Process

Doing That Thing We Do

Our goal is to create visual communications that work effectively to reach targeted audiences. Your message needs to stand out from a confused background of competing expressions to inform or re-inform an already engaged reader. Sometimes your message needs to shout in order to sell, and still at other times it needs to clarify, realign, and educate. But regardless of what message you are trying to convey, that message should consistently set you apart.

Well-designed information can position your services as uniquely capable and powerful enough to take on competitors of any size. But how is that done? We take your input gathered through discussion, research and possibly existing written materials, and formulate a message that bonds the written word to visual concepts. We help you clarify your company’s single-most important message, analyze the best means of communication for that message, research your competitors, and discuss options that work with your budget.

The design process is a problem solving process

A typical design project may progress as follows:

Gathering Information: Listening to you about your desired goals for the project; your audience, your time frame, your budget, and of course, the message you want to convey.

Estimate: A written estimate is provided for design time, producing graphic materials, copy writing, fees and additional expenses.

Contract: Once you or your company approves the estimate, a formal contract will be drafted. In the interest of good business and friendship we do not work without a contract and we do not produce work on spec.

Preliminary research and clarification: We start by researching production options. For example, how to produce a particular folder or brochure; organizing the information by creating a page flow chart for a web site; or gathering materials such as photos or developing copy.

Rough design: These are rough designs and layouts, preliminary web site layouts, etc. Because these are preliminary, we will give you several options including proposed color uses, typography, info-organization, and graphics.

Refinement: Based on your feedback we then make changes to the preliminary designs, refining your concept and vision.

Production: This is the time when we move from concept to reality and begin producing the elements necessary to complete your project.

Proofing: Proofreading text, debugging a web site, or reviewing the final design as it has been implemented across a variety of pages, contexts, or applications.

Final product: Final proofreading, preparing files for the print process, launching a web site, or both.

Delivery: As soon as your project is completed it is delivered to you either electronically, on CD or both. Web sites are considered delivered when they are launched.

Ric Garcia Design