Design Rules to Live By #1
So I was thinking of new ways to provide relevant content, and try to stimulate some good discussion, and was thinking of some of the practical aspects of our jobs as designers/developers.
One of the things that came to mind was kind of the “designers code” things that we know are either “no-no’s”, things to avoid, or just how we do things.
So the idea is to start a new series “Design Rule to Live By” which will post each week (most likely Monday) and open up discussion to hear what you have to say about the concept, and what you learned from your experiences where you have, or should have applied said “Rule”
So here we go the first design rule to live by is…
Know the project brief inside and out, clarify any questions with your client or project manager before beginning
Personally this is one of the most important things I have learned. Communication is often a very coveted commodity when it comes design and development environments.
So taking the initiative to establish solid communication, and project goals up front, even to the point of not even picking up the pencil to sketch out some ideas before knowing the project spec/brief in and out, and having taken the time to clear up any questions, or unclear requirements will save us much frustration.
How about you? What have you done to ensure communication is established? What role do you give communication in the design process? and what tools have helped?
I would love to hear your thoughts
~ Aaron I
Aaron,
This is a great rule. Communication and understanding the project before it starts is very important.
With large projects there are so many phases and people involved: (project manager, designer, copywriters, developers, programmers, CEO’s etc.) that if one person in that group does not understand the project from the beginning it wil create more work and stress for everyone involved. Take time to communicate and understand the project in the beginning and it will save you a ton of time in the end.
Things that I have done to ensure good communication is arrange meetings, both group meetings and individual meetings, and talk over every little detail of the project with everyone who may be involed. Listen, stay focused, ask a ton of questions, (HUGE) know your role and take notes. You can be the best designer, developer, whatever, but if you are not good at communication or team work you will be in serious trouble.
Communication plays a major role in the design process and should not be ignored.
Agree 100% Aaron. So often we are tempted to start creating before we understand the client’s goals and objectives. Some of this is understandable as new projects always bring renewed excitement. I have learned though that diving right in often creates more work and additional headaches later on. Paying attention to the creative brief throughout the design process typically results in better work too. I’m looking forward to other rules. Keep it up.
.-= Brandon´s last blog ..Modern Art New Testament =-.
@Brandon,
Thanks for reading and commenting
This is going to be a good series Aaron—looking forward to it.
Regarding communication—I find this to be one of the biggest complaints people/companies have with “creative folk”. Slow response time to emails, non-returned calls, missed deadlines, etc. As creatives, we are notorious for being flakes. After all, we took design and code classes not business classes. But the reality is, the client will notice poor client management long before they notice weak design.
So, I’m slightly off topic, but, I’d encourage everyone to make a concerted effort to meet your all your clients needs—not just creative—and they will love you forever (and tell all their friends).
.-= Garth´s last blog ..Building Blocks =-.
@Garth,
Great point about meeting clients non-needs!
@Garth – that’s some great advice. “Meet all your clients need – not just creative…” so true.
I think communication is a no-brainer when it comes to the health of our projects. As in all things in life, we have to convey our thoughts, feelings, and ideas in order to be understood and to learn. No one is a mind reader, and it is our jobs to pick the minds of our clients to better understand what they want.
Looking forward to the rest of this series Aaron. You’re value to the design community is constantly expanding.
Thanks.
.-= kyle steed´s last blog ..Defending Your Offense =-.
Probably not as relevant to the discussion, but I’ve always found that as far as design is concerned, the result should always reflect CRAP (an acronym I picked up in college: Contrast Repetition Alignment Proximity). I live and breathe that acronym.
.-= donaville´s last blog ..Clipping My Nails … =-.
@donaville,
Cool acronym! It is relevant to the discussion, without the right communication in place we wont be able to use CRAP in a way that meets the clients needs.
oh yeah… CRAP there I said it one more time
Your posts are great! Please keep
Great idea for articles. I guess it depends on the project, but where is a good starting point? I understand we should ask alot of questions the audience, mission-statement, content and such. What other questions are helpful? I’m pretty new to freelancing and I’d love to hear some suggestions as to what has really worked.
P.S. I love the CRAP idea.
.-= Dax´s last blog ..DaxHansen.com on OneCSS =-.
OH MAN do I agree with this 100% I don’t know how many times I’ve made the mistakes of designing before getting answers and then having to go back and re-design most of the website over. Makes things frustrating to say the least.
And hopefully we can get this post to rank in google for CRAP – which is an awesome acronym by the way
.-= Mike Smith´s last blog ..WordPress Wednesday: The Trilogy =-.
I fully agree with the statement.
I personally loathe the “clients are stupid” theme that has infected our industry. How often do you see complains by designers that their project has become stuck in the mud due to unrelenting demands by their clients, unchecked feature creep, or decision by committee nightmare situations? These are all something that can be handled up-front by the designer by simply making sure to fully understand the task at hand before starting in, as well as understanding the people they’re working with.
Just like any brief, a client’s internal decision making process can be evaluated to adjust process and avoid many bad situations. How you handle one 10-person committee is really no different than the next; failing to control the process is a failure on the part of the designer. It drives me crazy when I see a designer complain that their client has *sigh, ANOTHER revision request*, yet sends each new round via email with no followup phone call or instructions on how to effectively evaluate it.
As Garth says, you must meet all of your clients’ needs. Guiding them through the creative process is an essential part of that.
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Having only worked on a few projects, I am really just learning how to go about the planning process for designs. I met with a client last week who told me to “fix his site” and “do what I thought it needed.” The problem was, I didn’t know his expectations, the uses of the website, and who his target audience would be. It was frustrating to explain how we needed to sit down and hash things out before I could begin. Personally, I would scrap the $2,500 he spent on it and start fresh (he didn’t like that). Thanks for your content. I enjoy everything you put out.
Trent