I love Graphic Design ... But where do I fit in?

As with all art, there are so many different areas and avenues one can venture down. With graphic design the ability to combine several skills and interests is available, this can include blending art forms like painting, typography, illustration, digital manipulation, and there’s no reason why a graphic designer couldn’t incorporate their pottery skills; the possibilities are endless! With opportunities like this many creatives make their way down different paths career wise.

Social Media and Content Designer

With social media connecting more and more people and businesses, it's imperative that companies can stand out amongst the crowd, which is where a social media and content designer comes in (hi!). This role can cover branding, illustration, logo and creative ideation. To ensure one is getting the best out of their social media, one needs to have crisp clean images/infographs, a constant thread of branding and consistent new content.

Packaging Designer

Packaging design can be an incredibly interesting subject, especially when (or if) the client is flexible with creative ideas! There are many successful campaigns formed by strictl focusing on packaging design, which in turn ties Packaging, Branding and Marketing all together! (See, it all overlaps really, designers we just need to be super flexible so get stretching!) This career path will get designers focusing on colour theory and palette planning, pattern making, 3D templating and (of course) branding.

Brand Identity Designer

A lot more goes into Brand Identity Design than just designing a pretty logo (trust me!). This area of design usually holds a huge responsibility because the client is relying on your design skills, time management and branding knowledge to shift their business from bland to beautiful. The brand identity for a company or business will have to last a long time by being strong, trustworthy and successful designs, therefore impressing your client with this is key. Working with branding and identity means the designer will be working on things such as logo designs, colour palettes, typography, brand strategy and guidelines.

Graphic Illustrator

In a world full of copy and paste options, custom illustration is on the rise. Brands and businesses want to stand out and create a brand more targeted to their messages. Being a Graphic Illustrator is a great way to incorporate artistic illustration skills and strong knowledge of design. A Graphic Illustrator can expect to work on a range of imagery including, publications, games, retail, web and branding!

Web and User Interface Designer

Website and UI/UX design is on the rise (as are the number of apps, games, websites…) so this is a great area of design to get into if you're a techy and enjoy assisting people’s journeys creatively. The first thing someone might think is that to go into this field of design one would have to be a master of coding and website development, while this isn’t strictly true, it is necessary to have an understanding about the capabilities, limitations and what’s realistically possible. In this area a designer will be working with this such as business/marketing websites, smart website builders, app interfaces, gaming designs.

Data Visualisation and Infographic Designer

As with all Graphic Designers a strong understanding of how to showcase information is key, but the best people for ensuring data is represented solidly are Data Visualisation and Infographic Designers. They work with a range of images, typography, layout – you name it they cover it – but they specialise in ensuring this information is easy to digest and visually work beautifully. In this area a designer will be typically working with presentations, infographics, and information booklets.

Print and Publication Design

Even though the online presence is constantly rising and gaining in popularity, the print industry isn’t dead, there are still roles to be snapped up! A designer in this field may work with books, merchandise, posters, brochures, magazines, albums, newspapers – if you can print it, you’ll probably be designing it. This field is great for a craft creative who loves to get their hands dirtier than the germs on your keyboard (ew sorry). An understanding of the print process, colour theory and file types is essential.

Marketing and Advertising Designer

To be a successful Marketing and Advertising designer is to be skilled and talented in both print and digital, this can take a long time to accomplish, however having lots of experience in both fields is never a bad thing. The end goal for this area of design is to ensure your clients product/company is being marketed correctly and effectively; to reach this goal the designer needs to have a great understanding of behavioural psychology in relation to purchasing behaviour. Working within the field of marketing and advertising means the designer will be working on things such as social media graphics, podcast or music title art, email designs, posters, banners, pitches and presentations.

Lettering and Type Designer

From free-hand to ready-made, typography is an extremely integral speciality in Graphic Design. Typography design is truly about focusing on the design and shapes of the specific letters, the way they’re spaced and how to handle the content being given to you. This can be a really fun area of design to get your teeth sunk into! Typography designers will regularly work on publications, murals, signs, logos and many more!

While all the areas in Graphic Design slightly overlap, one can see there are areas of specialism. All of the areas we have covered can be both available as a full-time employee working with either a company, business or agency; or opting to become a freelance designers allows the freedom to flitter between areas, companies and products!

#graphicdesign #careerpathway #designer #designcareers #creativechar