Finding the right creative partner

Starting or growing a business or organization is like an endless first date. You want your organization to make the right impression and to be memorable for what it stands for. You want it to be recognized and praised for how it expresses and presents itself. Right?

So why is it that some business owners come up with flimsy excuses to justify getting a student or an acquaintance to create their company’s identity or promotional materials. While I’m the first to demystify what we do as creative consultants there is something to be said for hiring a professional. The most obvious one is that in this competitive market you need to be visible. Sending your organization out there without a proper identity is just plain cruel. Despite all of its qualities, you’re setting it up to be teased and mocked or, worse yet, completely ignored.

Here are a few tips to facilitate the process of finding someone who can help put you on the map:

Set aside a realistic yearly budget for marketing and design
If you have no idea what design services might cost, call a few studios and get budget quotes. Alternatively go to the library and consult the Graphic Artists Guild Handbook: 
Pricing & Ethical Guidelines. It outlines pricing guidelines for design services for organizations of various sizes.

Do your homework
Visit the Graphic Designers of Canada’s website—or your country’s equivalent. These sites are full of tips for working with designers and feature links to reputable studios or independent designers in your area.

Narrow down your options
Pick 3 to 5 studios whose philosophy, process, or aesthetic strike a chord with you. Consider working with an individual rather than a studio if the size of your budget or project is more suited to that approach.

Go beyond the basics
Meet with them to discuss your specific needs and to see if you might be able to work together. Take a good look at samples of previous work, not to verify that they’ve already done exactly what you need for someone else but that they are able to resolve a variety of design problems in appropriate and engaging ways.

Start the relationship right
Be upfront about your budget and clear about your goals. A designer’s skill-set shouldn’t be limited to making things aesthetically pleasing, it should also encompass strategic thinking to find the best ways to overcome your specific challenges. Get written estimates from each short-listed candidate outlining the deliverables and, if the deadline is looming, a timeline for completion.

Once you’ve found the right fit, the relationship should be one of partnership where you can each benefit from the other’s expertise to make a better end product. Your organization will be on its way to the second date in no time at all.

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This post was originally written for our fundraising partner Blueprint Fundraising & Communications