Choosing the right designer, and knowing exactly what you should expect from the design process is important. To assist you in determining your needs, you will find answers below to some of our clients' most frequent questions. However, please feel free to contact us with any additional questions or concerns.

why do I need a logo?

why do I need a website?

why buy promotional items?

can you help write copy for my brochure or ad?

do you have photos available to use in my advertising?

can I use my local printer for your designs?

what are your terms of payment?

can you handle a rush job?

what, exactly, does a graphic designer do?

what should I expect from a designer?

why do I need a logo?

Although most entrepreneurs are too busy establishing their business to spend time on marketing, there is one essential step that must be taken before you do anything else. Your company needs a logo.
Once your company has a name, it needs an identity, and that's where your logo comes in. A logo serves the following vital purposes:

In other words, a logo can save you time and money by giving you a head-start in marketing your business. The opposite is also true: having multiple logos or no logo at all requires you to spend more money promoting, in effect, several different companies. Therefore, it's absolutely essential to create and use a single logo that will identify your company on all your equipment, documents and marketing materials.

When designing a logo, or hiring a graphics professional to do so, it helps to keep the following guidelines in mind:

The most important thing to keep in mind is that your logo will become the centerpiece of your identity. Once your logo is finalized, you can then turn your attention to other pieces of the marketing puzzle, such as brochures, signs, your web site, and design standards for documents and other visual communications.

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why do I need a website?

The Internet is a constantly growing marketplace.
The Web presence is essential to all businesses.

It enables you to:

• Drastically reduce advertising cost compared to TV and radio commercials, newspaper ads, creating and distributing advertising materials, hiring marketing staff.



• Reduce the cost of printing and mailing information materials.



• Reduce long-distance phone costs by exchanging information via Internet.



• Communicate with customers and take orders quickly.



• Update information on products and prices quickly and easily.



• Track visitor and client information.



• Develop national and international exposure.

Individuals:

• Posting your on-line resume is the easiest and fastest way to find the best job for yourself.



• You can show your talent to do entire world through your own web site.



• You can share your ideas and communicate with others.

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why buy promotional items?

Many companies ask why they should buy promotional items and how would promotional items work for our business? The industry's leading publication says that promotional items are the fastest and most effective way of branding your logo.

Promotional items are often used for the following:

• Business gifts



• Employee relations



• Event marketing



• Trade shows



• Brand awareness



• Public relations



• Motivation



• Recognition programs



• Souvenirs/remembrances
• Traffic building.

πnik Design can help you choose the best promotional items for your company. We follow the basic questions that allow us to make advertising specialty products work for you:

• Who is receiving the promotional item?



• What type of company do you work for and who is your clientele?



• What items have you done in the past and what has been successful?



• What type of budget do you have to work with?



• When is your event date?

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can you help me write copy for my brochure or ad?

We can expand on your initial ideas for brochure text and we can write headlines and ad copy that will get results!

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Do you have photos available to use in my advertising?

We have our own collection of stock photography as well as access to the latest images that will set your design above the rest without setting back your budget. In addition, we do offer photography services as an extension of other services - ie... site shots, reference photographs for commissioned fine art, location or product shots for print or internet display. We do not offer portrait or studio photography.

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can I use my local printer for your designs?

Yes; although in most cases you’ll find we are very competitively priced, we know that sometimes
our clients have established relationships with local companies and we will gladly work with them to
smoothly and efficiently deliver your files to meet their needs.

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what are your terms of payment?

Each and every project is different, so our terms of payment vary. For print projects in general, we require one third of the amount quoted before we get started on your design. The second third of the total would be due when we provide you with proofs, and the final third would be payable at the end of the project, when we provide you and/or the printer with high-quality finished files.

For web design, we generally require a 50% deposit, and the remaining 50% is payable once the site is finished.

All added expenses (purchased stock images, postage for physical proofs, etc.) are payable at the time they are incurred.

As we stated before, our terms vary. We can be flexible if your organization has special needs, so please don't hesitate to contact us to discuss your options.

For all payments, we accept the following

• Money order



• Wire transfer



• Western Union payment

We apologize, but we do not accept non-local personal checks or cash payment through the mail.

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can you handle a rush job?

We can usually accommodate your rush job depending on how full our production schedule is. To be fair to other clients, if a job already in production is interrupted by a rush job, we reserve the right to add an additional 25% – 50% on top of the normal price.

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what, exactly, does a graphic designer do?

In short, a designer creatively communicates your idea, your product and your solution to the world.

Graphic designers use a variety of print, electronic, and film media to create designs that meet clients' commercial needs. Using primarily computer software, they develop the overall layout and design of magazines, newspapers, journals, corporate reports, and other publications. They also may produce promotional displays and marketing brochures for products and services, design distinctive company logos for products and businesses, and develop signs and signage systems-called environmental graphics-for business and government. An increasing number of graphic designers develop material to appear on the Internet, delivered via email or the web. Graphic designers also produce the credits that appear before and after television programs and movies.

Companies need graphic designers to design marketing and sales material, advertising campaigns, web sites, product packaging, signage, and countless other things. Many design firms exist specifically to fill this need and employ teams of designers. Graphic Designers are found working in a diverse range of fields -- specialized graphic design careers include:

• Package designers



• Furniture designers



• Cloth designers



• Floral designers



• Glass/metalwork designers



• Set designers



• Display managers



• Exhibit designers/ museum exhibition chiefs

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what should I expect from a designer?

The key for a designer is the ability to ask the right questions as well as to add their own spice and creativity to a project. A good designer will look to build long term relationships with their clients and treat their clients like gold (for a designer, clients are the lifeline for their business). At IC Design, we encourage creative growth, building strong client relationships, and pushing the limit (within the scope of the project of course!) Our goal is to clearly communicate your message, on the web or in print, and to complete your project on time and within your approved budget.

Not all graphic and web designers follow the same procedures. Become familiar with the creative and production stages of the graphic design process. Go to the full article on working with a graphic and web designer here.

If you are looking for the price for a particular graphic or web design project, request a free quote here. Working with a designer should be fun. Let IC Design make your next creative project a success!

Your Success is our Success

We are confident in our ability to meet your project's objectives. Click here to visit our sample portfolio now and view our clients' past successes.

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working with a graphic and web designer

Not all graphic designers follow the same procedures in completing a project. But this cursory overview will help you become familiar with the ins-and-outs of the creative and production stages of the graphic design process.

Before any work begins, we suggest the following: a communication strategy; assigning one company staff person as the decision maker and key contact for graphic design; a written contract covering project parameters and responsibilities; money matters such as estimates and billing; and a project timetable. Since the communication strategy is the single-most important element guiding a project from its initial stages through final refinements, make sure that you and the graphic designer understand what it says.

Initial research should include an audit of your competitors' and your company's current communications. In trying to establish a distinct position for your company or one of its products or services, you don't want to mimic a competitor's work or contradict a message your company just sent out.

The first stage of creative work includes concept development. This is an exciting process, exploring various options and weighing their merits against the communication strategy. Once the concept has been established, the refinement stage begins. Along the way, you see the project evolve, each time becoming more refined. Other creative work such as writing, illustration, or photography usually occurs simultaneously with refinement process.

At the end of the concept refinement stage, the graphic designer will usually present a final comprehensive layout or mock-up to the person at your company who has final approval authority. He or she should be satisfied with everything that will go into the final product, including typography, photography, copywriting, paper and colors. Copywriting takes on particular importance because proofreading responsibility rests with the client unless other arrangements have been made. In today's electronic world, desktop publishing allows copy to go directly from word processing to set type. Correcting copy during the word processing stage, rather than later, saves time, money and headaches.

Since the approval process may involve more than one client representative, expect changes at each decision-making point. It is important, however, that the client's key contact person keeps track of and agrees to all changes before the designer makes them. Then, the production stage begins.

During production, you will be asked to review and approve preliminary proofs at each stage of the project. This proofing process ensures accuracy at every step in the process and keeps things on budget and on schedule. During the production stage, the designer ensures the technical accuracy and overall quality of the final product.

A design project can span weeks or months. What you end up with will be the result of a joint effort. Talented designers and savvy clients produce effective graphic design by making the most of their common interests and their individual preferences. If you decide to work together on future projects, take the time to assess your experiences and look for ways to improve. A union forged by success can generate profits and growth for both of your companies.

Article text excerpted from "The Graphic Design Handbook for Business"
© 1995 American Institute of Graphic Arts/Chicago Chapter

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