Introduction
Picture this scenario. You’ve been looking for good graphic design, but you need something affordable. One day you come across an ad on social media offering you $20 for a logo design, and your face lights up with glee.
You can’t wait to start your project with them before you have even contacted them. Because you haven’t done your research and learned all there is to know about getting the right people for the job, you finalize your payment and, in a few hours, you receive your first business logo.
The face of your business, the image that will represent your company amongst your competition. You have it now.
After a while, after you’ve printed your marketing collateral, you begin surfing the internet. You come across something that looks so familiar. It’s another company with the exact looking logo you have (shock), just a different name.
It’s like you’ve just come across your doppelganger. A splitting image of you, just a little different. You then realise that, yes, you got what you paid for. A cheap logo copied from a random company found on google images. Or a generic logo downloaded from free stock websites available to everybody including your pet fish.
Chances are that nine times out of ten when you pay for really cheap graphic design you will not be getting something unique and customised to your business. If you pay attention and do your research, you’ll realise that company offering you a $20 logo is actually yet another mushroom graphic design company.
A quickly registered business with a few random inexperienced graphic designers trying to make a quick dollar. We’re guessing that you love your business and would hate to be in that position.
Let’s learn the differences between good design and bad design.
1. Design structure and alignment.
Bad design is rushed and cares not about text alignment, margins, or padding. It’s scattered and takes a trained eye to pick out the tares.
Good design shows a structure with content perfectly aligned and with overall design within margins and equal padding.
2. The creative imagery
Bad design adds (what’s nice to look at) without a clear direction in appearance or expression. The image creative has no connection to the value proposition and leaves you confused and questioning your own sanity.
Good design uses imagery that tells a story and leads the consumer into a deeper space of thought. It’s connected to the value proposition and evokes emotion.
3. Information Overload
Bad design believes that a detailed flyer design must be translated exactly the way it is into every other design. It doesn’t understand placement and readability. A consumer can sit with a flyer read everything without crashing their vehicle trying to read it on a billboard going 60mph on the highway.
Good design understands placement and messaging. It understands how to send the same message in different ways. Good design can shorten 10 sentences into 4 words and create impact, not car crashes.
Leonardo Da Vinci once said “Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication”. It’s proven and it’s true. The KISS (Keep It Short & Sweet) or (Keep It Simple, Stupid) principle makes a huge difference in design. Famous brands like Airbnb, Apple, Louis Vuitton to name a few follow this design principle.
4. Strategy in Design
Bad design is flashy and confused about its target audience. Every element including color has meaning and bad design dances with two left feet. It woos the consumer the wrong way and steps on their toes.
Good design knows how to tango. Understands that different types of colour spark different feelings which decide the consumers’ choices. It connects and moves in sync with the consumer making them smile, knowing they have a vibe.
The Take Away
The good news is that you can still get an affordable graphic design solution from experienced and trained graphic designers. It will require you to know what graphic design actually is with a little bit of research. Good graphic design can range from hundreds of dollars to even thousands of dollars depending on the location.
The Adzept Creatives subscription model was built to help business make the most out of their branding efforts. With pricing plans as affordable as they come, businesses achieve their goals without breaking the bank.