Awesomic for Webflow is live on Product Hunt! We appreciate your support ❤️
Awesomic for Webflow is live on Product Hunt! We appreciate your support ❤️
.svg)
.svg)
.svg)
.svg)
.svg)
.svg)
.svg)
.svg)
.svg)
.svg)
What are 0.05 seconds for a business owner? Is this enough time to even pronounce the name of your company? Probably not, but it’s sufficient for your users to form the first impression about it.
So how can you make your brand’s visuals look better than Miss Universe? The answer is short: hire a visual designer. Luckily, we’ve prepared a whole article that’ll guide you in the right direction. Moreover, we’ve already done the research so you can avoid bumpy places and smoothly sail to the destination.
So get on board, and let's start!
A visual designer is a professional who works on improving the online presence of an organization. To do this, a visual designer uses visual elements such as colors, photography, illustrations, typography, and layouts.
A visual designer’s work aims to perfect the user interface and experience on a website or mobile app. Because of this, there is often a misconception that visual designers are actually UX designers, web designers, or simply graphic designers. However, that’s not what reality proves. Let’s see what differentiates these professions.
Although both UX and visual designers work with users’ experience on the website or app, they have origins in different traditions. UX designers base their work on science and research, while visual designers adhere to the artistic approach. Overall, the difference between visual and UX designers can be outlined in such characteristics:
UX designers want to make a website or app easy to use. On the other hand, a visual designer tries to make the digital product visually appealing even if it sometimes requires sacrificing usability.
The foundation of a UX designer’s work is research on user behavior and interactions with the product. Meanwhile, visual designers use the information UX designers gather and combine it with brand identity so that it’s also visually attractive.
A UX designer can measure the outcome of their work through usability and AB testing of prototypes. Visual designers also use testing. However, it solely focuses on the visual aspect of websites or apps. Thus, they conduct visual appeal surveys, preference tests, or 5-second tests on real users.
Another way of confusing a visual designer’s work is equalizing it with that of a web designer. Why? Because both work with websites. However, that’s not a full description of what they do.
Web designers build websites and take care of their design and optimization for different devices. Visual designers only work on how the website looks. They create icons, infographics, and presentations for websites.
To put it simply, a web designer is like an architect working on the building’s construction. They can also take care of the looks inside, but it’s not their primary responsibility. At the same time, a visual designer is the one that focuses only on interior design. They aren’t skilled at creating blueprints but can turn existing ones into a pretty picture.
Finally, some people confuse the visual designer definition with a graphic designer. It’s not entirely wrong: they both work with visuals and use mostly the same software. The distinction lies in the specific.
The graphic designer works on improving brand presence both offline and online. They develop printed media and create essentials for the brand's style: logo, brand books, guidelines, etc.
The visual designer is a narrow specialist who focuses on the digital presentation of the brand. A digital visual designer creates style guides for web and app layouts, produces graphics for social media, and develops a long-term visual strategy.
Instead of focusing on what visual designers don’t do, let’s focus on their actual duties. In particular, here are their responsibilities:
Besides that, particular businesses might hire visual designers to create email marketing items or interactive event materials. Also, often visual designers are responsible for managing a team of designers that collaborate on the project.
The visual appeal of a website or an app isn't the only benefit of hiring a visual designer. There’s much more you can get from hiring this professional as a business owner.
The human brain processes visual information 60,000 times faster than plain text. So, the best way to engage your clients and turn them into regular visitors is to utilize visuals properly, and this is what a visual designer will help you do.
Evernote’s digital visual designers, for instance, understood their assignment perfectly. Its web version uses things like animations and reminds a user of the things they can do with the app in an uplifting way. Wouldn’t you be pleased if the app constantly told you how organized you are?
If you think that you can develop your user’s trust through the content of your website, we’ve got bad news. 75% of users form their opinion about the company’s credibility based on its design. In particular, their opinion is based on such factors as layout, typography, images, and consistency issues.
Those are exactly the elements a visual designer is responsible for. Moreover, they can develop a long-term visual strategy for your brand and create a design that will stand the test of time.
There are more than 800,000 businesses founded every year. This means that you will face rigorous competition even if you’re a local initiative. A visual designer will help you create a brand presentation to outrun the competitors, even if that means looking in a completely new direction.
For example, Little Wolf coffee roasterie from Ipswich, Massachusetts, chose a cartoonish blue wolf mascot to represent their brand instead of common designs in the niche.
As a result, the company now has more than 10,000 followers on Instagram. Given that the population of Ipswich is 200,000 people, every 20th person heard about this place, which is a good result.
Besides attracting visitors to your landing page, visuals also determine whether they will stay. Not only logo, layouts, and color selection, but also infographics and videos will encourage your website visitors to get interested in making a purchase. In fact, 64% of marketers name visuals an essential part of their marketing strategy.
And if you’re still doubting the power of looks, check out our redesign for Live in Care Jobs UK:
.jpg)
.svg)
.svg)
.svg)
.svg)
.svg)
.svg)
.svg)
.svg)
.svg)
.svg)
.svg)
.svg)
You got the point: visual designers are necessary for your business. But there’s another issue: how and where can you find a professional that can do the wonders mentioned above? No worries! Awesomic will provide you with useful tips on the crucial hiring stages.
A thoroughly crafted job description is like a beautifully wrapped gift: everyone is intrigued and will want to know what’s inside. And you can create an appealing job posting with the help of these simple tips.
“Design guru,” “ninja of visuals,” or other honorifics sound dope, but a person with visual designer skills will look for these two words in the job title. The same applies to the list of skills and responsibilities: they should be clear and to the point.
If you’ve never worked with a visual designer and don’t know about the specifics of their job, consult with someone who had this experience. Or, browse listings on job sites and check candidates’ skills.
Use your company’s tone of voice directly in the job posting. Thus, you can easily broadcast a message of who you are and what your culture is like. Moreover, this helps you sort out candidates that don’t resonate with your culture.
You don’t need candidates who read your ad only halfway through or send the same cover letter template to all employers. You can add some sneaky lines to your job description to sort them out.
Ask your candidate to describe their top-5 skills or 3 most favorite projects in their cover letter. Or, direct them to start their response with a certain word, so you know they read the description.
51% of applicants are more attracted to visuals in job descriptions, so don’t hesitate to use them. Visuals are a perfect tool to introduce potential candidates to your product. If you’re a startup owner and don’t have a physical product, you can use the team photos and shift focus to collaborative spirit.
According to Payscale, employers who publish salaries in their job descriptions see a 30% increase in candidates. You can even more precisely describe how salary depends on skill level, from entry-level to senior. Thus, you can narrow the pool to those willing to work with you because they know what to expect.
Now that you have a job posting ready, what will you do with it next? Of course, look for a platform where you can find people that fit it. If you’re looking for a remote visual designer, there are many ways to hire a perfect candidate for everyone. Let’s take a look at the most common ones.
Networking is the simplest way to find a freelance visual designer or a full-time candidate. Your friend list might harbor some rare talents waiting to be hired. Plus, you can reach out to them directly and avoid browsing through dozens of resumes.
Note, though, hiring through networking is unpredictable. Your network may not have the desired expert, or you will spend ages trying to reach out. In this case, you might switch to other hiring methods.
Ask for help, not for a job. Many junior, mid-level, or senior digital designers can offer you help with minor design issues, such as tweaking colors or choosing fonts. And then, you can extend your request and ask them to work on your project.
Another route you can take to hire a visual designer is browsing freelance websites and choosing from hundreds of remote visual designers worldwide. Plus, you can compare several freelancers, assess their skills, check portfolios and choose the most suitable candidate.
Try to get in touch with former clients. This will help you weed out potential frauds and pick candidates that deliver what they promise. Not all former clients may respond, but those who do will provide you with valuable feedback.
Finally, you find remote visual designers on subscription platforms with a flat rate. Here are some signs that point to a good one:
Choose platforms that vet their designers. Some of the cheap ones don’t do that, and there’s a higher chance of getting low-quality visuals or plagiarism. At Awesomic, we hire only middle and senior visual designers, so you’ll get a consistent quality level.
The major concern of any business owner is how to hire a visual designer with an expert skillset without going broke. To help you on your way, we compared the most common ways you can collaborate with a visual designer, so you can make up your mind.
Full-time visual designer salaries can significantly fluctuate, from $25,000 per year for an entry-level designer to $150,000 per year for a top-performing senior creator. Ziprecruiter’s national average metric states that the median salary is around $86,000 per year.
But here’s the thing: hiring a visual designer full-time makes sense if you can provide them with a daily workload for at least 6 months. Small startups can thrive with a freelancer or two in a team. Plus, freelance designers already have things like insurance and taxes figured out, which saves your money.
Apply “rule of 20”. That is, if your company has less than 20 employees, you might need just 1-2 freelancers to cover most tasks. Once you surpass that number, consider hiring an associate visual designer full-time.
Hiring an in-house visual designer is a great choice if you already have an in-house team. Getting a creative expert at the office will help you quickly make changes to the projects.
Or, you can hire a visual designer globally if you want to save. European and Asian countries, for example, have lower visual designer salaries, and you can save up to $20,000 per year if you decide to look there.
However, hiring remotely means time and culture differences, so you might have to spend this saved money on a manager who’s ready to work extra hours to communicate with your designer overseas.
Have a strong communication network. Make sure all departments within your team can rely on each other. In this case, you can expect high productivity and quality even if you decide to work with a visual designer from another hemisphere.
Full-time visual designer salaries can significantly fluctuate, from $25,000 per year for an entry-level designer to $150,000 per year for a top-performing senior creator. Ziprecruiter’s national average metric states that the median salary is around $86,000 per year.
Hiring a digital visual designer with an hourly rate is a great choice if you want to precisely count the costs of creative projects. However, some visual designers on Upwork or Freelancer might intentionally extend working hours in order to get a larger paycheck. So read reviews and screen your creatives before signing a contract with them.
The benefit of paying a fixed price for a project is that you won’t have any surprises in your check. Besides that, unlike those designers that charge hourly, project employees are driven towards results instead of a process.
Aim for middle rates. In this case, you can get a visual designer who covers most creative gigs without paying for services you don’t need. Plus, middle rates will minimize the chances of encountering an entry-level designer or a scammer.
Hiring visual designers or subscribing to a flat rate platform are good ways to maximize your daily work output and get your projects done sooner. These methods share some similarities:
However, working with an agency might be not for you in the following situations:
On the other hand, design subscription platforms typically offer you a dedicated environment. For instance, Awesomic average turnaround time is less than 24 hours for most projects. Plus, their associate visual designers revise your design instantly and give you unlimited iterations without the need to pay above the monthly rate.
Plus, choosing a design platform is cheaper than working with an agency. Some of them allow you to integrate your project into Slack or Trello, to have a dedicated team of remote experts.
-min.jpg)
Upwork is one of the well-known websites where you can hire remote visual designers and other digital experts. People like Upwork for its good pool of creators and reasonable median rates. Plus, Upwork features good project management tools and upgrades to make your workflow more comfortable.
However, since Upwork is a freelancer marketplace, everyone can join it. This makes you more likely to stumble upon an entry-level designer, who will either spend a lot of time working on concepts or present you with low-quality final files.
.svg){kind=small}
.svg){kind=small}
-min.jpg)
99Designs is a portfolio website for graphic, logo, web, and other visual designers. One of its features is the contest mode, where you can post a brief, get a selection of designs from candidates, and pick the one that speaks to you.
The drawback of the platform is that some services, such as logo design, are only available in the contest mode. So if you need a full branding kit, you have to pay for a logo contest first. Then, work with a visual designer on the branding kit via paid subscription, which adds to the spendings.
-min.jpg)
Freelancer is another marketplace similar to Upwork, except the cheaper rates here. Posting a job and browsing through candidates’ portfolios is free here. Plus, you can choose the desired form of collaboration: hourly pay or payment per project.
The possible issues with this website are similar to any other marketplace. There’s no protection from scammers and low-skilled designers, and the customer service is slow to reach when it comes to disputes.
-min.jpg)
Dribbble is a portfolio website and design community. Here, you can reach out to a visual designer directly and ask them to work for you or post a job listing and receive inquiries.
However, reaching out directly to an expert is a bit of a lottery. Sometimes a designer responds instantly and agrees to take a gig. Other times you wait for a week for them to reject your offer.
Plus, designer skills aren’t displayed, so you can pick a candidate with great designs only to find out that they’re a junior and will work on them for a couple of months.
-min.jpg)
At Fiverr, you can find a remote visual designer and purchase a project for them. Here, freelancers set their own prices per project and have 2-3 different packages based on the services you want to get.
Also, the website features advanced search settings that allow you to find a candidate with the most relevant skills.
However, Fiverr has some weak points. Since designers set their rates, you never really know if your request will be adequately priced. So you must do a lot of research before even looking for a candidate.
As you can see, visual designers are a powerful tool for your business. They use the power of looks like a magic wand that turns an inconspicuous company into a celebrity of the industry.
We’ve looked into the benefits of having such a professional working for you as well as where and how to spot one. Now the choice is yours: which path will you choose to get to an expert visual designer? You may try a freelance platform to get a designer for a quick and easy project.
For more complex ones, you might choose a design subscription platform like Awesomic to get access to mid- and senior-level designers. A monthly subscription is a good solution if you’re in need of more than just a logo but want to save money on hiring a full-time employee.
So have you chosen your direction?
.svg)
.svg)
.svg)
.svg)
.svg)
A visual designer works with websites, apps, or other digital products to improve their visual elements. In particular, visual designers deal with layouts, color palettes, typography, photography, and illustration.
A visual designer collaborates with UX designers while working on different aspects of a website or app. UX designers take care of making a product easy to use through research on user behavior and their interactions with the product.
At the same time, visual designers combine the results of a UX designer’s work and improve it with visuals that appeal to the audience. Moreover, a good UX can be assessed with AB testing, while visuals are measured through preference tests and surveys.
On the other hand, the graphic designer term includes any type of designer working digitally. It includes visual, UX, website, UI, product, and creative designers. However, the design community normally refers to graphic designers as to those who work with visuals for print. For instance, business cards, posters, invitations, and brochures.
According to Awesomic’s research of average visual designer salary on Payscale, as of December 2021, the hourly rate is the following:
Depending on the platform requirements and your budget, you can choose either of the three places to hire a visual designer. Upwork visual designers charge hourly and the talent pool includes hundreds of juniors, mid-levels, and seniors. However, it means you need to spend additional time sorting those candidates by their qualifications and pricing.
Another platform is 99designs where you can hire visual designers per one project like logo and brand identity pack. You can run a contest and get several designers to reach out with their concepts. While this way of employment is a quick fix for minor projects, more complex ones require collaboration for a longer period.
Finally, flat-rate design subscription platforms like Awesomic offer pre-selected experienced designers that work with a holistic approach. You can get a package with a logo, brand identity, UX/UI, webpage, or a mobile app design. Or you can sign for a package that includes two designers that double the speed of the outcomes.
The duties of a visual designer are specific for each business that hires them. However, usually, a visual designer can provide you with such services:
