DESIGN & DEVELOPMENT

Goals Meeting and Determining Value

During this meeting we talk about your specific goals for the project, whether they be financial (increased revenue, increased web traffic, increased customer engagement, etc.) or personal/sentimental (preservation of memories or history, celebrate a business milestone, etc.). My aim is be as familiar and on board with your goals as you are, so that while I am designing or building your solution, I do so with your goals at the center of my focus. During this meeting we will talk about what accomplishing your goals is worth to your business.

The Content

This is one of the most important pieces of the equation, second only to your goals. In order for anything to be designed or built to carry a message, the message must be articulated. I call this the content. The design is meant to be a vehicle for the content. A car may be the best vehicle to use for a road trip, but who is taking the road trip? You wouldn’t send a single person in a fifteen passenger van, nor would you send a large family in a smart car. In order to determine the appropriate vehicle for your message, your message must be clear and complete.

Proposal and Agreement

After determining your goals and discovering what kind of value accomplishing those goals would bring to your business or organization, I put together a proposal restating your goals and desired solution, and my fee. I also put together an agreement, including a project specific process, timeline, and terms of the business relationship. I deliver this to you and also set aside time to go over it with you paragraph by paragraph to make sure we are completely on the same page before moving forward.

The Project

After the first payment is received, I begin working on the project. Depending on the specific medium, there are a variety of different steps, but it generally breaks down like this: Research, collecting raw materials, sketch or storyboard, refinement, further refinement, finishing, completion, packaging, delivering.

You’ll notice I do not include a revision process with the client. If you are hiring me to do design work, it’s because you see me as the expert and professional in design and, it is understood, I see you as the professional in your field of work. Therefore, you are most equipped to describe your goals and provide content for the design, and I am most equipped to take those goals and content and use my design skills, expertise, and insight to build a solution that will accomplish your goals. This takes a great deal of trust on both of our parts, but ultimately leads to a solution that is better suited to help you reach your goals.

Presentation, Final Payment, and Delivery

After the project is complete, I will take you through my design process and describe the design decisions I made along the way to arrive at the most effective version of the final product. I share details about inspirations, statistics, colors, tools, etc. that were integral in crafting your project. After the presentation, and having collected the final payment, everything is delivered to you with any necessary directions for use.