Why I'm Writing This: Design Ethics for Clients and Creatives
Early in my freelance career, frustration with a few recurring, avoidable problems pushed me to think seriously about my own process, and to put it into words.
This post explains the ethics behind how I work, and it’s meant to put you, the client, at ease when choosing a creative to represent your brand. It’s written from experience, but with the aim of being useful to both creatives and clients alike.
Let's Talk About Design Rates
Having spoken with plenty of creatives, and just as many frustrated clients over the years; I have come to see a real paradox in the design and advertising industry.
First: what actually counts as a decent rate? A fair rate is skill-based, calculated hourly or daily, and fluctuates with the designer’s quality and experience. I’ve also heard from clients stuck paying mid-to-senior rates for work that doesn’t clear junior standards.
For a closer look at evaluating a designer before you hire, see How to Spot an Amateur Graphic Designer. For this post, though, let’s focus on the process itself — here’s how it actually works.
“There are three responses to a piece of design: yes, no, and WOW!”
Milton Glaser
The 5-Step Design Process
Professional design and advertising follows a consistent set of guidelines. Not to restrict creativity, but to make sure the end result is thought-provoking, and connected with the audience on an individual level. Once you know the rules well enough, you can break them deliberately. Here’s the process, step by step:
Why the Design Process Matters for Your Business
Ask yourself why you started your business in the first place. Most professionals will say success, not just the experience of running one. A proper design process is what protects that goal. Skip it, and you risk what I call ‘double spend’: paying for a rushed job, then paying again, often more to have it done properly the second time.
Junior vs. Mid-Senior Designer Rates: What's the Difference?
Choosing a competent designer comes down to a few key factors. What matters most is matching the designer to what your company actually needs right now. Junior designers offer lower rates while building their portfolio, a fair trade for both sides. Mid-to-senior designers charge more, but bring proven expertise and an established body of work to back it up.
How to Evaluate a Designer's Portfolio and Rate
A designer’s portfolio is their track record. It shows you their actual capabilities and the style that would suit your brand, alongside real signals of professionalism and work ethic.
It’s worth knowing that a considerable number of designers undercut the market on price; understandable in a competitive field, but it usually means an unsustainable workload with too little time per project, leading to rushed, lower-quality work. Rates vary by experience and specialization. I have covered current South African design rates in detail below.
Frequently asked questions
What is the design process?
A professional design process moves through five stages: research (understanding your audience and goals), planning (turning that research into strategy), production (creating the actual design), market testing (checking real audience response before launch), and launch (delivering the final work). Skipping any of these stages increases the risk of a rushed result that doesn’t actually communicate what your brand needs it to.
Why does hiring the cheapest designer often cost more in the end?
Choosing the lowest rate typically means less time and research goes into your project, since a designer working at an unsustainable rate has to take on higher volume to make it viable. This often leads to rushed, generic work that then needs a professional overhaul. Meaning you end up paying twice: once for the rushed version, and again to have it done properly. This is sometimes called “double spend.”
What's the difference between a junior and mid-senior designer's rate?
Junior designers typically charge less while building their portfolio and client base, which can be a good option for smaller budgets or simpler projects. Mid-to-senior designers charge more, but bring an established portfolio, proven expertise, and a track record of solving more complex brand problems. The right choice depends on your project’s complexity and how much risk you’re willing to take on.
How long does a proper design process take, from research to launch?
Timelines vary by project complexity, but skipping steps to move faster usually costs more time overall. Rushed research leads to revisions later, and skipping market testing risks a launch that misses the mark entirely. A realistic process budgets time for each of the five stages rather than compressing them to hit an arbitrary deadline.
Why is market testing important before launching a design?
Market testing shows how real people actually respond to a design before you commit budget to a full launch. Whether the message lands, and how it makes your audience feel. Without this step, you’re relying on assumptions rather than evidence, and problems that testing would have caught early often surface only after launch, when they’re far more expensive to fix.
How do I know if a freelance designer's rate is fair?
A fair rate reflects the designer’s experience, the complexity of the work, and the time realistically required to do it properly, not just a flat market average. Reviewing a designer’s portfolio for consistency, professionalism, and range gives a better sense of whether their rate matches their actual capability, rather than judging on price alone.
Get in touch
If this sounds like the process you want behind your next project, get a quote and let's talk about what you need.
For project inquiries:
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