by Daniel J. Gansle

Created on: February 24, 2009

Graphic design jobs essentially entail communicating not with the written word, but with carefully chosen graphics arranged in such a way as to communicate a brand or idea. In this sense, professional graphic designers are essential to every organization.

Graphic design is very much tied into sales and marketing, because the principal idea behind graphic design is to sell visually and market the brand in such a way as to be eye-catching and memorable.

What Graphic Designers Do

Many people view graphic design jobs as fun, cushy office jobs where the person gets to draw pretty pictures on the computer and play with fonts. The reality is quite different.

Graphic designers work with cutting-edge software, most often using a Macintosh computer with Adobe Creative Suite. Adobe Creative Suite contains essential software such as Photoshop, InDesign, and Illustrator.

These graphic design software programs require heavy training in order to learn cutting-edge design techniques. And, the graphic designer needs retraining often to keep up with new releases and new tools.

Upsides and Downsides to Graphic Design Jobs

Graphic design is an art that is mixed with business to produce graphic materials intended to convey the company's branding. Studies show that a catchy packaging design on a cereal box will sell more cereal boxes. The same goes for other products. In this way, graphic design is a good career choice for those who are artistically inclined and want a corporate career.

On the other hand, graphic design jobs can be stressful, with tight deadlines. Graphic design is a very creative field, great for artists; but the graphic designer needs to have thick skin in order to receive and deal with constant critiquing of their work. Graphic design jobs entail creating logos, packaging, book covers, labels, stickers, banners, window clings, web graphics, and much more.

Types of Graphic Design Jobs

Ad agencies are notorious among graphic designers as being stressful. Graphic designers who work at ad agencies typically have long hours with much more critiquing of their designs. Some of that critiquing can be brutal, because the agency is trying to impress their top-tier clientele.

While the graphic designer can make a lot of money at an ad agency, corporate graphic designers have a medium level of stress but still work with clients and have tight deadlines. On the lower end of the stress level are graphic designers working in government and associations.

Graphic design is a great field for those who are artistic and creative-minded. The person who is considering graphic design should receive a degree in art and design at a public university or art school.

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