The Different Graphic Design Types You Need To Be Aware Of

Regardless of which way you look at it, there’s no doubt that graphic design shapes all our personal and professional experiences. In fact, everything we encounter involves design in any way, shape, or form. You’ve experienced it. First of all, there are bad designs that instantly make certain products off-putting. Then there are those that are just okay. You don’t necessarily associate them with anything—you may even forget them as time goes on. And finally, you have the greatest design pieces you’ve ever seen that significantly improve your lifestyle. Here are a few of the most popular graphic design types and how they contribute to the world today:

Visual Identity

Also known as your official branding, this establishes how your target audience perceives your company. In order to create an effective visual identity design, graphic designers need to have at least a basic understanding of the other types of design. It’s also most closely related to the second type, Marketing. This is for the reason that logos and their complementary elements will undoubtedly be used in all sorts of projects.

Marketing  

Oftentimes, graphic designers who create marketing campaigns tailor their designs to match the interests and style of their target audience. Illustrators also craft their work to fit the criteria of the platforms they will be posted on. For example, Instagram and Pinterest are homes to a vast majority of inspirational posts. But this doesn’t mean that this marketing design type is limited to just social media platforms. Layouts for the marketing graphic design type also include those for email subscriptions, content (such as infographics for blog posts), and many more. Illustrators may also take on bigger projects from time to time. 

User Interface (UI)

UI graphic design is an essential part of every web design and development project. Simply put, this is the design your site visitors look at and interact with. Therefore, designers guarantee their clients that they take screen size and resolution into careful consideration. Oftentimes, they can even create multiple versions of the same webpage to incorporate responsive web design principles.

Moreover, they’re also tasked to make sure their layouts for this graphic design type are as easy to use as possible. This doesn’t mean that they’ll present you with designs that are as minimalistic as possible or borderline plain and empty. Instead, these designs teach site visitors on how to work their way around without being distracted by any issues. Experienced UI graphic designers also make it a point to keep their designs as precise as possible. This holds true from the placements of major elements down to every last detail. 

Motion

Now that videos aren’t limited to traditional film and TV use, it’s safe to say that companies across industries can noticeably feel the increase in their demand. In fact, the impact they have on boosting your brand awareness makes them even more popular. This is why you can expect that motion graphics artists are usually hard at work on animation sequences (titles and ending credits, GIFs, video games, etc.). You can often see these in standalone projects like tutorial videos, for example, wherein animated effects act as supplementary learning materials. On the other hand, the motion graphic design type can also be part of much bigger video productions like product demonstrations.

Environmental

Contrary to its name, environmental graphic design isn’t limited to the different kinds of ecosystems. Rather, designers who work with this method, need to have a background in architectural, industrial, and interior and exterior principles as well. In reality, designers create environmental design projects to vividly relay messages or stories to their audiences. Seeing as they’re usually the most memorable graphic design type, they’re also a popular method for recreating events to serve as reminders for the general public. You can usually find their work in the form of murals, exhibits, or simply signages that aid visitors in wayfinding. Their audience can also see them in offices, event centers, and coworking spaces, acting as stimuli that encourage exploring your imagination and creativity.

Packaging

You can find this type on retail products. Every bag, box, and bottle is the product of industrial and packaging graphic designs’ collaboration with various manufacturing processes. More often than not, the actual product also affects their designs. So, in addition to the fundamental concepts and graphic design tools, designers in this field are also knowledgeable in the materials used. Their process usually involves quite a few mockups before they decide on the final output.

Designers base their success on their packaging designs’ ability to garner “shelf impact.” This means that they have done their job properly and have convinced customers to purchase the item based on its packaging. Furthermore, this also makes it common to find packaging designers thoroughly involved in the products’ marketing later on.

The Common Ground Between Graphic Design Types

By nature, designers also need to consider the overall functionality of their work before applying them in their respective fields. Moreover, graphic design is evolving as more and more businesses invest in it. This is why designers stay on top of current design trends, regardless of their specialties or niches. 

Have you worked with a graphic designer? Tell us about your experience!

About Axel May Rivera

Axel is an avid fan of many dramas and songs. She is always eager to explore and discover more when it comes to movies and entertainment, especially in Korean and Filipino culture. In her free time, she enjoys reading books and playing badminton.