1. Be very clear on the purpose behind the design job. Your business objective will have significant impact on how the designer approaches the job – and on the end result.

2. As is any relationship, chemistry is an issue. You know if this person has a style that will compliment and mesh with yours and that of the people in your organisation. Not every client and consultant has the chemistry required to get the job done, no matter how qualified the consultant. Ask for references and examples of how they successfully assisted other clients in similar situations.

3. Apply the same business approach to commissioning and evaluating design as you would to other business processes. Set an objective, set a budget, be clear on outcomes, set deadlines.

4. Put time into evaluating the effectiveness of the job afterwards. Whatever your objective, set some measures against which the outcome can be assessed.

5. This is a partnership: communicate with the designer/agency. Brief them thoroughly. Let them into your review process, so they understand and can learn from the experience to enhance your future work together. In particular, they need to understand your expectations, and on what is happening inside your business that is influencing any changes to the brief along the way.

6. At the outset, try to expose the designer/agency to the individual who will sign the job off. It is frustrating and counter-productive for the agency to be given feedback and input from a go-between, since the reasons for the feedback from the ultimate client get diluted. And where corporate politics are concerned, the designer invariably gets the blame for poor results. It’s your money – use it wisely.

7. Be aware of the potential cost of reworking. This is the main reason design agencies and clients lock horns. There is a balance between correcting errors made by the designers, and ongoing changes to the job by clients along the way.

8. Beware setting out by copying other companies’ design work. Often clients are attracted by a piece of work they see, and the brief becomes “we want that”. If you’ve seen the design, chances are your customers will too, and will see you’ve ripped-off someone else’s work – which reflects badly on your brand. And like taking a photo into the hairdresser with the demand to “make me look like that”, you won’t emerge looking like the original.

9. Listen to the designer! You have commissioned them because they are expert in their field. They will have a rationale behind the design they present to you – it is important that you understand this thinking, as it may alter your view of where the project fits into the marketing mix. Business design is not High Art. Stay objective. A good designer is a set of fresh eyes – someone who can give you an objective opinion of the elements of the situation and recommendations for a resolution. However, resist the urge to ‘shoot the messenger’ if their analysis does not exactly agree with your perception. Some clients simply want an echo of the conclusion they have already drawn to validate their own opinion. This is fine as long as you are willing to pay for it.

10. Most designers are small businesses. They need you to define the parameters of the contract, which is all-too-often verbal. Define the fee structure, billable expenses and the duration of the consultation. Discuss the reporting arrangement and agree upon when the bill is to be paid.

11. Work with raycreative.