Are You Our Kind of Client?

Short answer is maybe, but I should explain.

We at Hunchback Graphics have had the pleasure of working with a number of clients over the better part of a decade that we’ve been in business. We’ve worked hand in hand with owners and marketing representatives to establish brand guidelines and company logos that speak directly to their target market. In this time we’ve thought about what types of people we prefer to work with, and decided, hey, there’s a blog post in that.

Truth be told, one of the hardest things we’ve learned is to be picky with our clients. Our process isn’t right for everyone, and we’re ok with that. This is why we’ve developed an on-boarding process. Before we even begin the design conversation, we’re vetting out potential customers and make sure they’re right for us. I know, seems a bit crazy, but we understand the value we bring to the table and the power of good design. Unless our clients feel similarly about our offerings, we politely decline the job.

At first I thought this was going to hurt us. Watching paying customers walk out the proverbial door is never easy. But we soon found out that the caliber of our work increased, because we were able to work through our proven process and have more time to concentrate on the designs. This means less wasted time on client maintenance and needless discussions, and more time to make the art shine. This isn’t to say that time spent communicating with our clients is wasteful. It’s the exact opposite. We verify that we’re speaking the same language and sharing a similar vision so that the conversation can stay focused on improvements instead of opposing opinions.

So who are these mysterious clients? They are normal people. People who are proud to pay an honest wage for quality work. Entrepreneurs who are in business because they are tired of living someone else’s dream, and are ready to do something about it. We only work with people who understand the power of consistent branding and that working with professional graphic designers is an investment in your company. We work with people who take an interest in the project, and who want to work collaboratively with us to make the best design possible. We tend to prefer small to mid sized businesses due to their flexibility and mind set. Larger business tend to be design by committee, which at times can be beneficial but typically just puts too many cooks in the kitchen.

Does this sound like you? Have you been looking for some solid people to help your company do better? Let’s talk. Email me at travis@hunchbackgraphics.com.