Buzz Lightyear's Guide to Why Your Thread Design Sucks
-An Original Guide to Your Non-Original Thread-
Introduction
I come into this thread to address a serious problem: Your thread designs. It is not my goal to be a Rush Limbaugh and intentionally look for something wrong that isn't there, or to pick a fight, but rather to point out the repetitive issues that have become prevalent on this site. And by no means am I exempt from these, nor do I claim to have never done any of the following things.
Titles
One of the first things I see when entering the Graphics Market section are the thread titles that everyone uses to try to grab a potential client's attention. Grabbing the attention of someone is important, I don't try to argue otherwise. However, the issue comes when designers are claiming "high quality", "professional" as attributes to claim themselves. See below for examples of this, just on the top half of the first page of the subforum. The issue with this, is how do you claim if you are high quality or not? That is something that you cannot claim about yourself. As for professional, I highly doubt most designers on this site are professional designers, have degrees in graphic design, or anything similar. Again, this doesn't discredit anybody who actually is studying this as a major, or actually does this for a career.
![[Image: XH9vs0d.png]](https://i.imgur.com/XH9vs0d.png)
Header Block
I won't get into the frustrations of "flat designs", even though there has been a fantastic guide previously written on this matter. I will address the first thing that comes to my mind: fucking mountains. I understand mountains are gorgeous, I love them myself. However, I do not see how a picture of the mountains or another scenic image contributes or pertains to the quality of your service. I have seen many that look great, with pertinent header backgrounds. Again, see below for examples.
![[Image: 1iXuL5j.jpg]](https://i.imgur.com/1iXuL5j.jpg)
The next thing I notice is all of the buttons in the header image. These are good with website designs, because the button can be clicked and the viewer can be redirected to another page, or another part of the page. On a thread design, however, the button is not active, and when you click it, it takes you to a generic site that is linked with the rest of thread. It does nothing to add to your portfolio, except to copy web designs that do this, such as Squarespace. This isn't Squarespace, so you shouldn't be doing it either.
![[Image: AETtLev.jpg]](https://i.imgur.com/AETtLev.jpg)
About Section
Oh, this is too common of one. I don't need to post examples of these. Everyone claims to be a high quality designer. Everyone has been designing for 3-4 years. Everyone has lots of vouches. Everyone values the customer and works fast. Everyone is familiar with Photoshop. The point is, everyone has the same qualifications apparently. But what does time have to do with anything? Is there a standard which says that you're XXX good if you've been designing for XXX years? What does familiarity with Photoshop have to do with anything? I sure as hell hope you know Photoshop. That's like going to a car mechanic and they try to sell you a service by saying they know how to use a wrench. That should be a given. You care about the customer? You shouldn't have to tell anyone. People should be able to see it through your work. Telling all this redundant, non-pertinent information distracts the customer from what you should be focusing on, your work.
Also, get your tenses straight. Stop referring to "we", or "us", then halfway down using "I" and "me". I can almost guarantee, from personal experience, that you're working alone.
Characteristics
This goes in hand with the thread titles. Everyone seems to post 3-4 pre-made icons claiming their professionalism, quality, and fast pace. Usually using a rocket or clock, this isn't original. I don't see anyone claiming their work is different from anybody else. Those pre-made icons don't promote your "professionalism" either. They detract from your reputation, as you did not create them yourself.
Payment Methods
Some people are emphasizing way too much which methods of payment they are accepting. I promise the client will see it, but when you make it larger than most other things, it appears that you're shoving the service down the client's throat, which demonstrates a lack of care of the person, and a greed.
Contact
Stop making your contact buttons so damn big. This is one of the most prevalent things that people are doing. Same with payment methods, the client will find a way to contact you if they think they want to use your service. If you're spending all your time on how they can reach you, you miss out on persuading the potential customer that you're even worth contacting.
Conclusion
This does not include every example, and every wrong committed by this overused style. Your goal as a marketable service, is to stand out from the rest. I don't see this from many people. Everyone keeps trying to reuse the same format of thread design and hope they get chosen. The services that stand out to me, aren't the ones that try to create an elaborate, gimmick-filled thread, but rather get down to the point and sell their work, the thing that I am actually paying for. They aren't flashy threads, but are well-designed, well-organized, and are clean and to the point. I don't apologize if your thread design was used in my examples, you should develop something new. This thread doesn't apply to all, as there are some designers that do this just fine. I'm sure I left some things out, but have a good day, and get original.
-An Original Guide to Your Non-Original Thread-
Introduction
I come into this thread to address a serious problem: Your thread designs. It is not my goal to be a Rush Limbaugh and intentionally look for something wrong that isn't there, or to pick a fight, but rather to point out the repetitive issues that have become prevalent on this site. And by no means am I exempt from these, nor do I claim to have never done any of the following things.
Titles
One of the first things I see when entering the Graphics Market section are the thread titles that everyone uses to try to grab a potential client's attention. Grabbing the attention of someone is important, I don't try to argue otherwise. However, the issue comes when designers are claiming "high quality", "professional" as attributes to claim themselves. See below for examples of this, just on the top half of the first page of the subforum. The issue with this, is how do you claim if you are high quality or not? That is something that you cannot claim about yourself. As for professional, I highly doubt most designers on this site are professional designers, have degrees in graphic design, or anything similar. Again, this doesn't discredit anybody who actually is studying this as a major, or actually does this for a career.
Header Block
I won't get into the frustrations of "flat designs", even though there has been a fantastic guide previously written on this matter. I will address the first thing that comes to my mind: fucking mountains. I understand mountains are gorgeous, I love them myself. However, I do not see how a picture of the mountains or another scenic image contributes or pertains to the quality of your service. I have seen many that look great, with pertinent header backgrounds. Again, see below for examples.
The next thing I notice is all of the buttons in the header image. These are good with website designs, because the button can be clicked and the viewer can be redirected to another page, or another part of the page. On a thread design, however, the button is not active, and when you click it, it takes you to a generic site that is linked with the rest of thread. It does nothing to add to your portfolio, except to copy web designs that do this, such as Squarespace. This isn't Squarespace, so you shouldn't be doing it either.
About Section
Oh, this is too common of one. I don't need to post examples of these. Everyone claims to be a high quality designer. Everyone has been designing for 3-4 years. Everyone has lots of vouches. Everyone values the customer and works fast. Everyone is familiar with Photoshop. The point is, everyone has the same qualifications apparently. But what does time have to do with anything? Is there a standard which says that you're XXX good if you've been designing for XXX years? What does familiarity with Photoshop have to do with anything? I sure as hell hope you know Photoshop. That's like going to a car mechanic and they try to sell you a service by saying they know how to use a wrench. That should be a given. You care about the customer? You shouldn't have to tell anyone. People should be able to see it through your work. Telling all this redundant, non-pertinent information distracts the customer from what you should be focusing on, your work.
Also, get your tenses straight. Stop referring to "we", or "us", then halfway down using "I" and "me". I can almost guarantee, from personal experience, that you're working alone.
Characteristics
This goes in hand with the thread titles. Everyone seems to post 3-4 pre-made icons claiming their professionalism, quality, and fast pace. Usually using a rocket or clock, this isn't original. I don't see anyone claiming their work is different from anybody else. Those pre-made icons don't promote your "professionalism" either. They detract from your reputation, as you did not create them yourself.
Payment Methods
Some people are emphasizing way too much which methods of payment they are accepting. I promise the client will see it, but when you make it larger than most other things, it appears that you're shoving the service down the client's throat, which demonstrates a lack of care of the person, and a greed.
Contact
Stop making your contact buttons so damn big. This is one of the most prevalent things that people are doing. Same with payment methods, the client will find a way to contact you if they think they want to use your service. If you're spending all your time on how they can reach you, you miss out on persuading the potential customer that you're even worth contacting.
Conclusion
This does not include every example, and every wrong committed by this overused style. Your goal as a marketable service, is to stand out from the rest. I don't see this from many people. Everyone keeps trying to reuse the same format of thread design and hope they get chosen. The services that stand out to me, aren't the ones that try to create an elaborate, gimmick-filled thread, but rather get down to the point and sell their work, the thing that I am actually paying for. They aren't flashy threads, but are well-designed, well-organized, and are clean and to the point. I don't apologize if your thread design was used in my examples, you should develop something new. This thread doesn't apply to all, as there are some designers that do this just fine. I'm sure I left some things out, but have a good day, and get original.
![[Image: nZWcpj1.jpg]](https://i.imgur.com/nZWcpj1.jpg)
![[Image: 0gtU6mY.png]](https://i.imgur.com/0gtU6mY.png)
![[Image: XwAzmM2.png]](https://i.imgur.com/XwAzmM2.png)
![[Image: 3s6iQZw.jpg]](https://i.imgur.com/3s6iQZw.jpg)
![[Image: Q7qrzcV.png]](https://i.imgur.com/Q7qrzcV.png)