The Publisher/Graphic Designer Relationship (Part V)

The Passionate One

Well the good news is, as designers, we’re a pretty passionate bunch. Passion is what keeps us going at 3 AM on a project that is ‘done’, just not ‘finished’. It's what drives us to spend 3 hours creating the perfect Instagram post from our trip to grocery store instead of working on the paying gig that’s due tomorrow. Sometimes it's our BFF, other times? Less so.

The pertinent question here is how are your designers putting their passion to work for them? First off, do they give a shit? No, really. Are they bringing their ‘A-Game’ or are they simply ‘phoning it in’? One of the things that I try to do for every project is to establish a level of ownership. By doing this, I find that I push myself harder, I take more pride in what I’m doing, and defend it with conviction. I really feel that It makes for a better product.

When your designer takes a sense of ownership for your product, they’ve now got skin in the game. When they take pride in the work they’ve done, they’ll be more likely to be an ambassador for your brand and projects. If I see one of my clients’ brands being mistreated on implemented in a bad way, I pick up the phone or reach out to them to see if they were aware of it and ask if I can help so it doesn’t happen again.

In the end, suppliers who truly care about you and your brand will result in producing superior products that you can be proud of and stand behind.

Next Up…

In the 6th part of this series, we’ll explore the ‘x-factor’ part of the relationship. What little (or not so little) things does your designer do to set them apart from the rest?