Topic of the day: Research

Running a Studio and Winning New Work :
In the book "How To Be a Graphic Designer Without Losing Your Soul" (HGD) the author talks about how designers are artists which means that the work they produce is art. As with all good art, it can only be produced with time. The author's advice for design businesses is to stay small so that you can handle the difficult business demands and do great work without it seeming like you're just pushing out work to meet multiple deadlines. You'll have to hire a creative staff and the book gives the advice, "Always employ people who are better than you." This way, you can concentrate on your tasks and your creative staff can work without you worrying.

How do you find this talent? The book says the talent is in their design, but "you don't spot talent, it spots you." Good designers want to work at studios that have a good reputation and therefore, these type of designers will come looking for you.
The state of mind is important when running and working in a studio. Similar philosophies or something you believe in. This can help designers to work well together and all share a common goal. The author also mentions to "encourage your designers be themselves." You can get some of the best and individualistic work if you don't put restraints on your employees ideas and thinking.

The search for new and better work never really ends and it's something you will face throughout your whole career. You must always be on the lookout for clients that will start and keep you growing as a business. As a studio, you need to "sell yourself with integrity and precision" to get good work. You must produce good work all the time. By using promotional tools, you can communicate and promote your studio effectively. Some tools include its identity, a portfolio, a website, and printed pieces (ex. flyers, posters, postcards, and mail).

According to the book, your portfolio is your understanding of the subject of design. It is also never complete. Good designers are always looking for ways to improve it and question whether parts are effective or not. What do you show, you ask? Well, according to HGD, it depends on the work you do. Show the work that is relevant to what you want to do. When presenting, show your work in context. For example, if you designed a logo that appeared on a billboard, then show a picture of the billboard.

How about your website? Well, first start by looking at other designers' sites. This can help you figure out what's already been done. Make sure that every page on your site has contact information as easy access to viewers. Make sure navigation is clean and very accessible on every page also. Chances are, visitors will be directed to an internal page after finding you using a search engine. Your site should provide answers to questions like "Who are you? What do you do? And who are your clients?"

Audience:
The topic of the day seems to be audience. Your portfolio is an "expression of who you are," according to the author of Designing a Digital Portfolio (DDP). Where do you start?

Researching. Find out who your target audience is and figure out whether you want to work for a large company or a small studio. Research companies and see if you like the type of projects they do. Could they be a possible business you want to be apart of? Compare your work with the company's. Are they similar? Find out how the business wants to be approached: through e-mail? letter? phone call? Can you work under their terms, views and thoughts on designing and working?

Search tools can be found in three common forms when researching for jobs. The first is personal contacts. Talk to your friends or peers who have jobs that you would want. They might be able to tell you what their company is looking for in portfolios. This can be vital information and can help you prepare your own portfolio. They might even offer some names who would be willing to look over your work. Join a professional association in your field like http://www.aiga.org. Some schools and universities might offer job placement or career counseling which makes it another location to check out. The internet is a search tool that can be very helpful, yet can offer much too much information so you need to search carefully and thoroughly. Use advanced search and put phrases in quotes. The book mentions the site http://www.design-engine.com which gives descriptions of companies which can be helpful in your selection process. The internet can be overwhelming so make sure you narrow down your search.

The author of DDP seems to agree with HGD's author when they say that research is never finished and you can always learn things when looking in the right places, especially if they're about your target audience and your design focus. You just have to know where to look.