How to work with a designer....

I've been thinking about this a lot lately. Client provided content comes in is all kinds and in all types file formats. 99% of the time it's perfect and we can work with it no problem, but there are a few points which seem to come up time & time again. I'm gonna add to this as I think of more, so very much a work in progress! Feel free to leave comments! None of the stuff below is intended to be legal advice, our client T&Cs take care of that, but hopefully, it'll come in handy! If you're reading this wondering where you can get hold of an experienced designer, come and check us out...

1. Logos: We need these ideally in a vector format (.ai or .eps etc...) or failing that in high-resolution image file format (TIFF, JPEG etc..). We can easily reduce and reformat a nice crisp, clean .eps logo for an email footer or web banner, but we sure as hell can't blow up that 3kb GIF pulled from an email signature to fill an exhibition banner!! Rule of thumb... logos pulled from websites aren't suitable for commercial printing.
   
   
2. Images: Same applies, pretty much any file format is OK, but as a rule, pics pulled from your website won't be good enough for that full-page brochure spread! We love TIFF and PSD files as they are lossless, meaning that the quality isn't compromised by compression like JPEGs. JPEGs however are generally OK, but as a very loose guide, if the size of that JPEG is less than 150kb,  it's likely gonna be problematic.
   
   
3. Text copy: Don't waste your time filling that Word doc with fancy formatting, leave that to us. Plus, when we import your text copy from that heavily formatted word doc, we often then have to go through it with a fine toothed comb removing all the extra glyphs etc. that Microsoft assumes we want! Trust me Bill, we DONT! Feel free to drop images into your text copy to show us where they go, but please, please give us the pics separately too. This will save lots of time and improve image quality. While that list of bullet points might work well for you to get your point across, they will seriously restrict layout options. The odd bulleted list is fine, but if your publication is 90% lists, you'll be seriously restricting the layout options and your publication will suffer!
   
   
4. Proofing: Remember, we charge our hourly rate for work whether that's designing something new and lovely for you or going through the job we've just designed correcting typos. Save yourself time & money by proofreading and correcting your text copy before you give it to us! The most important thing to get right is the AMOUNT of text/images you're gonna give us. If we're doing a multi-page brochure/magazine etc. and you decide that you need to take out a page when it's designed, the knock-on effect means that every single page from there on has to be re-designed! That will blow the budget and lead-time out of the water. We don't want that because then we get it in the neck from all our other clients who're expecting their work on time! We certainly don't like having to request fee/deadline renegotiation halfway through a job!
   
   
5. Be honest with your designer: If you don't like what your designer has come up with, tell them! We're trained professionals and don't take it personally. We'd rather know that we're on the wrong track early so we've time to correct our course! Be honest too when it comes to your deadlines. You'll find that any professional designer worth his/her salt will have no problem burning serious midnight oil to get your job in on time. But don't ever, ever put your designer under unnecessary pressure thinking that it'll get you your job a little quicker or buy you a margin for error. When your designer gives you a lead-time, it will include that margin for error.
   
   
6. Don't be afraid to tell your design what you do like! Feedback is a 2 way street, if you only ever tell your designer what you don't like, you'll never get the best out of them. Designer/client relationships are developed with feedback, communicate your likes as much (if not more than!) you communicate your dislikes and you'll probably find your designer's success rate, productivity and enthusiasm grows exponentially!
   
   
7. Make sure your content is legal!! Probably the most important point. Your designer is not a lawyer. It's your responsibility to make sure the content you provide is not gonna leave you open to anything nasty. Most designers will probably have an issue if you want to use obviously offensive text/images (we certainly would!). But no designer can be responsible for checking the that your content isn't gonna provoke a lawsuit for defamation! Your content is your responsibility!
   
   
8. Sign off is final! When you approve your artwork, be sure you're 100% happy with it. After this, amendments are probably not gonna be possible and if you do spot a mistake, there's nothing your designer can do about it if it's blasting its way through a press at 12000 impressions an hour! Most designers, Vitamin included transfer all responsibility and liability to the client on sign-off. It's very important to check your proofs carefully!

© Vitamin Studio 2011. Feel free to quote from this, but please credit.