Multimedia designers: they may sound like technology wizards, but what are they really? And how can they help businesses cut through the noise and reach their audience with well-crafted, strategic multimedia messaging?

As a business owner, you know that a strong online presence is essential to long-term success. With more than four billion people online at any one time, and nearly 60% of internet users on social media, no longer can businesses rely on traditional advertising to get their message across.

They must utilise multimedia to reach the widest possible audience.

But yes, we get it—staying up to date with trends and technologies can feel overwhelming when you’re already time-poor and trying to run a successful business. 

Multimedia design is the art of integrating different media, including text, images, audio, and video, to communicate with an audience. It is an effective method to reach customers who consume information differently and allows businesses to tell their stories in an impactful and engaging way.

Statistics show that 80% of marketers use visual content in their social media campaigns, so businesses need to incorporate unique visuals to stand out from the crowd. That’s where multimedia designers come in. They’re the ‘big thinkers’ when it comes to marketing and advertising.

But how do you know who the experts are?

In this article we explain the qualities of the best multimedia designers, and why you need one to help elevate your business (and not get left behind).

5 qualities that multimedia designers should have

Multimedia designers are the creative minds behind the graphics, animations and videos we see everywhere. A successful multimedia designer must have certain qualities to be the best in the field. We shortlist the top five skills to look for in a multimedia designer to ensure you have the support to reach your business goals.

1. Multimedia designers know the fundamental design and layout design principles by heart

Multimedia designers must be able to offer the correct combination of visual and textual elements to both attract visitors and make them stay on a site or page to increase the likelihood of lead conversion and better user experience. It is a process that takes time, specific skills, and knowledge, and there are some fundamental principles that skilled designers follow.

Design principles are guidelines that improve usability, influence perception, increase appeal, and minimise confusion. Less is more, you could say. In conjunction, layout design is the process of arranging visual elements—like text, images, and shapes—on a given page, making it easy for users to understand, check out copywriting services to understand content strategy.

Good layout design is both dynamic and clear, creating visual points of interest that guide the reader through a piece of content. To be effective, multimedia designers must understand the foundations of each medium they use, as well as how to combine them in a way that is both visually appealing and informative.

Layout design principles include:

• Alignment – The way that a designer arranges the different elements of their design in relation to one another
• Visual hierarchy – The visual organisation of a hierarchy of information that guides the user through the intended journey of the image
• Contrast – Pairing different design elements like colours or types of typography to make a stronger visual impact
• Balance – How elements of the design balance each other out, through symmetry or balanced asymmetrical arrangements for example
• Proximity – How close or far the elements of a layout are from one another can help users make connections between different visual elements of a project.

2. Multimedia designers are familiar with different design software

A skilled multimedia designer is proficient in using design software—including a strong understanding of the various features and tools—allowing them to create stunning visuals that will capture the attention of an audience.

While there are many software options available, Adobe Illustrator is one of the most popular programs used by designers. It offers a variety of features and tools that make it ideal for creating vector graphics. With Illustrator, you can create complex designs with ease and precision, along with detailed illustrations, logos and other graphics.

Photoshop is the most well-known, and for good reason. It’s a powerful tool that can be used for everything from photo editing to web design and used in a variety of media, including print, web and video.

Premiere Pro offers a timeline-based editing interface that can be used to trim video and audio clips, add transitions, and more. And Adobe After Effects is a digital motion graphics and compositing software application. It is used in film, TV and online video post-production. The software enables multimedia designers to add special effects and animation to live-action footage.

3. Multimedia designers are great visual communicators

In today’s digital world, multimedia designers are some of the best visual communicators out there. With technology advancing, multimedia designers are continually challenged to keep up with the latest trends and software. But that’s what they love to do.

Designers must be able to understand the needs of their clients and the audience they are trying to reach. They use their creativity to come up with visual solutions that are both effective and appealing, and they’re able to translate complex ideas and unique brand identities into a consistent visual language.

In Australia alone, a quarter of the 22 million internet users are on social media and following brands and businesses. The opportunity here is clear: businesses can connect, captivate, and communicate with their audience with the use of compelling multimedia (we love some good alliteration).

Multimedia designers are the glue between your story and a powerful message that can be shared, consumed, and remembered. As we often say, there is power in one well-crafted piece of content.

4. Multimedia designers do their research and develop a strategy before starting a project

Before starting a project, multimedia designers must first research and develop a strategy. This is an essential step in the design process to determine what the project will entail and how best to approach it. Without this step, the project is likely to be unsuccessful.

So, how does it work? Multimedia designers must first understand the needs of their clients. What are they looking for? What is the purpose of the project? What are the opportunities? Once these questions have been answered, the designer can begin to develop a strategy.

Research is key to developing an effective content strategy and is the guide to everything multimedia designers create. It allows multimedia designers to get a better sense of the target audience, what they respond to, what medium they use, and what will ultimately help achieve the client’s objectives.

The strategy will include a timeline, budget and list of deliverables. It is important to be realistic when creating this strategy, as it will be used as a reference point throughout the project. With a well-thought-out strategy, designers can ensure they create meaningful and impactful designs.

5. Multimedia designers can handle (and implement) client feedback

Client feedback is essential to creating a successful final product. By incorporating feedback early and often throughout the design process, multimedia designers can ensure that they are on the right track and meeting their clients’ needs.

Feedback can come in many shapes and forms: Via email, across conference calls, through video-capture tools, and in person. What challenges does this bring to the table? Communication breakdowns, loss of direction, and overall project misalignment.

To effectively manage feedback, multimedia designers incorporate user-friendly systems that reinforce their clients’ involvement in the design project and allow them to supply feedback in a way that suits them. The key to successfully receiving clear and articulate feedback is to ensure the program is as easy-to-use as possible. The designer can then take this feedback and create a more refined version of the concept.

With feedback comes the potential for criticism, which—like any role—is unavoidable. It’s important to learn from criticism, and this is especially true for multimedia designers who often put their work out there for public consumption. While it’s not always easy to take criticism, multimedia designers consider it a valuable learning tool.

A well-designed website is no longer enough for marketing purposes, which is why businesses are moving their audience engagement and advertising to visual-focused online platforms. A multimedia designer can help businesses create an immersive and interactive experience that will set them apart from their competitors and keep users coming back for more.

In a world where we’re constantly bombarded with messages from all sides, it takes a skilled designer to break through the clutter and deliver a clear and impactful message. Businesses that use multimedia effectively can see a significant boost in sales and engagement by keeping their marketing materials fresh and relevant to their audience.

For multimedia designers, it’s all about creating visually appealing and effective communication pieces that can be used across various mediums. It’s a powerful tool that should not be overlooked.

Ready to make sure your business stays ahead of the competition? Contact us and we’ll develop a multimedia content strategy that gets your customers (old and new) coming back for more.