Graphic Compromise
You’re given a brief, you put some ideas together, meet with your client, and he wants to change just about everything. He wants a colour palette that makes you feel physically sick, he wants a splash page despite the fact that you’ve told him there’s no need; and, as you progress towards completion, you begin to notice that you’re not the one designing this thing after all - your client is (and badly).
Now, if you’re a big agency and you are in a position to pick and choose your clients, then the above is of little consequence. However, for most of us, we need to compromise. I’m not saying that the client should not be invloved in the design process - they must be; but where do you draw the line? The aforementioned scenario is a little extreme, but what’s your limit? If you were being paid enough, would you have blinking text in a website, would you design a Comic Sans Serif logo with a swoosh and drop-shadow? What’s your limit, your breaking point? Would you run screaming from your client upon her insistence that you use 26 different fonts on a single poster design?
These days I find that I have to compromise less and less; now, is that because I simply no longer notice that I’m compromising or, am I beginning to think less about what I want and what pleases me aesthetically, and more about what serves the client best? And does trust/credibility factor into this equation; i.e. if your client trusts you to meet and exceed the brief, then she’ll let you get on with it. In the past few years, my clients are increasingly “letting me get on with it”, but is that because I now have a different type of client, or have I changed?
And, by the way, if you have a piece of work that you hate but your client loves, why not enter it for “The Design Bloopers Award” over at the Graphic Design Blog; I’ve got a couple of pieces waiting in the wings.
Would love to hear what you have to say. If you want to send an image just mail it to support{@}redsil.com. The best one wins a prize of either US$30 Amazon voucher or a copy of “The Serif Fairy”.
5 Comments, Comment or Trackback
narendra.s.v
nice blog
May 10th, 2007
Tara
Thanks for the mentioning my competition.
I think you are right, when you start off freelancing you will take any work you get (Heck I still take as much as I can) but definitely when you get busy you are more selective. For instance I prefer working from home I find I am more relaxed and creative so unless I am really quiet I avoid working in-house. Working in-house means you never quite know what work you will be doing either.
Trust also definitely cones into it like you suggest, a client is more willing to give you a freer reign when they know your capabilities.
May 11th, 2007
Cherry
You know a lot about Japanese food ? I would be delighted if you can point me about the origin and culture behind sushi, sashimi. Why do one contain rice and one does not, etc.
Anyway nice niche blog you have, you seem to understand your field well.
May 11th, 2007
Paul Enderson
When I first started freelancing, I would have done anything to please the client and earn the cash… But things have changed as I’ve gotten older (I’ve been doing it for nearly 16 years now) and these days I’m generally more forceful about my POV on projects.
I’d never drop a client if I didn’t agree with them - that would just be pig-headedness. But I will speak out and defend my opinion when it comes to something I’m sure is right.
I think I’ve ended up with a better class of client, and more respect from those clients too.
May 12th, 2007
johno
Paul, I think you’ve found the right balance; it’s true, that if one defends one’s own stance (with no trace of intransigence), then the client will come to respect that. I’ve sometimes had to swallow my pride, though, and admit that I was wrong.
Tara, yes, trust is important. I rarely turn down work too. Once I turned down (twice) the offer from an existing client to design a logo; later another company asked me to design their new web site, and asked whether I knew anyone who would redesign their logo - they had heard that I “don’t do logos”! So now, I’m a little more careful. Also, when asked to do something that is beyond me, I try to contract it out, rather than blankly refuse.
Thanks for your insights Paul and Tara.
May 12th, 2007
Reply to “Graphic Compromise”