We’ve all been there. Found a beautiful image that inspires us, and with the internet it is even easier to find just the right image for our business…
But when is it okay to use such an image? Sometimes it easy to tell as the owner clearly watermarks the image with a copyright warning or sets out clear conditions of use. However, even if there is no such warning, there may be a number of risks in using someone else’s image. 1. Copyright Copyright will automatically exist in any original artistic work. The word “original” means that the artistic work in question is the result of the person’s own independent labour, skill and judgement - any parts of the work that are copied from somewhere else will not be protected by copyright. The term “artistic work” includes sketches, photographs and drawings. Although it is always wise for the owner of a copyright work to include a copyright warning (for example “© Rachel Triplow 2017”), copyright will exist even without such a warning. In light of the Berne Convention, the owner of copyright will have rights in most countries. For example, an Australian can claim rights under the New Zealand Copyright Act if their copyright work is infringed here. It is also important to note that changing something by x% will not avoid copyright infringement - it’s not how much you change, it’s whether you have copied a substantial part of the core of someone else’s work. Size definitely doesn't matter with copyright. 2. Trade Marks Another possibility is that the owner of the image has trade mark rights. Even if a work is not “original” and therefore is not protected by copyright, it may be possible for the owner to claim that the image has become distinctive of their goods or services, or that they simply have a trade mark registration. As with copyright, it is wise for the owner of a trade mark to include a warning (for example the ® symbol if the mark is registered and/or the ™ symbol which can be used at any time), but trade mark rights may exist even without such a warning. Unlike copyright, trade mark rights are territorial and will depend on a trade mark registration in the relevant country and/or sufficient reputation that consumers would be confused if someone else started using the same or similar mark. SO, WHAT DO YOU DO? Check out the Creative Commons search engine at https://search.creativecommons.org/, which lists all the places where you can find images that are available to use commercially. Or if there is one image you really really want, approach the owner and ask for their consent before you start using it. Definitely do NOT go to your graphic designer and ask them to tweak someone else’s image for you, as this they could not would not should not do…. Written by Rachel Triplow | www.arcip.co.nz
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Like them or not, words are an essential part of every business website. After all, they are as equally important as your visual brand. Unfortunately, many business owners value how their brand looks visually as being more of a priority and their words end up taking a back seat. So today, we’re going to look at how you can use words to compliment your visual brand and create an awesome branding strategy. Words and Graphics – We Go Together Words. More words. Unexciting and as boring as they may seem, the words your business uses will either make or break you. Choosing the right words to match your visual brand is important to demonstrate consistency and help build a rapport with your target audience. There is no denying it. Our world makes instant decisions about your business based on how it looks. Often this is in the form of instant reactions to your logo, colour choices, font and business name. That’s why it’s important to hire a graphic designer like Helen to create you a top notch visual brand right from the start. But what many fail to remember, is that after making a decision about the way your business looks visually, customers and clients look next to your words to see if they want to do business with you. How to Brand with Words Everyone instantly recognises the visual brands of businesses such as McDonalds and Pak n Save because of their logos and colours. But even these businesses know that in our digital world, their visual brand is not enough to hook in and engage their customers. That’s why they use a combination of words and graphics to create a thorough branding strategy. You can brand your business with words by:
If you haven’t already, now is a good time to sit down and plan the type of written content you want your brand to be known for. If it mirrors your visual identity, cool. If not, chat with Helen about how she can help. Written by Jackie Procter | www.jackieprocter.co.nz I’m all into making things easy. As a business owner, you’re very busy. You haven’t got time to spend hours perfecting your website banner. Nor can you afford to take time away from working on your business. I totally understand that. After all, I’m a business owner too. As a graphic designer, it’s my job to create graphics for your business. But I’m not here to make extra work for you. It’s the opposite in fact because my job is all about giving you back your most precious commodity; your time. I’ll take care of all your graphic design needs, big or small. Here’s how it works … Benefits of Using a Professional Graphic Designer You’ve decided you need some graphic designs created. It may be a logo, a Facebook cover page image, social media templates or a website header. You may know exactly what you want, or are not quite sure yet. You could go and spend five hours trying to create it using free software online. But chances are you are not going to be 100% happy with it. Nor will it look highly professional. Here’s what you should do instead Contact me. Send me any graphics you already have, such as your logo or product images. I then create exactly what you want to your specific size requirements. It’s delivered to you via email in a file which is all ready for you to upload to wherever you want it to go. Let’s nail down the exact benefits of having me do your graphic design work:
Another client I’ve helped is Zoe from Forget Me Not Photography. Zoe needed a complete overhaul with her branding. We started with creating a new logo and from there we moved onto business cards and flyers. Here is an example of her old branding verses the new branding and logo she now uses. “Helen was right there with my ideas. Everything I suggested Helen discussed with me and made sure that I was comfortable with. I can't recommend One Bite enough, you won't be dissatisfied if you contact Helen. Thank you for everything, I can't tell you how pleased I am” - Zoe
I’d love to help you raise the profile of your business too, so send me an email and let’s get started! So you run your own business, you want all your clients, new and old, to instantly know what is yours out there in the market place…. but how do you transfer styles from your business to accentuate your brand presence? What you need is a Brand Style Guide. You may be wondering some ‘what’ and ‘why’s’ about Brand Style Guides, let me see if I can put your mind at ease by providing you with some information about it.
The Final Step in Creating Your Brand Style Guide
First up, do some research and find examples of brands you like. What does their styling tell you about their brand? What is it that you like about it? Next think about your brand. What colours and images does your brand suit? What do you want your brand to make your customer think about when they see it? Once you have answered these questions, the next step is to contact a professional graphic designer. They will take your information, ask a few questions of their own and begin the creative process! If you are looking for a branding solution, get in touch with Helen today! It’s a new year and you want your business to start off with a bang! You’ve created a business plan, identified which products and services you’re going to sell this year, organised your blogs, worked out your social media posts and are ready for a fresh new start, right? Wrong. You’ve forgotten to revisit one of the most important aspects of your business, which is your brand. Your Brand Needs Professional Graphic Design Work Your brand is your face to the world. It is what people use to decide whether to purchase your products or services. It is a way of creating customer loyalty and growing the instant recognition of your brand. As your brand contains a lot of visual information, it is important that it looks fantastic. That means creating a DIY logo, Facebook cover, social media template or website banner is not a good decision. Unless you have a background in graphic design, you are unlikely to understand about colour matching, pixel sizes, fonts and using images correctly. Sure, if you create your graphics yourself you will initially save money, but have you considered the big picture? A poorly designed brand or business image results in fewer customers, which means less income in the long run. 4 Reasons Why Businesses Should Prioritise & Outsource Graphic Design
Outsourcing your design work to a graphic designer is a smart move. Not only can they create from scratch a unique and attractive brand image, but they are also experienced at refreshing old ones too. Here are my top four reasons why you should hire a graphic designer like me:
Now is the time to act and create your brand image or revitalise your existing one. Look through my design portfolio to see some of the work I have done to create amazing looking brand images. Now send me an email and let’s arrange a time to chat about how I can help improve your business image this year! Hey Business Owner! Do You Outsource?
It’s no secret that I am a graphic designer and that clients hire me to create graphic design work for them. But right now I am not trying to convince you to hire me. Instead I am asking you to think about the flow on effect of outsourcing your work to another business. Say you hired a virtual assistant to send out your emails. You pay them some money for their time and they in turn now have some more income. Do they take it down to the local shops, pay their kids tuition fees or put it on their mortgage? Maybe they use it to hire a marketing professional to help them get new clients to earn more money? Then the marketer feels they need to rebrand and focus on a niche market, so they use the money they got from the VA towards hiring a graphic designer. The Business Circle Of Outsourcing Okay, so I’ve made that term up, but I feel it could be a real one. By outsourcing your job to another business owner whose talents are more suited to it than yours, you are supporting other business, like they did yours. Just think about what you have done with income from your business? How did you use it? Benefits Of Outsourcing Business Services I mostly work with small to medium sized business and being honest, I know that money can be pretty tight sometimes. In fact, it can often lead to owners thinking that they should do everything themselves to save money, with the old Kiwi saying “she’ll be right” featuring strongly in their thinking. But in reality, the time you spend working on something which is not your strong point or even doing something you have no idea about at all takes time away from your business. Yes, it is your time, but it is time you could have spent growing your business. It is time you could have spent seeking new clients. It is time you could have promoted your products. It is time you could have earnt more money than you would have paid to outsource the job in the first place. Time is the business owner’s most precious commodity and that is something that both I and other service providers can give you back. One of my clients, Danni Winmill from Winmill Creative, recently took the plunge and hired me. I asked her why she did and if you want to know what she said, head over and read her interview on The Impact Of Professional Graphic Design. And you know the drill…. If you want some graphic design help, just get in touch and we’ll get things started! |
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