How to Communicate with New Clients — Graphic Design

Many Designers are faced with this familiar and common worry or problem of communicating with New or prospective Clients. You have been on social media marketing yourself, creating Ads, and eventually someone serious slides into your DM or sent you a mail for a work/project and you get scared or don’t know what should be your answer or how to answer. This looks like witchcraft right? Hmmm….. I don’t think so, I believe you just need to wear your armour of professionalism; Yeah, you heard me right; Armour of Professionalism.

There are simple ways to overcome this problem which are:
1. Have an Introductory Form: To avoid being a scum, you can create a simple google form that allows someone fills in their basic personal info and explains what they really what and also state their budget. With this whenever someone new message or contacts you for work, you can just send them the link to access the form, so they can fill it. So when you get the response, you can now be relaxed, have the knowledge of them, thereby making it much easier to continue the conversation. Another interesting thing about this method is that it makes you look more professional and serious to the client. Imagine, the feeling or thoughts you would have when you contact someone for work and he/she sends you directly to a form. You feel me right? So let’s move on.
2. Autoresponse: Another method to beat this fear is using an autoresponder. You can set up an autoresponder in your Facebook page or WhatsApp so that when someone messages you through these channels, the autoresponders help you start the conversation. You can also set up an email autoresponder like MailPanda, so that whenever anyone sends a mail to you the autoresponder helps you easily start the conversation.
There are many other channels of responding to new clients but I believe these channels are the best and most effective. So, get up, create your form, set up your autoresponder, and let the new clients start rolling in. See you soon!

How to Handle the Pricing of Print designs

Handling Print designs like flex banners e.t.c. sometimes may be tricky, messy and sometimes you may be at loss. I remembered when I did my first flex banner 10 pieces of 3x2 banners and I only made a profit of only N700 + stress and even ignorantly designed the banner in RGB colour mode instead of CMYK.

You must handle print designs patiently and confidently, that project I only earned N700, I had a profit target of about N5000, but when I went to the printing press I realized I won’t be making more than N700, So heartbreaking right? I guess I just had to use that as an experience opportunity.

When handling a print design, make sure you are patient enough not to give a random price. The first thing you have to do in this situation is to contact the printing press and make solid and comprehensive research on the cost of production, then you can now give a price that would contain the cost of production + your service charge, then you will be a profit.

How to handle design clients that don't know what he or she wants

 Been a Graphic designer is sometimes stressful, and I can confidently say as a designer we are most times undermined. Sometimes we encounter or work with good, understanding, and enjoyable clients while sometimes it is the opposite.

Sometimes we find ourselves in situations whereby we are working with clients that don’t really know what he/she wants and still keep on rejecting great design ideas and concept we have made for the same cause.

There are some clients that want certain design concepts but don’t really know what they want and we end-up becoming stressed out and tired of the project.

For example, Client a wants a logo design for a reservation company and didn’t give you a prior detail about what he wants, you went ahead to make your research on what best suits the brand, went on to create good and great concepts but still the designs where DECLINED by the Client.

What could have happened? What is really the problem? The Client is not just pleased with the design.

Now the Big Question; How do you handle this situation? Handling this situation requires good patience and business spirit from the part of you; the designer. Already, you are pissed of but you are still obligated to deliver what he or she wants right? The shortcut out of this situation is simply COMMUNICATION.

Don’t say put, and continue designing what the client will dispute or decline at the end of the day. What you should rather do is speak to the client, explain your design and its concept generation process, and why you think this is best for the project.

Now even if the client is still not satisfied, the way out is still communication. Discuss the client, find out from him/her what the/she really wants, make them feel free to say their mind, show them good samples, and with this I am sure you will eventually be able to cave out what the client really wants.

Keep on dominating, see you soon!