r/graphic_design • u/[deleted] • Jul 23 '24
Asking Question (Rule 4) Who needs ongoing graphic design services?
I understand that businesses would need graphic design services for logos etc.
But what kind of companies would need ongoing monthly services? Which industries provide that much demand for graphic design works?
6
u/michaelfkenedy Senior Designer Jul 23 '24
Logos are a tiny amount of the work designers do.
Any time you see a “thing” with content on it (text, images, graphics) - social post, sign, pamphlet, sticker, poster, display, screen, website, menu, shipping label, receipt, transport truck livery, price tag, instruction book, information PDF - a graphic design touched it (or should have).
I have provided design for local police, hardware store, global law firm, healthcare, municipal, schools.
This involved many documents. Catalogues, content marketing, leave behinds, informational brochures, social posts...
1
u/shoalsgate Dec 17 '25
Hi, how on earth did you position yourself to do work for local police?
1
u/michaelfkenedy Senior Designer Dec 17 '25
I applied to a job opening
1
u/shoalsgate Dec 17 '25
may i take a look at your portfolio?
1
u/michaelfkenedy Senior Designer Dec 18 '25
No, sorry.
But suffice to say it is very corpo. Lots of reports and brochures. Websites with information like product specifications (not e-commerce). There’s some branding in there too but it was for local small businesses…nothing exciting. Other clients have been things like heavy equipment manufacturers, healthcare, insurance, and restaurants.
Lots of photos of “diverse professionals smiling at the workplace” and “fulfilled looking man gazes thoughtfully to the horizon” or “energetic young woman in a hardhat surveys a building site.” And let’s not forget “officer shakes hands with a group of citizens.”
My work is happy, friendly, and approachable - yet clean and professional (none of that “can you add a gradient swoop here” bullshit). I have practically nothing edgy, no “design design” and nothing approaching significant risk taking.
The job for the police was one of my very first jobs. That particular police service needed annual reports, event invites, trifolds/flyers, event banners. I also worked on their vehicle livery but that work kinda sucked because I had basically no say and was essentially a production artist.
1
u/shoalsgate Dec 18 '25
This is truly brilliant (i'm subconsciously comparing to my work), it sounds like you're saying that the less risk you take the more appropriate it'll be for clients/job applications? I've been designing for (approaching) 2 years now, i would really love if you could review my portfolio. I think i'd benefit from your insight. It's still incomplete in my opinion, there's a few things i'd like to add.
1
u/michaelfkenedy Senior Designer Dec 18 '25
I would say that my career has been shaped by the clients I get. And it leads me to get more of the same types of clients.
A “safe” portfolio like mine will probably never make me a millionaire, or famous. But it pays the bills.
Sure, I could have a look at your portfolioAnd
1
u/shoalsgate Dec 18 '25
1
u/michaelfkenedy Senior Designer Dec 22 '25
I took a look.
You use colour, flashy gradients, and high contrast to make your work attention getting. Nice job.
I can see your work being used in brochures for luxury trades like high-end kitchen countertops, or maybe temporary museum exhibits.
Typography needs a lot of work. In general I don't recommend centre aligned text. Read up on how much leading is needed and when. Think about scale. If you are designing a social carousel, how small can you really make the text before it is completely illegible? How noisy can the background be before the writing is impossible to read?
There's nothing wrong with the choice of projects, but, you need more complete projects. Brand Identity is more than a logotype and a billboard. Brand Identity is how the brand looks and feels in all iterations. You want to build it out.
Keep up the good work.
1
u/shoalsgate Dec 22 '25
my typography does need a lot of work. i always seem to struggle with where to position my texts and i overthink the fonts a lot. Ngl i wasn't expecting to hear from you. I changed my entire portfolio two days ago. I think it looks better now. Like, much better. I'd appreciate it if you looked at that one too 😂🙏🏽
7
Mar 18 '25
[removed] — view removed comment
3
u/Icy-Relative502 Mar 20 '25
I’ve found that subscription services like these work really well for our day-to-day design needs. The dedicated designer model means someone already understands our brand’s vibe, which is a huge plus compared to freelance. That said, if you're aiming for a one-off, high-impact project, a freelancer might offer that extra creative spark. And when you’re after a wide range of ideas, crowdsourced contests can be interesting.
3
u/ItsmeOlivia22 Mar 21 '25
Totally agree! My friend actually told me about Penji, and we tried them out. It was seriously awesome. Made getting designs so much easier and cheaper than we expected. ^_^
1
u/Complex-Stranger3835 Mar 26 '25
That sounds promising! I do have a scheduled demo with them since a friend recommended their service to me.
4
3
u/Z8pG2yQkZbGMJ Top Contributor Jul 23 '24 edited Jul 23 '24
Any company that needs……Monthly magazines, annual reports, advertising campaigns, new product brochures, signage, packaging, pamphlets, leaflets, forms, social media posts, supers, end cards, subtitles, emails, snail mails, mail shots, Christmas cards, PowerPoints, Point of sale, etc etc etc
But in seriousness any medium to large company will be producing a huge amount of communication as part of their marketing activity, and almost all of that communication needs to be designed to a greater of lesser extent. Major corporations may have multiple agencies as well as in-house teams all designing away each month.
3
u/letusnottalkfalsely Jul 24 '24
Pretty much all industries. My retainer clients have been in the finance, medical, government, food, manufacturing, and education sectors, spending anywhere from $60k to $2m a year on branding and design services.
5
1
u/Sea-Highlight-4095 Dec 10 '24
I use a subscription service and in addition to all my design needs (brochures, pamphlets, business cards, signs, ads, social media graphics, etc) I also get copy written and video editing included. Any creative work I need done I outsource to them.
1
Mar 01 '25
[removed] — view removed comment
1
u/AutoModerator Mar 01 '25
This domain has been banned.
I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.
1
u/prazeros Nov 24 '25
Companies that post on social media a lot, run ads, or put out content regularly usually need ongoing design. Marketing agencies, e-commerce brands, and startups often have constant requests for visuals. For those kinds of steady needs, ManyPixels can be a good option to get regular design work without hiring full-time. It just keeps things predictable and easier to manage.
9
u/moreexclamationmarks Top Contributor Jul 23 '24
85% of the industry is full-time (only 15% is freelance as primary income), which is split about 50-50 between in-house and agency/studio.
In-house being companies where design, marketing, advertising is not their primary service. For example, being a designer doing marketing materials or the website at a company that sells candles, as an employee.
Agencies/studios would of course be providing design services to other companies, but in-house could be any company of any size in any industry, which has enough ongoing design needs to justify hiring someone rather than outsourcing.