Interview Process of Logo Design

When beginning any new design project there is a wealth of uncertainty and dynamics to be considered. I have found that maintaining confidence in your skills  is the key to success when interviewing a potential client.

I recently had the pleasure of sitting down with an up and coming salon nearby my home known as Juliens. I wanted to ask why they didn’t have an apostrophe included for “Julien’s” but as the conversation developed I quickly decided that grammar was the least of their worries right now. It is apparent that whoever designed their original brochure and business card hadn’t stuck to a few of the simple guidelines of good design.

I see this font used a lot by small businesses; often coffee shops or salons. The interior of the studio and its employees project energy, youth, and uniqueness. These ideals resonate with me and are going to be useful if the company decides to move forward with contracting me to design a logo. However, right now I see no uniqueness or identity.

Anyone with at least one college credit in Professional Selling can tell you that it is a good idea to begin probing the potential client. You will want to know:

1. What audience they envision attracting

2. How long they have been in business

3. The company’s mission and objectives

4. How they view themselves compared to their competitors

Pretty standard stuff, though those are by no means everything you would ask. These questions begin to shape the background identity of the company for the designer. But what if the owner has not given much thought to these ideas? What if they simply don’t have an answer for you? This can put an inexperienced freelancer in an awkward and sometimes deathly silent place.

How I Overcame the Interview Stalemate

Rather than panic as I may have not long ago in my career, I gathered myself and began to take hold of the conversation. There is no shortage of discussion across the net on this topic, and for good reason. The ability to control and lead a sales presentation for a designer or any professional is completely vital to inspiring confidence. I recommend everyone practice this concept.

My method is hand in hand with another necessary effort: educate the client on the importance of your skills!

Almost every time we see a bad logo used by a business and an especially low budget and time allotment spent on a good website or design it is a matter of ignorance. People are not stupid (arguable, but another conversation) they simply lack the background that we do as artists and technology consultants.

Good mechanics know that I probably should get my oil changed more often, and regularly contribute to the upkeep of my Soccer Mom reminiscent ’06 Highlander. Yet, similarly our clients do not think about these consequences and how vital it is for a properly designed logo to establish confidence and recognition of the company in the eyes of customers.

Thus, take them through the reasons why you know your time is valuable. I like to state some of these basics to plant the seed in my client’s mind. They begin thinking about these ideas, and hopefully you will see their eyes roll to one side and a pause as the importance of this sinks in.

History 101

I like to then add worth to what I will do for them as a designer. Most of my peers see something cool I can create in Photoshop or Illustrator and marvel at the visuals and stride into the popular question we all ask when bedazzled: “How did you make that?”

But I believe what separates a person using digital art from a developed designer is how they tie in their other disciplines.

1. Learning a drawing program is the first step to achieving greatness in this industry.

2. Becoming creative and finding a style of your own is a second hurdle to sink into.

3. Understanding the world relevance of your art and how it adds, mimics, or even damages the world community of art is a maturity that spans your entire career.

To put my designing mindset into perspective for this potential client, I used one of my favorite examples: Nike

1. Keep it recognizable: Everyone knows Nike, and everyone can pick out the famous “swoosh” logo.

2. Explain the Visuals: By tying a seemingly obscure visual such as Nike’s swoosh with its origin, in this case the simplified relation to a real life wing; you are able to expand the client’s scope of thinking about what a great logo can achieve.

3. Complete the Mythos: I like to explain the relevance of this wing relating to the Greek goddess Nike, who represents athletic strength in that culture. If an understanding of these powerful relations was not appreciated during the origin of the company, their imagery and persona may have developed quite differently.

If you are able to do this, I believe the battle is half won. If you are able to show your client how the logo process is really an attempt to plot the hopes and dreams (forgive my grandeur and exaggeration) of all mankind, they may begin to see why you are so passionate about your work.

In a perfect world everyone would be able to recognize these ideas and would shower us with every cent our time and talent is worth. I truly believe it is a matter of impressing these urgencies and fantastic logic into the client’s reasoning. You want to create value, and what could be more valuable than the above.

After all, isn’t that why we do what we do? Exactly, it is all about the swimming pools of cash, expensive cars, supermodels on each arm, tax evasion, midday rise and shine, the love of design!

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