Commentary: Trust me, you're not a graphic designer

By Mary Ann Henker Dolan Media Newswires BALTIMORE, MD--(Unless you are. In which case we retract our previous statement.) What we are saying is that many people overlook the importance of hiring a professional graphic designer because they have the opinion that graphic design seems relatively simple, especially with so many "off-the-shelf" design templates available. In reality, professional graphic designers are highly trained and educated artists who generally have a fine arts degree or other exceptional art background or skill, and they combine their gift of being an artist with an understanding of how to use the power of extremely advanced software to create visual brilliance. As a marketing firm, we only partner with professional graphic designers and, we might add, designers that are highly exceptional and award-winning in their field. As an analogy, we honor the graphic design industry the same way we would honor, say, the medical industry. We are not medical professionals but as individuals in our respective personal lives we are all guilty of self-diagnosing, diagnosing a friend, etc., because we "play a doctor" on the Internet. It is the same with graphic design: We all use off-the-shelf templates for various projects because the fact is, there is some pretty cool stuff out there. But just because we can create a pretty decent-looking brochure using one of these templates, graphic designers we are not. Essentially, we are painting by numbers when using those programs, whereas a graphic designer has the capability to create the original art and template that we would use. So why don't more small businesses work with graphic designers? We believe it is twofold. First, not all business owners fully understand what a true professional graphic designer represents. Second, graphic design can be expensive. However, as with many things in life, you get what you pay for. Sure, I can go rent a reasonably priced carpet cleaner down at the local grocery store, but my carpet won't look as fabulous and stay as clean as if I retained a professional carpet cleaning company.We all need to make choices, and oftentimes budget dictates that corners be cut. However, when it comes to establishing, maintaining and preserving your brand, connecting with a professional graphic designer will be money well spent. For example, a professional graphic designer will be able to make your ad aesthetically pleasing, your social media sites eye-catching and your logo indicative of a strong brand, all while providing for a cohesive and professional look. Ask yourself the following questions to determine if a prospective graphic designer is right for you: * Do I love this graphic designer's portfolio? *?Do I feel like this graphic designer will take the time to get to know my company, my brand and me? * Is this graphic designer someone I would like to form a long-term relationship with? *?Does this graphic designer have time for my project(s) in his current production schedule, and can he meet my deadlines? If the answers to these questions are yes, it's probably a good fit! So while hiring a professional graphic designer might require you to add a new line item in your budget, the investment is truly worth it. Entire contents copyrighted © 2013 by The Dolan Company. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without written permission is expressly forbidden. Published: Thu, Jul 25, 2013

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