Getting a client and keeping a client are two very different things in the freelance or Independent Creative Agency worlds. And of course, this becomes all the more complicated when the inevitable happens:
- a client goes rogue and chooses the Path of Design Death
- the team approves of all the finals, but a cousin of the friend of the engineer’s brother’s sister’s uncle doesn’t like the font
- a very influential but absent leader jumps in at the 11th hour and––shocker!––they want to take the project in a new direction
- the beta survey shows that one person out of 5,397 really want the name to include “collective,” “authentic,” and “relevant” in the same logo
- Pat has had a revelation and none of the colors are going to work after all
As funny as all this sounds––it’s not a joke. Now, many scenarios that result in changes are not this wild, but the truth remains that the design process can be difficult to navigate.
What do you honestly do when your favorite or best design gets outvoted for a different option?
How do you handle a major change request (MCR) that sends the design in a new direction? Is it normal for great designers to encounter these problems?
For starters, don’t panic: it is a sure sign that you’re doing your job. It’s normal and it’s common. But, how you move forward as a Creative Director, Graphic Designer, or Illustrator will make all the difference in the world in regards to the final outcome. The bottom line will always be: are you adding value to your client’s team?
That’s it.
Are you continuing to be an influence for good? Are you continuing to provide beneficial advice, positive energy, and helpful contributions that lower the perception of risk and increase the satisfaction of team members? In a word, are you adding value to the team?
What this does and does not mean.
It doesn’t mean you deliver a horrible final design. It doesn’t mean you immediately give up. On the contrary, this is an opportunity for you to flex those…
