Everyones a designer....

K

Kev Clarke

Member
So i have been working for a client, this opportunity has come about through work that i have done freelance previously.
This involves working in-house along side the small marketing team they have in place. Great i thought a good chance to gain valuable experience and add to my portfolio.

Since working there the design work i have been creating has been taken over the bloke in charge, who is constantly on my back demanding immediate results and who wants to change every bit of design work into ' bigger images of products, bigger text and bigger logo '.
When i try to reason with his demands from a design perspective, it falls on deaf ears.

It has got to the point where design work i was happy with has been changed to the point that i dont want to stick it in my portfolio! Logo designs hijacked with ghastly straplines that dont work and the font is bad.

So it look as if once the work here is complete i'm going to re-do quite a few things to get them up to a standard that will impress people who know what they are looking for and appreciate design a little more...

Anyone else had an experience like this?

:icon_mad::icon_mad::icon_mad:
 
All the time. There are generally two types of clent; One who knows exactly what they want, no matter how good or bad their ideas are. And the other that simply requests something to be done, leaving it open to the designer to do his/her job. You just got to cater for both.
 
Not an unusual situation but you can be prepared for it.

If people don't like my first few responses to a brief (the ones I try to put the genuine creative effort into), I ask them - in the interests of getting the job done to their satisfaction - if they can show me something they like so we have a common point of reference. I'll then do what I can to try to make the style my own and, if that fails to close the deal, I'll give them whatever they want and move on (making sure I file the earlier drafts in case I can use them for a future job, which, on one level, makes more sense than showcasing them in your portfolio as they'll appear fresh when you're able to put them in front of a new client).

Keep in mind that creating a satisfied client will generally serve you better than creating a design that meets whatever benchmark you set for entry into your portfolio which is, after all, none of their concern. It's nice to do work you're proud of but it's also nice to stop wasting your time, get paid and get out of there.
 
Get your money and then get out cause your your just wasting time with crap you cant put in your portfolio, also you can take the manager to one side and tell them that when you ready.
 
darrengraphicdesign said:
you can take the manager to one side and tell them that when you ready.
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I REALLY wouldn't do that, you don't know who he knows. Connections and good business relationships are important, just because this client doesn't have the same taste/standards you do, doesn't mean he isn't well connected elsewhere. Why would you give yourself a bad reputation?

It's par for the course you'll have to compromise really.
 
Classic problem, I run into this every now and then. Sometimes I wonder why I was even hired when the client actually wants to do EVERYTHING themselves. Frustrating. I try to avoid these situations nowadays because it really puts me off.
 
Maybe try to focus his thoughts on who the final products are actually aimed at ie. the audience/customers, and that it's much less about what he wants the designs to be.

Might be a slow process, and you'd need a convincing audience profile but he might edge towards your way of thinking in the long term. There may simply be nothing you can do though, in which case, you've done everything you can, bite the bullet and move on.
 
I saw a great meme once, basically the tile was of it was: Website Design, $50 per hour - $75 per hour if you watch - $100 if you help :) whether you work for an agency or as a freelancer there will always be clients who try and get involved. You can either run with it and put it down to experience or make sure you sig contracts that include clear instructions on client involvement.
 
Unfortunately this is very common and like CLHB said
CLHB said:
There are generally two types of clent; One who knows exactly what they want, no matter how good or bad their ideas are. And the other that simply requests something to be done, leaving it open to the designer to do his/her job. You just got to cater for both.
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What I tend to do is do exactly what the client wants but also show them an alternative to show how it could look if I was left to create it and then they can have the choice.

You also get the customers who literally sit there and say 'up alittle' 'down alittle' 'lighter' 'darker' and can be there for hours and others who simply want anything to hand out that looks alright.

All part of the job!
 
LovesPrint said:
I REALLY wouldn't do that, you don't know who he knows. Connections and good business relationships are important, just because this client doesn't have the same taste/standards you do, doesn't mean he isn't well connected elsewhere. Why would you give yourself a bad reputation?

It's par for the course you'll have to compromise really.
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As you can see there are plenty graphic designers and printers out there so you have to keep each client and boss happy or they will find some else.
 
lucky for me i have only had this experience once when i was younger, but i couldnt sit and let them take over my work so i had "my say" give it to them straight explaining I AM the designer NOT YOU you are a database imputter, blah blah blah.... in end had to go to main office, and got told in some respectts i was right but in some i was wrong. but after that the muppet left me alone and i could do my work in freedom
 
NUGFX said:
lucky for me i have only had this experience once when i was younger, but i couldnt sit and let them take over my work so i had "my say" give it to them straight explaining I AM the designer NOT YOU you are a database imputter, blah blah blah.... in end had to go to main office, and got told in some respectts i was right but in some i was wrong. but after that the muppet left me alone and i could do my work in freedom
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If you're working in-house with multiple taskmasters at various levels, this (or a version of it) is of course an option. If, however, you're freelance/independent, then its less wise to risk souring your relationship with the client. In a loggerheads situation, I'd see if I could appeal to them to trust me and allow me to complete the job in a way that my experience as a designer tells me is the best approach (that's basically why they engaged you in the first place, right?). If they're unable to do that, then I'd go back to my previously-outlined approach.

The idea of telling someone why they're a fool is an attractive one but nobody ever built their own design business by forcing stuff on people that they didn't want.
 
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