There are outsourcing websites that let talented low-wage individuals fight for your money on the table through web or graphic design competitions. Well, you might not know that it can cost you more in the long run. Actually undermining the mission of your business, is worse than wasting your money.
While you could get a good deal, you must first know what your business needs and understand that there are basically three types of designers:
– Template designer: A designer who grabs templates like WordPress themes from the web and uses it as his own design, with little or even no customization. Today, website templates even the free ones, look very professional and pretty. Template designer usually offers incredibly cheap and extremely quick turnaround time.
– Creative designer: Highly talented at making pretty websites and probably cost more but that’s all they offer: creating good-looking graphics and websites according to your brief.
– Brand Identity Consultant: A far more than just a designer and works differently. Instead of telling him what you want your design to look like, you tell him about your business. More specifically, he wants to know your business’s mission, vision, philosophy and so on. He will advise you what to do, and creates a visual and communication strategy for your business, which includes the web design, logo, marketing collateral, stationery, business cards, etc. In other words, he works on developing the Visual Identity of your business.
Most of the outsourced low-wage talents belong to the first and second category. Some of them in the second category are exceptionally talented. But they will follow your orders according to what you want, you’re fully responsible for defining your requirements to them. However, no matter how talented they are at making beautiful pictures, trouble may arise in the following ways:
Cultural differences – What is acceptable or appropriate from their perspective may not be so in your business industry. So, the responsibility is on you to define what is wrong in their design and you have to be previously trained for this.
Being ordinary – There are many pretty website templates on the Internet and some are even free, appearance does not automatically make your website stand out if it still looks similar to many other websites. If you are trying to build a brand, a pretty website that blends in with all the others will turn your business into ordinary. Identity is crucial for your Brand success in an increasing market competition.
Miscommunication – Even if the designer can create pretty look from your requirements, it may still send the wrong message to your customers. That can happen when the requirements that you give to the designer is inappropriate to the nature of your business.
So, it is very reasonable to go for a brand identity consultant, even if you pay much more, but you would be assured that you will not be damaging your brand. A consultant offers much more than creating pretty look for the following:
Study your competitors – Brand Identity Consultant actually analyzes your competition to make sure that whatever visual communication designs created are all set so that your business stands out and not be just the same as others.
Ensure Consistency – Brand Identity Consultant also makes sure that all the visual aspects of your business (e.g. website, email signatures, marketing collateral, stationery, letterhead, business cards, packaging, videos, etc) presents a consistent communication to the world by writing a Visual Identity guidelines, a document that defines and sets the rules for all visual aspects.
Basically multiple cheap outsourced talents runs a great risk of sabotaging your business’s image. In other words, cutting costs by outsourcing web or graphic design to low-wage individuals may seem smart, but you may actually be undermining your brand in the long-run and turning your business towards being an ordinary.
Feel free to get in contact with us to give you the consultation you need for your Brand.
Let us know your thoughts feedback@amgadization.com