Lesson of kindness from the base of a tree

You don’t need to believe in any thing to understand the nature of things and live from your core— your center. I was walking one day talking to a very close friend of mine on the phone. One of my best friends in fact and we have had many great discussions. He tends to generally side on negativity. It doesn’t really match his true Self, being very generous, kind, caring, etc. I think it’s like most of us—what we think we see is often out of fear, frustration, anger, etc… 

The news media’s task is to share things that either provide them with better ratings, push their own agendas, and more or less spread gossip and bad news—and often lies. Not always, but most often. So it can be difficult to see the sun behind the clouds, the blue sky behind the dust and dirt. But it’s there. I was walking on a beautiful path in the woods as we spoke. 

Our discussion was about his moving away to a “safer” place. Understood, as there is a bit of trouble in the town he’s in. But again, from my perspective, not all that much— and we tend see what we believe and focus on. I asked him his belief in percentage of good people vs. bad out of curiosity. He said 90% bad, 10% good. Wow I thought… 

That would certainly have an effect on one’s outlook on many things. For me I said, I tend to think more 95% good, 5% not so good. That we all “really” have the ability for good, and that it’s simply what we’re taught and then express that might be “good or bad” actions, thoughts and behaviors that create the issue. In other words, if we all focused on our best and truest Selves we truly would be in a beautiful place. 

At that exact moment, no lie— under a huge oak tree with rain lightly falling, I saw a bright little object near the base of the tree. As I was talking about kindness on the phone, I approached this thing and was blown away. It was a small stone, beautifully and colorfully painted with the words “Believe there is good in the world” with a little heart next to it. I picked it up carefully and examined it and was goose-bumped and moved. Someone painted that message and left it. A beautiful intention and act of kindness, found by a stranger, and at the same moment in thinking of it. Coincidence? Maybe. 

But nonetheless, these things do happen and evidence that what we think about expands and we attract what we think about— always. What really matters is what’s most important and that all people are born with kindness, and there is in fact— good in the world. A lot of it. Nurture that.

https://youtu.be/Z3idzT52n4c

If you are creative, create.

Too many people waste their time not living their true purpose. And if they’re creative, they often forgo their God given ability to truly create. That means letting go, and letting God as they say… Allowing your inner creativity sizzle and expand outward. It’s to be shared, exposed, and enjoyed by all. 

Think of it as harnessed energy—if even only mental energy, it’s still energy. And if it’s not used or allowed to vent it will find a way to manifest itself. Often, repressed creativity leads one to a strange sense of feeling “off.” As if not connected, or not doing what you think you should be doing— or often a feeling of unhappiness. 

When you are inspired (in-spirit) you are flowing. It feels right. Time passes by happily and often quickly. So imagine being a flower and “deciding” not to flower. Just a dead stalk. No beauty, no bees, no pollen, no sharing your nature with the universe. You are withholding and denying the purpose for which you were created. So if you are creative, CREATE.

Simple, practical, and inspired creative. Free creative coaching. Free first project for qualifiers. The best creative solution.

Get creative. http://www.mitchellcreativegroup.com, todd@mitchellcreativegroup.com, (508)494-8182.

© Copyright Todd Mitchell, Mitchell Creative Group, LLC

The life of a Web Designer. And why you need one more than ever today...

By todd@mitchellcreativegroup.com

The job description of a modern day Web designer is much different than it used to be. It’s grown into a completely different responsibility with new challenges. And while many of the basic or overarching skillsets still apply such as good design, quality content, and overall project management— there are now a number of new factors that make it a very complex task. But now it’s become a tremendous necessity to have a qualified and talented Web design professional guiding you through the confusing and overwhelming Web world.

Where to start

With an abundance of available solutions and options, multiple online applications and do-it-yourself sites, you need to know what to do— and how to do it for optimal results. You need a qualified, design professional and online consultant to help steer you right. Even at the writing of this material, there are many current Web building applications that were once a big contender— falling behind now and taken over by another. It’s changing FAST. And every year you can count on enough technological changes to render many Web sites in need of an update. You can safely bet that time frame might even be more accurate within only 6 months! You need know what to do. And you need the right advice.

I’m going to walk you through some of this, but let me be clear— this is not an attempt at minimizing or favoring any specific online app, open source, traditional desktop apps, or any other Web-based solution. What this article IS about is the importance and value behind having a quality graphics professional on your team or handling it for you— no matter what it is. Great new Web tools may be abundant, but that doesn’t change or replace the need for quality branding, or excellent design skills. They’re still only tools. And obviously, the more qualified and skilled the tool user is— the better the result will be.

There are more choices than ever before when it comes to online deliverables— sites, graphics, apps, etc… So you not only need help with your project—with so many choices, but help navigating through the clutter online today. It’s difficult to figure out what’s best, what works, what doesn’t, and what the right choices are. Confusion sets in and eventually you end up with something far less worthy than your business deserves.

So I’m going to walk through as best I can some of the history of Web design— from a very basic standpoint and try to provide some ideas, guidelines and differences when it comes to Web design and development. I’ll also discuss the value of good— no, GREAT Web design. 

The birth of the Web Designer

One of the first key Web design software releases was Adobe’s Front Page released in January of 1987. That’s only 33 years ago. It may seem like a long time ago, but that was merely the launch. The meatier, cooler products really took off in the late 90s. It was a graphic designer, Web developer (as the new title was born) or art director’s dream world. Designing cool stuff online. Functional and intuitive computer software (tools) that allowed designers to design. 

Artists, designers, and developers could really show their stuff. It opened a whole new world to showing information, graphics, artwork, and data on the screen. The new screen connected to some day billions of people. The Web— the Internet, was now a vey real thing that once never existed, but as a result of innovation was going to become a very huge deal. And along with that, a whole plethora of collateral innovation; Devices, peripherals, software, hardware, skills, training, books, classes, mice, track pads, operating systems, updates, and so much more… Truly a real world. The online world.

Since then we’ve seen many updates, versions and numerous competitors that made their way into the Web world’s creative space rendering at first thousands then soon tens and hundreds of thousands of Web sites. And eventually, to no one’s knowledge at that time would become millions, then billions of Web media projects. Yes, billions— and some actually beleive trillions.

Web site designers were born quickly and prominently into this phase as if like prospectors finding the big gold, and with wide varieties of abilities, ambition and imagination challenged the limits to what you saw on the web. Creators created, software developers developed, and the software was relatively simple, and was actually pretty simple to create a Web site. A little training, a few classes, and a decent amount of practice and you were on your way.

Freelancers or graphic designers that once thrived on type setting machines, logos, and general design now could offer a wide expanse of new technology that created a very strong imagination and creative innovation unmatched to this point. It was truly a very exciting future. Coming into work and sitting down at the old drawing table full of carousels filled with pens, pencils, and gobs of other art stuff was soon yard sale garbage or young nephew giveaways, and taken over by the simple Apple Macintosh computer. Most, but not all graphic design was soon transitioning to ALL digital. Most everything went to desktop computing.

Was print really dead?

Printers— relying on paper, started noticing the technology and had to start thinking of innovating FAST if they wanted to stay in business. And many failed and became a shadow. But those that were inspired, or had the business savvy to engage, pursue, dream, and commit to this technology started to see some really impressive results. Many print companies today that not only survived— but thrived through the Web burst, were those that figured out a way to combine their services. Web plus print. 

Little did the printing companies know that with futuristic technology like the “internet of things,” big data, cloud, and smart companies that the machines would be talking to one another, as well as communicating on devices and people virtually anywhere in the world— and beyond that with satelites, space craft, etc… In fact, once imagined 3d printing will become a very real event— printing 3d objects.

So many print companies learned the art of integrated technology. Bringing Web design in house and merging things like mailing, Web design, social media marketing, and more— along WITH print campaigns. All very real, and very successful marketing, promotion, and advertising solutions.

The first class of Web tools

I remember taking classes in Fireworks and Dreamweaver in the early stages, and how easy and how fun it was to create online projects. Friends of mine, and associates I worked with (thank you Chuck) were inspirations as they pushed the envelope developing cool new Flash (yes, Flash) games and we creative types collaborated, learned from one another, and inspired each other in the awesome camaraderie of creative development. We all strived to be better, to excel at design… Works of passion. We’d rush over to their cubicle or office and see what cool technique or sample they came up with from the class they took. 

One of my early inspirational Web design gurus— Chuck, was one of those masters that sparked a real creative fire in many of us that had us back at our work stations trying to mimic that and try going further. It was, and still is an important process in creativity. Inspiration, mentoring, guidance, and imitation. As they say— everything in existence was once imagined. And imitation is the ultimate flattery.

As Adobe’s Dreamweaver continued to advance side by side to technology and marketplace demands, so did the capabilities of what could be done online. More tools, more abilities, more creativity. But also more complexity. Things naturally became more complex— as computers and all of their peripherals often do.

The first concerning event I recall was the technology of itself. Apple kept cranking out cool new machines, as did Microsoft, and many others. New Web browsers, screaming past Netscape Navigator added not only their own options and unique capabilities, but now introduced the first real and specific issues.

Web projects suddenly became non-responsive on certain browsers. Cool effects that looked great in the software and maybe Internet Explorer, didn’t look right in Navigator, or maybe Opera, Safari, or Chrome. Software developers struggled to keep up with the influx of new technology, and Web site developers struggled to keep up with all of the Web browser issues and inner workings. With single, or double— but mostly “simple” options available, it was originally more stable. Easier to ensure consistency since there weren’t many choices at the time. But that all changed quickly.

Think of old-school record albums, or even tape cassettes, and eventually music CD’s. They all at the time were once big technology. New and exciting. And during those highlights, were very simple. Pretty much one solid technology most folks enjoyed simultaneously. Not a ton of options. Even in music though, when Apple kicked off iTunes, and Napster started giving out music— it became more complex as now you started deciding whether to get CDs, download music, stream music, and nowadays, subscription or cloud services for unlimited music for a monthly or annual fee. It’s not a simple “album” any more.

The same— if not worse, happened with all the online world. I’m talking about simultaneously exponential growth of technologies, options, and issues. 

And most all designers were equally faced with all of the hardware issues that snuck in there. You know—not enough RAM, poor graphics cards or monitors. A larger concern was how to design these online projects so they actually work correctly, let alone look decent. It was the first time designers started seeing the reality of a separation of looks versus functionality, and the looks often suffered— but so often did functionality. Web design would never be the same.

Fast forward to the 2000’s

Let’s fast forward to a few short years ago around 2005, when true “Web design” was still a very strong skill. Dreamweaver still remained the key tool of choice for developers and designers, and there were still numerous other software tools, computers, DEVICES, and now “add-ons” were becoming commonplace. Designers and programmers now had a stronger separation line—allowing deeper, broader and more sophisticated programming as designers still worked at creating sites that helped support the brand and engage the audience. 

Collaboration was still important, and the best projects relied on that synergy. A talented programmer, skilled in the modern back end programming could work with a true graphic designer or Web designer that could result in an online project that looked amazing, and acted almost seamlessly to the viewing audience. And while at this point there are still good “teams,” it was clear there was a real problem developing with functionality versus good design. Even more so now with developing “online apps” that tried making the more complex task of creating a Web presence as easy as how they marketed it to be a few clicks away.

What language do YOU speak?

Programming languages such as Java, Jquery, CSS, and others were now popular— and growing. Flash was still king, rendering awesome effects. But now, newer hardware and software updates and versions consistently failed to render many of these things well— in fact sometimes not at all.

Security issues are now insanely problematic, having an effect on what can and can’t be done on Websites, as you now have the ability to turn on or off your computer’s ability to show Javascript, cookies, Flash, etc… Internet security hacks, privacy, legal issues, copyrights, and many other unseen obstacles were all thrown into the mix. Security breaches are commonplace. They happen all the time, and new ones are constantly on the horizon. Think about it. There was no security risk whatsoever with all of the data out there. And now there is.

Out in a flash

HTML that has led Web for so long still remains the broth in the world wide soup, and soon to be updated to what many designers and developers would call HTML5. HTML5 would allow for many cool new effects that was soon to be extinct Flash would have created. The many versions of old school html until that point just weren’t capable of anything remotely interesting besides the basics. One note on that however, is that there really is nothing wrong with the basics. There’s something to be said for simple, clean, basic Web programming and design. Some of the most attractive and useful sites are really nothing extreme. Think of Google or Apple— Amazing, simple, and clean—but not much there, and that can actually be a HUGE benefit.

Here’s the problem with some of the upcoming technology, and a significant issue even today. Not only is all the training and development from Flash and a lot of the classic Web training out the window now, but so are all the amazing things it some of it could do. Flash was a marvel in it’s time, and all things considered did not live a long life. And now, you have a huge variety of technological languages to learn, and on average are updated yearly if not sooner. This isn’t even taking into consideration the whole ‘social media’ wing, where they also live and die quickly, have their own set of tools and learning curves, and can be an important part of your online strategy.

Granted, the newer HTML5, CSS3, Javascript (and others) programming languages are excellent, and can create great effects, and more stable on most browsers and devices, but it created a new, more scattered technology that can do some of this, some of that— not here, some there… No 100% control. Not even 90% control and efficiency. These technologies do not work effectively on all devices and browsers. They just don’t. There are limitations and considerations to consider no matter what. Yes, you can have sliding carousels. Yes, you can have motion on text. But with a pretty basic list of what can be done, and the fact that everyone is using the same effects, it getting harder to stand out form the crowd. Everything starts to look the same.

Devices are taking over the world

“But wait! I saw a site that was really cool!” And so did I. But it doesn’t work on my iPad, and my phone shows it as a broken off white box, and the forms don’t work. So what’s happening is global technology innovation that ‘sort-of, kind-of’ works really well in most cases. All the time you find “cool,” trendy sites that look ok on one screen, but when dragged down to a mobile view is littered with errors and glitches. There’s no way any one online solution will work on every device or screen seamlessly.

Today— devices rule. Most everyone in business has one and uses it to do everything. Tablets, laptops, smart TVs, and modern desktops with huge 4K retina displays. They all have similar technologies and abilities, but they all also have their own limitations and abilities. I read that there are more devices than people on earth. That’s not good. Especially since that number is growing, along with technologies such as AI (Artificial Intelligence) and robotics. These things will continue to make human skills (yours and mine) unnecessary and obsolete. Think about that.

Responding wisely

Responsive design (responds to the device it’s on) is almost like creating primarily three sites. Phone, tablet, and desktop. And you need to consider things like “break points” so the images respond correctly. You need special programming patches of code to help protect you from failing terribly on old browsers that some folks still use. I recall quite a few client projects that I created some really neat online material for, and while they tested out ok, and looked great from the most part, they were frustrated why it didn’t work on their 1990s version of Explorer! And I am not kidding. 

So when we think about Web design, it helps to consider the lowest common denominator— and that’s pretty low on the scale. There is always the “tail end” as I call it. Old school, non-changers that need to be considered. And while technical support and other modern business models try and weed that stuff out, it can’t be unconsidered. There are many countries around the world that are just a few steps behind. You can’t control technology levels 100%, and certainly not the people themselves.

Let’s not over-analyze

Analytics, allows you to see everything. Track every little click, view, and engagement online. It also allows monsters like Google to know everything there is, and allows these companies to mass insane amounts of data to create their own better products or sell that data to others. There’s a fair balance, whereas they do make it pretty easy to get access to, and you can now leverage that technology and information to benefit you as well. But once again— more stuff to know, learn, keep up with, and take the time to use!

“SEO” (Search Engine Optimization) which was nothing more then key words, meta data, and a few simple scripts is now effectively a full time position— a commitment that plays an important role in Web today. Everyone wants in on the SEO and analytics game, but now there’s even more software to do ONLY THAT. Yes, separate software to do that. It’s crazy. Not to mention there are full time positions out there with these things in the description. SEO Executives and managers, Analytics Chiefs, and more.

There’s big, big money in all of this stuff. From software developers, to online merchants, to internal and external contracted positions in Web. Hardware, software, and all the millions of gadgets and gizmos out there. The “internet of things” has devices and the Web running just about everything, and everything is connected. ‘Cloud’ is the word of the day in the late 2000’s. Most everything resides on some server somewhere… scary. Most people don’t know where. 

The reality? There is no cloud. It’s a technological term. And a lot of software now is ‘in the cloud.’ Cloud software allows you to access software online. No need for disks, CD drives, or downloads— just a browser. I personally use Adobe’s Cretaive Cloud suite. It allows me full access to all of their great designers tools, and no worrying about the updates, or if my trial version is almost done. It does have its advantages.

But, whoa, wait a minute mister! I make use of all that stuff with my new Website— it’s in the cloud, it has analytics and tracking, it has a shopping cart, it has social media, it’s a ‘part’ of my new Website!

OK, that leads me to another problem. Online applications, the cloud, cloud software, shareware, open source software—all of it. Websites that can be created right online. No software required. And as these are being marketed that you don’t even need to be a creative person to create it. It has analytics, SEO, design, graphics, forms, databases, and all the technology you need all in one place.

I literally just checked a few hot spots online, and they say “As easy as 1,2, click.” “Get a agency level site in minutes,” and even “Why pay when you can get it for free?” It’s EVERYWHERE. And not only that, but since they play the pay game— they get higher on Google rankings than everyone else, so no one else has much of a chance to stand out from these robo-website wannabes. 

Facts and fraud

Here’s another little know fact: Many sites when Googled, such as “top Website tools” are created by actual companies that OWN many of the tools listed. So of COURSE they’ll be on that list with rave reviews, and maybe even a few negative comments to make it interesting. I have a close colleague that worked in that space with direct experience, and it’s not considered fraudulent— rather “competitive” to be able to keep up with everyone else. It’s also fraudulent! People really believe they’re getting the REAL results they’re seeking.

So imagine you’re like most working folks today. Wearing 20 or more different hats, stressed, overloaded, and lacking most of the training needed to do anything remotely close to Web programming or design. Not to mention absolutely no budget, and so fearful of losing your job that you’ll do anything to look like a hero— like creating the company Website for free on XYZ.com.

WordPress— a popular current day player, SquareSpace, WIX, GoDaddy’s Website Tonight, Hubspot, and on it goes. ION technologies and so many others offer “easy” online content. They promise absolutely anything they can to get you to sign up, charge a credit card and pay that monthly fee to get on board. They’re not in the business of turning folks away.

Here’s a list of a few popular Website builders:

Squarespace

Joomla

Wordpress

Adobe Dreamweaver

Weebly

Wix

Voog

Strikingly

Bigcommerce

Ucraft

Deluxe

XPRS

Yola

Webstarts

ZohoSites

DudaOne

SnapPages

Hibu

Ucoz

Vistaprint

GoogleSites

Webnode

GoDaddy

Cindr

Adobe Muse

Jimdo

iPage

Onepager

1&1

Angelfire

Doodlekit

Moonfruit

CityMax

Homestead

SiteZulu

Web

Virb

WebsiteBuilder

Webs

TRUE, they do offer some neat stuff— and in some ways it can be easier. But you still need to know your way around, need the time to manage the project, need to be able to handle edits and changes, and how to deal with issues that arise. And even more important how to make sure you are respecting the brand, consistency, and overall graphic quality that your product, service, or business deserves.

This is a huge problem. Neat— sure. Nifty— ok. But far short of the ideal online solution all by itself, and left to the vices of the new breed of do-it-yourselfers out there, end up with a two-fold problem: Lousy design that is way off the beaten path of your brand, and way short of anything consistent or high enough quality, and you are now getting deeper and deeper into committing to this that becomes very difficult to back out of or change. It becomes a habit, and “good enough.”

To be fair though, there are a good number of examples out there of folks using this kind of stuff and making some amazing things with it. But I can tell you from a lot of experience, and working with many others, that it was NOT easy. And almost always ran into some kind of issue along the way.

Without professional guidance, a high level design eye, or consideration for that aspect of your product, business, or service, you will absolutely end up with something that will actually hurt you— it will negatively affect your business. You will lose business, lose customers, frustrate people, and frustrate yourself trying to figure it all out.

Many of these tools, while “can” be useful, are very complex, and not very intuitive. So you end up settling for what is “ok” instead of maximizing your online experience so you GAIN results. You get the call, you get the sale, you make your customers happy.

What you really need

You need the right design eye. You need the right images, attachments, the right high quality logos— and that’s just a start. Color pallets, fonts, social media integration, and though testing on all devices are also important. But without guidance or help, you forgo all of that and I’m telling you from experience you end up in a real mess.

From 2013 to 2017, I have seen a tremendous increase in “design 911 projects.” “I need help” projects from folks who either don’t know what to do, or have a lousy, messy, unorganized site or online project that they really need fixed. Happens all the time now. It’s like the DIY plumber who screws up the plumbing instead of calling the plumber in the first place. But the online plumber is the Web designer. And it’s getting messy.

So now what’s happened is that there’s a new perception that online projects can be done directly online. And easy. Old days of Web design are different now. And while that is 100% true, it doesn’t mean that Web design itself is obsolete. It means that it’s changed— it’s truly very different, and needs to be approached differently, and handled by a modern day, well-trained creative professional that understands all of the requirements today.

Your Web project should include all possibilities. Custom, hand-coded projects, online applications, and everything in between. In fact, the most important part of a Website project is the strategy— the plan. Things like purpose, navigation and design should lead the conversation, but also include things like SEO planning, social integration, analytics, and other facets that are still in the PLANNING phase! Whether you need a CMS (content management site), how you plan to update it, and how and where it’s hosted— are all very, very important.

And yes— it needs to be designed. It needs to be managed by a professional that really understands your company, service, or product’s best interests. Seasoned, experienced, and committed to outstanding and no-exception excellence. It needs to be the top of the game. Otherwise, you will be one of the garbage cans in what I call the “World Wide Ghetto.” An online world that is growing daily by the MILLIONS. You need a strategy that keeps you on top. Different than the rest, and true to your brand.

Web design is in a state of change

Web design is far from dead. In fact, it’s in dire need of being re-invented. And what people need to understand is that now more than every you need someone to help you really develop the right online strategy. It’s very confusing out there in the World Wide Ghetto— too many things going on, and a lot of misleading garbage that can do a lot of harm. 

Don’t waste any more time or money until you spend some time evaluating and getting honest, reliable, and seasoned advice on what you really need. There are lots of tools, so you need to trust someone that knows how to use them. And there are an awesome new breed of modern day Web designers that have the full range of experience, training, talent, and insight to help get you get the best modern day Website you can get.

Please contact me any time for a free creative consultation. I can provide the advice, ideas, and imagination you’ll need to achieve creative excellence.  

Mitchell Creative Group, a New England-based virtual graphic services studio for the past 16+ years working with amazing clients all over the world in all industries, and leading key brands to higher levels of success. He can be reached at 508.494.8182, by email at todd@mitchellcreativegroup.com, or online at http://www.mitchellcreativegroup.com.

Broadened Pricing Initiatives

One of the biggest challenges in developing creative material today is cost. 

There's time, and there's quality—but cost often has the biggest impact, and is the most influential. That's why I am providing more "room" to breath. I call it my "broadened pricing initiative." 

Essentially, another creative wing that opens up more options to you, particularly in with pricing—allowing you to really expand and open up some creative channels and developing more for your business, product or service.

With regard to cost, it's usually comes down to one of the following suspects:

The unknown. No idea what it will cost. And the fear of the unknown limits your creative potential.

The known. You might have an idea of what some services cost. And while some may be justifiable, they’re way out of budget range.

The ridiculous. You are either aware, or soon find out how pricey some jobs can be. And are ridiculously out of line, and there’s no way you can get close to that budget.

The bottom line here, is that any one of these scenarios above can often limit your ability to create the material you need, affect your third party business partner relationships in a negative way, or force you into creating real low budget, low quality material that can really cause a lot of problems. It sets a standard of low quality, low budget. It does not get the results you need to be even remotely effective. And allows the competition to scream past you with a much faster, better, “race car.” Not good!

So what I have done is leverage a creative workflow process I designed years ago that has done very well now for us for many years and allowed me to maintain a larger volume of high quality creative material— and expanded that into a broader range of pricing that will allow you to have more options to create great material but with lower pricing options.

So what does that mean? The same great creative deliverables, but we can develop projects with more pricing options— specifically in the lower price range.

You may have a non-existent budget. You may have a great client, but a low budget. You may have the need for a great project but don’t WANT to invest too much into it. That’s ok. There should be options available. And there are.

A few examples that recently came up include typical $5K range ebooks that we were able to deliver for $1500. Website or “online” deliverables in the $10K range, that I was able to develop solutions for for $2.5K. Infographics that might average $1500, created for $500.

I don’t want price to hinder your creative excellence. And when folks ask me the difference between what I do and any other agency, I suggest that I am in this to help YOU achieve creative excellence. That includes being able to provide the right service at the right price. And I am both proud and happy to be the sole decision-maker able to help make that happen, and the reason I went into this business for my self so I can help YOU make that happen.

So please— do not hesitate to contact me with any of your creative needs. Consultations are always free. And I am always ready to help you succeed. Pricing included. Call me to get a price on your creative, or graphic design project. 

todd@mitchellcreativegroup.com, http://www.mitchellcreativegroup.com, or todd@508.494.8182.

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Graphic design career start here

By Todd @ Mitchell Creative Group

When it comes to a career in graphic design you're very fortunate. There's a tremendous variety of possibilities and positions available in the graphic design industry. It's no longer a narrow filed of choices for only "talented" artists. With technology today it's even more spread out, and with modern software (oh, sorry, I meant cloud apps) there's even more potential than ever.

Whether you plan on being a simple freelance consultant, or starting your own business, or entering the competitive graphic design work space, there are many options.

The best place to start is thinking about the type of work you want to be doing on a regular basis. Creative, yes... Graphics, well ok... But think about sitting or standing at your place of business on a daily basis. What exactly are you doing? What do you imagine yourself doing that might be considered fun or inspiring?

Is it sketching artwork, or drawing graphics whether on paper or on a computer? Or is it working with a client to develop the next great website or ad campaign? Maybe it's something simple like drawing graphics for a catalog, or writing content for the next cool ebook. Yes, even writing can be "creative." In fact, in many graphic projects the content is king... Great content is imagined and created in conjunction with the graphic design part of the project.

Start here: Imagine and write down the kinds of graphic design-related types of projects you can see getting in to. What are you passionate about, what would you love to be doing...

Here are a few ideas to consider:

Thinking and planning

Concept development

Ideas and creative thinking

Branding and identity

Business development

Creative writing

Team environment or independent

Sole business person, or team business

Do you like working with people

Do you like helping and recommending better solutions

Do you like doing the actual work

Creating the actual graphic material

Drawing

Painting

Illustrating

Computer graphics

Charts and graphic creator

Infographic creation

Designing and creating brochures 

Logo and brand development

Packaging design

Posters or event graphics

Making simple edits

Computer and online technology

Web programmer

Web designer, coming up with the website plan

App designer or developer

Online graphics material

Hardware and Software

Nowadays there’s so much awesome software out there that help you bring out the creative genius. Creating websites, animations and videos, as well as brand, identity, logos, brochures, and infographics are all done with high end graphical software. Usually on a high end computer— typically, but not limited to Apple computers. Many tasks can now also be done on smaller devices as well.

Learning about the right hardware to use (computer, devices) is as important as it is learning the right software to use for the right job— on top of exploring and learning how to use that software. Hardware and software are the tools. And amazing tools at that. But unless you are willing to explore, learn, and use them, they won’t be of much use. They can be used to create unbelievable masterpieces, or just as a source of fun, creative exploration and creativity— or both!

There is a variety of software out there, used for an equal variety of creative and graphical needs. It can be anything as basic as a Word page layout, or a simple infographic, on up through high end and complex animation and video editing software or web site creation tools.

I should also mention though that when it comes to web design, that also adds to the mix the programming technology. An actual computer programming language (many languages actually) that all software and online media is based. Web code. Many websites can be created in a basic text editor if you’re  a skilled programmer. Although many designers prefer the WYSIWYG (what you see is what you get) software so you can really play with the design visually, much of the requirements of online sites today warrant a responsive design that shows up well on multiple devices— and best addressed via web programming code, which again can be written directly as text.

Here is a list of some very popular software (tools) and what their common (but not limited to) use is:

Word. Basic page layout.

Pages. Basic page layout on the Mac. 

Powerpoint. Presentations.

Keynote. Presentation on the Mac. More graphical.

Indesign. Page layout and design. High end design. Books, magazine, ebooks, web content.

Photoshop. Raster/pixel photo images. Web and print images.

Illustrator. Vector based graphics. Shapes, colors, fonts. High end design program. Documents, drawings, illustrations, charts, graphics.

Dreamweaver. Web/online design and creation software.

After Effects. Animation and video software. High end.

Quicktime. Animation and video software.

Premiere. Animation and video software. High end.

Lightroom. Working on photos and fine tuning images. Much like Photoshop, but more detailed.

Final Cut Pro. Animation and video software. High end.

Keeping in mind that any one of these tools above can be maximized and if your are skilled, imaginative, and daring enough can push these into amazing results. They each are focused on their strength best suited to what they are geared for, but all have the underlying nature of allowing you to use your skills in fonts, colors, and design skills. Remember, they are tools. A skilled person with a masterful tool creates skilled, masterful results!

Notes on training

Getting training on any of these tools above really varies. It can be as simple as, and starting with being self taught by challenging your self to find samples you like, or something you want to create— and then find the ideal software and start playing with it. Create it!

It’s like learning how to draw or ride a bike. You just do it. You practice. You explore. In fact, no matter if you are highly trained or not, without the desire, the exploratory mindset, or the willingness to try, practice, and create— it won’t make a difference. I have personally seen and worked with folks that have taken all the classes, degrees in college, and even worked at top agencies, but lacked that passion to want to create or actual experience and haven’t really done much at all. 

As opposed to so many I have worked with that have seriously amazing skills and abilities— and mostly all self taught, and worked on tons of projects. Maybe not so great in the beginning, but with practice comes experience. And with exploration comes discovery, and with all of that comes skill. For example, find a picture of something you like. Drag it into a background layer in Illustrator. Create a layer on top of that and then just start copying over it. Tracing it. Learning the tools. Recreating it exactly the same… Then delete the background. By exploring, using, practicing, and engaging your creative will, and just doing it— going at it. Now you’ve learned the tool, created artwork, and will now apply that into creating your own stuff moving forward. You have now attained more experience than someone who went to a class or watched a video. Now you obviously don’t want to steal ideas, sell them, etc… but for practice, it’s golden.

Start here:

1. Do it! Get the software and get started. Create projects, volunteer to try any project, work on any edits. In fact, just opening and working on edits is the easiest way to get into a program. But aggressively seek and create constantly. I have gained most of my experience here. Make it a habit to just create stuff— daily, weekly...
2. Youtube. Millions of videos to explore. Look up any subject. “Basics of Illustrator” for example… try different videos out. You’ll find ones you hate— and ones you love. Then USE THOSE SKILLS and try it yourself! Start at step one, and work through them. Experience begins the second you have experience! I use this all the time— and I also contribute and post training videos my self to help others.
3. Lynda.com (http://www.lynda.com). With over 600 creative courses online to date— your bound to find online courses that suit you best. Not like experience, but you will definitely learn and pick up some great tips and guidance.
4. Adobe online training (http://www.adobe.com/training/overview.html). They offer the worlds most powerful software— and some of the finest trying there is. Hey, they know their products! More complex, but definitely something worth trying out if you are a serious contender!
5. Local universities and continuing education. I personally have done this numerous times. Local colleges and facilities offer classes by professionals and or administrators that are skilled in several creative applications. Graphic design, illustration, online software, and so much more… Look in your local area papers, or online for classes near you. They usually inexpensive, and fit the right time slots for you after work.
6. Get a degree. I you are serious about a certain field, such as Web design as an example, there’s often a great reason to enroll in a full course getting college credits, and hard core training on that (and many other) field(s). If it becomes a serious career choice, and college is the right fit for you— consider that as an option. 
7. Internships. Volunteer for free or paid internships in most college, and look it up on job search sites, as companies are often looking for volunteers, entry level interns, etc… A great “dig in and get started” opportunity if you really want some experience. I personally hire interns as well.

Final word on graphic design as a skill

Please remember that like any skill‚ be it a doctor, a lawyer, or landscaper… They all require the desire to want to do it, the passion that drives the level of that skill, and the continued commitment to learn, explore and grow… It’s a path, a journey. That changes regularly.

Same here. Graphic design skills are often deeply engrained, genetic traits that many are gifted with. But they are also equally skills that if you have a deep spiritual calling to do it, can easily attain mastery with practice and commitment. Everyone is born with the ability to be creative, imaginative. In fact the power of imagination is the most powerful force on the planet. Everything is once imagined!

Graphic design skills incorporate a wide variety of components as well as the potential to master just a single part of that industry. Fonts, color, layout and design, and just general overall artistic ideas— all vary from person to person. It’s important to learn the basics of all of these (especially basic overall design, fonts and color), but more important to master them in an area that you really feel deeply about. Be it animation, logos, or creative writing… That brings out in you the uniqueness that you then apply passion to and share with the rest of the world. And thus, doing something you love to do! And gee, would’t that be nice!

And finally, don’t let fear, confusion, and patience get in your way. All of these will affect you. You need to be brave, focused, and VERY patient when learning these new skills, or approaching any career path— especially in graphic design.

I can’t wait to see the masterpieces you create— or how you impact the creative world in whatever creative, graphics-related position you end up getting your self into. 

Don’t hesitate to contact me if you need any advice, ideas, or guidance. todd@mitchellcreativegroup.com, 508.494.8182. Visit http://www.mitchellcreativegroup.com.

Website. Start Here.

By Todd @ Mitchell Creative Group

An awesome website doesn't just appear. Like a nice home, store, or building, it takes planning. Thorough, inspired, and strategic planning so you end up with a web site that showcases your brand, service, or product, looks amazing, and does what you want it to do. And all day every day. 

Websites today are THE storefront for business. They are read on multiple devices and relied on for getting information and engagement. If you create a lousy website, you are guaranteed lost business opportunities. Create an awesome website and you're guaranteed more business, more contacts, more engagement, more revenue, and more happy customers.

Here’s what matters most: 

1. First and foremost: Awesome site = awesome results. Crappy site = crappy results. (period). 
2. Write down WHY you want a new website. Helps you stay on a strategic course.
3. You ideally want a responsive site that looks awesome on all devices.
4. Professionally designed sites create optimum results.
5. You need to create a rough site plan. A list of all the pages you want on your site, and what you want the site to do. Big site, small site?
6. Pretend a site is like a car. How much you want to spend vs. all the extras you think you want vs. need. Do you know of any “extras” you think you need? SSL, databases, contact forms, etc…
7. Know what you like. Research. Find samples. Ideally 3 site you like. 
8. Who or how will the updates and edits be done in the future? By you, or hired professional?
9. Content is king! Do you have content, will you write it, or need help with that? 
10. Estimate what an ideal cost might be best for the project— a ballpark idea
11. When will you expect to want to launch your site?
12. Do you have a domain name and/or hosting plan chosen or purchased?
13. Do you have a hosting plan selected or purchased?
14. To create it with an online creation tool like Wordpress, or custom created website by a professional?
15. Is your brand material (logo, etc…) high quality as is, or need reworking

Here is some more detail on the above:

Create a website plan.

Step one. Write down your website plan. What are you aiming for, and more importantly, WHY are you creating a website? What's your mission. Your goal, your reason and purpose?

Find samples of sites you like.

Search for and find websites you like most. There are a lot of examples out there so try to limit your final choices to three.

Study the competition.

What are your competitors doing? You can learn a lot about what they do, what you like and what you might not be doing, or how you want to do it differently so yours stands out.

Do it yourself (DIY), or get Help!?

Be honest in your approach. Do you know exactly what you want, or need help consulting with a professional that can help coach you getting the best site for you? In the web world, it is very, very important to get it right. It's highly competitive and the technological rules are changing quickly so it's important to do it right and guarantee the success of your website.

Determine type of site you want.

There are two primary types of sites:

1. Do it yourself online application web site creators such as Wordpress, WIX, and Squarespace. 

They allow you to create it your self online with templates. Advantage is DIY, any time on most any device and inexpensive. Problem is limiting design so you can't create your own custom design, you need to learn and manage the site and changes yourself which require learning, skills, and time. 

2. Custom website. 

Hiring a creative professional to design your site with top level website design software and applying modern web site rules (that change regularly) so the site works well on all browsers, as well as applying professional design principles to ensure a brand-consistent site, look amazing, and ensure a smooth, fun experience for your audience.

2A. Determine whether you want a simple, static, html site or a responsive web site. Responsive sites "respond" to the device and screen size, and use a different design and programming to create. They are typically much more advanced and expensive, but equaled in the "coolness factor."

Estimate the approximate size of your site.

How many pages roughly? What other stuff do want on the site. Forms, animations, downloads, slide shows, portfolios, etc...

Create a rough site map.

Create a list of all the website pages you envision. Think about what links are clicked and where they go. For example: Home, About us, Services, and contact. That's roughly a four page website.

Consider the content.

Based on your site map, start assembling text documents that contain the content or the text that you will want on each page. Will you be creating and providing that? Or need help creating the content. Or maybe you have some rough content pieces and need help editing and organizing it appropriate for web sites. Web text should be short, concise, engaging, and strategically written with a purpose in mind. Just plopping stuff on a page will look terrible no matter what design. You want a positive experience for the audience, something that really sells your brand properly, and intuitive so it leads your customer where you want them.

Consider all the extras.

Will you want to track your site with analytics, or need a data base created? Maybe you need a multi-image carousel that shows your products? An e-merchant account maybe to sell your products. Make a list of all the "extras" you think you might want.

Where a website lives

A website is a combination of an idea and imaginative concept, web page designed files (usually html, but can also include php, query, java, etc…), style sheets (CSS, etc…), and a series of linked images (jpeg, png, etc…) and related files (downloadable pdfs, etc…). All of the website files are in a folder.

That folder now needs to be copied to a public hard drive out there (the World Wide Web)— usually a data center that hosts and holds multiple hard drives (usually in the thousands. This will be called a “hosting plan.” A hard drive that “hosts” or holds your website folder (and all files).

Your “domain” is the name of your website (whatever-it-is.com, gov, net, etc…). 

You need a domain name, a hosting account, and the website files. And access to getting to the files through the FTP (File Transfer Protocol) folder (fancy name for the website file). Software like Fetch, FileZilla, and many others access your files quite easily.

DIY site builders like Squarespace.com, have all that built in. They tale care of that stuff for you, but again, be careful… They now own and hold the technology to all of that. I personally recommend your own custom site, that way you truly learn, and own the entire process, design, files— all of it.

Think about the brand first.

Do you have good quality, high resolution logos and graphics for your brand? Are you happy with your logo or need help creating a new one first? The brand is absolutely vital to a successful business, especially with a website. A tight, strong, awesome looking brand should be expressed in every part of your business, product or service.

Imagine the time and cost.

What's an ideal time frame for you to have anew site created? And what cost might you estimate in your own mind to have a professional site created. What's it worth to you, how important is it, what caliber site do you envision. That sort of helps you determine the whole site plan, especially time and cost.

It can get a bit confusing figuring out what it might cost to create a website, but think of it like buying a car. Small, simple, economic car, or a larger, faster car with more options. The size and complexity of the site affects the timing and cost of the site. Here are some averages and scenarios that give you an estimate of cost to create a website:

Basic do it your self (DIY)  site

WIX, Squarespace, and Wordpress all allow you to create a template-based site that attempt to make it easy for you to create your own website. You log in, create an account, and walk through the steps to get you a basic website. The downside? It’s theirs. All the software, files, etc… all being to them and reside on their servers. It’s totally controlled by their admin site development, and you can’t create your own custom branded website— you need to use their templates and designs. 

Also, you need to take the time to learn how to use it, as well as continual upkeep of the site. And knowing how to deal with the correct types and sizes of graphics is also important. A decent option for the low, to no-cost website, but not the most effective, and I continuously find clients trying it, getting frustrated, and end up requesting either help— or an entire new custom site rebuild after an attempt at the DIY site.

Custom website

This can range anywhere from the most simple 1 or 2 page site to the most intense 100 page plus, robust, store front, database-driven site there is. It’s important to both find samples of sites you hope to create something similar to as well as guesstimate the ideal cost you hope for. Next to that will be creating first a website plan. A rough description and outline of the site you envision. 

Names of navigationally linked pages, what’s on the site, etc… A “map” of sorts that helps create a blueprint for you or a potential programmer see and maintain the course and goal of your site. Basic sites can range anywhere from $1500-$5K+/-, moderate sites might run anywhere between $5K - $20K+/-, and advanced sites might be in the neighborhood of $10K $100K+/-. That’s how much range there is and is determined by the size and complexity of the site.

A basic website for example might need a new logo created, content/text created, and a feedback entry form. All adding to the cost. So the site plan, you can understand helps build a better picture of what you hope for, and where you can think about making early changes to so it affects your timing and cost before you get started.

I can help you a great deal if I have an idea of what kind of site you like, what you want on the site, and a rough idea of what you hope the site might cost. I can provide ideas to help you meet, or exceed cost goals— as well as provide information you may not have even considered that may have a tremendous impact on not only your site, but your business.

Expect a range anywhere from $1500 – $25K for a standard site. The average although really non-existent since every job is unique, tends to hover around the $8K - $12K mark. Big sites, is a different ball game.

Don’t hesitate to contact me if you need any advice, ideas, or guidance. todd@mitchellcreativegroup.com, 508.494.8182. Visit http://www.mitchellcreativegroup.com.