What are 5 questions to ask before you design?
Freelance Graphic Design 101
You just landed a new client and it’s your first one-on-one meeting. They have a book of ideas, preferences, dislike’s, opinions and you’re patiently listening, taking notes and…still listening. While listening, ideas pop into your head, you start to doodle while listening and realize your doodles are completely unrelated. You’ve zoned off. You snap to and you are back on track listening to them and taking notes. But, when they come to a stop and look at you, what do you respond with? A question? I should hope so.
Your ideas can wait. Even though they’ve been talking for a long time, you should have a few standard, necessary questions as well as ones related to your ideas which are waiting in line, up in your head. First of all, the language of a designer needs to come down notch to layman terms so, that your client doesn’t feel clueless, everyone is on the same page and so, there’s no misunderstandings. Also, it is our job to decipher their needs, be intuitive in their unexpressed needs and read between the lines. We are also there to guide them. They came to us for our expertise as a designer and our ability to create a solution for them. Here are a few key questions to ask:
What’s their budget? This is foremost important and you shouldn’t consider it tacky to ask right off the bat Breaking down your rate, how you want to get paid, what the cost covers, helps them adjust their finances and you have a good idea of the time and energy you will be investing. Then, there’s no surprises. Make sure this gets solidified before you step forward especially with sharing ideas.
Have they worked with freelancers before? This will give you a good idea of how to approach them, whether they need hand holding and if they will understand certain design terms, your needs as a designer and your expectations. Also, if they have, how their experience in the past has been with freelancers.
What are 5 adjectives that best represent your brand? I like this one…it gets your creative wheels turning.
What are the design specifications? This is a given and as a designer you should know these questions.
Is there a unique story behind your brand? This helps you create a story behind your design and sell it. Sets it apart from the competition.
Aside from these, make sure you ask as many questions as necessary so, you have a good understanding of their needs. Answers to these questions will set a clear path for you to design trouble free…hopefully. Unless it’s a reoccurring client or someone you know, you never know how things will unfold after the first meeting. You could get lucky with an easy going, trusting client or one that needs a lot of translating and hand holding and we’ve all had those (they actually make us better designers and communicators). Also, listen to your gut. Is it a good fit and does it feel right? Always take a breath and be nice. Success with them could mean referrals to you.
