What to Look for When Hiring for Branding and Design Services
Picking the right partner for your branding and design can either help your business stand out or hold it back. You only get to make a first impression once, and if it’s a crappy one, you lose credibility and honestly, money.
With so many designers out there, from those offering $5 logos to others with premium pricing, it’s important to know what to watch out for - both the good signs and the red flags - before you make your choice.
First things first:
1. Assess the Range of Services Offered
What to Look For: If you’re going to need design services beyond branding, we recommend hiring a designer to keep all your marketing on-brand and looking legit. If you start out strong and then everything starts looking DIY, it will just cause confusion and make your audience question your legitimacy. A designer who offers a comprehensive suite of services like branding, web design, graphic design, and more takes the search and trial and error with various designers off your plate. The convenience of an all-in-one designer ensures consistency across all your branding and marketing efforts and saves you the hassle of coordinating between multiple designers.
What to Avoid: All that being said, you do want to do your due diligence to make sure a designer is an expert in the fields you need. If they are a branding pro, but their websites are lacking, look somewhere else for that service. Just because they say they can do it doesn’t mean they should. It’s more important to have effective, on-brand design than to just save yourself some headache.
How we’re Different: We position ourselves as your all-in-one creative partner. From getting you up and running with a compelling brand identity to designing a seamless website experience, we handle every aspect of your project. With over 20 years of combined experience and extensive backgrounds in different areas of design, we bring a variety of talents to the table. Once you’re up and running, we don’t leave you hanging. We offer ongoing design services for things like social media graphics, print marketing, website maintenance, and more through our design membership program. Our network of creatives (liek animators or videographers) also allows us to provide you with specialized services when needed, ensuring a seamless, hassle-free, and one-stop-shop experience.
2. Evaluate the Design Process and Communication
What to Look For: Transparency and efficiency in the design process are crucial. No one wants to be guessing (or ghosted) when they are investing in a designer and expecting projects to be done on time. Make sure you ask and understand how potential designers handle communication, feedback, and revisions. A streamlined process with clear timelines and deliverables is essential to avoid delays and misunderstandings.
What to Avoid: Designers who offer vague timelines, lack a structured process or fail to communicate quickly or effectively. This can lead to frustration, missed deadlines, and additional money out of your pocket. If they don’t present you with a clear project proposal, contract, or project outline at the beginning, that’s a red flag in our book.
How we’re Different: Here at TSS, our streamlined design process is built around efficiency and simplicity. As a dynamic husband-and-wife team, you get TWO seasoned designers who ensure fast turnaround times without compromising on quality. We value your time and make it a point to keep you in the loop, providing clarity and confidence in the progress of your project. We kick our projects off with clear timelines, and detailed outlines of the scope of work, and use project management software to keep everyone on track and in the loop.
3. Consider the Experience and Background
What to Look For: A designer with a proven track record and diverse experience - proof they can adapt to your specific needs and challenges, bringing valuable insights and expertise to the table. If there is a specific style you’re going for, make sure you can find similar work in their portfolio (more on that below). A designer with a well-organized website and a high-quality portfolio is usually a good sign.
What to Avoid: Designers with limited experience or those who specialize in only one style of design (unless it’s the style you’re looking for). This lack of versatility can result in cookie-cutter designs that don’t effectively address your unique business needs or stand out in all the noise.
How we’re Different: With our extensive background in branding and design, we understand the unique challenges faced by different industries. Our experience working with startups, small to mid-sized companies, and boutique businesses allows us to offer tailored solutions that resonate with your target audience and drive results. Working with clients in a variety of industries has helped us create a portfolio that showcases everything from feminine design to minimalistic design, industrial design, and more.
Pssst… If you’re reading this and wondering why it’s so dang important to invest in your design and marketing beyond your branding and website, check out how we break down why brand consistency matters and how to achieve it in an easy-to-understand way.
4. Review Their Portfolio and Client Testimonials
What to Look For: A strong portfolio showcasing a range of projects, styles, and industries. Client testimonials and case studies are also valuable indicators of a designer’s reliability and a preview of the quality of their work and what it’s like to work with them.
What to Avoid: Designers who can’t provide examples of their past work or lack positive reviews. This could indicate a less-than-desired client experience, lack of expertise or just straight-up unsatisfied clients. A messy or disorganized portfolio can also be a red flag to watch out for.
How we’re Different: Our portfolio speaks for itself, showcasing the diverse range of projects we’ve successfully completed. But don’t just take our word for it — our client testimonials sprinkled throughout this site highlight the satisfaction and success we’ve delivered, proving our commitment to excellence and successful partnerships.
5. Align on Values and Working Style
What to Look For: A designer who shares your values and has a working style that aligns with your business culture. This alignment is crucial for building a successful long-term partnership based on trust and collaboration.
What to Avoid: Designers who prioritize their artistic vision over your business objectives or fail to understand the core values of your brand. Misalignment can lead to designs that do not resonate with your audience or reflect your brand’s identity.
How we’re Different: At The Studio Sullivan, our core values of excellence, efficiency, and partnership drive everything we do. We take the time to get to know you, your business, and your vision. Our collaborative approach ensures we do some important preliminary work up front and that the subsequent designs we create are not only visually stunning, but also strategically aligned with your goals, helping you build a brand that truly stands out.
So where do you go from here?
If you’re reading this and feeling a little overwhelmed by the process of finding a designer, just try to keep it simple. When you reach out to a potential design partner, take note of how quickly they respond and the quality of their response. Once the conversation is going, ask them about their process - everything from initial proposals to invoicing, payment methods, deadlines, etc. Ask to see their portfolio and notice how it’s presented. Is it showcased on a beautiful website or emailed to you in a jumbled mess of PDFs? These things will give you an idea of their experience and what it’s like to work with them. And if they DO have a website (yay them!), look around and see if you can find client testimonials that speak to their client experience or what it’s like to work with them and portfolio pieces that imply they would be a good fit for your brand.
But if you’re ready to skip all that and just trust that you’ve got expert designers in your corner, we’re here for you.
We’re here so you can get back to doing what you were made to do. We’ll show up in your inbox (on time) with designs you can’t wait to share.
