Tales of a Designer

Personal Project: Press Record

A few years ago, I had some thoughts on personal projects, but since then I hadn’t really started anything, until now. Back in early January, I downloaded the djay software to play around with it, recorded a mix or two live, and loved it. So it only seemed right that I do more of that, and make a project out of it. I designed a little teaser, not knowing exactly what I wanted to do, but it was motivation for me get moving on the project.

In comes Press Record. So I don’t have to repeat myself, you can read more of the back story/concept on the welcome post on the site. But here’s the concept in a nutshell…

That brings me to the theme of this site. Just pressing record, and start mixing. All of the mixes here will be just that. via

The goal of the site is to post recorded mixes made on the fly. No more, no less. So I wanted the design to focus on that, which I feel I accomplished. There are a bunch of features that I thought about adding, but removed most of them because they just didn’t matter right now.

Give people just what matters. Give them what they need when they need it and get rid of what they don’t. via

The typeface used for the masthead/logo was Sugar Pie. I came across it a little over a year ago and fell in love with it. But I never had chance to use it because it didn’t really fit any of the client projects I had. For icons, I used a few from the Corner Stone set from Iconlicious.

I dipped my toes into CSS3 using some text shadow for the headers and text, and I’m very pleased with the outcome. I considered building the whole site in HTML5, but since browser support is so limited, I changed my mind. But the site is built in Wordpress. I also decided that I’m not supporting IE6. This isn’t a client project, therefore, I just don’t care about those using IE6. Sounds harsh, but I just don’t want to waste time on those who continue using the worst browser on the face of the planet.

Future Plans

There’s a bunch of stuff that I want to add to the site in the future, depending on how the site is used, including playlists, a search, requests, and easier ways to share. I’d also like to work with other dj’s to contribute to the site, which could help expand the genre’s of music being played. I’d also like to polish the record button icon in the masthead. I’m not great at designing icons/logos so I want to either keep working on it, or pay someone to redesign it.

So there you have it. Head on over to Press Record and check out the first mix. I hope you like it. I’m very excited to start adding to the site.

I’m also open minded to design suggestions and such, so feel free to comment away about your thoughts.

Designers Should Understand Business

When approaching new projects, and being a creative type, it can be very tempting to want to jump right into Photoshop and get out all of the ideas that come to mind from discovery meetings. And when you think of designers, being business savvy doesn’t exactly come to mind. I’ve already discussed the importance of knowing how to sell your services, but it’s also very important, if not essential, for designers, especially freelancers, to be business minded.

Say, for example, I wanted to consult with an architect on remodeling myself a new kitchen. You don’t just sign the paper work and have them start building a kitchen. They would ask questions like how you use the kitchen, what you’re looking to do in the kitchen, if you entertain in the kitchen, etc. They need to know how you’re going to use this space before they can start crafting it.

Websites work the same way. For you to effectively design the best experience for a website, you need to understand how your clients’ business works and what they’re looking to do. Understand all of the hows and whys of the business that you’re working with. Understand the challenges the business has and will face, their business objectives/goals, and so on. Here are a few, of many, questions that we, at Tridea, normally ask during the client discovery meetings:

• Who is your target audience?
• What do you feel is your number one business problem?
• How does the company differentiate itself from competitors?
• What are your short-term marketing goals (in the next 1-2 years)? And how will the website help reach those goals?

Remember, as designers, you’re a problem solver. More likely than not, if you’re being approached by another business for work, they need your help (and creative knowledge) in solving business problems. And asking the right business questions will help get you to better creative problem solving. I would recommend asking these types of questions in a questionnaire, so that you can come back to the answers during your creative jam sessions. They can turn into a good checklist when going over a design to make sure that you’ve addressed the business problems.

Outside of working in Photoshop, what other skills do you find necessary for designers to have?

Business Card Design Inspiration

I love creative business cards. The past few years of traveling to SXSW, collecting business cards has been one thing that I looked forward to. I’m surprised that there haven’t been more websites dedicated to showcasing great business cards…. mostly just blog posts.

In comes Unique Business Cards. I spent a good deal of time going through the collection, and there is no shortage of creative inspiration to draw from. So, I wanted to share the resource I found, and hope that it will be useful and/or inspiring to others.

Here are a few of my favorites:

Graphic Design Ninja

Intoto

Queen of Diamonds Makeup Artist

Box Office

VDJ Gaurav

There’s much more to see, but don’t take my word for it. Go look for yourself. What other places do you find business card design inspiration?