Archive for March, 2008

I try to keep this blog for professional topics like design and marketing…However today is the start of baseball season. Ever since I was little this has been like a holiday to me. Opening Day means several things to me. First of all, as many of you know, I can’t stand cold weather. So to me this starts the unofficial start to warmer weather. Second of all, It’s baseball! I can’t tell you the hours of my life spent in front of the television living and dying with my team.

So tomorrow back to business…Today is baseball season!

It’s time for another Just For Fun Friday. Since March is finally ending I figured that I would create a calendar desktop for next month. It’s time for spring and I wanted to match whats going on outside on my desktop inside. So here is something to brighten up your desktop.

Time to get outside and enjoy.

If your monitor is 1024 x 768 click here then right click on the image and choose save as desktop.

If your monitor is 800 x 600 click here and right click on the image and choose save as desktop.

Making Contact. Encounters of the Third Kind.

The final category in our search for the perfect designer involves looking outside your current contacts. There are many ways to find a designer online. From the simple Google search to portfolio sites to just looking at the bottom of a website that you frequent.

This category is wide open. Much of it depends on what you want and when you want it. Most designers have a simple form to fill out right on their websites and most are more than happy to give you a quote without any kind of obligation. Making contact by filling out a quote form online you can find out many things about how that design firm works. For example, how fast do they get back with you. This is important because it shows how well a firm communicates. If it takes a week to get a quote back it might be an indicator that communication is not their strong suit. Is the quote personalized? If you get a price back in the form of a price sheet or a generic answer it might be an indicator of how the the project might be handled.

To receive a timely and personalized quote from Brian Petty Design click Here.

Hopefully you now feel informed enough to make contact and start that next great project.

Making Contact. Encounters of the Second Kind

Read Making Contact. Encounters of the First Kind by clicking here. Or read step one of the Starting A New Project series by clicking here.

So we are still looking for that perfect person on design firm to create that new project that is going to send your business into the stratosphere. Yesterday we looked at people that we know well, friends, family, that kid down the block that built his own Myspace page or whoever. Maybe we found the right person maybe not. Today is all about using those business connections that we all have made over the years in a different way.

Read the rest of this entry »

Making Contact. Encounters of the First Kind.

This is the second part of an on-going series about starting a new project. To read the first part click here.

So now we know what our mission statement is, when our deadline is, and what we can pay. What’s next? Making Contact!

A simple Google search for “Graphic Designers” gives us almost 5.2 Million web pages to go through to find the right person for the job. Or you need a website? Google “web Designers”. That will give you what you want right? Only if you have a couple of years or so to dedicate to reading 8.9 million web pages. Let’s simplify the process a bit and break it down into three categories.

Category 1: Encounters of the First Kind.

You have a friend or someone you know well that can do the job for you. They know you, you know them. Perfect fit right? Well maybe. Ask yourself a few questions first before asking them. Do they do this full time, part time, or as a hobby?

If they do it full time great. More than likely they have the time to dedicate to your project. Plus it is their professional reputation on the line. But will they be out of your price range?

Part time? Will they have the time for your project? Can they make last minute changes if needed or will they be at their other job? How long will it take them if they can only work on it on nights and weekends? There are many great part-time designers out there, but make sure that their schedule fits with your schedule.

The guy (or woman) that you know that does this as a hobby? Have they done this before? Can they do it? Will they use professional design software to complete the project? (by the way… Microsoft PowerPoint is not professional design software) If they can’t do it right can you afford the time and money to redo it professionally? Be careful of this option unless the project is purely for fun and has absolutely nothing to do with business or your reputation as a professional.

One last thing needs to be said about this category. What if things go bad? When friends and money are involved there are some scary things that can happen. It’s probably not worth ending a friendship over a bad website or a poorly designed business card.

Tomorrow: Encounters of the Second Kind.