Graphic Design

Often a Web firm comes into a project in which the client really doesn't know what he wants. All he knows is that he wants a cutting-edge Web site up by a certain date. The client wants the site to be individual, communicate his message, perform the functionality, and represent him well. However, this person may not have a picture of this in his head. Some will be led. Others want the firm to keep presenting ideas until they see something they like. Unfortunately, this can work against both parties.

Creative can be one of the most difficult processes to get the client through. Even if the programming involved with a Web site is much more involved than the graphics, it is not what the client sees. The programming contributes to but does not directly communicate the client's message.

If you ever go shopping with a friend, you might find that you both like jeans and T-shirts. But when you pick out the look that works for you, it may be a baggy pair of jeans and a big red 100% cotton T-shirt, with a pocket on the left. Your pal likes a smooth fit and a straight leg cut. She wants a pink V-neck T-shirt that she can wear under her white cashmere sweater. You both like jeans and T-shirts, but the style is very different. How one company views a certain concept does not always add up to how another will view it. Almost every Web build I have been involved with has had the creative effort initially described as requiring a clean, cutting edge, and professional look. In the end, these characteristics meant many different things to the people involved.

Creative development is almost like buying clothes for someone who will keep sending you back until you buy them exactly what they want. You have to try to picture what is in someone else's head, understand their tastes, and act accordingly. Informing the client up front that there will be so many composites and so many revisions might help. However, that can be intimidating to the client. Some firms will display their portfolio and charge an up-front cost just to develop composites. If the client likes them, then perhaps with some revision, they will design the Web site. However, if the client does not like the comps, he is welcome to pay for another set of composites through this firm or to shop at another Web firm. This makes a great deal of sense, businesswise, in limiting the exposure the firm has to doing wasted work. Still, I can think of several projects that I was able to bring to a profitable end that would not have been finished that way. So much depends on the client involved and how much risk the Web firm wishes to assume.

Sometimes a client will become stuck on a particular issue. The project manager knows that it would be much easier to solve the problem than to argue about it. But for whatever reason, the problem cannot be solved. If the client has a very vague idea of what he wants the Web site to look like but just cannot describe what he wants, the project manager can offer suggestions but cannot make the client decide. You can well understand the client's dilemma, but that dilemma is a project killer. Having been through enough projects, the project manager can recognize the dynamic, is aware of how this can stop forward movement, and how thoughtful communication might keep things on track. In the long run, it won't benefit the client to have the project go incomplete. This is where the project manager needs to take an assertive role and make the client aware of the schedule, the financial obligations involved with bringing in another graphic firm to present more ideas, and try to ease him into something that he likes. Web sites can change the face they put forth several times in a year. If there are elements that don't make it into Phase One, there's always Phase Two. However, the point is to get the Web site up and get it working to benefit the client. If the Web site is making money for the client, he might even forgive you for pushing him along during Phase One.

A creative brief will take the information derived through storyboarding and client interviews and discuss the creative initiative for the Web site. Target audience, client preferred sites, and sample creative directions should be included. This is yet another tool that can be used to help define the project. However, the creative brief does not just encompass graphics, it covers the written copy to be embedded into the Web site. A marketing firm whose Web site I absolutely love, called The Big House (www.bighouse.bc.ca) clues clients into their process. They look for answers to the following questions:

  • What is the project meant to accomplish?
  • How will we know that we have accomplished our goal?
  • What is the main idea that must be communicated?
  • If the consumer can only take one idea away from the Web site, what must it be?
  • How does your product stack up against the competition?
  • Tell us why your firm is unique, best, or first at.
  • What marketing tools are most effective for your company? Among your competitors?
  • What's in it for the customer? Prove it.
  • What is your brand personality? Examples: Professional, exciting, irreverent, humorous, outrageous, etc.
  • Sometimes referred to as the "target consumer," this group can be described by age, profession, geographic location, or attitude.
  • How do we want our viewer to react? What would be the ideal response?
  • What are the mandatory items that need to go into the site?
  • Define a budget amount so a range of solutions can be considered. What is the roll-out sequence? When must the program be finished?
  • Background detail, other important considerations, notes on the competition, potential problems, format restrictions, etc.

Exercises

Write a Creative Brief

a)Interview a friend or relative who owns his or her own business. What are his or her answers to the The Big House's questions?

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b)Write a creative brief for the prospective client described in 11.2.1a.

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Invite Feedback

a)How would you best present a creative brief to the client?

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b)How would you respond to the feedback given in such a way that moves the project forward?

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Identify Site Look and Feel

a)How would you best walk the client through identifying a look and feel for the Web site?

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b)How would you respond to the feedback given by the client in such a way that moves the project forward?

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Create Finalized Graphics

a)What project tasks need to be completed before finalized graphics can be created?

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b)What kinds of issues, inherent to Web technology, must the graphic designer consider when creating the finalized graphics?

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Exercise Answers

This section gives you some suggested answers to the questions in Lab 11.2 with discussion related to those answers. Please post any alternative answers to these questions at the companion Web site for this book, located at http://www.phptr.com/phptrinteractive.

Answers

a)Interview a friend or relative who owns his or her own business. What are his or her answers to the The Big House's questions?

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Answer:The project manager is almost always dealing with the principal management of the client company. This is a wonderful opportunity to learn about other industries and understand the challenges that they face so the Web site can overcome these issues. It's only through truly caring about communicating this company's message thatthe Web site will be successful. Therefore, it's a good idea to get to know the people running the company. The Web site begins to have a face on it as you become more invested in the client's success. If you are not becoming invested, then do the client a favor and refer them to another firm or to another project manager.

By asking these questions, you will be able to extract most of the primary and secondary marketing messages. You will also get to know your client better.

b)Write a creative brief for the prospective client described in 11.2.1a.

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Answer:The following is a sample creative brief. This one is vague. You will want your brief to address the issues discussed and answer the questions posed by The Big House.

Acme Communications Creative Brief

Project Mission Statement

To establish Acme Communications.com, a telecommunications, Web design, and Internet access provider, as the total communications solution. This Web site is being used not only to attract consumers but also agents interested in selling Acme Communications' products and services, as well as investors. The Web site must generate excitement about the Acme Communications solution and establish credibility with all constituencies.

Site Overview

In order to make Acme Communications.com a fully functional informational and transaction-producing conduit, the following areas will need to be addressed:

  • A snappy informational area used to attract new customers. This area must inspire confidence in Acme Communications' services, motivating users to manage and present their businesses in the same exciting way through Acme Communications.
  • A simple, e-commerce enabled facility that will allow customers to view Acme Communications' catalog, sign up for goods and services on-line, and submit a credit application.
  • A secure area that can be used by sales representatives to input and track customer orders.
  • An informational area used to attract vendors and agents. Again, the credibility of Acme Communications' business objective must be emphasized, motivating individuals to adopt Acme Communications as a viable, profit-generating sales program.

Audience

Acme Communications should attract decision makers for businesses of all sizes. Specific products will be targeted to small, midsize, and large entities. Acme Communications should also attract job seekers in search of a credible product to agent. Also, Acme Communications should attract investors based on its innovative approach to the communications market.

Creative Development

Web Kahunas will begin addressing Acme Communications' need for an effective graphical presentation by developing three to five composites for review.

Acme Communications specializes in communications. Thus, a professional look and feel must be created, which might appeal to business owners who wish to establish their own cyberpresence. Communications and corporate environment images should be incorporated into the site. The following sites, 2323.com, 5656.com, and 7878.com, were mentioned as having a desirable look and feel.

Acme Communications has indicated a inclination toward a photo collage, which will incorporate communications and business images, along with subtle images like money, etc.

Web Kahunas will develop at least three composites and present them to Acme Communications by (insert date here).

After developing the overall look and feel of the site, Web Kahunas will consult with Acme Communications to develop secondary graphics that enforce the message in the various sections of the site. Graphics should be used judiciously, having a distinct purpose, as they slow page-loading time. All graphics will be saved in a low-resolution format.

Content Development

Web Kahunas will consult with Acme Communications as copy for all of the products and services will need to be supplied by (insert date here) in order to incorporate this information into the Acme Communications Web site. Other required information will include investor, initial promotion, and agent copy.

Answers

a)How would you best present a creative brief to the client?

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Answer:A lot depends on the client's style. If you notice that this individual wastes a lot of time in face-to-face meetings, turning them into brainstorming meetings that never go anywhere, you might like to limit your exposure to these situations. However, if this isn't the case and you aren't working with the client remotely, nothing beats meetingwith the client face to face. The client can see your facial expressions, leaving little room for misinterpretation. If you go to see the client, professionally dressed, well organized, and well prepared, it adds the appropriate credibility to the material that you are presenting. You have put effort into analysis. You should take the effort to present it correctly. Otherwise, it becomes too easy for the client to misinterpret the amount of effort you are putting into their project.

If it's possible, fax specifications, status reports, and other project-related materials to the client the day before the meeting, giving him or her time to review them for the meeting.

b)How would you respond to the feedback given in such a way that moves the project forward?

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Answer:At this point, quite honestly, the firm has nothing invested in graphics or composites. You are only dealing with theory. Unless client feedback requires something that is technically impossible or is going to destroy the graphics budget, you should be open to incorporating any and all feedback from the client.

Remember, it is also important to stay on schedule. Emphasize that this is the time where the client should bring all creative issues to the fore. If this issue keeps getting revisited, it will delay production. So urge the client to organize himself or herself.

Answers

a)How would you best walk the client through identifying a look and feel for the Web site?

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Answer:By this point, you have already storyboarded and finalized the site hierarchy. Now the client needs to see something tangible. It's time to present the client with three to five composites that incorporate the creative objectives that have been communicated to the Web firm.

The composites are just ideas. You should not cut up the images so that they load quickly or incorporate JavaScript rollovers at this point. The client just needs to see how the page layout might look. He needs to get an idea for color and navigation. Once there are some composites to work from, the creative direction can be refined several times so that finalized graphics can be built on the last refined composite.

Again, sometimes clients get caught up in wanting to do everything at once. It's always a good idea to remind the client that different concepts can be implemented in the future. In fact, it's important for a high-profile Web site to present a fresh design every few months as part of an overall push to keep interest alive.

b)How would you respond to the feedback given by the client in such a way that moves the project forward?

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Answer:The key to good composite work is following the client's instructions exactly but putting as little work into each one as possible. Many clients like to see a lot of different ideas so that they can have a good variety of things to choose from. From there, a graphic designer can refine according to the client's instructions. However, if a graphic designer puts ten hours into one composite and the client rejects it, the firm has lost between $300 and $400 in wages, a day in the graphic production schedule, a little client goodwill, and an opportunity to give the client more choices.

So when soliciting feedback from the client, think about whether the client has been given enough ideas, incorporating his instructions. If this is true, then it's fair to ask the client to work within the framework he has been given. Some clients might ask for comp after comp, until the project becomes unprofitable or the schedule is compromised. If the firm is running into an unreasonable situation, it must evaluate whether it can continue with the project.

Unfortunately, defining the creative really is the litmus test as to whether the client/firm fit is a good one.

Answers

a)What project tasks need to be completed before finalized graphics can be created?

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Answer:Make sure that the hierarchy is completely finalized. The graphic artist will need this to design the front page, navigation, and back page templates. Sometimes what seems like a simple change to a client can throw off the finalized design. So it's best to make sure that the hierarchy is completely finalized before the graphic designer(s) set to work on the last set of graphics.

Some graphic designers would like to see content so that they can design page layout around it. However, it is my experience that content is likely to have modifications several times during the process of the Web build. Sometimes the client needs time to pull it together. It makes me nervous to design around content until near the very end of the project. Then the project manager can implement plans for secondary graphics once the content freezes.

b)What kinds of issues, inherent to Web technology, must the graphic designer consider when creating the finalized graphics?

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Answer:LOAD TIME! LOAD TIME! LOAD TIME!

Your graphic designer can make the most beautiful eye candy seen on a local Web browser. However, if it takes forever to download on a 28.8 connection, it's no good. The graphic designer needs to optimize to 256 colors at most in RGB (red, green, blue) format and cut the images up into small files. Even if there is a big image that resides on the front page, it can be cut up into several images and hung together in a table with zero cell spacing and zero cell padding.

Also, mission-critical graphical features that exhibit non-cross-platform multimedia have to have a cross-platform alternative. It doesn't matter how wonderfully the comet whoosh is timed to the comet flying across the screen if only 5% of the Web community can see it.

Self-Review Questions

In order to test your progress, you should be able to answer the following questions:

1)(True/False) A creative spec addresses the following issues:

  1. _____ Written copy for the Web site
  2. _____ Web site marketing messages
  3. _____ Client's concerns about moving the project forward
2)(True/False) If you are working remotely and cannot meet with the client face to face, which of the following is the best option for communicating with the client?

  1. _____ E-mail
  2. _____ Bulletin board on the project tracking site
  3. _____ Regularly scheduled conference calls
3)The following multimedia features are cross-platform:

  1. _____ Flash
  2. _____ Shockwave
  3. _____ Quick-time movies


Exploring Web Marketing and Project Management
Exploring Web Marketing and Project Management
ISBN: 0130163961
EAN: 2147483647
Year: 2000
Pages: 87

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