Customer Reviews

Graphic Designer's Guide to Clients: How to Make Clients Happy and Do Great Work

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1 star:		(1)

 

 

I purchased the book because it says: "HOW to make clients happy and do great work". Now there is maybe one or two pages in the entire book that will explain how to deal with clients. The rest of the book is just interviews of clients, but there is no real content on how to deal with situations like what to do if a client doesn't pay, or if a client asks for something different every time. These are real problems and a book that says "how to..." should actually provide information on ...well..."how to...". In a way it's inspirational, but once again, the companies as clients mentioned in the book are BIG NAMES...and 99.9% of us Graphic Designers work with the average Joe as customer. No good advice in the book sorry.

The title suggests that this books provides "guidance" and advice on client management for graphic designers. It however, is a very long collection of conversation style stories (told via interview questions) with client and designer (all very big names at that). The books does not contain any real collection of practices, principles, and/or tactical steps one can use. There's also no real organization to the book which definitely makes it "not a guide". It really feels as if the author is just showing off that she knows these big designers/clients well enough to chat and have coffee.

As designers, creating solid, thoughtful solutions to design challenges is only part of the battle. While we spend time in school and on internships learning about design fundamentals, software packages and the printing process, its nearly impossible to gain an understanding of the complex designer/client relationship without the experience of a few successes and missteps.

Ellen Shapiro's The Graphic Designer's Guide to Clients aims to speed that learning process by giving experienced and novice designers alike an insider's look at some of the most successful designer/client collaborations of the past few decades.

Following the maxim that creatives learn best by following in the footsteps of the masters (an approach that is the basis of most fine arts programs), Graphic Designer's Guide shows us how the masters of our generation have perfected the art of successful designer/client collaborations.

Beginning with her own experiences, Ms. Shapiro shares with the reader her own techniques for getting, pleasing and keeping clients. Following this five chapter prelude, the meat of the book begins, with a series of 17 interviews with well-known designers (and clients), including: Milton Glaser, April Greiman, Rick Valicenti and others.

Whether you're looking to land your first client, or want to generate some referral business from your fifth, Graphic Designer's Guide is one book that will surely have some good advice to offer.

It was a little boring but I got the gist of it. forced myself to finish reading it.

Now I know why the clients who like me, like me and why the ones who didn't, didn't. Read this book when starting your own business! Good reading! Good advice!

If you agree that doing great work for great clients is one of those things that you love about being in the design business...then this is a book you should read. I appreciated the keen client insights as well as the wisdom Ellen Shapiro provided on keeping and growing a design business post 9/11. The second part of the book interviews many of the greats in design highlighting their successful client relationships and work processes. It's a terrific behind the scenes review of how the big firms made their way. Some of the problems we may face as business owners in this field have, at one time or another, been faced by others who've gone onto further their own company's success. A good resource for the graphic design professional and business owner!

Ellen Shapiro's The Graphic Designer's Guide to Clients  is as fun to read and inspiring as it is helpful and informative. Why wouldn't it be? Shapiro herself is so passionate about design and the business of design, pointing out early in the book that we become designers because "...we love type and images. We love print media and ink on paper as well as electronic media and moving images. We love to change minds and influence people and add joy and interest to the environment. We want people to be better informed, have an easier time finding their way around, and be visually delighted..." She adds, "It's a life's work that can make a difference." And Shapiro knows that in order to accomplish what we want to achieve as designers-to truly make a difference--we must choose our clients judiciously and then wisely navigate our relationships with them. More than a decade in the making, and comprised of a remarkable assortment of interviews and anecdotes, amazing interests and knowledge her book shows us exactly how to do this. The Graphic Designer's Guide to Clients is thoughtfully provocative and a must read for every designer and student as it opens up a world of possibilities and potentials.  
Hank Richardson, President, Portfolio Center, Atlanta, Georgia

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Hank Richardson is President of Portfolio Center in Atlanta, one of the most renowned schools for the communicating arts in America. A chronic insomniac, he spends the wee hours conjugating the verb "charette," and preparing for his 5 a.m. classes, events famous for their heated debates and hot Krispy Kremes. In addition to being one of the country's most respected design educators, he is an AIGA Fellow and a founding member of AIGA/Atlanta. His students have won more than 4000 design and advertising awards.

I was disappointed in the book. The first part of the book was good. Being new to the business end of graphic design, I was looking for was information on how to deal with clients and start building a client base. It started with good information but then switched to an advertitoral for very big successful companies. I want info on the how to build a relationship with clients, not how the big got bigger.