Frequently Asked Questions
Clients often have a lot of common questions during the initial discussion phase of a project. This post will serve to try and answer as many of these as possible. This will provide a brief view of the work involved, along with a scope of the value of the work that’s involved in most projects. Any questions that are not answered below, feel free to get in touch; I’m happy to discuss anything with potential clients.
What’s the difference between visual identity and logo design?
Think Nike, Apple, and Google — These brands are often recognised by their logos. They are memorable logos that over time have become synonymous with their related companies, and that swoosh, the bitten apple and that multicoloured mark are only one small aspect of the visual identity of any company. The rest is made up of a number of things — signage, apparel, vehicle graphics, letterheads, and even the style of language a company uses can influence the visual identity. All this together should convey the quality of the product or service that a company sells, and a thoroughly designed identity will play and important part in doing that.
What’s the cost of all this?
Well, this really depends on each individual project, its scope, and of course the company for which the work has been commissioned for. I often take on projects for small start-up businesses. These will typically be on the lower end of the pricing table for a few reasons; a start up doesn’t have a brand history to dictate the design, nor do they have as much to lose during the process as a large multinational corporation. Large companies however can often have stacks of history, loyal customers and staff and a significant market share to think about when going through the process. This means more research and development at the beginning to make sure that the project at the end is the right one.
How long do these projects typically take?
Again, this is all dependant upon the scale of the project and the size of the client. Every client has a different deadline and the importance of the outcome of each project also differs. Projects can range from days through to months depending on the research involved, as well as the amount of assets that need to be designed for the project. Each one of these items requires the same amount of research as the next to ensure the consistency and quality of the project. Another factor can be how many people are involved in the process — again this will be determined by the overall scope of the project. At the beginning of each project, each of these details will be discussed and agreed upon before commencing the journey.
Do you have a specific process that you follow?
The vast majority of my projects include four stages, beginning with research, idea development, design, and finally implementation. You can see my process in many of my portfolio projects that take you through each step of development and implementation.
What do you need from me?
It is often assumed that the designer should be left to his devices after the start of the process. On the contrary, a clients input is a vital part of the process and will inform a lot of the design decisions. This will allow for the most effective final outcome to any given project.
For anything else?
Just ask, it really is that simple.