16 August 2009
Article about hiring a designer you may never get the chance to meet face-to-face, person-to-person.

In the day’s of old, the key to hiring the perfect designer for your project was much like hiring a babysitter for your kids. You’d meet the designer in person, peruse their portfolio and resume and then based on first impressions would hire them. Not much has changed other than the World Wide Web has now opened the flood gates to a new level of hiring. Instead of just being able to choose one or two designers from around your block, you can now pretty much hire anyone in the world. So how do you know if a designer on the other side of the planet is “the one” you want and how do you go about hiring them to work for you?

First you get in touch with them by email, instant message, phone or other communication device of preference. Within the first few bouts of communication you should have a basic idea of whether or not the designer is going to work for (and with) you. Communication is absolute key to working with a designer you may never meet face to face. If you can’t communicate your thoughts, visions, technical garble-ly-goo, and ideas well; maybe it would be best to stick to a local designer you can meet up with when needed.

Second you peruse the designer’s online or print portfolio and resume. Much like the babysitter theory, you want (and need) to know their past experiences and skill level. You wouldn’t leave your kids with a total stranger, unless you knew a little bit about them, right? Hiring a designer isn’t that much different, think of your project as your little baby and the designer as the babysitter. Make sure that they are suited well to each other before hiring them. Each designer has a specific style, area of expertise, professionalism and communication level and each project needs a specific designer to design them – keep that in mind! Resumes can be fluffed, but portfolios never lie. You’ll know right from the get go whether or not they’ve got what it takes to tackle your project by looking through their portfolio offerings.

Third ensure that you and the designer are on the same page when it comes to payment, payment frequencies and payment options. Some designers charge by the hour, other’s by the project. Some accept certain forms of payment (cash, check, money orders, etc.), others don’t. Some like to be paid in installments, others like to be paid upfront, some like to be paid in the end. So before hiring them, make sure you have written in stone what your payment options are, when they’re to be met and how they are to be met. There’s nothing worse then getting to the end of a project; not being able to pay the designer and the designer withholding all of your hard work because of it!

Fourth if the designer has a contract or agreement, be sure to read it over a few times and know exactly what is expected of you and the designer (especially before signing or agreeing to it). Online agreements are no different than a contract you would sign by hand, so be sure you know what you’re getting into before hiring or contracting a designer. Some online contracts don’t even need your signature; you just simply have to read it to agree to it, so always read the fine print!

Lastly trust your gut instincts. If the designer comes across as fishy, avoids answering direct questions (evades them or simply skirts around them, especially when related to finances/money) or just doesn’t seem the right fit for you or your project then don’t hire them – find someone else.

All in all, hiring a designer from the online world really isn’t that much different then hiring someone in your local area; you just have to be more aware of their stipulations and communicate better than ever! If you find the right designer, no matter where they live, your project should turn out just the way you imagined it or better.