6 Things Every Designer Should Have

Written by Gino on 07-07-2008

A Print Portfolio

Even though it is arguably more important to have a web portfolio, you can’t neglect having a print portfolio! Many studios and companies want to look at a print portfolio because it can tell them more about you as a designer, especially if you are applying for a print design job. You can refer to our graphic design portfolio guide for more info.

A Disposable Print Portfolio

Most of the time you will be asked to leave a copy of your portfolio behind and you may not want to leave your original work, or an expensive portfolio case with them. Find a less expensive case and re create a few copies of your portfolio that you can leave behind at all the places you are applying to.

A PDF Portfolio

PDFs of your work are also commonly requested. Your PDF pages should be combined together to form a single file, it should match the style of your identity system and have your contact information. Your PDF file must be as small as possible, under 2MB is recommended, but often your potential employer will specify preferred file size. Sending a huge size file that takes forever to open is a sure way not get hired.

A Website Portfolio

A portfolio site is the main weapon in a modern designer’s arsenal and a one page portfolio is the perfect way to create your portfolio site. They are fast loading, easy to view and showcase your work perfectly. Be sure to look into website marketing and search engine optimization so you can make the most of your portfolio site.

A Resume, Cover Letter and Business Card

A well designed and consistent resume, cover letter and business card are a must have for every designer. Be sure to keep the copy on these items up to date for a guide on resume design check out our post: The Graphic Design Resume Guide

A Printer Contact

Having a friendly business relationship with a local printer or online printing company has many benefits. Often you can get discounts on printing, faster turnaround times and you will be aware of the latest printing techniques and equipment, which is essential to the graphic design process. Be sure to visit the shop in person if possible, or at least become very familiar with their website and templates so you can make the most of your printer contact.

Source: youthedesigner

10 Ways to Build a Name For Yourself

Building a name for yourself is the best investment you can make as a designer and building up your own name recognition really isn’t as hard as you may think. If you are well know and trusted than finding work will be much easier, so check out these tips on how to get your name out there!

1. Blogging

I have mentioned the power of blogging before, but I wanted to bring it up again because its probably the best way to build a name for yourself on the web. If you want more exposure then you really should create a bog and start writing on a regular basis.

2. Commenting

Commenting on blogs is another great way to make a name for yourself. Always use your real name and try to leave comments on all the designs blogs you follow. The best way to do this is to leave a comment as soon as you can after a post has been published so more people will read it.

3. Guest Writing

Many blogs are happy to have guest writers contribute to the community. If you feel you can write an informative article, try contacting your favorite blogs with some topic ideas. Make sure you get credited properly with your name and a link back to your site.

4. Tutorial Creation

If you have a knack for creating cool effects and designs and you feel you can show the process with thumbnails or video, you should consider writing tutorials. The best thing to do would be to feature and promote them on your own website or blog and then submit them to other sites to get additional traffic.

5. Non Profit Work

Teaming up with non profits to work on projects in your free time is very honorable and can help get your name out a bit. Write down your passions or things you care about and then look for legit non profit organizations and contact them to see if you can help out!

6. Web Portfolio

Many designers still do not have an official website portfolio up. This is understandable for designers new to the field and still studying, but if you want to get a head start you should look into creating a website for your work on your own domain name as soon as possible!

7. Design Galleries

Graphic design galleries are another great way to gain name recognition. If you submit your designs and they are rated well you could end up getting a ton of exposure and even gigs. Below are a few great design galleries you can submit your best work to.

• LogoPond
• UCreative
• BestWebGallery

8. Portfolio Sites

Similar to design galleries there are design sites that take it a step further and let you Create a Graphic Design Portfolio. Sites such as UCreative allow you to create a portfolio, upload your work, add a bio, contact information and much more. This way you can build better name recognition and it allows people to contact for jobs and or gigs if they like what they see!

9. Interviews

Interviews are probably the best way to gain rapid exposure, but usually tend to come about once you have already gained some recognition. This isn’t always true though, there is no reason you can’t contact magazines, websites and blogs and offer to respond to interview questions. If you are serious about helping others and sharing your experience and knowledge, then you might be able to do some interviews sooner than you think!

10. Networking

Networking is probably the most important method of this entire list, so don’t let its number 10 spot fool you. Networking is essential to success so be sure to surround yourself with both successful and motivated people in your field. Be friendly, be helpful and never stop meeting new people on and offline.

Source: youthedesigner

DESIGN TIPS

Basic Guidelines:

1. Be professional: People are going to get their first impressions of your website based on your banner ad, so you need to be certain that it presents you in the best possible manner. This means you should be extra careful that all your spelling and grammar are correct. Also, select font sizes, styles and colors that maximize your ad's readability. If your banner ad is of poor quality, people will assume your website is too.

2. Ask for an action: What do you want people who see your banner ad to do? Most likely, first and foremost, you want them to simply click on it, so be sure your ad says so. Because this is so important, most of the banner ad designs already have a "call to action" (such as "Click Now") built in.

3. Keep it simple: Your banner ad may only have a few seconds to make its impact on the viewer. As a result, it must be able to convey your message in a small amount of time. By keeping your ad's concept and wording clear and concise, you increase the likelihood that the viewer will actually get your message. Remember, if the viewer can't easily and quickly understand what your banner ad is saying, it is unlikely he/she will click on it. Use the fewest (and most simple) words you can. Just because you can fit more words in your ad doesn't mean you should. Once someone clicks to your website, you'll have ample opportunity to provide more details.

4. Use words that raise attention or emotion: Words like "free", "special offer", "secrets", etc. help grab the viewer's attention and increase his/her curiosity in your offer. Try this technique: pretend you are reading your banner ad's text for the first time: would YOU be interested in or excited about what it offers? If not, then most people probably wouldn't be either.

5. Emphasize benefits, not features: What is the difference between a "benefit" and a "feature"? In simple terms, a "feature" is a service or an aspect of a service that you offer. A "benefit" is the actual impact it has on your customer. Let's say your site offers income tax services. Which of these is more enticing: "We speciallize in finding deductions" (a feature) or "Pay less tax" (the benefit)? Advertisers realized long ago that more than anything else people want to know how your product/service can improve their lives.

6. Test your banners: Analyze your data to determine what the more successful ads have in common and then refine your ads and test them again.

Source: addesigner

Tips To Make a Better Artist

Here are some very useful tips I would like to share with you and personally would recommend sticking to them.

Experiment

Experiment and hang on to what you learned . Every time you work you will notice you find a new way to do an old job. Experiment continuously & learn from your experiments.

Observe

One of the best way to learn is to observe how people are doing it. You may be a great artist you might think that you know it all but hey! wait how did he do that?! . There are endless possibilities to achieving same result and you might be missing one of those endless possibilities that will work for YOU.

Always Start with a Sketch

There are many ways of working your way around in vector, since vector is a medium where everything is Drawn (most of the time) try drawing and converting your ideas and concepts on pieces of papers . Scan them and import them in your art Board and start your work building over them. Trust me you will find yourself more engaged in artwork. I am not a psychologist but as an art student I believed and still believe what your fingers and mind co-ordination produces your mind and mouse co-ordination cant.

Duplicate your Artwork while Working

The great thing about using vector based soft wares is that you can easily duplicate the work and place multiple copies along your way of work. While creating a logo Duplicate each step and work forward. This way if at any point you would like to revert to a stroke or line that you did earlier and incorporate it into your later step you can easily do that!
Don’t Delete duplicate, copy and place off your work board. Explore freely as you are leaving your steps stored behind to get back to!. And when you reach a point copy your SATISFIED piece of work in a new file. Save this work phase file you might need some unused shapes and stuff later for that other project?!

Clean up

When you are happy with your work switch to outline mode to look for any wonky, or stray lines. Clean them up a detailed post i wrote a while back might help here. To fix curves use the smooth tool which is available in tools palette with pencil tool.

Name Stuff !

Get Serious! ……Yes! Name your work name your instances name your projects. While working in a team this is so important. While working on a educational animations, we got so bored so we (FUN) named few of our recalled works. This way if working in a team you will keep your self organized as well as fresh. We even placed some hidden buttons to reveal jokes.. .

There is no harm in getting a second opinion

Once you are engaged creatively in your work area you “May” fall in a visual trap which keeps you sticking on one line of thought. Come back fresh you will find your mistakes holding you back.

Source: aivault