The Secret of Great Blog Designs

What is the purpose of a blog design ? There are no blog designs that doesn’t have any effect on its blog, its message, and its goals. A blog design is either helping you move forward with your blog or it is not only hindering you from moving forward, but actually pushing you backwards. There exists no stand still between the two, because a blog’s design acts as the frame that a reader uses to decide on what the message you are trying to say actually means.

So what is the purpose of a blog design? The purpose of a blog design is to support your goals, communicate your message, and make your branding memorable.

How does a blog design have so much purpose ? It has a lot to do with the ability of a blog design to evoke emotions, which in turn wakes up the thoughts and beliefs that are tied to it within our mind. These emotions, thoughts, and beliefs are all interconnected in our mind from previous experiences where we learned to connect them together. In psychology, they call this a schema. An example of an everyday schema is when people are driving and they see a police officer, the first thing everyone does is slow down, because the police officer brings up thoughts, emotions, and experiences that relate to getting a ticket. Schemas are very powerful and there is a way to prime a certain schema, by presenting a person with the correct stimulus.

Another reason blog designs have such a powerful effect is explained well by Barry Schwartz in his book “The Paradox of Choice,”

“Nobel Prize-winning psychologist Daniel Kahneman and his colleagues have shown that what we remember about the pleasurable quality of our past experience is almost entirely determined by two things: how the experiences felt when they were at their peak (best or worst), and how they felt when they ended. This “peak-end” rule of Kahneman’s is what we use to summarize the experience, and then we rely on that summary later to remind ourselves of how the experience felt.” (1)

The “peak-end” rule has a few important implications to blog designs. The main one is that it can help to create a pleasurable experience that is memorable, which helps your branding a lot and makes your message last longer in your reader’s mind. The other one is that it can also have the same effect in the reverse direction, and make displeasing blog designs more memorable as well, which will hurt your message and reputation. It is a double-sword effect, but if you learn to wield it, it will be an important arsenal in your collection of weapons.

The next article in this series will focus on how to use schemas to your advantage. Subscribe today for free and get updated when new articles are posted.

Previous article in the Blog Design 101 Series:

Now You Can Have a Blog and Quit Your Job

What Everybody Ought to Know About Usability and Web Design

Even people who have no idea about usability feel the need to write articles about it to tell other people what they themselves should be doing. Usability has become a hot topic and everyone wants a piece of it by writing their own list of guidelines. Most of which end up just repeating what the other guy said. Yet even with the endless amount of articles on usability, there are still a lot of web designs that overlook easy ways to improve the usability of their design.

While there are many worthwhile guidelines to follow about usability, it really boils down to only two rule of thumbs. Those two are to make it easy to read and make it easy to find stuff. No matter what you do with your design, as long as you follow those two rule of thumbs then your design will be usable. Don’t stop there though and be satisfied. Take it to the next step and make it as aesthetic as possible and make it better all while still making sure your design follows the two guidelines.

Make it easy to read

1. Keep distractions to a minimal. This is especially important in the content area as that is where your readers will spend most of their time when they are on your blog. But that doesn’t mean you should neglect taking out anything in other areas that doesn’t really serve a purpose in your blog design as well.

2. Build a hierarchy that establishes a flow where there is less emphasis as it goes down in the list. For example, headings should pop more than links and bold texts. The sidebar should be capable of attracting attention, but not too much that it overpowers the content. You get the idea.

3. Keep the design of each area consistent. This lets the reader know that they are reading information that are closely related to each other due to their similarity. This also lets people block off different areas in their mind that they don’t need at the moment so they can focus on reading a specific section without their eyes wandering around trying to figure where a specific area begins or ends.

Make it easy to find stuff

1. Identify what people are looking for or what you want them to find. Then make it ridiculously easy to find if it is that important to you or them. Don’t just have one pathway/entry for a reader to be able to find it. Make multiple pathways/entries to it so if they miss one there are other ways for them to find the important stuff.

For example, if getting more subscribers is important to you then make a rss button that pops, ask people to sign up at the bottom of a post and make a cool design so people will see it, and create a special subscribe page.

2. Take away anything unimportant and be ruthless about it. So what makes something important or unimportant anyways? In blog design, if you take away something and it decreases your blog’s ability to achieve your goal whatever that may be, then that something would be pretty important.

But if you take it out and it doesn’t hurt your blog’s performance, then by all means rip the sucker out. It will improve your blog design by decreasing the amount of unimportant stuff that can get in the way of a reader who should be looking at your most important stuff.

3. Label everything or at least make it clear what they are looking at. Don’t assume that people will be able to tell what they are looking at or that they will draw the same conclusion as you. A thousand people can look at the same thing and come up with different descriptions of what they saw so save them the trouble and just tell them what it is.

Conclusion

Don’t stop at following these two guidelines and being satisfied. Take your blog design to the next level by making it better.

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Creating a Graphic Design PDF Portfolio

These days, it seems like every designer has a website to showcase their work. While online portfolios certainly are effective, they are expensive to develop, require technical knowledge, and can be extremely time consuming to create and maintain. Additionally, they are not always the best option to showcase print work, and they may display differently from browser to browser and computer to computer.

An excellent alternative is a graphic design PDF portfolio. Many graphic software programs, such as InDesign and Illustrator, have the option of exporting a design as a PDF. This allows the designer to create a custom brochure-style piece showcasing their best work, which can be emailed to prospective clients or employers.

Selecting Work

As with any portfolio, perhaps the most important decision is what design work to include. Think about what types of projects you are looking for. If you have a specific focus, such as book design, select your best work in that area. If you are early in your career and don’t have a focus (or don’t want one), choose your best work across the board. It is ok if you only have design school projects or personal projects to showcase. The work itself, and not necessarily a client or publication name, can impress just as well. However, if you do have some “real-world” design experience you are proud of, include that as part of your portfolio.

Remember that the goal here is not to show everything you have ever done. Stick with a “less is more” philosophy, choosing a small selection of your favorite work. Each piece should serve a purpose, showcasing a particular style, technique or industry.

Content to Include

Before getting into the design, create an outline of what to include in your PDF portfolio. For each piece of design you have chosen, consider adding:

• Client name and industry
• A project description
• Your role in the project, such as designer or art director
• Where the work appeared
• Any awards, publications or recognition related to the project

Along with the project features, the portfolio can include:

• A cover letter, bio, mission statement or other background information
• Contact information
• Client or industry list
• Services offered by the designer or firm

Consider hiring or teaming up with a professional writer to help prepare your content, as it will be the voice of your portfolio. If you need your pieces photographed, also consider a professional. Once you have prepared the content, it is time to move on to the design phase.

The Design

Treat the design like you would any project for a client. Come up with several designs and tweak them until you are happy with the result. Create a consistent layout and style throughout. Using the may be helpful here. Remember that the design of the PDF itself is just as much a showcase of your talent as the work within it.

You can use your favorite graphics software to create the initial design, and turn it into a PDF later. InDesign and Quark are great options for creating a multi-page layout, and Illustrator would work well for graphic and text-heavy freeform layouts. Think of the flow of content…start with a quick overview, and then go into project examples with all of the content you came up with earlier. Try using several images per project, and be sure your contact info is very easy to find.

Creating the PDF

Once your design is complete, you can export it to PDF out of many programs. Be sure to save the original file so you can add and edit projects later. One thing to think about here is file size, as you will be emailing this often. Play around with the compression options in your software until you reach a happy medium between quality and file size. You can also use Adobe Acrobat Professional to piece together several pages of design (in many formats) and to reduce the size of the final PDF.

Using the PDF

Now that you have a portfolio in PDF format, use it! Potential employers and clients will want to see your work and you can email the PDF directly to them, skipping the need for them to visit a website. Since it is a standard supported file format, you don’t need to worry about people not being able to view it. You can also print the PDF and bring it to meetings, especially when you won’t have computer access. As long as you keep it up-to-date with your strongest work, a graphic design PDF portfolio is sure to be a powerful marketing tool for your design business and goals.

What is graphic design?

What is graphic design?

Suppose you want to announce or sell something, amuse or persuade someone, explain a complicated system or demonstrate a process. In other words, you have a message you want to communicate. How do you “send” it? You could tell people one by one or broadcast by radio or loudspeaker. That’s verbal communication. But if you use any visual medium at all—if you make a poster; type a letter; create a business logo, a magazine ad, or an album cover; even make a computer printout—you are using a form of visual communication called graphic design.

Graphic designers work with drawn, painted, photographed, or computer-generated images (pictures), but they also design the letterforms that make up various typefaces found in movie credits and TV ads; in books, magazines, and menus; and even on computer screens. Designers create, choose, and organize these elements—typography, images, and the so-called “white space” around them—to communicate a message. Graphic design is a part of your daily life. From humble things like gum wrappers to huge things like billboards to the T-shirt you’re wearing, graphic design informs, persuades, organizes, stimulates, locates, identifies, attracts attention and provides pleasure.

Graphic design is a creative process that combines art and technology to communicate ideas. The designer works with a variety of communication tools in order to convey a message from a client to a particular audience. The main tools are image and typography.

Image-based design
Designers develop images to represent the ideas their clients want to communicate. Images can be incredibly powerful and compelling tools of communication, conveying not only information but also moods and emotions. People respond to images instinctively based on their personalities, associations, and previous experience. For example, you know that a chili pepper is hot, and this knowledge in combination with the image creates a visual pun.

In the case of image-based design, the images must carry the entire message; there are few if any words to help. These images may be photographic, painted, drawn, or graphically rendered in many different ways. Image-based design is employed when the designer determines that, in a particular case, a picture is indeed worth a thousand words.

Type-based design
In some cases, designers rely on words to convey a message, but they use words differently from the ways writers do. To designers, what the words look like is as important as their meaning. The visual forms, whether typography (communication designed by means of the printed word) or handmade lettering, perform many communication functions. They can arrest your attention on a poster, identify the product name on a package or a truck, and present running text as the typography in a book does. Designers are experts at presenting information in a visual form in print or on film, packaging, or signs.

When you look at an “ordinary” printed page of running text, what is involved in designing such a seemingly simple page? Think about what you would do if you were asked to redesign the page. Would you change the typeface or type size? Would you divide the text into two narrower columns? What about the margins and the spacing between the paragraphs and lines? Would you indent the paragraphs or begin them with decorative lettering? What other kinds of treatment might you give the page number? Would you change the boldface terms, perhaps using italic or underlining? What other changes might you consider, and how would they affect the way the reader reacts to the content? Designers evaluate the message and the audience for type-based design in order to make these kinds of decisions.

Image and type
Designers often combine images and typography to communicate a client’s message to an audience. They explore the creative possibilities presented by words (typography) and images (photography, illustration, and fine art). It is up to the designer not only to find or create appropriate letterforms and images but also to establish the best balance between them.

Designers are the link between the client and the audience. On the one hand, a client is often too close to the message to understand various ways in which it can be presented. The audience, on the other hand, is often too broad to have any direct impact on how a communication is presented. What’s more, it is usually difficult to make the audience a part of the creative process. Unlike client and audience, graphic designers learn how to construct a message and how to present it successfully. They work with the client to understand the content and the purpose of the message. They often collaborate with market researchers and other specialists to understand the nature of the audience. Once a design concept is chosen, the designers work with illustrators and photographers as well as with typesetters and printers or other production specialists to create the final design product.

Symbols, logos and logotypes
Symbols and logos are special, highly condensed information forms or identifiers. Symbols are abstract representation of a particular idea or identity. The CBS “eye” and the active “television” are symbolic forms, which we learn to recognize as representing a particular concept or company. Logotypes are corporate identifications based on a special typographical word treatment. Some identifiers are hybrid, or combinations of symbol and logotype. In order to create these identifiers, the designer must have a clear vision of the corporation or idea to be represented and of the audience to which the message is directed.

Start a Freelance Business With No Professional Examples

So you want to freelance? What should you do if you have no professional examples to place in your portfolio?

When I got out of college. I had an entire portfolio full of Bryce 3-D graphic images. Believe it or not, I was trying to get a graphic design job with these images. The problem was, it did not matter how good these images were, they were not "Graphic Design" images, they were "computer graphics" images. There is a big difference. No matter what type of freelancer you want to be, whether it is a graphic designer, web designer, writer, or whatever, find out what your niche is first.

I am going to use graphic design as an example, but this also goes for writers, programmers, etc. No matter what job you are applying for, only place examples in your portfolio that correspond with what job you are applying for. For example, if you decide that you want to apply for a graphic design position, place examples of brochures, newsletters, mailers, catalogs, and other examples that correspond with the job that you are applying for. You wouldn't want to fill your portfolio with illustrations, 3D renderings, sketches, etc. It is okay to have one example of your illustrative skills, and one of your 3D rendering skills, but that is all that I would add.

There are several ways that you can build up your portfolio:

Dummy Samples - Create fictitious examples of your work. Create dummy brochures, newsletters, logos, and other pieces to demonstrate your range of skills. Even though this seems such a waste of your time, you can use these documents as templates for real projects that you will have in the future.

Non-Profit Organizations - Volunteer your services for free to local community organizations where you live. This is a great way to build up your portfolio. Look in your phone book for religious, educational, social, and political organizations. Make sure that you inform the client that as payment you insist on having your business name and phone number on the finished piece (and if you have a website url, this should be printed on the finished product too). This is very fair. Hopefully you will reach potential clients with your first publication.

Friends - Surely you must have relatives or friends that have a small business. Volunteer your skills out to your friend or family member. Make sure not to get yourself into a situation where this friend expects you always to work for free. Explain up front that this is for free only with the first project. Again, insist that your business name, phone number, and website url are printed somewhere on the finished product.

Web Search - Do a search on the web for websites that you feel could use your service. Look for bad design layouts. If you consider yourself a web designer offer to redesign the website for free. If you are a graphic designer, offer to design this company's brochure or flyers. Don't offer your free services out to everyone until you get a "yes" or "no" response; otherwise you might get ten "yes" answers.

Place Your Profile on Freelance Sites - In another few weeks we are starting a service where we will place your profile on all of the freelance sites with one form .... keep your eye out for this. We also are going to launch a freelance jobs search engine so you can search all freelance job sites with one form. We will keep you posted.

Things to remember about freelancing

The most important thing to remember when freelancing is to be honest. If you are not honest in saying that you have the ability to do a job well, then your reputation could be tarnished. If you are in an interview for a freelance opportunity or "gig", do not tell your future contractor that you have no problem doing that project for them, when in reality you have never done this type of work before. Not only will you be putting your reputation and credibility as a freelancer on the line, but also you will be jeopardizing the credibility of the company that has hired you. If you provide false information or produce a project in an incorrect manner from which the company is accustomed to, then you could be causing some serious heartache down the road.

Another thing to keep in mind when freelancing is obtaining a stable client base. You must remain in constant contact with your clients. Always check with them even if you are not working on a project for them. "Get noticed", not so much that you become a nuisance and they won't want to hire you, but be there enough that they can never quite forget about you. Also, when special occasions come around, like birthdays or holidays, drop a little something in the mail to them. This will let them know that you are willing to go that extra mile to maintain a friendship and standing relationship with them.

Freelancing is a risky, yet exciting, industry to get into. You must have plenty of self-confidence that you are the best at what you do. But don't become over confident, always remember there is room for growth, learning and a better understanding of the industry. When you are working with a client, be sure to learn the accounts you are assigned inside and out, ask for any extra helpful materials that can boost your knowledge. If you are uncertain of how something is done, ask; never be afraid to ask questions. You want to get it done correctly the first time. Again this will be a great reflection on your reputation and your ability to do a good job. Freelancing is hard to get into, but once you have established yourself as knowledgeable and reliable in your area of expertise, then you will be the top name in the drawer every time.

Graphic design occupations

Production artist

A production artist is a technical and often considered an entry level job position in a creative profession. The job title originated at advertising agencies, assigning what was known as paste-up work (now prepress production) to the position. It's often assumed to be a graphic designer or art director in training position, similar to an apprenticeship. Production artists work closely with the designer and art director to execute the design. What distinguishes "production art" from design is the lack of opportunities to utilize creativity and design training in the work involved. Although the position may be treated as low-skilled labor, the degree of technical knowledge required for some production art work may be comparable to higher skilled engineering, especially with computers.

Art director

The art director serves a variety of similar job functions in advertising, publishing, film and television, the Internet, and video games.

Creative director

The creative director is generally the person in charge of a creative department in an advertising agency. They are in charge of leading the creative direction of a campaign.

Advertising & Marketing

Art directors in advertising aren't necessarily the head of an art department although the title may suggest it. In modern advertising practice, they typically work in tandem with a copywriter. Together, or the art director and copywriter work on a concept for commercials, print advertisements, and any other advertising medium. Individually, the art director is mostly responsible for the visual look and feel of the creative product, and the copywriter has ultimate responsibility for the product's verbal and textual content. Both are responsible for coming up with big, effective and persuasive ideas.

Film

An art director, in the hierarchical structure of a film art department, works directly below the production designer, in collaboration with the set decorator, and above the set designer. A large part of their duties include the administrative aspects of the art department. They are responsible for assigning tasks to personnel, keeping track of the art department budget and scheduling, as well as overall quality control. They are often also a liaison to other departments; especially the construction department. In the past, the art director title was used to denote the head of the art department (hence the Academy Award for Best Art Direction).

Publishing

Art directors in publishing typically work with the publications editors. Together they work on a concept for sections and pages of a publication. Individually, the art director is mostly responsible for the visual look and feel of the publication, and the editor has ultimate responsibility for the publications verbal and textual content.