As with an active online presence, businesses these days need to have good graphics if they want to get ahead. With so many transactions taking place online, quality graphics can make you stand out from your competitors. Such things do signify professionalism and quality, two things that will make you more trustworthy in the eyes of prospective clients.
Unfortunately, not everyone has the skills to produce good graphics. You could spend hours trying to put something together, but if you lack both the artistic talent and the technical skills to manipulate the right programs, it won’t really amount to much.
This is where outsourcing the work to graphic artists comes in. There’s no shortage of talented ones online, and Filipino graphic designers are especially adept at delivering great work and exemplary service. You can usually find a good number of them on online freelancing platforms or through remote work agencies like Remote Staff. *wink*wink*
But when you’ve got so many to choose from, how do you shortlist your candidates? And what traits should you look for in order to ultimately pick the right one?
Here are just a few of them:
1. The right technical skills.
Obviously, your graphic designer should be able to utilise the usual design programs like Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator, along with web design tools like HTML and CSS.
The more experience and skill a candidate has in various programs, the better they’re likely to be at producing a variety of quality output.
2. A good portfolio.
As they say, the proof is in the pudding. A CV that’s littered with extensive graphic design experience is great, but it should have an accompanying portfolio to back it up.
Thus, ask your candidates to provide you with their work samples and go through as much of it as you can. Their portfolios will reveal the extent of their graphic design skills as well as their personal style. Most importantly, a graphic designer’s portfolio can reveal if they’ll be a good fit for your company’s needs.
3. The right artistic style.
By this, I mean the right one for your company. Each graphic designer tends to favor a certain aesthetic. Some go for stark and simple, elaborate and ornate, fresh and bright, and so on. Most of them can adapt to whatever style you require, though it’s definitely a plus if you find someone who executes that particularly well.
4. Attention to detail.
This is a non-negotiable. Your graphic designer should be able to execute your instructions accurately and carry out the necessary revisions if required. Branding is all about getting the color, font, and overall aesthetic right AND consistent, after all.
If you want, you can test a candidate’s detail-orientedness by commissioning a small project. Give them a reasonable deadline, and assess how well the finished product matches up to your specifications.
5. Good time management skills.
There’s no point in hiring the most artistic graphic designer out there if they can never get the work done on time. Do ask each candidate to describe the process that they’ll be following to complete their work in a timely manner.
It would also be a good idea to ask about how long their turnaround time is for minor and major revisions. Ideally, you want your graphic designer to be able to present you with different options and to complete revisions well before the deadline.
6. Excellent communication skills.
These skills are especially important if your graphic designer will be working mostly remotely. They should be able to communicate their ideas and vision well over email or instant messaging. Furthermore, they should also be able to listen well and understand exactly what you need them to do.
While you can apply this criteria when screening freelance graphic designers, you could also save time by simply letting us do it for you. Remote Staff has a rich pool of Filipino graphic design talents, and we pre-screen and onboard each one. This way, they’re ready when you are.
Serena has been working remotely and writing content for the better part of the last decade. To date, she's written for Pepper.ph and Mabuhay Magazine, among others, and has churned out more than a thousand articles on everything from The Basics of Stock Market Investing to How to Make Milk Tea-Flavored Taho at home. Hermits, aspiring hermits, and non-hermits with interesting project propositions may email her at serena.estrella10@gmail.com.
