I studied what was supposed to be graphic design in community college. It was a lame course with an unqualified teacher, which is partly why I didn’t become a graphic designer. Most of what I know now is self-taught. I wish I’d met today’s guest post author, Pamela Wilson, a lot sooner. Pamela is one of those people who has a knack for explaining complicated concepts in plain English. She makes graphic design principles seem downright sensible. So if you don’t yet have the cash to hire a designer for your marketing materials and need to do it yourself, listen up. Pamela has some good advice for you.
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You may not know it now, but by the end of this post I aim to convince you that you already have the tools you need to create marketing materials that present your work in its best light.
The Studio Source is devoted to helping you implement marketing efforts that will make your business stand out from the rest. If you absorb what Stacey shares here, you’ll know how to position your business to be memorable for the long term.
My blog, the Big Brand System, is devoted to sharing information that helps small businesses make the marketing materials they’ll use to promote themselves. I’m a graphic designer, and some people have said that the Big Brand System is going to put my design studio out of business.
That’s ridiculous, and here’s why:
You’re Not My Customer
My clients are organizations who have large marketing budgets. My fees aren’t cheap, so I can only work with companies who can afford me.
I suppose that sounds like I’m showing off, but after being in the design business for over 20 years, I bring lots of experience to the table, and my fees reflect that.
At the same time, it has been frustrating for me. I’ve met many people over the years who really need the help of someone like me. When you have a very small business, polished, professional marketing materials can give you an advantage when you compete with other businesses for the attention of your target market.
Oftentimes I’ve stopped and helped. I create a basic website, or a set of brochures, or a presentation kit that helps that person go out into the world with a piece that tells their story and sells what they offer.
In the Old Days
When I first worked as a designer back in the late 1980s, our work was done manually. Clients gave us typewritten pages, and we marked them with our instructions and sent them out to a typesetting service. The next day, a courier service would deliver galleys: photo paper that had the typeset text output on long, glossy pages.
We’d take the galleys and slice them with our X-acto knives and use rubber cement to glue them onto mechanical boards. These boards were sent to a printer to be photographed. It was a time-consuming and hands-on process.
The Big Secret
Fast forward to today. If you’re reading this blog, you own a computer that does more than I could do at my drafting table as a professional graphic designer back in the 1980s. The ability to type on a keyboard and see the results on a screen in front of you before you printed them out didn’t exist at that time.
The big secret I’m here to tell you is if you know what to do with the powerful tool you’re sitting in front of, you can create beautiful and effective marketing materials for your business.
Rules and Skills
Like any skill you want to learn, graphic design and marketing have some basic rules you need to master before you can do them successfully. And like any new skill, the more you practice it, the better you’ll get at it.
It is worth the effort to master these skills. Why? Because no one is more passionate about seeing your business succeed than you. No ad agency or design studio you hire can match the enthusiasm and energy you’ll devote to creating crowd-pulling marketing.
Learn, Apply, Grow
I encourage you to pay attention to what Stacey shares here. Apply it to your business and observe the results. Make adjustments if needed, and try again.
Learn what you can about design, too. Once you’re mastered some basic design skills, you can take the powerful tool you’re sitting in front of and make beautiful pieces that will help your business shine.
You’re a creative person, so you have an advantage over the rest of the population. You’ve already been exposed to color theory, composition basics and how to really “see.” Your learning curve for design skills should be much shorter.
I challenge you to try it. Learn about typography, copywriting and white space. Add these skills to your toolbox and use them in your business marketing. Before you know it, you’ll have the most passionate, eager person in the world working on your marketing: you!
About the author: Pamela Wilson helps people grow their business with great design and marketing. Want to know more? Get her free Design 101 e-course at her site, BigBrandSystem.com
[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Dave Charest, Stacey Cornelius. Stacey Cornelius said: If You’re a Creative, You Can Craft Great Marketing Materials http://bit.ly/cEdF5P [...]
We can all do things ourselves if we are willing to give it a go. I enjoy doing a lot of stuff myself and making a page look nice. I do the vast majority of my web site maintenance myself.
However, for an important site or project, nothing beats having something professionally designed by a good designer.
I have been using he same web designer, Gill Bishop, for over ten years. Sometimes I will do something and ask her to take a look at it, and her input makes all the difference. So for the important things, it IS worth the money to have someone professionally trained, like Pamela, to do your design work.
Do the mundane stuff yourself but for the things that really matter, if you can afford it, get a professional designer.
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Agreed, Tessa: picking and choosing what you handle yourself and what you have done professionally gives you the most flexibility.
Some people don’t have the option to hire out this kind of work. Those are the people I am hoping to reach.
They can build their skills in this area, and may find they actually enjoy creating their own marketing materials.
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Pamela I just love how you’ve devoted yourself to teaching small businesses (like me) that we really can design our own stuff by following your very clear principles. Thank you for breaking it all down into understandable and actionable chunks!
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I’m glad it’s helpful, Carole. I love it when people get excited to use the tools they already have and learn how to harness their capabilities.
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Thanks, Pamela, for this perspective. I’ve never really thought about the powerful tools — and skills — I have at my fingertips.
I enjoy your newsletters and learn something with everyone.
Rock on!
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Thanks, Marsha! I have fond memories of the Mac SE I first worked on. I thought it was sooo sophisticated and advanced (and it really was compared to what came before it).
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Hi Pamela. Thanks for the trip down memory lane! Oh, how times have changed for those of us who remember the 80′s.
I read your blog, and have gotten some great ideas there. I really struggle with designing things, so I have to admit that I “fashion” my stuff after things other people have done and keep it very simple. Some of the tips you have given have really helped me in that regard.
The 80′s were a funny time- just on the cusp of such sweeping change. I actually have a marketing degree from the olden days, and for years I was almost embarrassed to say that. Now, I’m using some of those same old principles to do simple things myself. Plus, somehow marketing has become cool again. Ha!
Thanks!
Debbie Ferm
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Hi Pamela, I think your work is great and I am definitely going to be checking out your site when it comes to designing my own marketing materials. Really appreciate you sharing your secrets with us!
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Debbie, designers like to say we don’t copy ideas, we’re “inspired” by them. It’s good practice to keep you eyes open and see what’s worked for others. Your version of an idea can be inspired by what works elsewhere without being the same.
I’ll bet your marketing degree comes in handy. The basic principles haven’t changed, even if the tools have evolved.
Amy, thanks for you comment!
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