What to Do Before Hiring a Designer for Your Branding or Website
Most of the time, when you're looking for a designer for your rebranding or website, you're in a hurry. You need these changes done yesterday—or, at the very least, you don't want the process to drag on for months. That's perfectly understandable.
We designers also like to work within tight deadlines. Although both branding and web design require a certain amount of time to be done properly, we don’t want projects to drag on indefinitely, because that causes the schedules for multiple clients to overlap.
To help make the design process as smooth as possible, there are several things you, as the client, can do in advance. The recommendations I’m sharing here will save you a lot of time and headaches, and will make your designer’s job easier.
So… where do I start?
Check out your designer
This might seem a little obvious, but I’m going to say it anyway, because on several occasions, female entrepreneurs have approached me to tell me how disappointed they were with the work of X or Y, and how the process or the results hadn’t met their expectations.
Most likely, when you’re looking for a designer, you won’t go straight to someone you already have in mind, but rather consider two or three who give you a “good vibe” and try to make up your mind. That’s perfectly fine, and here are a few points to keep in mind when evaluating your options and making the final decision about who to work with:
Follow her on social media
These days, it’s very easy to get a good sense of who someone is thanks to social media and how easy it is to connect with them. Take a look at how they behave:
- Do they post regularly? If days go by without a single post, they might be swamped with work—and that’s not in your best interest. You want someone who can give you and your project their full attention. Or maybe they’ve never been much of a poster—and there’s nothing wrong with that… but it’s something to keep in mind.
- Do they respond to comments on their posts? I consider this to be extremely important, because it reflects how seriously they take their followers—who may be potential customers or simply people interested in their work. Every person who follows you and takes the time and effort to write a comment on a post deserves all the respect and attention in the world, in my opinion, so for me, this simple detail can say a lot about a person and their attitude... unless you have a massive following and every post of yours gets dozens of comments, in which case it’s understandable that you can’t reply to them all.
take a look around their website
A designer (whether they specialize in branding or web design) who doesn’t have a flawless website… well, that just doesn’t cut it, does it? These days, a person’s website is their main public face, along with social media. While social media can give you a sense of a potential designer’s visual style (especially on Instagram), a website gives you a much better idea:
Do you have a baroque style, or is your style more simple and minimalist?
Is your style trendy, traditional, modern, or psychedelic?
Can you tell they pay attention to detail, or do you keep finding little things that were left “to fix later,” or do the images not look right?
Does your website make a visual impact, have well-organized content, and feature a clear hierarchy of colors and fonts?
How does all of this align with your own tastes and interests when it comes to your branding or web design?
In addition to the visual style—and whether it matches your own—there are other things you can check out on your designer’s website. On the blog, you can see what topics she covers, whether she comes across as truly knowledgeable about them, and get a sense of her personality. It’s also a good place to see if she responds to comments and questions on her posts, and whether she does so thoughtfully or just to get by.
On their services page, you can get a better idea of the kind of work they do… Does what they offer in their branding package meet your needs, or does it fall short? Do they specialize in a platform that isn’t the one you’re interested in (I don’t design websites on WordPress because I specialize in Squarespace)? Do they have a workflow—even if it’s just a general outline—or do they go with the flow depending on how the wind blows?
Write to him and get in touch
If you're seriously considering working with someone, the best thing to do is get in touch. This usually doesn't involve any commitment to hire them; it's simply a way to learn more about what they offer, clear up any questions you have, and get to know your potential candidate a little better. Send them a DM on Instagram or an email telling them about your project and asking about their services.
All of these things can tell you a lot about what a person is like and how much they value the people on the other side of the screen who are taking the time to engage with their content and interact with them.
Decide how much you're willing to invest
This point may be controversial because many creatives (and I include myself among them) argue that price shouldn’t be the deciding factor, and that if someone really wants to work with you, they’ll pay (almost) whatever it takes. And while from my perspective as a creative offering a service I understand and support this idea (and I believe quality is worth it), as a consumer I also understand that there’s a limit to what we can afford. I myself have been in the situation of wanting to make an investment in my business (and note that I say investment, not expense) and haven’t been able to do so because, quite simply, I can’t afford it and I don’t want my debts to grow to infinity and beyond. It’s that simple.
On the other hand, you might be absolutely certain that you want to work with a specific designer. Maybe you love their visual style, or they conveyed confidence and professionalism like no one else, or they specialize in something very specific that no one else does (like me, who specializes in web design on Squarespace), or you liked the way they replied to the message you sent them… whatever the reason, that’s the designer of your dreams, but they might be out of your budget. If that’s the case, knowing your limit will help you assess whether the investment is still worth it, and whether you need to rework your budget to make it happen. Maybe you need to put your design project on hold to give yourself some time and save up more money… Remember the investments I told you I want to make? I haven’t given up on them! I’m simply saving up to make them, because I believe they’re worth it.
Gather your materials (images and text)
This is something that’s often left until after you’ve ALREADY hired a designer, and it’s one of the main reasons projects get delayed. We designers are not responsible for writing or editing the text for your website or supporting materials (such as brochures or PDFs), nor for sourcing the images you’ll use. We’re generally happy to offer recommendations and suggestions, but the copy is the responsibility of a copywriter—they’re the specialists… and without copy, we can’t design (especially when it comes to web design).
Some designers might think it works the other way around—that design comes first and copy second—but in my opinion, that’s not how it works. Copy is the information, and design is the way that information is visually organized. Ideally, the designer and copywriter should work together, because the copy also needs to take the design into account… but that’s a topic for another post, and I’m getting off track. The point is, we need your text to be able to work, and if we don’t have it when we start your project, the whole process will be delayed.
The same goes for images. As a designer, I’ll provide you with a style guide for the images needed, but there are times when these images are central to a project (such as when designing a portfolio, for example, or a product with a very specific aesthetic). In those cases, it’s essential to have the images you, as the client, want to use ready in advance so I can create the design based on them. Additionally, even if your designer provides you with a style guide for photos and can help you find some in stock photo libraries that work well for your project (here’s a guide on how to choose the right stock photos for your brand), there are others that you must provide yourself, such as your profile photos (especially for web design), or photos of your products (if you have them).
Set aside time in your schedule for the work period
This is actually something you’ll need to do once you’ve hired the designer, depending on their schedule, but I’m including it here at the end because it’s very important. If you want to keep the design process moving forward, you need to be 100% committed to working with your designer so the project can progress.
In order to design a visual identity that truly represents your brand, we designers need to stay in constant contact with you to ask questions, clarify any doubts, and ensure that we’re fully aligned with your vision. We can’t move forward without your feedback, so if you take too long to provide it or rush through it without clearly expressing your thoughts on the designs we present to you, the work will inevitably be delayed. Look at it this way: if you want a designer who is dedicated and focused on your project, you need to be just as committed.
In summary
Working with a designer shouldn't be a nightmare—quite the opposite… it should be an exciting process for you, because you're reinventing your project with the hope of creating branding or a website that truly aligns with your brand values. And I guarantee that when you choose the right person for you and your project, you can enjoy a stress-free design process and excellent results. Keep these recommendations in mind, and you’ll see that it’s worth it.
