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THE LURE OF DIY AND WHY EMPLOYING A DESIGNER IS YOUR BEST IDEA

In a rather interesting turn of events, people nowadays would rather do everything themselves. A sense of individualism, autonomy and just trying to find the cheapest option, has led people away from employing professionals, opting to try and figure it out themselves. Where once you would employ a highly-trained, highly-experienced designer to create a website, logo, or branding package for you, now people tend to want to do it themselves, no matter how good it actually looks in the end.

Attempting this is much like trying to traverse the Amazon rainforest without a guide. It might be fun for a while, with a sense of pride in how far you’ve managed to go. Who actually needs a guide anyway, right? But, as the paths get longer, and the night begins to descend, and the rain starts to fall, you might start to wonder whether a guide might have actually been a good idea. They would know what to do, where to find shelter, how to avoid the deadly critters, and what berries are OK to eat. Instead, you’re stranded in the heart of the rainforest, trying to remember why you did this in the first place, and what you can do to get out.

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The world of design is not much different. Using website design platforms like Squarespace or Wix sounds amazing, but it can oftentimes be your first step into the rainforest. You start off well, designing a website, using their preset templates and tools. You have a website that seems to do the job. But then, the paths get longer, night begins to fall and the animals start to make weird noises; you’re not ranking high on search engines, your design does not automatically respond and adjust to the differences in devices, and your website starts to blend in. It seems as if everyone else in the market has access to all the same templates as you do… because they do!

This is the issue with using platform-created websites. With everyone using platforms, the market is increasingly saturated, with bespoke and unique websites becoming increasingly rare. It is a professionally designed website that will help you stand out. DIY sites are often not well optimised for SEO, performance or user experience. A free site’s data can potentially be withdrawn at any time, and malware and viruses are particularly potent on DIY websites that haven’t been optimised for security. Now you’re in the heart of the rainforest without a guide. All these issues can be avoided by employing a professional designer to create a bespoke, unique and effective website that fits with all your needs.

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This extends to your entire brand. From logos to print, from UI design to social media, your brand needs to be eye-catching, unique, and optimised for all mediums and functionalities. The only way to achieve this is to employ someone with enough experience and expertise to actually make it happen. The importance of a good-looking and effective logo cannot be overstated. To try and traverse the treacherous terrain of logo design with no training or prior experience is a task best left to the imagination. Logos are the face of your brand; they are your recognisable icon; your main representative. To get this wrong is to undermine and undercut all the quality and expertise your business might actually have. So, employing a professional who knows exactly what they’re doing, and has done it for years, is definitely your wisest course of action.

Another factor to consider is the necessity of understanding all the complexities, lingo and rules of design. It’s easy to get lost in the vast array of abbreviations, number patterns, codes and seemingly straightforward terms that mean very different things in different contexts. It’s like a whole new language, and employing someone who is already fluent, frees you up to use all the headspace, effort and energy to expand your business and do what you’re best at.

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Here at Stonefern, we can be the guide that leads you out of the rainforest. We are vastly experienced in all areas of design, and have years of expertise behind us. We can create everything you need to have a bespoke, unique, eye-catching brand, without the stress, or, if we’re honest, the lower quality output. Everything we design is made to the highest standards, fully optimised for all mediums, search engines and devices. Leave it to us to show you around this world of design, and create content that reaches all your needs.