Designers are a mysterious bunch. We’re often misunderstood and mischaracterized, so it’s no wonder that some people think we’re magicians who can create anything with a wave of our wand. But we’re not all like that—and neither is every designer you’ll encounter in your life. In fact, there are many misconceptions about what designers do and how they work together with their clients to get things done. In this article, we’ll explore 10 common misconceptions about creative designers so that hopefully you have an easier time getting what you need from us in the future!
Misconception #1: Design is just about making things pretty.
The first misconception about designers is that they just make things pretty. But design is not just about creating pretty visuals but actually about solving problems and making things easy to use. Designers are problem solvers, and they have many tools at their disposal to help solve these problems. For example, picking a color palette for a brand will depend on the brand’s identity so that when the design is executed, it will look cohesive and sends the right message or tone of the brand to the public. Another way that designers solve problems is by making something easy to read: whether it’s an article on the internet or an instruction manual for your new refrigerator. They also make sure that people know when you click on something so that you don’t think it didn’t work when actually it did! That said, sometimes being too clever can get in the way of usability—and that needs some explaining as well!
Misconception #2: We’re thinking “outside of the box”
The second misconception is the most common statement that designers heard; “Think outside of the box”. We know what you mean and we agree that designers are often thinking outside of the box. We do that all day, every day! But we’re also thinking inside and around the box too. In fact, one of our most important jobs is to figure out what’s possible and not possible in our design projects so we can make good decisions about how to proceed with them (or not). So even though it may feel like we’re always “thinking outside of the box,” really we’re just using our imaginations to come up with new ideas while staying within certain constraints or boundaries set by clients and budgets.
Misconception #3: To be a creative designer, you must have a college degree in Fine Arts or any design related course.
The third misconception that many people have about creative designers is that you need to have a college degree in Fine Arts or any design-related course. While it’s true that having an education in Fine Arts can help you hone your skills and become more knowledgeable about the industry, it doesn’t guarantee you success as a creative designer. There are many talented creative designers who don’t have a degree in Fine Arts but learned everything on their own or through on-the-job training. In fact, some may already be working as graphic designers when they decide to enroll in college classes because they want to learn more about certain aspects of design and improve their skillset.
Misconception #4: Creative designers only want to work on cool, fun things.
You might think that designers only want to work on projects that are cool, fun, and interesting. After all, if you were a creative person and had the chance to be creative, wouldn’t you want to do something cool? But no: The truth is that many designers actually prefer working on things they’ve never worked on before. They want to create something new from scratch, whether it’s an app or website or t-shirt design. This can be exciting for them because they don’t have any preconceptions about what their finished product will look like; they’re free from those limitations! In turn this means that when they finish their project—and especially when it’s time for revisions—they’ll have plenty of ideas about how it could be improved even further than it already is.
Misconception #5: Designers are just artists.
While we often use the terms “art” and “design” interchangeably, they are not the same. Designers are not artists. In fact, designers don’t even consider themselves to be artists at all but rather problem solvers who solve problems with creativity. Many designers have a background in fine arts or graphic design before entering a career in design. Some people think that because you need to understand how human beings work in order to design products or services for them—and because this is something that any good artist must do—they automatically assume that designers are artists too.
It doesn’t make sense though: Artists create things from scratch using paint, pencils, pastels or even graphic tablets; designers take existing ideas (usually created by someone else) and come up with new ways of presenting those ideas so they can be better understood by others.”
Misconception #6: Designers are all the same.
Well, we hate to break it to you, but designers are not all the same. Each designer has their own unique perspective on how they approach design and creative problem-solving. Designers are trained to think differently than other people; they’re taught how to see things in new ways and solve problems that others might not think about. But why does this matter? Because getting frustrated at your designer for being different from you is like getting frustrated at your mechanic for having a different skillset from yours—it’s just not fair! The more informed you are about the role of a designer and what makes them tick, the better equipped you’ll be at working together with your team member (or hiring one).
Misconception #7: We don’t care about your budget or timeline.
We do care about your budget and timeline. We’re not just trying to get you to spend as much money as possible on our services; we want to make sure you’re getting the most bang for your buck. We also want to ensure that we’re not wasting time on things that don’t matter, or spending money on things that don’t matter. So if you have a limited budget, or if your schedule is tight and there’s no wiggle room in it, we’ll work with you so that the money and time spent on the project are well spent.
Misconception #8: Creativity is magic.
One of the most common misconceptions about creative design is that it’s magic. To a lot of people, creative design may seem like an innate skill possessed only by a select few. The truth is that creativity is something you can learn and practice—it’s just like any other skill. The creative process is simply a means to an end; it doesn’t matter how much time you spend coming up with ideas if they’re not going to serve your business goals or work well for your users’ needs. Creativity comes into play when approaching problems with fresh eyes, but creativity itself isn’t always necessary for solving those problems (and sometimes it even gets in the way).
Misconception #9: We need to be inspired by you and your business.
If you’re a designer, this is probably not the first time you’ve heard this. It’s been said so many times that it has become a meme: “I want my designer to be inspired by me.” But when it comes down to it, designers are actually inspired by everything except you — including but not limited to the problem they’re solving, their users, and the goals of their projects. Designers also need inspiration from budget and timeline constraints (which may vary based on who they are working with).
Misconception #10 and our favorite: Graphic Design is Easy
You think graphic design is easy. But it’s not. It takes years of practice and training to master the art of graphic design. If you think that because you’re a manager, or a business owner, or something else — that means you can just throw a few shapes together in Photoshop and call it good — then I’m sorry to say that this misconception is all on you. No matter what you may have heard in the past, graphic design is not easy.
If it were, everyone would be doing it and there would be no need for creative designers to exist at all! There are a lot of misconceptions about how creative design teams work, who they are and why they do what they do. It’s easy to assume that a creative designers know everything (we’re not the avatar btw), but they’re actually very different. There are so many different types of graphic designers and each one has their own specialty. For example, there are web designers who create websites and mobile apps, motion graphics designers who create animated videos on a computer or using animation software like Adobe After Effects or Cinema 4D, print designers who create layouts for magazines or company brochures, UI/UX designers who design interfaces for websites and mobile apps — the list goes on!
We’re committed to helping you succeed with your project. We want it to meet all of your needs, but we also need guidance from you in order for us to be able to do that.
You’ve heard the old saying: “Give a man a fish, and he’ll eat for a day; teach him how to fish, and he’ll eat forever.” This is also true when it comes to creative design projects. If you want us to create something amazing for your business or organization, you have to take the time and effort to help us learn what you need so we can give you something truly spectacular in return! The best way to do this is by giving us as much information as possible about who your target audience is (and whether they’re known for being picky), what message or feeling you’re trying to convey with your design work (we might not know what that message or feeling is unless we ask), and any budget constraints that may be at play (because if there aren’t any, then please tell me why not!)
If you’re looking to work with a creative designer, it’s important that you understand what they do and why they do it. We don’t want to be pigeonholed into doing things the way they’ve always been done before; we want our work to challenge us and push us forward as artists. If you’re ready to work with someone like this – someone who loves being pushed out of their comfort zone and learning new things – then let’s get started!
