Finding the Right Designer for Your Project

Over the years, I've worked with just about every type of client there is.  Some have been great, others, not so much. And there were one or two situations where we both just wanted to complete the project, never to speak to each other again!

Finding a designer with whom you have good rapport is as important as their ability to design. The best designer in the world may not be the best designer for YOU! It’s important to have a ‘good fit’ when you choose the designer for your book or design project as you may be working together for some time. Therefore, before you actually hire someone, take some time to think about what your own goals are for your book:

• What formats and in which outlets will I be publishing?
• What is my publishing time frame and budget?
• Is my manuscript straight text, or does it have a lot of added graphics, photos or sidebars?
• How do I want my book to compare to other authors in this genre?

Once you’ve answered, or at least thought about these things, the next step is to actually find someone to help you bring your manuscript to life. This process is much like any other hiring process but you are the one determining the qualifications and budget. As you begin your own hiring process, keep these things in mind:

1. Does she have the right qualifications and skill set for what you need? Do you like her design style?
2. Can you communicate well with one another?  Does she ask detailed questions about your project and what you need? Does her rates and availability fit your budget and schedule?
3. Will she provide a scope of work or contract clearly stating what the work entails, payment terms, file transfers, and other terms of service so there are no surprises?
4. Can she provide references, or was she recommended to you?
5.  Does she demonstrate responsiveness and professionalism?

Does she have the right qualifications and skill set for what you need? Do you like her design style? Whether a designer was recommended by someone you know or you found them via an internet search, you should be able to get some basic information about them from their website, blog or online portfolio. Browse their site and look at their portfolio. Design is a very subjective matter—most people know within minutes if a style appeals to them or not. If you don’t like what you see, move on. If you do, then make sure the designer does the type of work you are looking for. There are many designers who special in ‘general design’, but many more just focus on specific markets, such as book covers or typesetting or epub formatting. It is possible to find someone skilled in multiple areas, though it’s far more likely that you may hire more than one designer to handle different portions of the project. Be willing to hire two or more designers if you feel comfortable with one’s cover style and another’s typesetting skill.

Can you communicate well with one another? Does she ask detailed questions about your project and what you need? Does her rates and availability fit your budget and schedule? Once you've decided that yes, you like her style and, yes, she offers the service(s) you need, you’ll need to have an introductory conversation to find out if you both want to work together. At a minimum, each of you should leave this conversation having a clear understanding of the project deliverables, budget and schedule.

Ideally, your designer is engaged and eager to help you say ‘Yes, I’d like to hire you!’ and will volunteer details about her experience, similar projects, availability and how she may visualize your manuscript. If you find yourself asking most of the questions, you may want to think twice about proceeding. Someone who seems uninterested in your project or is hard to get information out of at the initial conversation will likely frustrate you down the road; esp. if there are any snafus with the process (and there always ARE!).

If you feel the communication between you is good, ask about their rates and availability. There is no hard rule on how designers price projects. Some price jobs by the hour and others price them by the job. (I tend to charge flat fee per project.) You may need to provide a draft manuscript to get an accurate estimate. Reputable designers respect the works of others and treat files provided for estimates, etc. as business confidential materials. That said, you may want to include a copyright watermark in the file or a protection clause in the transmission email as a reminder. If you are simply shopping for the lowest rate, please let your designer know. She may be willing to provide a ‘guesstimate’ without seeing your manuscript or she may decline to discuss the project further. Either way, you've saved both of you time and effort.

Good design takes time and good designers often have busy schedules. If you have a short turn around, let your designer know, as this can impact the project’s price and her availability. Give your book ample time to be properly designed and produced and give your designer ample time to do the job you've hired her to do. Rush jobs can be very stressful for everyone involved. Try to avoid them!

Will she provide a scope of work or contract clearly stating what the work entails, payment terms, file transfers, and other terms of service so there are no surprises? If you've gotten to the point of discussion estimates and availability, you've likely decided that this designer is someone you could see yourself working with. At this point, the discussion will move to more contractual topics, such a detailed estimate or scope of work, payment terms, scheduling, file transfers, and similar. I highly recommend working with someone who has a formal Terms of Service (TOS) policy, or who will provide a very detailed proposal that includes these elements. This can limit any number of misunderstandings and unexpected issues for both parties and is just smart business. If you have an issue with a designer’s TOS, speak up before you pay the deposit! You may be able to negotiate on points that you have issues with.

While having a contract doesn't prevent breaches of contract, it helps you tremendously should you find yourself dealing with one. I personally will not take on a new client without providing my TOS along with the project estimate. Chalk this up to a very HARD (expensive) business lesson!

Can she provide references, or was she recommended to you? You want to know that the person you are hiring to breathe life into the words you've spent countless hours writing, rewriting, reviewing and rewriting again is reputable and does what you pay her to do. Check references even if she was well recommended. Note that even someone well recommended may end up being a bad fit for you. Trust your judgment and instincts about this person—you’ll be glad you did!

Does she demonstrate responsiveness and professionalism?  There is nothing more frustrating to me than not getting a response to a question or concern I have. If I am paying you for a service, then I expect you to respond in a timely manner and address it. Over the years, I've found that if someone is often slow in returning calls, misses meetings, or otherwise doesn't do what they say in the beginning of the business relationship, I can expect more of the same later on. Since you are paying for her service, it’s reasonable to expect your designer to value your time as much as you value hers.

Also note how organized she is with the business end of things. Ideally, she should be able to send whatever information you've requested without delay. Any estimates, forms or communications should reflect a professional tone and be clear and easy to understand.

A Valued Team Member

The ultimate goal in hiring a designer for your book is to make the overall process easier for you while also getting a great looking book in the process. The overall production process for a book can be stressful and span months so you make sure you like the person you hire for the job. Working with someone you have difficulty with adds a lot of unnecessary headaches and stress to an already complex process. With a little effort and a willingness to think like an employer, you can find someone who fits well with you and your project. 

Stay in your 'A' game!

A few years ago my friend Jen, was helping me organize my home office and business. I was dividing my attention between several things, yet not really achieving great results with any of them. I felt stuck in many ways. She then gave me the best advice I've received in a long time, "Toni, stay in your 'A' game."  I quickly dropped several things that were sucking time and energy from my life and felt like an obligation and refocused on what I do best: design.  As a result, I'm much happier and less stressed and doing work that I love.  

I've never forgotten this advice and often say the same thing to my own clients who are trying to do too much.  Most of us can do a number of things well enough, but we all have a skill or niche where we excel. This is the 'A' game where we should be focusing our time and energy and usually results in the greatest income and professional satisfaction. Since we all have the same amount of time in each day, it makes sense to use it doing things we enjoy and benefit from. 

Think with the end in mind.

As I mentioned in my last post, self-publishing a book doesn't mean that you have to do everything yourself.  In fact, trying to handle every aspect of the process is doing a great disservice to yourself, your readers, and if you are a business owner, your clients. There are several reasons to hire out parts of the process, but the biggest factor in my estimation, is because there are so many people out there who can do it better, faster, and more cost effectively than you.  Your goal in writing a book is to be a writer not a book designer!

Most people already know that having their work edited is critical.  But they tend to gloss over the importance of its cover and layout and will often attempt to do it themselves in Word. Word is a necessary evil in the publishing world and accepted by many online printer services such as CreateSpace, BookBaby, etc. (Full disclosure, I'm biased towards using InDesign for typesetting). That said, any potential savings gained by not hiring a pro to design your bookblock and do your layout can be lost if you later need to submit it to another POD (Print On Demand) vendor to get into larger distribution chains, or if you wish to convert it to multiple electronic formats. Most pros use InDesign for typesetting and book design and know how to set the files up to generate multiple formats without a lot of additional time invested. It is indeed possible to get what you need from a Word file, however, there can be more steps, duplicated effort, and possibly additional costs involved to get the necessary output.  If you are doing these things yourself, you may soon find your time spent fighting with headers, file conversions, and such that can leave you very frustrated. This is time spent away from clients, making money, and/or writing!

By taking some time at the beginning of the writing process to decide what you want—print books, Kindle, Nook, tablets, interactive, etc.—you can choose the best direction to take regarding producing the bookblock. If you plan to sell your book in a single format or outlet, such as an ebook, then you likely can get away with using Word for the formatting, but definitely hire a pro to design your cover!  (Covers help sell books so make sure yours can stand up to the competition!) 

If you wish to sell your book in multiple formats and outlets, then hire a pro to handle the typesetting. She can create a well designed bookblock that enhances your content in addition to doing it such that it can be more readily converted to multiple formats and that will be accepted by a larger number of POD vendors. This ultimately allows your book to get into larger distribution chains.

Chasing rabbits.

As the old proverb says, "If a dog chases two rabbits, both will escape." Most authors write in addition to working a full time job or running a business or do both. Stay focused on what directly benefits you professionally or financially—your 'A' game. Don't allow your time to be monopolized with things that do neither.  With a good plan in place for production, you can remain focused on your 'A' game while knowing that your book will be the best it can be. 

Next time, I'll talk about what to look for when hiring a designer for your project. 

Happy Writing!
Toni