It’s always helpful to actually work with clients, preferably at their own computer, and watch the way they use their websites and the internet in general.
What have I noticed? That a lot of my clients are confused between the location bar and Google search. Many people have Google set as their home page, and to get to a web page they type the URL (http://www.somelinkhere.com) into the Google search bar. Then they click “Search” and click on the link to the site they were looking for.
So what’s wrong with this? First of all, it has lots of unnecessary steps. But secondly, and most importantly, many times Google has not indexed the page the client is trying to get to (especially if, as in the case of my beta and building sites, they’re blocked from Google). That’s when I get the panicked calls: “I went to link you sent and there’s nothing there!”
Here’s what I send them:
Do you do this? Don’t feel embarrassed. You are in very smart, very successful company. But make your life easier and use Google for searching and the location bar for URLs.
It’s a snowy day here in Massachusetts and it’s given me a reason to reflect. When I decided to expand my business from a successful one person home based venture to an office based design firm with an employee I thought a lot about what was important to me. Good design, personal integrity and business ethics, of course. But as a mother with two children under 6 (at the time) it was equally as important to me that I be able to accommodate their schedules and spend as much time with them as I can.
All women who have children compromise in some way. They may stay home with their kids full-time and sacrifice income and, perhaps, a career. Or they might work outside the home and miss time with their kids. There are many variations, and I believe that every parent tries to find the balance that works. I would never judge someone for the choices she makes.
I couldn’t afford to stop working. Even if I could have, I had worked long and hard to establish my business and I didn’t want to give it up. Not to mention that I get a great deal of enjoyment and satisfaction from the work that I do. At the same time, though, I have an acute sense of time passing, of the fact that my children will only be young once, and that I don’t want to miss it. My daughter and son are the center of my life and the source of my greatest joy. How could I reconcile my need to continue to run my business with my desire to be with my kids?
In addition, the woman I hired as my production manager has three young kids. She is fabulous, the most wonderful employee I could ever ask for, and she was struggling with the same work/parenting issues that I was. It was essential to me that I make a workplace that was family friendly for both of us. There are so many smart, dedicated, and trained women who are not able to work, or not able to find the kind of work that they want, because there are so few jobs out there that are flexible enough to be both an employee and a dedicated parent.
We made it work. Here’s how:
We both use laptop computers. When we work from our respective homes, we have everything we need at our fingertips. When we come into the office we bring our computers in with us.
Sarah has a work printer at her house as a part of her full workstation there.
We cc and bcc each other on emails so that we can both track the progress of our projects.
We use Basecamp as our project management system. This keeps us on the same page, even when we’re not physically in the same space.
Our office space has toys and art supplies for the times when the kids need to come into the office with us. It used to have a portable crib too, which the kids have now grown out of.
I trust Sarah completely. This would never work if I couldn’t.
Of course, nothing is perfect. Here are the pitfalls we work hard to avoid:
Sometimes out of sight is out of mind. I need to remember to delegate to Sarah, especially since I was on my own for so many years.
After 16+ years in the design business, I have a lot of knowledge. It’s important that we meet so that I can share it.
Occasionally a client will schedule a meeting with one of us and then want to meet the other person working on the project. We try to both be in the office if it seems like this might happen, but sometimes it doesn’t work out.
On this snow day, when school is closed and parents everywhere are scrambling for childcare or missing work, I feel very fortunate that I’ve been able to create and share this business.
Two Notes:
Sorry for the long absence. I’m back to blogging again, and I’ll have an exciting blog related announcement coming soon!
For short design related links, info and more, follow me on Twitter @LeslieTane
Over the years I have had many client experiences and I have lots of advice about lots of things. Which I’m happy to share with you (just ask!). However, there is one situation that I’ve run into more than once and have yet to find the solution. Can you help me?
What do you do when you have a client who doesn’t know what he wants? He’s perfectly pleasant and professional, but when presented with some design options after filling out a design brief and meeting about his project says something to the effect of:
I want you to know that I appreciate all the work you are doing, but the first two logos are not working for me. The third is closer, but I’m not in love with it. I wish I could guide you more about what I am looking for, but I’m not sure what I want. I think that it’s important for me to really love a logo and connect with it, but I am not sure what I can do to help you make it happen. Please let me know what can I do to help the process. Should I do more research?
I have no problem with the client asking this. As a professional designer, one of the things people hire me to do is help guide them toward a solution that they may not have known they wanted. I don’t depend on a client to come to me with a fully realized vision (although some do) and I see it as a big part of my job to draw out the information I need to make the client happy. But in this case, the client is stuck, and I’m not sure what to do to free him.
Suggestions? Thoughts? Opinions? I’d love to hear them.
We’ve been having a 1970’s revival in graphic design for the past few years. Orange, brown and yellow? 70’s color revival. Graphic patterns, featuring colored circles and swirls? 70’s revival.
1970's era design, via http://www.berting.nl/seventies/
2008 image, via istockphoto (http://www.istockphoto.com)
As in all things design, things change. And, as much as I hoped this wouldn’t happen, the 70s are making way for the 80s (again). I was in high school in the 1980s and the fashions and styles of the times are burned into my memory in a horrific mishmash of leg warmers, thick shoe laces, Bon Jovi, big hair, belted oversize shirts, pegged pants, neon, and acid wash jeans. See below — and please note, this is NOT me. (If you’re a real glutton for punishment, check out the Flickr group 80s.)
http://flickr.com/photos/hepe/483361489/
Why do I think 80s are on their way back? Here’s just a taste of what you can find in stores today:
Target and Urban Outfitters
Urban Outfitters
So what does this mean for design? I’m forecasting jewel colors (sapphire blues, ruby reds, emerald greens), a return of thicker typefaces from the ultrathin ones we’ve seen recently, neon (I hope I’m wrong about this!), drop shadows and outlines. Here’s what graphic design looked like, circa the 1980s:
I’ll be very interested to see how this plays out in the next three or four years. Done right, the best of the 80s could translate into new, interesting design. After all, ten years ago few people were looking at 70s design (avocado green appliances! bell bottoms! orange!!) and longing for its return.
What do you think? Are there styles (design, fashion, home or otherwise) that you’re hoping will come back? Are there pinstriped jeans in your future? Are you too young to have fully experienced 1980s fashion and are looking forward to a nice pair of Ray Ban aviators? Or are the 80s a bad dream?
