Graphic Design – 5 Reasons You Should Leave it to the Pros

Have you ever tried to fix something in your home that maybe you shouldn’t have?
Just recently we had a pipe burst in our house in the second story bathroom.  And rather than call a professional plumber to fix it, my hubby decided he could do it himself. How hard could it be to piece together a few pipes inside the wall right? Well, after turning the light fixture in our  kitchen into an amazing waterfall, and a few thousand dollars later in floor and ceiling repairs, the pipe was fixed. By a professional, I might add. Had we called the plumber in the first place, the repairs would have only cost us a few hundred dollars. Lesson learned!

I am seeing this same do-it-yourself practice in small business when it comes to their marketing efforts, mainly in the area of visual communication. Many business owners are doing their own graphic design while at the same time trying to run operations.

They have PowerPoint and a huge amount of clip art with hundreds of free fonts. Or they buy a logo for 50 bucks and stick it on everything. But somehow their effort never looks the way they intended it to look.

Often the end result of this time consuming chore gives off the impression that the business itself isn’t all that professional.  Due to the damaging visual perception of their efforts, targeted customers or clients are now moving on to the competition with the professional presentation. In the end, the price of doing-it-yourself will cost much more than if a professional graphic designer had been called on to make your vision come to life.

Here are five reasons it’s best to hire a pro

1. Designers do more than just make pretty things

Is it design or decoration? There is a strategic path a designer takes to effectively convey your message visually to those you desire doing business with. Positive perception is everything! A first impression is a lasting impression and in today’s fast moving world, you don’t get a second chance. Before anything is created, a professional designer must first know the product or service you’re selling, the culture of your business, internal and external perceptions, and truly understanding your targeted market and competition. This is just a small sample of the research that goes into exploration and developing concepts that work.

2. Designers know the rules

No, we’re not talking about a certain set of design laws that can’t be broken or else the world will go up in flames. We are talking about the thoughtful use of design theory and principles, grids and ratios, psychology and color theory, and the skillful use of type to pull elements together that will reinforce a message and build brand loyalty.  This professional knowledge and experience goes into building effective visual solutions that will ensure you stand out from the competition and attract potential customers and clients to your business.

3. Designers are pragmatic

Information hierarchy is king! From a pragmatic standpoint, a professional designer is concerned with the “how” and defining “when” things happen, and in what desired order. There are also many variables that affect outcomes since logic and intuition interplay with one another. A professional designer can narrow these outcomes down to a practical solution that will successfully return the best results.

4. Designers see through the visual clutter

Have you ever heard the term, “Can’t see the forest for the trees?” With the heavily media saturated world we now live in, it’s becoming more of a challenge to remember even one of the thousands of brands that are throwing their logo at you from every direction. A majority of these icons are unremarkable and equate to nothing more than visual clutter. Many business owners have a vested bias toward these works they themselves designed so it’s difficult to see not just the faults but also the strengths of having their visual marketing done professionally. Design professionals offer an objective vision to assist in developing strong concepts that will stand out in this visual clutter, revealing the best design solution for marketing your products or services.

5. Designers help you to clearly realize your vision

Use a designer’s vision to realize yours. Professional designers can creatively take your vision and bring out strong visual concepts that will reinforce the message and communicate it clearly to your intended audience. Business owners have enough to worry about when it comes down to improving their bottom line. Hiring a professional designer can take the burden off their marketing efforts and help to articulate a positive  perception with strength and clarity to the right crowd. A professional designer can also be a trusted adviser and partner, building long-term and lasting relationships that can benefit the business owner for many years to come.