3 Things Graphic Designers Think About That You Don’t
Written by Carly Teigeler and Brittinee Phillips. Meet Our Team.
Most small business owners need a graphic designer at some point in branding and marketing their business’ services. Graphic designers apply their skills and visual creativity to help your business tell great stories about your brand, services, and the values you hold.
With that in mind, it’s no surprise that graphic designers can see things you might not or think beyond the visual you have in mind for what will have a long-term impact for your brand.
Here are 3 key things graphic designers think about that you likely don’t:
1 | Contrast
For graphic designers, it’s always fun to play around with different color combinations, and see how different shades might work together to create a certain feeling. When it comes to typography, graphic designers can’t just use any color on top of another. They need to make sure that all text is legible, especially for folks with color blindness.
People with color blindness rely on a certain level of contrast between the color of the text and the color of its background to be able to read it. Thankfully, there are clear standards that the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) have put in place to determine appropriate levels of contrast—which VVITCH graphic designers always have in mind as we’re curating a brand’s color palette.
2 | Visual Fatigue
The first set of Instagram graphics has a little too much going on - too many text-heavy compositions interspersed with busy images, with no visual rest between them. The second set of graphics uses more negative space, and strategically balances busy images with calm ones, so that the overall grid appears polished and harmonious.
Most people are inundated with visual information all day, every day. Your audience’s eyes can get tired if they have to do too much work to read and/or take in your content, and they can very quickly become overwhelmed if the way your content is displayed requires constant recalibration.
For example, if your website uses five different fonts, your audience has to adjust as they move from reading content in each one. This can be frustrating! Even if that frustration is subconscious, it can be enough to deter a busy website visitor from moving through your content.
Or, if your Instagram grid is full of busy graphics it can keep first-time profile visitors from being drawn to and opening up any of your posts. It could also cause them to bounce away because it’s all just too much.
Graphic designers combat visual fatigue in nuanced ways—i.e. being conscious of balance within a color palette and keeping things simple where they can, while still making colors as interesting as they need to be. It can be a tricky business, and requires a real understanding of your target audience and how they interact with content—but the results are always worth it!
3 | Context
The type of logo you might use for merchandise might not be the same type of logo you use for your social media avatar, which will be viewed at a much smaller size on mobile devices, making the text harder to read. In this example, you can see how a more detailed logo variation would be appropriate for something like a sticker, while a more simplified variation without the text would read better for an avatar.
Another part of your graphic designer’s job is to think about how your branding will look once it’s off the page and out in the real world. For logos, symbols, and brand marks, graphic designers need to think about things such as:
How will it scale for different applications? For example, will a logo translate well on a 2-inch wide sticker? How about on a 10 foot wide sign?
How will it work in high-visibility applications that might warrant more detail (i.e. a t-shirt or a tote bag), versus low-visibility applications where it’s a part of a bigger composition—and, therefore might require a simpler layout (i.e. the header of your website)?
How might it incorporate animation if video content is part of your marketing strategy?
How might it work within your physical space if you're a brick and mortar business?
From this focal point of context, graphic designers must consider your brand’s color palette by thinking about things such as:
How will it print versus how it appears digitally? Some colors look great on a screen, but are nearly impossible to replicate with ink on paper!
What kind of contrast can be achieved with different color combinations in the above scenario?
How might cultural associations impact your audience’s perception of your brand’s color palette’s meaning? For example, you’ll want to be careful using blue and orange as primary brand colors if you’re located near the University of Virginia in Charlottesville.
Here, you can see how a color with the same hex code can appear slightly different in RGB (digital color mode) and CMYK (print color mode). Although the difference is slight, we need to be aware of these discrepancies - especially when it comes to applications like packaging and paper goods - to make sure that the brand is being represented consistently & correctly.
For your overall brand aesthetic, graphic designers also need to think about:
How will it be read and received within the context of your industry? For example, a certain look might appear passé and a bit overdone within the skincare space, yet might read as exciting and chic when used for a wedding photographer.
Or, you might really love a specific shade of pink, but a few of your close competitors use it too. How will you stand out rather than blend into the noise?
Lastly, graphic designers also need to think about things like how your customer might physically pick up and hold your business card. In that scenario, a graphic designer wouldn’t want to place any crucial information about your business where a customer’s thumb might be.
Or, what frame of mind might your customer be in when they reach a specific page of your brand’s website? If your sales landing page challenges them and heightens their sense of urgency, perhaps your contact page should be one that soothes them by using one of your calmer brand colors in the background—subconsciously implying that they have found their solution and can rest a bit.
Designing for your business is all about the details—and that’s where graphic designers create real magic!
Want a partner to help you clearly define your visual branding strategy, let’s talk! We can help you start being honest, human-first, inclusive, and flexible with your visual branding.
Learn more about the branding services VVITCH offers by contacting our team.
