The new breed of designers (and their practices)

When I first started in the graphic design business I was fresh out of my Junior year of high school. By chance I applied for a position with AlphaGraphics in their lasergraphics department. I was paid minimum wage, while they took in $75 for every hour I worked.

Now, mind you, this was several years ago... even before the advent of America Online. Customers would physically drive to our store, bring hard copies of logos, photos, content, etc. for us to paste up (I actually was trained by a seasoned AlphaGraphics employee who was very skilled in the lost art of paste up). We would advise them that their proof would be available within 24 hours, which would require them to drive back to the store to follow up. We would generally make changes while they waited, but this would depend upon the current customer load in the store at that time. Artwork would be provided to the customer or our printshop in hardcopy "camera ready" artwork.

Boy have things changed.

ProGravix receives orders via our website, email or other electronic method. Very rarely do we receive requests via phone (nor do we follow with changes via phone). Once the order comes in, we begin working on it as soon as our schedule allows. Generally within a few hours an initial proof is developed, and made available through our online proofing system. Changes are requested via email, with those changes being made within an hour, and made available for online proofing again. Once the artwork is approved, artwork files are made available via an easy to use download service. Certainly we can mail you artwork on CD (or DVD) if you prefer, and that service is free. A very small percentage of clients actually need artwork delivered via mail, and is usually indicative of projects where the final artwork files are several hundred megabytes.

We do not offer in-house printing like AlphaGraphics, but then again we are not a printshop. We are a digital design shop. This is a clear distinction that should be made. Everything we do is digital, which in turn allows us to provide artwork to printshops in digital form. Sure we work closely with a few printshops that we prefer, but that doesn't mean you must use them.

Obviously we create things that are intended to be shared with others, and when web design is not involved, sharing means physical media to physically broadcast. Brochures, letterhead, ads, etc. These all need to get printed. If you need helping in getting your print order rolling as well, let us know. We'd be glad to help. And oh, by the way, we don't make a dime in doing so.

This has been today's clarified butter.