Step 6: Deliver

Delivering concepts to your client is exciting, but there’s an element to it that can make you feel nervous and lack confidence in what you’ve produced.

Presenting your concepts in a professional, well-laid out document will help you navigate this more confidently and ensure your delivery goes as smoothly as possible.

Create the presentation

A3 landscape is a good page size for setting up your presentation. Then, if you send it digitally it will display well in horizontal format on screen, and if you are presenting in person it can be printed A3 or downsized to A4 if necessary.

Place each concept on its own page, with lots of white space surrounding it. Don’t place other elements too close to the concepts, give them room to breathe.

Add a number next to each concept (i.e. Concept 1) to help you identify them when discussing them with your client.

Each concept should be accompanied by a description that communicates the meaning and story behind your idea.

It doesn’t have to be an essay – two or three sentences are fine, as long as you’ve explained the reasons you’ve chosen to do what you have done.

Here are some sentence starters to help you begin:

This concept explores using a … to create a feeling of ...
This concept focuses on the words ... to accentuate ...
I’ve used this particular ... element because ...
I chose to visually highlight this because ...
The ... typeface has been used to create a feeling of ...
The ... shape of the motif represents ...

Avoid stating the obvious in your description without a reason behind it. The client will see “the logo is in a circle”, so there’s no need to reiterate this.

The keywords from Step 2 can help write your concept descriptions and communicate their meaning. By including them you’ll create relevance to the information you were given from your client at the beginning, and help your client understand and connect to your visual decisions.

Can’t find the meaning?

If you’ve followed the steps thoroughly up to this point, you should whiz through explaining your concepts. If you’re having trouble, you’ve may have missed something.

Go back through each step thoroughly and identify what it could be, so next time you’ll be aware of that weak point and can practice strengthening that part of your process.

To mock up or not?

You may want to mock up your concepts on some stationery, signage, or apparel to include in the presentation. Be cautious when doing this. You want your concepts to stand strong as concepts alone.

Mock ups, like colours, can influence your client’s decision. You don’t want them to choose a logo that is weaker but looks strong because of how you’ve mocked it up.

It’s important to stay impartial and help your client choose the concept that works best for them.

No filler concepts

Don’t ever present a concept that you aren’t sure of.

Ask yourself, “If the client chose this concept, would I be happy for it to be their final logo?”

If the answer is no, don’t include it. Trust your instincts. Not only will your lack of passion for this concept show, but you’re also risking them choosing a concept that you know won’t represent the brand well.

Present your concepts

Set up a meeting with your client, either in person or online through a video call. By setting up a meeting to go through the presentation you’ll experience their reactions.

If you’re unable to set up a meeting, emailing them the presentation is a good second option.

Either way, make sure to tell your client that:

The concepts are works in progress, not final logo designs.
You’ll develop their chosen concept further and explore colour options in the next stage of the process.

Allow time to process

Following the presentation, leave the concepts with your client for a few days so they can reflect on your ideas. If you met in person, email them a PDF of your presentation.

Now, the waiting part. It’s easy to let your mind wander as you start to second guess everything...

“What if they don’t end up liking any of my concepts?”

“What if I’m actually really crap at designing logos?”

Know that you’re not alone in these thoughts. Impostor syndrome still happens to the best of us!

This is a big decision for your client, it’s important they take time to decide rather than rushing into a decision.

Even if they choose a concept straight away, you could still suggest that they sleep on it overnight, and then confirm with you the next day – just to ensure they happy with their choice.

Follow up after three days if you haven’t heard from them before then. Ask them if they have any questions or would like anything clarified.

This will help to keep the process moving while everything is still fresh in both your minds.

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