You’ve heard the terms thrown around a lot. Branding. Logos. Identity. What do they all mean? How do they differ? Does their order matter? And if so, which came first, the chicken or the egg? In this 3 part miniseries, I will detail each of these “steps” and explain their differences, their importance, and meaning of each. This week, allow me to introduce Step 1: Branding. Step 1) Branding: the emotional perception or idea…
Today it seems that designers are a dime a dozen; anyone with a computer and a copy of Photoshop considers themselves a bona fide graphic designer. How can you possibly tell who’s good and who’s not? Simple, just ask yourself these 10 burning questions before hiring one. (And designers, double check that you can pass these benchmarks as well.) 1. How strong is their portfolio? This is paramount, because at the end of the…
Not so long ago, I had a commenter ask me a tough question: how do I find clients? Especially in a weak economy. Fierce competition doesn’t help either. I know for myself, clients and projects wax and wane, but I’ve been very fortunate to establish some pretty loyal clients early on in my career. The question is, how can you do this too? You’ve probably heard the suggestions I’m about to offer before. They’re not…
Hint: it’s not what you think. What’s the biggest mistake your business could be making during a recession? Drum roll, please… Cutting back on marketing dollars. It’s true. The best time to spend more, not less, on marketing and advertising is when the economy is down. Fortunately for you, not many people are aware of this fact. Here are a few reasons why this secret is true and why you should utilize it to your…
Run, don’t walk from cheap logo design. I got a phone call not so long ago from a prospective client asking about having a logo designed. Great, I thought, that’s what I do! Unfortunately they found out that I was way outside of their budget. Now, I get it…even the starting price of what I charge for logos isn’t exactly cheap, but you’d be hard-pressed to find a professionally designed logo for much less than…
I’ll let you in on a little secret. Logo design used to be my least favorite thing in the world. Used to be. Now it’s starting to grow on me. Sure, I love a good logo. Who doesn’t? But designing them…for some reason that’s the Holy Grail of good design. But for me that’s always been an area where I’ve lacked real confidence. Why? Probably because of the amount of weight that one little symbol…
I’ll give you a hint: saving money’s involved. Hiring any kind of professional to do work for you can be a big investment of time, energy, and of course, money. So it follows that you would want to make the best possible decision when choosing someone to design your new logo or business card. Many people are understandably anxious about hiring a freelance Graphic Designer over a design agency, but the odds are definitely in…
Helvetica. A font by any other name…. You either love it or hate it, or you don’t know what I’m talking about. For the latter group, Helvetica is a sans-serif (and if you don’t know what that is, we’re really in trouble) typeface designed in 1957 by Swiss typographer Max Miedinger and Eduard Hoffmann. It became an instant sensation and now it’s used for everything from government forms to street signs to logos. The rest…
Who makes the best client? Your husband, of course. The Spring and Summer of 2011 has been filled with multiple new branding and identity opportunities. In this article I will detail the processes and journey behind one of these logo’s developments. Today I will be talking about the logo I designed for my husband John. Now him being my husband and all doesn’t negate the professionalism and work involved; every logo I design goes through…
(*Unless you want to be mediocre, in which case, I can’t help you) Is your business awesome? Amazing? Stellar? Of course it is, but the real question is…are your customers aware of this fact? If the answer is yes, then you can stop reading right here. But if the answer is no, or you’re not sure, then you’ve come to the right place, because that’s what I’m here to do…to help make sure everyone knows…
