Tag: Graphic Design Services

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Branding Services

7 Things every graphic designer wishes they knew when they were starting out

professional graphic designers

The human brain is hardwired for visual content. We can process visual data 60000 times faster than text or audio. From shapes, colours, lines, to textures every element leaves an impact. Visual storytellers or simply put graphic designers play a very important role in a brand’s journey, making a splash (pun intended, sure sure) with their creativity and art.

We asked the creative minds at one of the best digital marketing companies in Ahmedabad, about the 10 things they wish they knew when they started their journey as professional graphic designers in Ahmedabad.

Master the “tools”

When it comes to designing, it’s not just about thinking creatively. It is very important to have in-depth knowledge about the software and tools required to edit, design and create.

Budding designers can learn the ropes of designing from Adobe’s design tutorials, and online courses on SkillShare polish their skills on tools of the trade like Adobe Illustrator, Photoshop, and InDesign.

Sketching skills come in handy

A graphic designer needs to think creatively, and nothing stimulates creative thinking like sketching does. Even the National Center of Biotechnology Information agrees. Sketching brings forth clarity to ideas and thoughts.

These rough drawings allow the designers to play around with their ideas, usage of elements, the flow of colours and placement of content. These sketches also aid in showcase an idea to the clients for approval before digital designing begins. This way it can help save time.

ALWAYS have a backup

One of the most important things to be mindful of as a designer and content creator. While this point may be a subject of many jokes, it is painful when you’re not able to retrieve something beautiful, created with much passion and hard work, just because you forgot to take a backup of the file.

Always keep a copy of your work, downloaded fonts, elements, and other content on a hard drive or any form of detachable digital storage device. Even storing it on cloud is a great option and increases accessibility, but also brings along with it the risk of lack of data privacy.

Creative block is a thing!

There will be days when you wake up and just can’t find the same mojo and inspiration with which you create designs every day. It is completely OKAY to feel this way, and it is called a creative block.

Getting out of this phase may look difficult, but it’s not the end of the road. Go back to your previous work, look at what you have created and to reignite that lost spark.

Sometimes, even looking at the work of other fellow designers, can inspire you to break the block.

Build a portfolio

As a digital marketing company in Ahmedabad, we always ask for a portfolio of work from candidates who wish to work with us.

Every designer must have a well-presented and updated portfolio consisting of their best works, adding any testimonials they’ve received from their clients. A portfolio is a sneak peek into a designer’s brain and an overview of his/her design style and language. A beautiful and thought-out portfolio makes you stand out and increases your chance of getting the job or project.

Be open to criticism

You cannot make everyone happy. No matter how much thought, hard work and creativity you’ve poured into a project, there will be naysayers.

But not all feedback is negative. In Fact we believe that all feedback has at least 1% truth in it. Some of this can be constructive and help you grow as a designer. Instead of blanket rejecting all feedback, accept, listen, and take in the bits that can help you improve. It also helps one show their intent to grow, ego-lessnes regarding their own work and a willingness to try new things in their profession.

Always seek an advance while freelancing

Graphic designing is one of the many jobs which has the benefit of working from home. But with remote jobs, there comes along with it challenges of not being paid in full for the job done.

Clients may offer you tasks, assignments or even seek samples of your work before green lighting the project.

But it is important to be assertive and inform the other party about your terms and conditions. One of which should be to get paid at least 50% of the total project cost in advance. Genuine clients who appreciate your work will agree, and it ensures both the parties fulfil their part of the contract, now that a monetary transaction has taken place.

ALWAYS Stay curious!

Never shy away from asking questions, trying to find new things, and learning new skills. Because curiosity may have killed the cat but it definitely helped the designer become better one day.

Before working on the design, the designer should always go back to the client to clarify any doubts he/she has in their mind. It’s true sometimes it feels like only a NASA scientist can decipher what the client wants, but asking as many questions will always help.

BONUS TIP : Don’t be afraid to push yourself outside of your comfort zone! Keep learning!

If you are a budding graphic designer who’s looking to work on some elevated ideas with a bunch of cool folks and cooler clients, drop us your work portfolio and CV at hr.florafountain@gmail.com. And if you’re among the ones looking for such creative minds and professional graphic designers in Ahmedabad to work for your brand, drop us a hola on hello@flora.ffteam.in.

Categories
Branding Services

What Should a Logo Include? Don’t Forget These Essential Elements!

Designing a Logo

So you want to make your customers sit up and take notice, maybe do a little dance of joy and discovery too? So you want to let them know your brand’s story, how different it is from all the competition out there? After all, in the 90s, there were lover boys and then there was Shakhrukh aka Rahul.

Enter BRAND LOGO

And just like in the movies, brand love does happen at first sight. And logos, being the metaphorical face of a brand, are often carriers of the brand’s first impression for new and future audiences. Logos are also a great way to distinguish your brand from other companies with similar products. So let’s dig a little deeper with the experts from one of Ahmedabad’s best-known logo design and branding agencies to find out all that a logo can be and should be…

logosss

Brand or pictorial mark
Made up of a graphic symbol or icon which represents a real-world object. A perfect example would be, Apple.
Abstract
Logos which consist of a unique symbol tailor-made for the brand, like the one for Pepsi.
Mascots
These logos are made of images of a character that act as a visual representation of the business, like Colonel Sanders in the KFC logo.
Emblem
Logos which consist of a typeface that sits within a border or a seal. For example, Starbucks.
Dynamic
These are adaptable logos, which change themselves according to the context in which they are being used, instead of having a standard font-color-text combination.
Wordmark
These logos consist of text only with company names, monograms or initials. Think Subway or Coca Cola.
Knowing the whole gamut of logo options, how does one choose which logo style works best for your business? Well, here’s how…

1. Do extensive research

You have only one chance to get the logo right! So, do it properly! And how can you do it? With the help of thorough research. Good research will show how you can explore different logos to create a perfect one for your brand.

Dig deep and research your competitors’ logos as well. Don’t do it, to copy from them, but rather to check what kind of design, scheme and layout they have. See what worked and what didn’t work for them. And with the help of your research.

You should show customers that you are unique and different. Plus, being too close to your competitors could be detrimental, and get you into legal trouble. Moreover, be clear of your audience and find out what colours or concepts work on them.

After your research, create a brand concept that reflects the ethos and goals of the brand.

2. Always have a story

Have you ever seen a big brand without a logo? No, because there isn’t one. Logo tells the story of the brand. And you need to create that story too.

Mcdonald’s

When consumers see any brand logo, they are reminded of the stories of the businesses those logos represent. For example, when people see an iconic Golden Arches, they know it’s McDonald’s. It is a brand which people recognise without even seeing the name. The arches represent the newly-constructed architecture of the first franchised restaurant in 1952. Did you see? A story!

This is how companies which have logos connected to the company’s stories or mission are often the most successful.

3. Keep it simple

When in doubt, remove the extra elements!

Less is more, when it comes to logos. While, it’s fun to play with different colours, images and fonts but using too much of them will lead to a disaster. The more elements you add, the more complicated it becomes. And visually complex logos or overcrowded designs should always be avoided.

Rather than getting carried away with too many options, opt for a simple design with a clear brand message that will hit the right spot of your consumers. Choose the right colours and typography very carefully. It should be easy to read and should have a proper size and well-distributed spacing.

Logo

For example, Twitter. The bird with clean lines and blue colour is simple yet effective.

4. Dare to be different

Imagine going to an office party and ending up twinning with two of your colleagues. Do you think people will remember your outfit over someone who wore something different? That is why, in a world where there are no new ideas, your brand needs to have a unique logo which stands out from the crowd and make an identity different from the competitors.

Dare to be different 1

Think out of the box, like Mercedes. The logo of Mercedes is not a car but a three-pointed star which represents the use of Daimler engines on the land, on the sea, and in the air.

Dare to be different

Similarly, a fashion brand of Ahmedabad, known as Mulberry Looms, decided to be different. How, you ask? The brand which crafts pure handloom Banarasi silk sarees, lehengas, among other outfits, does not choose to go for the cliché logos like a top of a woman. Rather it incorporated its weaves in the logo.Your goal should also be to make a logo connected with your brand’s values and aesthetics. Experiment till the time you come up with something totally innovative.

5. Choose a responsive logo

In this digital world, businesses are very lucky to have various platforms to promote themselves. Hence, the brand logos are not just limited to visiting cards, they are also visible online to the people sitting online on different devices.

Your logo should be very clear and distinctive on every platform. It should seamlessly fit on the plethora of devices used by consumers.

The best example for a responsive logo is Google. The logo reads full GOOGLE on larger screen and on small screen the logo is compact in its four distinct logo colours.

BONUS TIP

If you are out of ideas but still want a distinctive, original, and intriguing logo, all you have to do is get in touch with the professional logo & Branding design services in Ahmedabad’s Flora Fountain.

Have a question? Drop us a message here. Experience the difference and enjoy the creative process with Flora Fountain. 🙂

Categories
Branding Services

From business to brand. It’s not just about the logo

Let’s make it bigger.

Can you make it the same but in pink / yellow / blue / green?

Dekh ke maza aana chahiye!

If you have given or received such feedback, you know what we are going to talk about today.

Yes, LOGOS! Every time there’s a conversation around brand building, the first thing that comes to mind after a brand name is the logo.

Discussions over logos notoriously take over branding meetings, leaving precious little for the other crucial aspects of business promotion and advertising. And it’s time to realize that … a brand is more than just its logo. A brand is a living entity that walks, talks, grows and influences the people around it. Wish to know what makes your business a brand? Scroll down!

Your brand must have a PURPOSE

PURPOSE

So, what does your brand deliver? What does it want to be? Who does the brand speak to? Who should sit up and notice the brand? How would your ideal customer describe your brand? If you never asked these questions about your brand, then you must NOW.

For instance, your business might be that of making artisanal chocolates; but what it actually does as a brand is provide joy to the consumer, the experience of enjoying a delicious treat. That is the actual purpose of the said chocolate business.

Similarly, every brand has its purpose, a problem it solves, and questions it provides answers to. By defining this PURPOSE, the mission and vision of your business is formed. And this should be the first step you take in the process of branding, even before you think of a logo.

Your brand has a PERSONALITY

If your brand was a person, who would it be? How would he/she dress, what would be their favourite food, in which language would they talk? These questions help you define a personality for your brand. And when your brand has a personality, it is able to connect with the kind of people it wishes to serve.

So, how do you want your brand to be?

PERSONALITY

Approachable, genuine, validating and emotional, having an impact on the customer every time he/she engages with it.

Basically, MAKE YOUR BRAND HUMAN. To come up with a personality for your brand, you must…

  • First consider the purpose and the message you want to convey.
  • Study your competition and think of what will make your brand stand out from them.
  • Come up with adjectives and phrases that describe your brand, like, Sophisticated yet Rugged, Intellectual but Street Smart, Honest and Friendly.

See what we did there? This is how you define your brand’s personality.

Use VISUALS to convey your brand’s PURPOSE and PERSONALITY

What comes into your mind when you visualize a 3-pointed star inside a circle? Mercedes, right? What comes to your mind when you imagine the colour red? Coca Cola, Ferrari, KFC…. You get the drift.

KFC
mercedes

Once your brand’s purpose and personality is defined, it’s time for strategy on how to convey it to your existing customers, and the ones who could become one in future upon engaging with the brand.

A strong visual element is important for every brand, to leave an imprint on its customer. And for this, you must pick an attractive colour palette, an identifiable font family and graphics that support the brand’s persona. These visual elements like colour are the silent ambassadors of your brand.

Your brand has its own VOICE

Now, this is where the language comes into play. And no, we aren’t just talking about linguistics here. But the conversational style of the brand, the way it speaks to its consumers.

VOICE

The purpose and personality comes into the picture here again, as they decide the style in which the brand will talk. Is your business providing facts to its end user? Then the tone of the brand is going to be informative and very formal, like Encyclopedia Britannica.

But at the same time, a brand named Diply Facts on Instagram does the same thing, but its language is polar opposite to Britannica. Why? The audience, their age groups and the purpose behind the end product is different from each other.

While the former is used by students, academicians and writers for educational purposes, the latter is used by a younger, casual audience for informal activities like sharing with friends on social media.

Now that you know that building a brand goes much beyond creating a logo, simply hiring a graphic design or logo design company to create one is not enough. You need a creative agency that specializes in branding. Wondering where to find one? Click here to get in touch and start a conversation with us at Flora Fountain!