Every industry has those myths that they can’t seem to shake. Where these myths come from, no one really knows for sure. The design industry is no different! It’s got its fair share of myths. Today I’m going to examine and bust 3 myths in the design industry! Let’s take a look!
Myth 1: Graphic Design is easy and anyone can do it!
Fact: This has to be the top myth and pet peeve for designers. We lose out on jobs regularly to clients who choose someone who “knows Photoshop” to create their designs for them. Let me say this very clearly – Graphic Design is NOT some buttons in Photoshop or Illustrator. While you can be self-taught as a graphic designer, it takes hours and hours of tutorials is not just the design programs, but also art theory, psychology, marketing, and business among other things. Personally, I have two degrees one in Communications and another in Advertising and Graphic Design and I started learning how to draw and design way before that. I’m not the only one, most graphic designers actually have a bachelor’s degree or equivalent frequently with a focus in graphic design and thousands of hours perfecting their craft. This is why professional and dare I say good graphic designers charge the way they do. Your “simple” project that “should be super cheap” is actually the culmination of hours of learning and experience for your designer and they are absolutely worth that high three-figure or four-figure price tag!
Myth 2: Graphic Design is all about art and making pretty things!
Fact: While art is a piece of graphic design, it’s not the whole thing. If you’ve read any of my past blogs, you know I tell you all the time that graphic design has a job to do. I think it’s worth saying one more time though for the new folks: Graphic Design is not about pretty pictures. It has a job to do! Graphic design is actually a communications and sales tool meant to catch attention and communicate a message. This is especially true for brand or marketing design, but it’s also true for other disciplines in graphic design such as book cover creation, invitations, and stationery design, website design, and even packaging design!
Myth 3: Editing a design is easy and fast!
Fact: The short answer is not really. The longer answer is it really depends on the edit and the design. Some edits can be fast or easy (they’re rarely both in my experience). More often than not a “simple” change means having to redo the entire design to some degree to make sure you are including the new change while taking the goals, feedback, and existing design elements into consideration. This is why I actually just told a client to send me their photos and text for an upcoming project at the same time, instead of in parts because it’s actually easier (and cheaper if your designer charges hourly) to create the whole design at once rather than in parts. This is also why it might take your designer more than just a few hours to incorporate your change into the design.
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