In my business of graphic design and web design, and even illustration, I’ve been able to do some cool projects for over 45 years. Website, email campaigns, logo designs, brochures, posters, newsletters, newspaper ads, and signage fill my days with creativity. I try to convey feelings and concepts, while I play with pretty colors, expensive geek-love equipment, and powerful design software. If that’s not enough, I’m also a fine artist, quilter, and illustrator. How lucky am I to do what I love every day?

Everything around us — our furniture, our homes, the groceries we buy, the clothing we wear, the vehicles we drive — has been designed, indicating the breadth and depth of the design field.

I’ve done portfolio reviews and mock interviews at a couple of local art schools, and there is some really exciting work being created, courtesy of their talented teachers too. It’s enough to make me put aside several hours a week to beef up my design and programming skills, because these kids (let’s face it, I’m old) are going to wipe the floor with me if I’m not careful.

Technical mastery

The former Wet Feet wrote, “Expert designers are creative and have technical mastery over their tools. They have an understanding of the raw materials they use — for instance, different kinds of fabrics, in the case of a furniture designer or a fashion designer, or metal, plastic, chrome, and glass, in the case of an automobile designer. In Web design, that means learning new programs and understanding how visual elements will work together.”

“Technical mastery” takes time, even long after graduation. I like to ask students what their plans are for continuing their education after graduation, and most don’t know how to answer the question. I’ve rarely heard a student say they will take classes and get magazines and technical books having to do with their chosen field. I want to shake the hand of a student who gives me an assertive, proactive answer.

One thing I’ve noticed is so many of them have signed on for a VERY expensive education (some schools cost upwards of $100,000 for a 4-year degree) because they’ve just always loved to draw and scribble on things, or do some programming, and they’ve made a logo for a friend for a CD cover or created an animated short film, and they think they want to do this for a living.

That is an excellent indicator that the graphic design, 3D, or web development field might be a good choice. You have to love what you do; you NEED to create as much as you need to breathe…but I’m concerned.

$tudent loans

I’m concerned about a design student (and their parents) taking on $100,000 in debt to pay for their education. According to Glassdoor, the average base pay for a graphic designer is $48,256, with the range of $35,000 to $70,000. Fresh out of school will be closer to $35,000, so about $17.50 an hour, so about $700 a week. That’s before taxes and heath insurance. And rent, and groceries, other costs of living, and oh, yeah, student loan payments that start 6 months after you leave school.

There are programs, such as the Income-Based Repayment Program that will help you pay less, but you’ll pay over a longer period. Student loans cannot be forgiven in a bankruptcy. The student loan landscape is changing right now, so do your homework.

If you can find the classes offered, get some decent classes for a much lower cost at the local community college. You don’t need to spend nearly $100,000 at art school to get a well-paying job in design. A state university works just as well, and maybe for only a couple of years, after you’ve taken your pre-requisites elsewhere. You’re applying for jobs on the strength of your portfolio and ability to do the job, not where you got your degree. Make sure the school you’re thinking of transferring to offers credit for courses before you take them.

The marketing plan drives the design, not the pretty pictures

I’m also concerned because many graphic design and web design students have no concept of marketing. Both are a means to a marketing end. It is not just about making pretty pictures. When doing portfolio reviews, I like to ask, “Tell me about the target market you had in mind for that piece. How old is the target? Are they male or female? Are they black or white or Caucasian or Asian? Where do they live? What are their interests? What kinds of things would appeal to them? Would they have any issues with the size of tex, font, or the colors?” These snapshots into people are called buyer personas by marketers. And agencies actually write up the personas.

Too often I get a blank stare or a very uncomfortable look. It looks like they’re thinking, “But, I just want to make pretty pictures all day!”

You are someone’s worker bee

If the graduate works for an agency or marketing department, someone else more seasoned will have come up with the basic design. The graduate will be the “junior designer” (the production artist). Their opinion may not be solicited or appreciated. They’re the art director’s worker bee, with the same unthinkable deadlines, but no input, until they put in their time.

Even if the graduate decides to fly solo, even if they come up with an award-winning, masterfully creative design, there is no guarantee the client will love it. The client may have strong ideas about their design. I have literally been handed a logo drawn by a client’s young nephew. I was instructed to make it work.

At the end of the day, the client signs the checks. The freelancer can be a prima donna and tell the client to take it or leave it, but too often the client leaves it and warns their friends that the artist is hard to work with. I come up with more than one design. In my experience, the client often chooses one of my less-favorite designs. Educating the client and graciously saying why the nephew’s logo won’t work might help. But, I have to suck it up and make it shine.

Speak up, please

One thing that I’ve noticed in student presentations is a great need for speech training, and maybe some Toastmasters. One student spoke so softly, I could hardly understand what he said. I notice many, many “likes” (“Like, this is the color I chose”) and “uhs” (I think, uh, uh, that this would be, uh, like a good choice”). When a designer gives a presentation or sales pitch to a client, this comes across as unprofessional, insecure, and ill-prepared. If the designer is a freelancer, chances are they won’t get the job. If they work for an agency, they probably won’t be allowed in front of the client.

Final thoughts

I like to say, “If you want to make pretty pictures, there’s the fine art department. Make all the pretty pictures you want.” Design is hard work, often (but not always) not always gratifying. It’s sometimes supremely frustrating. But, if you do the job right and in a timely and skilled manner, you help your client effectively sell their product or service. You get to keep them for a long time.

If you would like to hire someone who understands the business of design and marketing, contact me, and let’s strategize.

A couple of years ago, I was helping my now-81-year-old mom with her aging computer and setting up her printer. Understand that my mom is a brilliant woman who can do the most amazing things, but she didn’t grow up using computers, so they are pretty overwhelming for her. Reducing-her-to-tears kind of overwhelming. Head-in-her-hands kind of overwhelming. 

Fast forward to the week before Christmas. Business was a little slow as it tends to be this time of year, so I’d determined to learn Git and versioning before the end of the year. Everyone says I have to learn Git and Github. And versioning. I have to learn them. I HAVE TO if I want to be a developer of any sort. That’s what my developer (“dev”) friends say. Making changes on a live site is called “cowboy coding,” and considered shameful and amateurish (although sometimes there’s no other option). I’m trying to be a pro. This is no hobby.

There are other software products that are similar to GitHub, like Bitbucket, GitLab, and Sourcetree. They are various combinations of free and paid, and I hear they’re all great.

What is Git?

Git is a way to make a snapshot of a file in which you are working. Versioning is making a series of “snapshots” (copy) of the file as you are working on them, like doing a “save as” every few minutes as you work on the file. This way, if you need to start over with a previous working version of a file, you can access it and replace what isn’t working. 

It’s more complicated than that, and involves getting different kinds of software to communicate with each other. Often, things don’t go smoothly.

Enter Microsoft

On June 4, 2018, Microsoft bought GitHub for $7.5 billion, the best-known means of working with Git. I guess learning it is important. Many developers are up in arms over the purchase, but they’ve been looking for a CEO for 10 months now. I figure, hey, at least Google didn’t buy it. Or Apple (which I love, but they’ve had issues lately). And I just bought a 1-year subscription to Github in March, so I might as well cope. Github it is.

Fine, I’ll Learn Git

I Googled and read so many articles on Git, watching videos with poor sound quality (and I’m hearing-impaired). I even tried Codecademy and a couple of other things using my high-end text editor (software that helps you when you code, or program). Except it has really sucky documentation and no forum for community help. Lynda.com has a course I’m going to try out.

I hit a roadblock in setting up Git in my high-end code editor that was supposed to support it, so I emailed its developer. Their support is closed for the holidays. Fabulous. So much for learning this before the end of the year. 

All of these articles and videos seem to require a passing knowledge of working with a command line interface. Even the tutorials for total beginners. I don’t have that knowledge. What level is before beginner?

This seems so familiar to me

Throughout that day or two of trying to learn Git and Github, I’d yell at my computer, trying the same thing over and over again. I had to stop and make a candy run (sugar being my drug of choice). It occurred to me that there was some saying about doing something over and over again, and insanity. I couldn’t disagree.

And I put my head in my hands, overwhelmed, trying not to cry. Because there’s no crying in coding! 

I thought of my mom and wanted to hug her — I get it. I probably felt like she did. 

Learning Git and Github is on the back burner, and I’m working through the book on command line interface (CLI). Maybe that extra knowledge will help. I’m not giving up. Maybe I’ll figure it all out by the end of 2018.

If you want a designer who is committed to learning as much as she can about her craft so she can help you best, contact me and let’s talk about your web needs.