GETTING GOOD DESIGN PAST A COMMITTEE

"The design process requires subjective judgments about matters of taste. Trying to gain the consensus of a group often leads to a homogeneous design that lacks the passion that makes a logo memorable. "

Chuck Green, Author, Designer  


Here are strategies that can help a committee working with a designer:

  • Let your designer know who the decision makers will be and what is most important to them before the design process begins. This is the time to ask for as much input as possible from the committee, to prevent disasters later on. You don’t want the expense of the CEO’s napkin sketch appearing after production has already begun.


  • Decide, in advance, which person(s) on the committee will be making design decisions. Important: Keep your buyer or target audience in mind at all times. What appeals to, or repels, persons inside your industry or on the committee might have the opposite effect on someone within the target market.


  • Make available any important market research or corporate requirements to your designer well before the concept phase.


  • To save time, money and headaches, choose one person to consistently communicate the needs of the committee to the designer.


  • Ask your designer for a production schedule and deliver it to all members of the committee.


  • Make sure all committee members “sign off” on one stage of development before going on to the next stage.


  • Manage expectations and emotions of the committee. Set clear parameters, limit the number of decisions to be made, and stick to deadlines.


  • Document everything


  • If you really want the project to move quickly, after the initial fact gathering phase, look for approval, not input.