Updated March 7, 2025
Do you know just how important providing feedback is to get great results? It’s monumental!
Effective feedback is the cornerstone of successful graphic design project management. If you want a design you truly love, learning how to give better feedback isn’t just helpful—it’s essential.
Your creative brief is a good start. It’s like a map that provides the direction you want designers to take for your brand, be it a logo, business card, brochure, website, or other marketing collateral.
However, feedback is the compass designers need to help them understand how near or far from their destination they are. Effective communication with your designer is crucial to getting results you’re happy with.
In this guide, we’ll walk you through proven strategies for providing feedback that lead to exceptional design outcomes.
Core Principles of Effective Feedback
When providing feedback, there are a few rules we suggest sticking to:
Make your feedback specific and actionable
When the designer reads your feedback, they should immediately know what design elements you like and dislike (e.g., colors, shapes, fonts, composition, and overall concept). Designers need to know what changes they need to make to ensure proper graphic design project management.
Logo by Kaiser87
Example of effective feedback:
“Please change the red color on the ribbon to blue (preferably #1E90FF) and double the size of the font in ‘&CO.'”
Example of ineffective feedback:
“The colors aren’t working for me. Can you fix it?”
Make it constructive
Simply telling a designer, “I don’t like it,” is ineffective unless you explain why and how you think it could be improved. If the designer isn’t on the right track, let them know specifically what isn’t working and offer suggestions to help redirect their approach.
As a starting point, comment on specific elements:
- Style: “This feels too playful for our corporate brand.”
- Color: “The bright colors don’t align with our sophisticated image.”
- Structure: “The layout feels too crowded and overwhelming.”
- Typography: “The script font is difficult to read at smaller sizes.”
Logo by Mandex
Example of constructive feedback:
“I like how you’ve incorporated the cog element with the cloud, but I feel this is too ‘industrial’ for my business. I’d like this to be more tech-oriented. What if we try using something more modern, like an electronic circuit instead?”
Highlight what works
Identify areas of the design you appreciate and communicate this clearly. Positive reinforcement helps designers understand which elements are successful and should be maintained or expanded upon in revisions.
Logo by James Hamilton
Example of encouraging feedback:
“I love how the logo is looking so far! The simplicity of the mark and the balance between the icon and text work beautifully. Is it possible to see other color variations? I want to make sure we choose the most effective option. Great job!”
Use clear design terminology when possible
While you don’t need to be a design expert, using basic design terminology in graphic design project management helps communicate what you mean more precisely. Here are some useful terms:
The Feedback Process at Different Design Stages
Tailoring your feedback to each graphic design project management stage ensures designers receive the proper guidance at the right time. The following guidelines will help you provide stage-appropriate feedback that keeps your project moving forward efficiently.
Initial Concepts Stage
Early feedback should focus on broad conceptual directions:
- Does the design capture the essence of your brand?
- Which conceptual direction feels most aligned with your vision?
- Are there elements from different concepts you’d like to combine?
Refinement Stage
As the design evolves, feedback should become more specific:
- Fine-tuning of colors, typography, and spacing
- Detailed adjustments to visual elements
- Consistency checks across all design components
Final Review Stage
The last round of feedback should address the following:
- Final polishing and minor adjustments
- Ensuring all previous feedback has been incorporated
- Confirming technical specifications are met
Navigating Disagreements With Designers
Disagreements are natural in creative collaborations. When they occur:
- Ask questions before pushing back: “Can you explain the reasoning behind this design choice?”
- Focus on objectives, not personal preferences: “How does this element help achieve our goal of appealing to our target audience?”
- Consider compromise: “What if we tried a middle-ground approach that addresses both perspectives?”
- Request alternatives: “Could you show me another option that addresses my concerns while maintaining your vision?”
Tools for Collaborative Feedback
Several digital tools can streamline the feedback process. Here’s a quick list :
- Markup tools: InVision, Figma, and Adobe XD allow direct commenting on designs
- Project management platforms, such as Trello, Asana, or Monday.com, help track feedback and revisions. Google Sheets and Excel are also good options.
- Visual feedback tools: Markup Hero, Loom, or CloudApp enable annotated screenshots and screen recordings
- Collaborative documents: Google Docs or Notion for collecting and organizing feedback from multiple sources
Managing Feedback from Multiple Stakeholders
When multiple team members need to provide input, consider the following:
- Designate a feedback coordinator who collects and synthesizes all comments.
- Prioritize feedback based on strategic importance and project goals.
- Resolve contradictory feedback before sending it to the designer.
- Present feedback as a unified voice rather than disconnected individual opinions.
- Create a feedback hierarchy that indicates which stakeholders have final approval authority.
Feedback Templates and Checklists
Using ready-to-use templates and checklists in creative project management helps ensure your feedback is comprehensive, specific, and actionable without missing critical elements. The following will save you time while dramatically improving the quality of feedback you provide.
Comprehensive Design Review Checklist
Quick Feedback Template
Conclusion
Investing time in providing thoughtful, constructive feedback is the difference between receiving an adequate design and one you’ll truly love. Being specific, constructive, and encouraging creates a productive collaboration that brings out the best in your designer’s abilities.
Remember that effective feedback is a skill that improves with practice. Each project presents an opportunity to refine your feedback approach, build stronger designer relationships, and achieve better results over time.
By following these guidelines, you’ll get better design outcomes and develop more efficient, enjoyable working relationships with creative professionals—setting the stage for successful collaborations on future projects.
Want to try your hand at designing materials yourself? Design.com makes this process easy. Start with the easy-to-customize AI logo generator, and when you’re feeling more confident, you can work on more templates like the AI poster generator and AI website generator.
Written by Guillermo Conde on Sunday, November 19, 2017
Guillermo Conde is Head of Customer and Designer Support at DesignCrowd. Having started as a designer in the platform back in 2009 being among the top 25 Logo Designers and later on starting as a Customer Service Consultant, he is knowledgeable on both designer and customer sides of the platform. He was the first hire outside of Australia in 2012 and is now leading our Customer and Designer Service Teams based in Manila, Philippines.