Читать книгу Start & Run a Graphic Design Business - Michael Huggins - Страница 78

If your UMM is the backbone of your corporate identity, your professional standards are the muscle that gives it power and strength. Everything you do in your business is a reflection of your professional standards including how you answer the phone and how you deal with clients.

Your design process indicates your level of professionalism and commitment to your business, but it’s your professional standards that bring your corporate identity to life. This is the experience portion of your corporate identity. You can promote your company as being the best in client service but if you can’t deliver on it consistently, it isn’t a part of your identity. No amount of publicity or marketing will change the mind of your clients from thinking otherwise.

It’s important to consider your professional standards very carefully. Many challenges will enter into your business that all threaten to undo the level of professionalism you establish in your business. It’s quite easy as a one- or two-person design firm to start cutting corners when the pressure is on. That’s why it’s important to write down your professional standards for yourself just as you would if you were designing a logo for your company. Your standards become the benchmark that you’ll refer to periodically to readjust your patterns and habits to get them back up to par. You should establish professional standards for your firm in three distinct areas: business standards, creative standards, and relational standards.