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Even though you're paying someone else to do your designs, it's likely you some idea about the outcome you want to achieve. And when you're paying someone else, you want to get your money's worth.

So to make sure you get what you want, it's worth keeping these tips in mind when engaging and briefing a designer.

• Let the designers handle the creative part - that's what you're paying them for.
• Help them understand your communication needs by telling them about:
• your organisation and it's mission, values and goals
• o any existing material you would like to be consistent with
• the overall project objectives
• desired ‘look and feel' e.g professional, fun, innovative
• the target audience and the reaction you are after
• Supply any exisiting corporate identity guidelines and materials e.g. logos, colours, fonts
• Provide detailed information about the actual project, for example:
• timeframes - from first concepts to final delivery deadline
• budget - if you have one it's good to be upfront so the designer can work within it
• format - printed, electronic or both
• specifications - sizes, number of pages, quantities
• photos, charts or other graphical elements you want to use (and how you will provide these)
• printed production preferences - paper quality/stock, binding, special finishes (e.g. embossing, foiling, die-cuts), environmental considerations (e.g. recycled stocks, environmentally accredited printers)
• delivery details - contacts and addresses
• Try to allow sufficient lead time - a rush job is probably not going to be the best job.
• It's hard, because we all know what we like, but try to look at the designs from the audience's perspective, not your own.
• Don't be afraid to say you don't like something - you don't want to walk away feeling you didn't get what you really wanted.