Each profession has its own characteristics, allowing you to apply specific skills. Like any other job, graphic design has not only benefits but also pitfalls. Let’s take a brief glance at them in this article.
If you decide to try yourself in this sphere, it is worth considering both sides of the coin. It will allow you to prepare for the difficulties that will arise in the future. Here we’ve covered the pros and cons of working as a graphic designer. Learning about them, you can make an informed decision about whether to develop in this direction.
Graphic design today is not just about images. The development of marketing, behavioral psychology, as well as the growth of competition, lead to the improvement of all industries related to commerce. In particular, graphic design.
Today, designers solve a massive list of questions. A professional designer takes into account the task set by the client’s business goals and audience characteristics. For example, heat maps, the specifics of information perception, the impact of text placement on CTR.
Modern design requires breadth and depth of thought. It is an extremely balanced career. Working as a graphic designer, you can actively engage in creative and analytical thinking at the same time.
This advantage is one of the most significant, especially for people who previously worked in company’s staff and felt that the salary did not match their effort or expectation. As a freelance employee, you set the price yourself. In every particular project. That provides flexibility and allows you to change the reward’s size based on the complexity of the task.
The positive effect of this item can be maximized by specialists who have managed to recommend themselves well. With a steady stream of orders, it’s easy to reject offers with inappropriate compensation.
People are different. Not everyone is pleasant for us to interact with. That’s normal. But office work precludes the possibility of completely cutting off communication – you have to deal with the issue within the project.
However, freelancers are not bound by the constraints of corporate ethics or the idea of team spirit. Therefore, they themselves choose with whom to work. It won’t be easy at first. However, over time, you will form your own criteria, and become more discriminating towards customers.
Staff members arrive at the office every day at scheduled times. For some people, it means organized life while for others it brings unwanted limitations. After becoming a freelancing graphic designer, you can work remotely. Office space will become blurred. Remote employment turns any place into a work area—for example, your home, coffee shop, or coworking space.
Freelancing provides exceptional workplace flexibility. All you need is a laptop, a power outlet, and Wi-Fi. Actually, you can work even while traveling the world. As long as you have access to the three things mentioned above, you have your own workspace.
You can organize not only the place but the work process itself. Part of your work can also be optimized and use the service creativefabrica.com where you can buy graphic elements.
Some people are comfortable staying up late and waking up around lunchtime. Others prefer to start the day at six in the morning. The biorhythms can be very different. A freelance graphic designer is able to customize his own work schedule in the most comfortable way.
There may be some restrictions if you are a remote worker. The company may ask to stay in touch for a certain period of the day. Therefore, you have to adjust. Otherwise, you can draw up a work schedule at your own discretion.
Do you remember Pareto’s Law? 20% of the effort provides 80% of the result. Here this law is more relevant than ever. Freelancers don’t need to work a certain number of hours. Only completed tasks are essential. Try to finish them early and be free for the rest of the day.
Yes, you have to be a marketer, executor, manager, lawyer, and accountant all rolled into one. Because will not find themselves, besides, you will need to negotiate, track payments, set prices, and motivate the main contractor (yourself). And all this has to be done independently.
Some roles or tasks can be challenging. Therefore, it is worth mentally preparing in advance because you will have to deal with many issues. In particular, financial and legal.
The problem becomes less critical if you look at it from a different angle. By becoming a freelance designer, you will significantly expand your competence. After all, you will begin to be interested not only in the intricacies of design but also in organizational issues.
You should also make sure that your communication with clients is correct. This means that there should be no typos in emails, the website, and the portfolio. For this, it is better to use services like Grammarly and Essay Tigers. That will ensure a positive impression of you as a professional. Use personal photos only in good quality. You can always improve the quality of photos using the services: icons8.com/upscaler or imageupscaler.com. It is useful for any designer to take screenshots for customers, there is a good tool: Aiseesoft Screen Recorder
The difficulty of any creative profession is that the tasks associated with them seem simple to uninitiated people. So a few edits aren’t a problem, are they? In fact, yes. Adjustments are standard practice.
But if the customer is a middle manager in a large company, then a “couple of edits” will be provided at each level of the hierarchy. As a consequence, making adjustments will take more time and energy than creating the original design.
To prevent this from happening, set the boundaries in advance. At the stage of starting cooperation, specify:
● number of rounds of edits stipulated by the price;
● execution terms (this will protect against situations like “one urgent revision”).
Moreover, compliance with these rules is your responsibility. Of course, the client can ask for “one more little change.” However, it is crucial to value your own time and effort. Just in case, save the modified versions of the graphic file until the project is completely closed. If necessary, you can send them again.
Design is about visualizing ideas. Which is quite a challenge? People do not always manage to voice the thought correctly that has arisen in their head, and the designer must create a visual embodiment. It’s not easy.
Many people believe that design is a simple job. Perhaps that’s why they are voicing vague suggestions for edits. For example, they ask to “play with fonts.” Such a remark has no constructive value. It does not give an understanding of what result is required.
However, such comments do get to the designers. Especially at the beginning of your career. As you gain experience, you will begin to understand how to “play with fonts.” Also, learn to choose your customers carefully. Therefore, you will start to cooperate with people whose vision is close to yours.
A graphic designer is a performer. Therefore, the main guideline for work is not so much the inner feeling of beauty as the client’s requirements. They can sometimes seem strange or ridiculous.
It is possible that the customer will like a design option that you would never have chosen. However, if the client likes it, then you did a good job. This is worth preparing for as an integral part of the job. Graphic design is not about creating beauty. It is the development of graphic elements for companies. Therefore, from time to time, you may not like them with all your heart feeling like the outcomes could be better. Think about client goals, not your feelings in these cases.
Graphic design is a professional direction that allows you to use your own creativity and insight to the advantage. Therefore, for many people, it is perfect. However, in this profession, there are also downsides. This does not mean that you should give up your dream. No, just pay attention to both the light and dark sides, and if the positive aspects outweigh the possible pitfalls and problems, just get ready for them and nothing will stop you.
About the Author: Kevin White is a freelance writer passionate about new web technologies, web designs, and marketing strategies. He is always looking for new ways for personal and professional growth and is convinced that it is always important to stay on trend and keep up with the latest.
Title image from the Urban pack in Ouch illustration library
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