Study Task 5 - Who Am I? Who Are They?

Task

Based on the principles that have been introduced so far in the PPP2 module, investigate who you are as a creative in relation to who is out there looking for creative talent.

Write a list of all the possible client groups that use graphic design in the development, production, distribution, promotion and/or communication of their products or services.

Identify one client group that reflects your current ambitions within the graphic design area (music industry, retail, publishing, education etc.) and focus on identifying:- 

What skills / interests you have and how they relate to the needs of your client group?
What skills are needed and what skills do you want to develop?
What are your professional/creative aims and how do they relate to the needs of the client group?

It is essential that you make references to the ʻ4 Psʼ from the PPP2 Presentation. This is an exercise in applying that theory – it is not appropriate to write about the theory itself. Demonstrate your understanding of it by actually using it.

4 P's - Product, Promotion, Price & Placement. 

Client Groups in Design

• Retail
• Publishing / Editorial
• Clothing / Fashion Industry

• Branding & Identity
• Music Industry
• Culture Groups (Film, Tv, Theatre) 

• Way finding (Museums, Galleries, Public Places)
• Web Design
• Sport 
• Food & Drink

• Product & Packaging 
• Exterior & Interior Design (Buildings)
• Political / Government

• Public Services (Health, Education, Transport etc)
• Charitable Foundations
• Advertising Industry 
• Print
• New Medias ( App Design, Game Design, etc)

A client group that relates to me

I feel that I would be in sync with Branding & Identity within the client groups I have selected. I feel that a lot of the choices I'm making with recent briefs are in this direction and starting to find a real passion for this area. I'm also interested in Editorial and Web Design and seeing how I can apply a this to a range of products across a number of different channels, within a brand. This could be print or web based, and work with a number of different medias in different ways. The possibilities of brand and identity are huge.

What skills / interests you have and how they relate to the needs of your client group?

I feel that I have sufficient skills within editorial design in particular and this comes across in a lot of my previous work. I also feel that i'm starting to pick skills up within branding and identity. Creates a whole identity for an organisation that is much more than just a logo. This is combining elements that make up a brand and this can be everything from physical items, stock considerations, logo, web design, colour scheme and placement. My true interests lie in these areas. I have started to pick up basic web design skills and this is something that I would like to continue to push in order for me to add an extra element to my knowledge and open up another pathway in design that I could take.

As far as software skills are concerned, I feel that I am picking up more and more along the way every day. I use the full Adobe Suite including Indesign, Photoshop, Illustrator and Dreamweaver and feel that it's important to gain enough knowledge throughout the full suite and to know which piece of software is the best to use. 

What skills are needed and what skills do you want to develop?

I feel that I need to carry on to develop my skills in the Adobe Suite, in particular Illustrator. When i'm interning at places, I generally feel quite comfortable in being able to achieve the set tasks to a high standard which is really encouraging, but there are still certain elements within software that I need to learn throughout the next few years in order to be able to keep up to the industry standard of what is expected. 

I also wish to develop my skills within web design. I feel that by doing this, I can broaden my range of areas I can work in as a career option and in turn broaden my client data base. I really like the idea of becoming a web designer. It's something that I am passionate about, and love the concept of creating something that can work in print and moving it into an interactive environment, which also leads onto design for new medias. App design and other interactive experiences. 

What are your professional/creative aims and how do they relate to the needs of the client group?

My aims as a professional is to gain experience from working in a design agency for a few years. Eventually, I would like to create be part of my own smaller design studio which specialises in contemporary branding and communications. The Life's a Pitch brief allows for this to be more realistic that just a dream, and gives me useful information that is important to know when hoping to start your own business. 

I think by co-founding a design agency that deal with branding this will easily fit into a certain target audience within the market. I want to be corporate dealing with both big and small businesses as this is something that will never die out. There will always be businesses in need of branding. I would like to stand out from the crowd by creating branding that does what it says on the tin and create an environment that businesses will feel comfortable in, and one which gives the facts straight up, rather than pussyfooting around things.

I feel that a good way to win clients over is through price and undercutting competitors in order to get jobs on a large scale.

Promotion an placement is something else that would have to be considered. My target audience would hopefully be international businesses, so thinking about the idea of promoting in different countries and how product placement can help you get jobs.

A massive element to this in networking. I think the internet is the most important thing in this 21st century world and to use it professionally can get you so much work. Being part of professional networks and emailing clients appropriately to help get important jobs.