonal, confusing and do nothing more than add a graphic to a piece of paper. These can really distract from your message.

 

Inflating your Company

When people look at your marketing materials or website, they're not only looking at what you offer but they want to get a feel for who you are. If you're misrepresenting yourself with photos that inflate, they don't get a very clear picture which can be off-putting.

 

Overly Happy People

I'm sure there are a lot of people who are excited to be working, but I'd give most people about a 3-5 on the exuberance scale. Even if your job or office is really fantastic, don't show people at an 11, it just feels unrealisitc to be that excited at work.

 

Direct Eye Contact

These types of images just don't feel natural. If you need a shot of someone looking into the camera, try a shot of only one person looking, a whole group just makes the photo feel manufactured.

 

Handshakes

I'm sure there are lots of people that shake hands on a regular basis but these types of photos are terribly overused. If you want to set yourself apart from other companies, don't use this style of photography.

So, what should you be using? The photos you use should feel like ones you could potentially take. They should feel consistent with the type of company you are or that you're promoting. If you're looking for images of people, they should feel natural and look like the type of person you're targeting, both in dress, context and overall style. The best thing to do if you're unsure is write down your ideal image, What does that picture look like? What is the tone? What is happening in the photo? Go into your search with a very specific image in mind, a lot of times you'll find it, if you can't find exactly what you're looking for, you can compromise a little bit but if you go in with no parameters a lot of times you'll end up with a really cliché picture.

I've pulled a few photos that feel more natural and realistic for business images, I hope these guidelines help you on your next search!

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