Designing in Nigeria

The life of a creative designer is exhausting, especially in Nigeria. From the never-ending ridiculous questions of whether you’re a ‘Yahoo boy’ because you always carry a laptop bag to people wanting you to do free jobs because “we go way back” or because you're colleagues or neighbors; even those tiring uncles asking if being a Graphic designer is a real job or not. To an extent, maybe as an artist, it is to be expected; after all, people believe, as an artist, you’re weird, you’re crazy, and then you’re super crazy.

Unfortunately, the one I constantly have to deal with is when a client or boss just wants you to scoop a picture or design idea online

It gets worse when you have to deal with the HORRIBLE BOSSES in your 9-5 or challenging clients, with their claims of knowing better or being more experienced in your own field. That moment they start dictating every design element or color is the worst for a designer. Yes, that’s the highest height for the designer because the designer will end up trying to fix the mess and at the end of the day get frustrated, messed up and might have to start afresh. To fuel his frustrations are those insane questions the designer might have to answer like:

“Can’t you use this color?”

“Are you sure this is not too simple?”

“Can’t we add drama or spice it up a little bit?”

“Can’t it be like this logo or design”…….(shows you another brand’s logo or design they downloaded online) Etc.

Note: Have it in mind that while another brand’s design might guide you as a reference, some folks expect their designers to copy the whole idea and all).

The reality that everyone has an opinion on what looks good/right is pathetic and frustrating because a patient would never tell the doctor how to fix their broken bone, nor would a customer tell a mechanic how to fix their oil leak. But a business owner, or client or boss will definitely tell their designer that emerald green and yellow are the best colors for their corporate identity.

As if boxing you with their preconceived ideas of how they want the design to look is not enough, they go all ‘Miley Cyrus’ on you when you try explaining why and why it should not be done like that. Unfortunately, the one I constantly have to deal with is when a client or boss just wants you to scoop a picture or design idea online and use it as though it’s their online property! Then you start explaining the effects and consequences of plagiarism like it’s a 10-unit course; some don’t even want to listen, especially when it is a boss and you start hearing stuff like how, as a ‘professional’, you should find a way to do quality stuff for the company at 0% cost (na free them they sell plugins?). Wait! Did I say those are the worse? When you're the only qualified designer in your company, and have to struggle with someone higher up the food chain on a daily basis; one who has little or no experience in graphic design, who doesn't know current trends or anything of the sort, looking at your work and giving vague instructions such as "give it some more color" or "jazz it up a bit," then I guess you'll know the real definition of ‘WORSE’.

The truth is, the larger part of the public see designers as a tool, a master of a software

I don’t know though, probably because I studied Graphic design/Advertising, I take things like this way too serious. Even though 'na naija we dey' as most people are quick to say, I still believe if you want quality then you should pay for quality. As I write this, a question popped in my mind, “Whatever the reason, can I make stuff that is not quality?” NO! I won’t. And I’m not alone. I’ve had the privilege of knowing some creative designers in different fields that would give NOTHING less than quality.

That takes me back to what Paul Rand said

“The public is more familiar with bad design than good design. It is, in effect, conditioned to prefer bad design, because that is what it lives with. The new becomes threatening, the old reassuring.”

Well said Paul, well said. This is very true. Let’s paint a picture very common in Nigeria. A client tells you to create a logo and you charge N5 and most be like "that’s too expensive, Mr. A will take N1 for the same job.” When you tell them to go and meet Mr. A, they tell you “Is it not the same Photoshop you use?” The truth is, the larger part of the public see designers as a tool, a master of a software e.g Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Illustrator etc. They forget that knowing how to use a software doesn’t mean you will be effectively creative with it. They don’t know that means you’re not being paid to make use of software, they are paying for the creativity applied to their work.

As a modern designer you're constantly trying to improve, constantly learning new software and skills. In this industry, if you're standing still, you’re falling behind; you are constantly expanding your portfolio, your designs, your knowledge, your career.

In a 9-5 work setting though, contents and briefs are reviewed by a team. In a team, everyone's opinion should be considered. You may be the expert designer but it doesn't mean you have the best ideas. Your expertise is in evaluating the team's ideas and offering ways on how to best incorporate those ideas or make a compelling case why a particular idea doesn't work. Though not all team ideas will be good, you should be able to demonstrate or make a compelling case on why a particular idea isn't good. Learning to work as a team is an essential skill.

This might sound different from where I’ve been coming from.That’s because as much as it’s okay to be passionate about your stuff, you have to make room for opinions from your boss and other members of your team. You shouldn't go into a design with a ‘this is the ONLY way it should be done’ or ‘I’m always right’ mentality. I say this because you never can tell; If he said he wanted more color, then there might just be a reason behind it, right? Find out that reason and see if you can TOGETHER come to an agreement on what should or should not be done. But in a situation where communication and dialogue is not working and your boss is not the listening type, then you are not to blame.

So before I drop my pen, my advice to the public, clients and bosses is this: Let’s try and reason along with who we hire as designers. If we could do the job on our own, we wouldn’t need them, right? Frustrating the designer will only result in a messy job.

For us designers, let’s work with clients and bosses without forcing our ideas on them because according to Bob Gill,

“I’ve never had a problem with a dumb client. There is no such thing as a bad client. Part of our job is to do good work and get the client to accept it.”

Share your thoughts (and maybe frustrations) in the comments below.

Cheers,

Samuel.