With a bevy of stock photos sites and ‘easy-to-use’ graphic design programs at our disposal, creating great looking marketing materials in a variety of sizes and shapes should be a snap, right?

So how come your latest landing page looks like a PowerPoint slide from the ‘90s? Although you can easily gain access to online graphic design sites and graphic design programs like Photoshop or InDesign, it doesn’t necessarily mean it’ll be easy to create the high quality look you want for your brand across multiple platforms, throughout different mediums and custom tailored to different audiences.

While every profession has its self-educated success story, most of us relied on some type of formal training or at least a trusted mentor to master the piece of the marketing puzzle that we’re responsible for. The same holds true with graphic design.

Remember that evaluation is an important part of marketing. It not only helps your company eliminate ineffective strategies, but it also develops an overall plan that helps build your business. So, peel back the layers of that onion and see what you find.

Graphic designers use their skills to help relate elements like color, shape, images and typography into a cohesive design like a logo, social media graphic and webpage. They bring visual concepts to life by using graphic design software, but it’s more than that. Imagination and creative thinking are key components of this process.

Got a Wrench? Great, Go Reroute the Pipes!

See where this is going? If you put it in this perspective, I’m sure most of us know how to tighten fittings or change out faucets, but what if you had to stop a major leak in your home or reroute some piping in a bathroom remodel? A wrench is only one tool a plumber uses, but another big one is skill. Think about this in relation to the image you present for your company.

Let’s look at cell phones and digital cameras as tools to help generate creative visuals. There are lots of instances where they can be easily, and effectively employed in your marketing toolkit. Shooting videos from the floor of a trade show. Capturing moments with customers or colleagues to highlight your brand culture in social posts. And even, with careful lighting and the right set up, taking pictures that can be incorporated into certain areas of your website, such as the blog or events pages. Camera technology has grown leaps and bounds in the last decade alone, and there’s no reason why you shouldn’t use it to your advantage…to a degree.

Certain situations require a little more finesse than what is available in a phone’s camera settings. Would you trust your phone to capture something like your wedding images, for example? To put your product or application in the best framework, you need photos that incorporate specific lighting, placement and resolution, not to mention a creative eye to capture an engaging picture and catch the right angle.

Point-Click-Shoot!

By investing in well thought out images, you can be sure that you’ll come away with a set of images that cannot only go on your website or social pages, but that you can use in product datasheets, large format tradeshow booth panels, news release announcements and more. Nothing is more frustrating than realizing that the great image you dropped into PowerPoint is only 38kb and there’s no way you’re going to use it in a presentation. All pictures should get the royal treatment of a professional creative eye, so that they pop and grab the attention of your audience.

High quality product photos present your products in a professional manner, showing quality. They help inspire potential customers to want to buy what you are trying to sell. And, no matter what, images should always be high resolution and created in a consistent manner so that they can be used in a variety of mediums like in a social media graphic or a tradeshow wall display. Graphic designers produce these types of photos and images by using design programs to incorporate photography, stock graphics and illustrations into a consistent visual message.

There are times when photos can’t be taken. This could be because a product is very complex and is unable to be photographed, or an abstract concept needs to be conveyed and simply taking a picture won’t do the trick. There are even times when an image needs to be created as an illustration or infographic, meaning that the taking of an actual photo is obsolete. Each of these scenarios, while complex and different, can all be handled by a professional graphic designer. They know how to create, design and manipulate a photo or a concept. This is where their professional training and keen eye becomes invaluable.

5 Ways Graphic Designers Can Improve Your Marketing Materials

Creating a polished, well-rounded image for your company is one of the most overlooked factors in marketing today. With the emphasis on content, analytics and personas, creative design has taken a back seat. But it’s like the drummer in a band – it keeps the beat without you even knowing it’s there, moving things along and setting a common thread for all the other pieces in the band.

Next time you’re reading something, take note of how you assess the visuals before you dive into the copy. The graphics work in tandem with the written copy to build the right context and make you feel you are reading a high-quality piece of work. Plus, it’s about more than just images – knowing the best use of whitespace, font, colors, and more go into a graphic designer’s final design, even if there isn’t a single image on the page.

No matter if your creative team is home-grown and still in the making or you have a set of marketers at your disposal, seasoned graphic designers know how and where to step in to apply your company’s look, feel and imagery better than anyone else. They see the world differently and know how to present your business in the most positive light using cohesive, branded elements to make all your materials instantly identifiable as your brand.

First impressions are everything. Potential customers make up their minds about your brand in just a few seconds based on what they see. So even if you have internal resources to create your company’s visuals, make sure you have access to a trained graphic designer who can help with crucial elements such as:

• A Professional Look

Presenting a consistent, professional, branded look is key to a successful business. A look that is instantly recognizable as your own presents your business as trustworthy and stable. An experienced graphic designer has studied color theory, composition, photography and typography. They have their finger on the pulse of the latest trends and know what will work best in different applications (print vs digital; thumbnail vs life-size). They know how to use these tools to help create an ad, logo or whatever else it is that you may need to represent you and your organization as qualified experts in your field.

• Save Time

You have your expertise and designers have theirs. Sure, you can try designing your own logo or ad, maybe even by using programs like Photoshop. But unless you’re trying to hone this new skill to become your next career, focus on the areas of your business that require your specific expertise and use a resource that lives and breathes visual communications on daily basis.

• Best First Impression

Skilled graphic designers know how to get you noticed in a world where we’re bombarded with promotional materials. They have the creativity and the knowledge to help you stand out in your target markets, making stock photos look unique as well as all your marketing materials easily identifiable as your brand.

• Fresh Perspective

Graphic designers are not as close to your products and services as you are, so they can look at your products with a fresh set of eyes to identify and exploit elements in their creative in ways you may not have thought of. Graphic designers become familiar with your brand to create an image that will attract the target audience you want.

• Do Things Correctly

Using a professional graphic designer is not just for coming up with flashy imagery or well-designed ads. It is also about readability, file types, building easily editable files and sending files to the printer with or without bleed. It is the nuanced things that someone who does not work in the field of graphic design that makes using a professional designer worth the investment. They not only will save you time and money, but they will also save you from frustration.

Knowing the balance between using a seasoned creative mind and DIY graphic design is key. Seasoned graphic designers know how to make your company’s look, feel and imagery shine. Their expertise and training has them looking at things differently, which in turn helps to present your business in the most positive light and make not only your materials, but also your brand instantly identifiable.