Is Crowdsourcing the Death of the Design Firm?

It’s really tempting. You could get on a website, offer to pay as little as $300 for a logo, have dozens of designers from all over the world offer their work to you, and at the end of the day you pick only the one you want from (hopefully) dozens of glorious and cutting-edge design solutions. Why go to a designer nearby? Why pick up the phone to talk to anyone, or actually sit down with a real-live person face-to-face?...

Digital Photos and Ideal Print Resolution

Ever since I became a graphic designer back in the early 90s when designers started using computers, I’ve had to “educate” my clients on the use of digital photos in print materials. Specifically, how pixels per inch—or resolution of a digital photo— affects the quality of the photo when it’s actually printed. Have you ever seen a low-budget advertisement or printed piece where the photos were blurry or even...

Writing Effective Headlines & Copy – Pa...

4 Tips for Writing Attention-Grabbing Subject Lines, Headlines, Tweets and Facebook Newsfeeds Like many people, I have a “junk e-mail” address that I use to sign up for promotional freebies, register for websites and get free reports. I like browsing through the various e-newsletters and special promotions sometimes, just to see how people are marketing their business. There’s one particular man who sells some kind of...

Writing Effective Headlines & Copy – Part 1

The other day a small plastic piece the size of a rice grain broke off my $300 food processor and now the appliance won’t turn on. The piece was part of a safety latch mechanism that prevents the processor from running if you don’t have the cover on all the way. I’m not disputing the design and engineering of this mechanism, but what I am saying is that I’m sick and tired of having stuff break because it’s...

Tips & Ideas (for Non-Designers)

This is a list of some of the biggest mistakes I see in do-it-yourself graphic design. Some business owners really do want to try their hand at creating their own brochure, website or flier. You can use my tips as a resource, or, you can hire me and leave it to the professional and know it will be done right. Tip #1: Resolution of Digital Photos. Are you wondering why the last time you used a digital photo in your project it...