More bread and butter for Graphic DesignersWritten by Alec Ellis
As a graphic designer myself, I know benefit of regular studio work, sort of work that keeps studio alive, not most exciting, usually referred to, in designer's terms, as ‘bread and butter' work. In Graphics world bread and butter work takes form of regular, heads down, non-award winning briefs: a daily stats sheet, club newsletter, monthly report, stationery updates, shopping mall news papers and prices catalogues, with all weekly bargains. These are just a few examples of what keeps us in business; we also love to pass this work on to junior or ‘newby'; regular work that brings in probably 80% of years income, for an average design studio. These jobs are quickly finished, mindless at best, and are able to be billed and paid within 30 days. The bread and butter job doesn't just exist in ‘offline' world, as many of my fellow designers have found with introduction of Internet. Though websites are becoming smarter many graphic designers are becoming aware how to control and create them. As with introduction of computer to design world, everyone became an instant designer, "give me a computer and I will design my own leaflets", said businessmen. That lasted about a year, when graphic designers started to take back banner and businessman became a client again. You can only take so many identical leaflets. The graphic designer has now become new ‘web designer'. Web graphic programs have evolved from web editors, they are easier to use, with web support software and technical help plentiful. This leaves creative spirit as only inconstant, ‘once again'. Graphic designers are producing master pieces, all they had to do was learn about ‘medium', in this case, Internet, Web, software, programming, and more. Once technical side had been mastered (these days you don't have to be a main-framer), creativity took over, as a new artist introduced to oil paints, watercolour, wood, metal, coke cans, urinals, and six inch nails, for very first time.
| | I don’t need a website!….Do I?Written by Janice D. Byer, MVA
Once upon a time, in a small home office, a busy entrepreneur wondered why he wasn’t quite as busy as he would like to be. “I market my business as much as possible”, said entrepreneur, who has implemented many marketing procedures while running his business.Our entrepreneur, we’ll call him Bob, runs a computer repair business. His services allow him to provide his clients with his expert advise, either in their offices, by email, or on phone. Because of this, Bob has a large potential market, both locally and internationally. Bob has a great brochure, filled with all his features and benefits; he attends as many networking events as he can; he advertises in local newspapers; and he has a huge ad in yellow pages. But, Bob doesn’t have a website. Why? “I don’t need a website, do I?” asks Bob. “I do everything else possible to market my business and I also get many customers by referrals. Why would I need a website?” Glad you asked Bob! Let’s see if we can’t outline some of benefits of having a website… both locally and internationally… Your website is a live brochure that is available for anyone to see from anywhere, no matter if they are 5 miles away or 5000 miles away. For potential local clients, they may first find your company in yellow pages but, if they are looking for more information about you and services you offer, Internet is one of first places they will look to do their research. Many potential long distance clients may be in different time zones or would rather not make a long distance call. Because of these factors, Internet is where they would go for more information. Having a website enables your information to be available anytime and, by including your email address on your site, they have a cheaper and more convenient of contacting you. Your website allows you to create and show much more of your information than a print ad or brochure. The more information you provide, more likely a potential client will be to buy from you as they can see everything they need to know. You can even include a little something extra, such as tips and resources, to help your clients see your dedication to providing topnotch customer service.
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