Do you struggle to develop new ideas for your graphics? Then do what Pablo Picasso suggested—steal. Actually what he said was, “Good artists copy, great artists steal.” He didn't mean to literally steal other people's graphics. What he meant was that great artists and designers leverage what other artists and designers have done to build an even better visual.

With that in mind, I suggest the following resources to inspire you:

1) For Graphics: Use Google Image Search (http://www.google.com). Click on the Images text link. Type any keyword or idea and see what pops up. Skim through the displayed images to find one that meets your needs. Decide what you like about it and use that information to create your new graphic.

Also try iStockphoto (http://www.istockphoto.com), Dreamstime (http://www.dreamstime.com), and Getty Images (http://creative.gettyimages.com/source/home/home.aspx) for great photographs and graphics.

2) For Websites: Use CoolHomePages.com (http://www.coolhomepages.com). Click on the type of site you wish to create and see what appears. Skim through the displayed sites to find one that meets your needs. Decide what you like about it and use that information as a basis for creating your new Website.

3) For Logos: Use CoolHomePages.com Logo Store (http://www.coolhomepages.com/store/html/templatemonster_logos.html). You can use the Search Templates navigation to find categories that fit your needs. Skim through the displayed logos to find one that meets your needs. Decide what you like about it and use that information to create your new logo.

The internet is a powerful tool in your arsenal. Use it to avoid BPS (Blank Page Syndrome) and speed the conceptualization process.

Remember to never use the actual art or a reproduction of the image you find. The art is copywritten and represents a large investment by those who created it. Respect their ownership rights. Use their designs as “grist for the mill.”

Good luck and have fun!

I recently worked a project where I came in late to the game. I was brought in near the end to supplement an overwhelmed and overtired in-house designer. The first thing I asked the designer before starting the job was if she had a template from which I could pull graphic styles. She replied, “I have a color palette that we're using. But you can just look at my other graphics and see how it's done.”

Though the color palette was a start, I had to sift through all of her graphics to learn the styles—time that could've been spent designing the tabloid-sized organizational chart waiting on my desk. Plus, the graphics were not consistent. Some were in color, while others were grayscale. Flowcharts were peppered with multiple box types that held no relevancy to the content. Arrow thickness, color, and style changed throughout.

If she had taken the time at the start of the project to create a template (and follow it), then I wouldn't have wasted several hours trying to understand how best to layout the org chart.

Was I simply being overly picky? Why should anyone care if her styles weren't consistent? Because consistency breeds trust.

If you mix visual styles, you risk sending mixed messages. For example, randomly changing the colors of boxes within an organizational chart in a presentation can confuse the audience. They may wonder if the different colors match an unseen legend. The audience will question the integrity of the information shown. If you have flowcharts throughout a presentation with different style boxes, your audience might believe that the boxes stand for other elements and the flowcharts don't relate to one another.

Independent research verified that internal consistency cultivates a feeling of trust because it indicates to the audience that the information presented was designed—it was the product of careful consideration. Each visual element should be intended to work with all other elements to elicit a specific response.

Imagine receiving a manual for your new car and each graphic is a different color and rendering style with each using different fonts. What would your opinion be of the quality of the manual? What would your opinion be of the car manufacturer for providing a manual of this quality?

Consistency is the main reason to create a template for your project, but there are other factors that also play a major role:

• Saves time when designing new graphics. The individual or team can pull elements from the template without having to create boxes, arrows, and even certain photographic elements from scratch for each new graphic. If pieces of a flowchart (boxes, diamonds, arrows, etc.) are placed in a separate file and labeled as to their use (i.e., blue boxes for flowcharts and green boxes for org charts), then the designers can simply copy the items that they need from the template.
• Saves time when bringing in new designers to help create graphics. Sometimes the project requires many hands over long periods of time. Designers may drop out because of illness, vacations, or schedule conflicts. If you have a template, then anyone new to the project can pick up where the others have left off and keep the graphics consistent. They won't have to sift through potentially hundreds of graphics to discover the styles for that effort. They can begin designing new graphics almost immediately, if they have a template from which to pull styles.
• Protects against graphics riddled with errors. Sometimes in opening other graphic files and copying their design, mistakes are made. Perhaps the wrong acronym was used or a key icon was deleted. Anyone referencing the graphics containing errors are likely to copy those erroneous elements and duplicate the mistake.
• Helps authors when conceptualizing new graphics. Besides box and arrow styles and a color palette, your template can consist of photos and icons used to represent servers, management, processes, computer systems, locations, and so on. When authors have a printout of the template, they can indicate which icons to use when conceptualizing their designs.
• Helps ensure team agreement. You can ensure that everyone agrees with the look and feel prior to spending countless hours on graphics that will need to be changed because someone doesn't like an icon or color. For example, if you are using a photo of a Sun Microystems server to represent your server in a flowchart, but the subject matter expert says that your company will be supplying IBM servers for the job, then you can make this change in the template before a dozen flowchart graphics are rendered with the wrong server.

Templates are not just for graphics. They can be applied to Word documents and PowerPoint presentations as well. In the next newsletter, we'll discuss the elements that make-up a template and how you can apply it to your own business presentations and marketing materials.

Mike Parkinson will begin the BDG formal conceptualization training at MSD, Inc. on December 14th. Click here to learn more about training.

Look for a DVD collection of source art available from Billion Dollar Graphics in the next month. The DVD contains original source art from both books! You can use these ready-to-edit graphics to speed up the creation process, make amazing visuals, and save lots money on graphic development.

The Billion Dollar Graphics books make great gifts! Give them to your team as a bonus or the person in your life that needs or appreciates graphics.

Amazon.com now offers Billion Dollar Graphics! Spread the word and tell your colleagues.

Remember, there are free articles available at Billion Dollar Graphics/Articles. Visit now for immediate download.

Do you need graphic design support? Do you need clear, communicative, compelling design for your presentations, proposals, marketing, Website, and multimedia? Then contact 24 Hour Company now for a free consultation.

If you are involved with business development and proposal creation, we recommend CapturePlanning.com. Click on the link to visit their site for a cornucopia of helpful tools. You will not be disappointed!

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