What skills are needed for Graphic Design?
If you want to give yourself a competitive edge in the industry, a combination of soft and digital tech skills is a must. While there’s a broad range of soft and tech skills, we’ve rounded up the top three in both areas to give you some guidance on a starting point.
Top three soft skills for Graphic Designers
Communication
All design jobs require communication – this could be direct to the client, via members of an agency or with team mates you may be working with (for example, content writers or UX/UI designers). Effective communication is important so you know what is expected of your design work and that you are also able to clearly share any detail, whether that be in person, in an online meeting or via email.
Active listening
This is a biggie, particularly if you’re taking the creative brief. It is vital that you are truly hearing what the client is needing and able to distil their project requirements clearly. Active listening is also important when it comes to design feedback.
Time management
The reality of many Graphic Design roles, in-house or freelance, is that you’ll be juggling multiple projects at once. Your time management skills need to be up to scratch so that you can ensure you’re delivering to deadlines. Goal posts will inevitably change on some projects and there may be shifts in the direction of concepts. It’s vital that you’re able to clearly communicate if any requested changes are going to impact on your ability to deliver to the deadline, so that expectations are always kept realistic.
As with all skills, the more you practice, the better you’ll get.
Top three tech skills for graphic designers
Adobe Creative Cloud software
Having a firm grip on the latest industry software is a must, particularly if you’re just starting out. Plus, it’s wise to keep up with the latest changes and additions to software once you’re in the game. Industry standards are Photoshop, Illustrator and InDesign, but there are always new apps being released.
Image manipulation
Knowing how to confidently alter images is a critical skill for every Graphic Designer, but not just static photographs. Up your game by learning how to manipulate motion graphics and you’ll be supercharging your toolkit.
Basic coding
Don’t break out in a sweat, we’re not suggesting that you need to get a degree in computer programming. However, if you’re across some basic coding speak and application, it could really help you out when working on web and application design jobs. Learning the fundamentals is totally do-able and will give you a competitive edge.