• Briefing Board
• Design Articles
• Design Bulletin

Creating any visual communication is about developing the concepts around the content to inspire an attentive audience.

A Creative Blueprint for Design

Commissioning and briefing for a new website, brochure design or visual identity may be daunting. The creative blueprint outlined here will give you some understanding of the essential processes and stages involved and help manifest the material objectives into a thing that will make people stop, think, consider and respond.

Once you're ready to make people sit up and take notice, the next stage is to find the creative resources that can deliver the desired effect.

A Brief Interpretation

Planning and creating any visual communication is about developing the concepts around the content to inspire an attentive audience. Finding the path lies with the individual personality and unique form inherent in the subject, aims and material. Creative ideas, strategies and ideas can be manufactured to move a given audience through the treatment, structure, techniques and delivery employed.

Stimulating Insight

Following ideas thrown up by the brief (see Creating A Brief) it's important to decide on the type, nature and number of concepts to be presented for the final design approval as time and finances are always a constraining factor. Depending on the size and nature of the project, the visual language and structure may need to evolve through several thumbnails sketches, defining typestyles, colours, and photographic treatments before any presentation.

The initial mock-up stage may include research, reference material along with these thumbnails and alternative treatments, worked up using graphic elements, live headings dummy text, pictures and diagrams to clarify the tone and content.

Brochure Mock-ups

Ideally brochure mock-ups should be actual size, as close to weight and capacity as the final printed item and feature any irregular cut shapes and forms. Paper samples and examples of any specialised print finishes should also form part of the presentation. Getting as close a representation of the finished piece as possible will eliminate any confusion later about what you're expecting to pay for and what is actually delivered.

Visual Identity and Logo Design

From a clean sheet come rudimentary scamps that explore and experiment with lettering and images in order to develop a striking graphic image. The initial concepts for a visual identity or logo can consist of a selection of these ideas roughed out in coloured pencil or marker, simply rendered black and white visuals or digital files. These enable the graphic designer to get the client's initial feedback on specific styles. Clarifying the client's needs at an early stage saves time, effort and money on preparing numerous differing styles and colour variations. It also allows the client have the concepts modified before any agreed design is finalized.

Website Creation

Website design is a more complex endeavour. It's more cost effective to create a carefully constructed site map and build ugly with simple text placeholders for the first stage, concentrating on the functionality, usability and accessibility of the site and how they relate to content. This can then be matched to layout and image treatment across 2 or 3 web page templates to give an overall visual impression of the site. More about creating effective website content here.

Check Off

Any presentation mock-up is never set in stone. It's real value lies in the opportunity to discuss, alter, eliminate and add elements to the design. All revisions and modifications should be noted by both the client and the designer, then checked and signed off at designated stages throughout the project.

Refining and defining objectives at this stage reduces the chance of major and costly changes later in the process. Decisions about the content hierarchy are important. Rather than trying to present everything at once the most important elements get the most prominence and balance. Guided by the experience and attention to detail a creative eye brings to the design, the content becomes strong, distinct and satisfying.

Pitching Presentations

If you're putting a project out to tender it's always a temptation to get quotes in first and go with a less expensive option. But this may not bring you the best returns in the long run. Seeing the creative ideas a designer applies to your individual needs alongside the estimated project budget will give you a more instinctive feel for the right team for the job. Pitching parameters to get the best result include:

It's worth considering a company that can create the concept then take it through to completion and delivery. Maintaining the original vision through any modifications prevents a mashed up form of conflicting ideas and imagery. Such a studio or agency will shoulder the responsibility of the whole project and have professional experience of collaborating with photographers, developers, illustrators and printers.