The war with the designer: where does good design come from? Part 2
I bring to your attention the continuation of the first part of a series of notes-considerations that have accumulated during my work in the field of design. In short, these are reflections on what the customer needs to do in order to get a quality result from the designer and solve their problems.
This is not educational or scientific materials. In the comments to the first part, someone expressed disagreement with me; Excellent - there should be a lot of points of view. But I received many letters of support.
')
When ordering the development of a design or an Internet project, the customer makes a choice between two options: contact the design studio, where all the necessary specialists are gathered, or find a freelancer alone.
The advantages of the first option are clear: it is quieter to give money to the company than to an incomprehensible person; in addition, under the good guidance of diverse specialists in fact will give the best result.
Nevertheless, the freelancer version is good in its own way: the customer communicates directly with the contractor, avoiding bureaucracy and a “damaged phone”. In addition, the studios often still pass on the project to the same freelance soloists, so contacting the studio is much more expensive.
The right choice here depends on many conditions, but it is important to understand one thing. This circumstance complicates the work with freelancers, but it must be taken into account if you want to get a quality project at the output.
The point is that there are no “masters of all trades”. Each person has their own abilities and preferences, and the range of such abilities is usually quite narrow. Rare exceptions here confirm the rule. For example, if you need to create a website, it would be unreasonable to wait for the same talents in the design and programming in the artist.
The solution is clear: to find a separate specialist designer and second - a programmer. But at this moment a new task falls on you: it is necessary not only to make separate tasks and explain to each specialist his narrow task, but also to establish a connection between them.
You can solve the problem more effectively if you find a special person who will be responsible for the entire project, directly contacting all the necessary specialists. When it comes to design, this familiar concept of the “manager” changes: the manager (art director) must have in-depth knowledge in all areas of the project, and sometimes be directly involved in it.
Designers are different. Someone has an entrepreneurial attitude - such a designer will always evaluate your project, asking himself: how profitable is it for me to work with this person? Is this task too laborious? Perhaps, it is preferable to devote this time to some other projects? Will communication with this person be useful to me in the future? Finally, would such a project be useful to me in a portfolio? ..
If he is interested in your project, then working with such a person is convenient. And if it is not interesting, then you most likely will not work at all. He will tell you the price based on the capabilities of your wallet, and the deadline is the lowest possible: the faster your project ends, the sooner you can proceed to the next one.
There are people of another type. These are “creative personalities”: they can please you with an inexplicably low price, explaining that your project is extremely attractive and interesting to them. And on the contrary, they can call an exorbitant price - the services of a genius must be paid accordingly. I am writing this without seeking to offend someone — such a person can indeed be very talented. You just need to be prepared for an inexplicable, seemingly pricing policy. Paying attention to the period of the project, which the designer would call, in this case is generally meaningless. The real term may be two times less than the stated, and maybe ten times more, who knows.
Finally, there is a third class of designers. These are such “artisans” who have set a clear price for themselves and always call approximately the same prices and terms for a certain type of work. They are somewhat similar to the "entrepreneurs", but much less follow their own benefit. On the one hand, for the customer it is convenient - you can not worry that the designer-craftsman will not try to dissolve you by declaring an inadequate price. But on the other hand, such people do not read enough into the task before starting work, and if your project turns out to be more difficult and longer than it seemed at first, the designer will have problems. Either the work will be done anyhow, or you will be asked to pay extra.
I compiled approximate statistics on how many “entrepreneurs” are found, how many “creative personalities”, and how many “artisans”. Of course, this division is conditional: in fact, in every person there are some features of each of these types.
I am convinced that step by step instructions reliably bring success only when assembling furniture. Nevertheless, I will try to describe the "ideal" process of choosing the right designer for you. It is assumed that in one way or another you have identified a limited circle of people from which you will choose. For example, collected recommendations from friends or studied the top 20 in freelancing.
1. Define your goal. You need to quickly draw at least some stub for the site? Or on the contrary, you need a crazy and unique project - albeit expensive and long?
2. The characteristic type that suits you depends on your chosen goal.
If the goal is unique and unusual - look for a combination of “creative personality” and “entrepreneur”. Creativity in such projects is necessary, and the exclusivity of the project (and exclusivity of the budget) will hook the entrepreneurial spirit.
To quickly solve the standard and fairly simple task, you need a "craftsman". The result will be average, like everything that comes off the assembly line. But you can reliably and clearly predict the quality of the work and in what time.
In my opinion, the fundamental problem is that in most cases the customer wants to get a quality job, unique and fast enough; for this the “entrepreneur” is more suitable - he is much more flexible than other types and is more likely to be able to find the compromise you need. But bad luck - such a minority of people!
3. Examine the candidate's portfolio. If you need a website for the sale of toilet ducklings, you do not need to look for a designer with toilet ducks in the portfolio. Try to find out what this person is able to do - make the design “selling”, or give the site an expensive and solid look, or it is convenient to organize a large amount of information.
4. Chat. I deliberately do not write a separate item “study reviews” - this is obvious, but not always reliable. A good performer asks specific, but important questions, does not speak about trifles and is able to explain in a few words how he sees the solution to your problem. At the same time try to understand what type he is.
5. PROFIT
PS If there are specially trained sociologists here, to comment on section number 5 - I will be glad to hear the truth :)
PPS The plan for the following notes is:
Part I. The war with the designer
1. How to explain to the designer that profit is more important than beauty
2. Design - for the future consumer
3. How to explain your desires to the designer
4. Jack of all trades
5. From where designers take prices and terms
6. How to choose a designer in 5 steps
Part II. Conversation with the designer
7. Graphic rhyme
8. Graphic quality
9. Standard and custom mesh
10. The importance of interactive
11. Human language
12. Basics of typography
13. The principle of generalized contrast
Part III. Self-medication
14. Where the devil is in the details
15. “Too Empty”
16. “Enlarge the logo”
17. Nano Ero Cat
18. How not to view an elephant
19. Pages prostitutes
Part IV. Svezhachok
20. What are good patterns
21. Infographics
22. Everything about icons
23. How design became flat
This is not educational or scientific materials. In the comments to the first part, someone expressed disagreement with me; Excellent - there should be a lot of points of view. But I received many letters of support.
4. Jack of all trades
')
VKontakte is a 9 year old guy: “I need a logo for a lot of startups
I don’t take time from you to put an ad for the illustrator here, say
what menu to go in so that the beautiful logo comes out! ”
clientsfromhell.ru
When ordering the development of a design or an Internet project, the customer makes a choice between two options: contact the design studio, where all the necessary specialists are gathered, or find a freelancer alone.
The advantages of the first option are clear: it is quieter to give money to the company than to an incomprehensible person; in addition, under the good guidance of diverse specialists in fact will give the best result.
Nevertheless, the freelancer version is good in its own way: the customer communicates directly with the contractor, avoiding bureaucracy and a “damaged phone”. In addition, the studios often still pass on the project to the same freelance soloists, so contacting the studio is much more expensive.
The right choice here depends on many conditions, but it is important to understand one thing. This circumstance complicates the work with freelancers, but it must be taken into account if you want to get a quality project at the output.
The point is that there are no “masters of all trades”. Each person has their own abilities and preferences, and the range of such abilities is usually quite narrow. Rare exceptions here confirm the rule. For example, if you need to create a website, it would be unreasonable to wait for the same talents in the design and programming in the artist.
The solution is clear: to find a separate specialist designer and second - a programmer. But at this moment a new task falls on you: it is necessary not only to make separate tasks and explain to each specialist his narrow task, but also to establish a connection between them.
You can solve the problem more effectively if you find a special person who will be responsible for the entire project, directly contacting all the necessary specialists. When it comes to design, this familiar concept of the “manager” changes: the manager (art director) must have in-depth knowledge in all areas of the project, and sometimes be directly involved in it.
Consideration: do not look for handymen, and individual specialists. Or a person who will select and organize these people better than you.
5. Where do they get prices and terms
Ok i'm ready to pay you even 1000
rubles a day. Just need to be
all have time to do in a day.
clientsfromhell.ru
Designers are different. Someone has an entrepreneurial attitude - such a designer will always evaluate your project, asking himself: how profitable is it for me to work with this person? Is this task too laborious? Perhaps, it is preferable to devote this time to some other projects? Will communication with this person be useful to me in the future? Finally, would such a project be useful to me in a portfolio? ..
If he is interested in your project, then working with such a person is convenient. And if it is not interesting, then you most likely will not work at all. He will tell you the price based on the capabilities of your wallet, and the deadline is the lowest possible: the faster your project ends, the sooner you can proceed to the next one.
There are people of another type. These are “creative personalities”: they can please you with an inexplicably low price, explaining that your project is extremely attractive and interesting to them. And on the contrary, they can call an exorbitant price - the services of a genius must be paid accordingly. I am writing this without seeking to offend someone — such a person can indeed be very talented. You just need to be prepared for an inexplicable, seemingly pricing policy. Paying attention to the period of the project, which the designer would call, in this case is generally meaningless. The real term may be two times less than the stated, and maybe ten times more, who knows.
Finally, there is a third class of designers. These are such “artisans” who have set a clear price for themselves and always call approximately the same prices and terms for a certain type of work. They are somewhat similar to the "entrepreneurs", but much less follow their own benefit. On the one hand, for the customer it is convenient - you can not worry that the designer-craftsman will not try to dissolve you by declaring an inadequate price. But on the other hand, such people do not read enough into the task before starting work, and if your project turns out to be more difficult and longer than it seemed at first, the designer will have problems. Either the work will be done anyhow, or you will be asked to pay extra.
I compiled approximate statistics on how many “entrepreneurs” are found, how many “creative personalities”, and how many “artisans”. Of course, this division is conditional: in fact, in every person there are some features of each of these types.
Consideration: When negotiating work, price and terms, try to understand what type your contractor is. This will allow you to quickly understand it, and you will more easily find a common language.
6. How to choose a designer in 5 steps
- Sorry, do you have a wife?
- Yes, but how does this relate to work?
- Sorry, we will not work together, I need
a designer who will only listen to me
without outside influence.
clientsfromhell.ru
I am convinced that step by step instructions reliably bring success only when assembling furniture. Nevertheless, I will try to describe the "ideal" process of choosing the right designer for you. It is assumed that in one way or another you have identified a limited circle of people from which you will choose. For example, collected recommendations from friends or studied the top 20 in freelancing.
1. Define your goal. You need to quickly draw at least some stub for the site? Or on the contrary, you need a crazy and unique project - albeit expensive and long?
2. The characteristic type that suits you depends on your chosen goal.
If the goal is unique and unusual - look for a combination of “creative personality” and “entrepreneur”. Creativity in such projects is necessary, and the exclusivity of the project (and exclusivity of the budget) will hook the entrepreneurial spirit.
To quickly solve the standard and fairly simple task, you need a "craftsman". The result will be average, like everything that comes off the assembly line. But you can reliably and clearly predict the quality of the work and in what time.
In my opinion, the fundamental problem is that in most cases the customer wants to get a quality job, unique and fast enough; for this the “entrepreneur” is more suitable - he is much more flexible than other types and is more likely to be able to find the compromise you need. But bad luck - such a minority of people!
3. Examine the candidate's portfolio. If you need a website for the sale of toilet ducklings, you do not need to look for a designer with toilet ducks in the portfolio. Try to find out what this person is able to do - make the design “selling”, or give the site an expensive and solid look, or it is convenient to organize a large amount of information.
4. Chat. I deliberately do not write a separate item “study reviews” - this is obvious, but not always reliable. A good performer asks specific, but important questions, does not speak about trifles and is able to explain in a few words how he sees the solution to your problem. At the same time try to understand what type he is.
5. PROFIT
PS If there are specially trained sociologists here, to comment on section number 5 - I will be glad to hear the truth :)
PPS The plan for the following notes is:
Part I. The war with the designer
Part II. Conversation with the designer
7. Graphic rhyme
8. Graphic quality
9. Standard and custom mesh
10. The importance of interactive
11. Human language
12. Basics of typography
13. The principle of generalized contrast
Part III. Self-medication
14. Where the devil is in the details
15. “Too Empty”
16. “Enlarge the logo”
17. Nano Ero Cat
18. How not to view an elephant
19. Pages prostitutes
Part IV. Svezhachok
20. What are good patterns
21. Infographics
22. Everything about icons
23. How design became flat
Source: https://habr.com/ru/post/226649/
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