When an artist paints a picture, he expresses thoughts and feelings through it, without imposing them on the audience. Therefore, everyone sees in the picture what they want to see. Communication design works differently. The designer must convey to the consumer what was intended by the marketer or brand manager. Communication design conveys information about a product or service in a way that evokes a specific emotional response in the audience.
For example, in the interface of the relaxation app Endel, designers abandoned everything that could distract or irritate users.
For example, in the interface of the relaxation app Endel, designers abandoned everything that could distract or irritate users.
Communication and graphic design are often confused. These directions are similar, but there is a difference. A graphic designer creates an image: works with color, shape, typography, illustration, develops branding materials, logos or corporate style.
Communication design answers the questions: “How is information transmitted? What reaction should it cause? The main task of a communication designer is not only to convey information to the user, but also to evoke the desired response using banners, signs, interfaces or book covers.
Communication design answers the questions: “How is information transmitted? What reaction should it cause? The main task of a communication designer is not only to convey information to the user, but also to evoke the desired response using banners, signs, interfaces or book covers.
Types of Communication Design
Communication design helps businesses communicate with customers. Here are the areas where visual communication design is essential:
● Branding
Every company strives to stand out from its competitors, win the attention of its target audience and turn them into clients. To achieve this, they begin to work on branding. The job of a communications designer is to create a connection between the brand and users through colors, typography, logo, and other design elements. A specialist understands how to use them to convey the desired mood or information. For example, the goal of the I'm Siberian project is to make Siberia and Siberians known throughout the world.
Communication design helps businesses communicate with customers. Here are the areas where visual communication design is essential:
● Branding
Every company strives to stand out from its competitors, win the attention of its target audience and turn them into clients. To achieve this, they begin to work on branding. The job of a communications designer is to create a connection between the brand and users through colors, typography, logo, and other design elements. A specialist understands how to use them to convey the desired mood or information. For example, the goal of the I'm Siberian project is to make Siberia and Siberians known throughout the world.
●Advertising
Just like branding, advertising helps a business stand out. Because users have developed “banner blindness”—the deliberate or unconscious disregard of advertisements—visual communication designers must create campaigns that capture attention and convey meaning.
Just like branding, advertising helps a business stand out. Because users have developed “banner blindness”—the deliberate or unconscious disregard of advertisements—visual communication designers must create campaigns that capture attention and convey meaning.
● UI and web design
This is work on visual communication in the interface of a website or mobile application. To make it convenient for the user to order goods, manage finances or communicate with technical support, you need to create an interface that will help you complete the necessary action. In her work, a communication designer takes into account the user experience, target audience, and technical features of different devices.
This is work on visual communication in the interface of a website or mobile application. To make it convenient for the user to order goods, manage finances or communicate with technical support, you need to create an interface that will help you complete the necessary action. In her work, a communication designer takes into account the user experience, target audience, and technical features of different devices.
Communication Design Examples
The goal of the furniture brand No Name, Name is “to make this world more primitive.” To convey this idea to customers, the designer designed the site in a minimalist style and used laconic photos and a simple font.
The goal of the furniture brand No Name, Name is “to make this world more primitive.” To convey this idea to customers, the designer designed the site in a minimalist style and used laconic photos and a simple font.
Knowledge and skills required by a communication designer
To create a design that will attract people and sell an idea, a specialist needs to have professional knowledge and flexible skills:
● Work with graphic editors Figma, Adobe Illustrator, Adobe Photoshop, Adobe After Effects to create and edit images, videos, animations.
● Master color and composition to understand how to use color in different situations and with different target audiences, combine design elements so that they convey the necessary information to users. For example, the design of the Rare Species festival website uses only two colors: red and white. This is how a communication designer conveys the idea of disappearing bookstores.
To create a design that will attract people and sell an idea, a specialist needs to have professional knowledge and flexible skills:
● Work with graphic editors Figma, Adobe Illustrator, Adobe Photoshop, Adobe After Effects to create and edit images, videos, animations.
● Master color and composition to understand how to use color in different situations and with different target audiences, combine design elements so that they convey the necessary information to users. For example, the design of the Rare Species festival website uses only two colors: red and white. This is how a communication designer conveys the idea of disappearing bookstores.
● Study the target audience in order to understand what information needs to be conveyed to users, and select the most relevant visual image and the “material” in which it will be implemented. It could be a graphic poster, animation, 3D video, installation or something else.
● Be able to present your solutions, convey ideas to colleagues and clients who do not understand design.
● Use observation and empathy to understand users, their needs and interests. For example, a team of designers was preparing an advertising banner for a Python simulator. Experts proposed different ideas, but they implemented exactly the one that attracts the attention of developers.
● Be able to present your solutions, convey ideas to colleagues and clients who do not understand design.
● Use observation and empathy to understand users, their needs and interests. For example, a team of designers was preparing an advertising banner for a Python simulator. Experts proposed different ideas, but they implemented exactly the one that attracts the attention of developers.
Where to study and how to become a communications designer
You can come to communications design from any design direction or start learning from scratch. In the first case, it will be easier, since the specialist already has basic tools and understands composition and typography. Beginners learn the basics of design in parallel with marketing: they learn to research the target audience and work with customers.
You can come to communications design from any design direction or start learning from scratch. In the first case, it will be easier, since the specialist already has basic tools and understands composition and typography. Beginners learn the basics of design in parallel with marketing: they learn to research the target audience and work with customers.
Communication designers are trained in universities, institutions of additional professional education and in online courses. The duration of study at a university is a minimum of 4 years; online, a new profession can be mastered in just over a year and combined with work or study at another institution. As a rule, courses spend more time on practice: students create real projects that can be added to their portfolio.
