Recently I visited the Small Business Forum and posted a new web page design I'm working on for my web site, FreeForAllDesigns.com. I was pleased to get a unanimous chorus of approvals. Considering that some of the members there are very tough critics, these hurrahs came as a very encouraging development. What is a “professional” design, and how can you make sure your own web page, logo, brochure, business card or other graphic design has a professional look?

Perhaps the most essential ingredient in design professionalism is what you might call the “ooh” factor. Graphic design is more than just art because it serves a practical purpose, but like other kinds of art it usually must please the eye of the beholder or at least not displease the eye of the beholder. When people in your target market encounter your design they should have the kind of reaction you want them to have. When they look at that logo or advertisement, they should be pleased with it and take notice of the care you used to create it. It should tell them that you know what you're doing and are careful to do things the right way. This message is important because you want people to trust your ability to deliver the product you offer the way you promise to deliver. Consider, for example, the UPS ad that tells us they “run the tightest ship in the shipping business.” The tagline tells us that we can rely on UPS to literally deliver the goods to us and we need not worry about that delivery. Make sure your own ads and other graphics lend credibility to your business.

So much for the basic principle of professionalism. What of the details? How do you come up with a professional design? We normally think of a professional as a person who can do something most people cannot do and who does it well enough that he or she should be paid for it. A professional also knows her clients and their needs. A dentist, for instance, understands the most common reasons people seek the help of a dentist. She knows what causes tooth decay and how to prevent it. She has the ability to treat tooth decay which is an ability most people don't have. Graphic designs must also serve their purpose. To be professional, they should go beyond what most people can do when designing. These designs must be appropriate for their intended audience and target market. Research is very important to know what your audience may or may not want in a design. A professional design reflects the results of this research and impresses people with its sophistication.

A design's sophistication is based in part on the technology used to create it. The Internet like most things is evolving quickly. When a designer creates a web page, for example, he should give that page a modern look. A page that may have looked fine in 1997 might look amateurish in 2007. These days Cascading Style Sheets (CSS) and Javascript are almost indispensable in web design, and as other technologies arrive they too may become important in adding a professional polish to web pages. Amateurs can get by with older techniques, but professionals need to stay on the cutting edge.

It is important to understand that although newer techniques are often required for professionalism in design, many tried and true design principles are timeless and should always be used in design. A professional graphic should align its different elements properly. Different elements should look very different providing contrast. Repetition adds cohesiveness and helps to unify the different parts of a design. Like elements should be placed closely together. Words should never be unintentionally misspelled. Color should be used with care especially when a graphic is to be used internationally. You may not wish to package medicine in a purple box in Latin America because purple there indicates death!

All such principles can help your logo, business card, or flyer to have a professional look. Your clients will look to your business or organization to serve them well. Professionalism in design is the first step in letting them know that yes, you can indeed serve them well.

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