10 Ways To Get Results From Your Graphic Designer

Are you having trouble gaining momentum with your graphic designer? Are you not getting the results you are expecting? Do you feel like no one can grasp your vision? Whether it's a vehicle wrap, banner design, or even a simple sticker; you want to have something worthy of showing off. Here are some tips that can help you get the look you've always dreamed of with your graphic designer!

The average day of a graphic designer here at Fast-Trac Designs entails helping a customer bring a vision to life. Sometimes it gets difficult to design with a customer when they don't have much guidance or know what they want... so we made a list! Here are 10 rules to follow to avoid any difficulties and achieve an end result fast! (Hence the name)

#1: Find a Logo
This could be a make or break for your time limit. Providing a logo to your graphic designer is of the upmost importance, that being because it tells how your design will look. A graffiti looking logo will lead a designer to believe you are going for a street look unless specified otherwise. If you don't have a logo it's okay! Just know it might take a few tries for a designer to get it right because they are starting from scratch. Having a logo from the get-go is a tremendous help to the graphic designer.

#2: Look for Inspiration
It's always important to keep in mind that a graphic designer knows nothing but the information you give them. To build something from the ground up is a long process for one person! One way you can help your graphic designer is looking for pictures online that are similar to the look you are trying to achieve. "I want something that follows this style" is the phrase most commonly used. This way, a graphic designer can have a visual representation of what you are expecting and it gives them creative guidance.

#3: Grab a Font
There are a GAZILLION BILLION TRILLION fonts that exist in the world. When you have a font handy that you want to use, it lessens the work of a graphic designer tremendously. Therefore you will get to where you want to be quicker! A font also contributes to how the rest of the design will flow together. It is very important. When a graphic designer has no font, they have to go look for one and possibly have numerous trials and errors. You can eliminate the headaches by looking for a font yourself! DaFont.com is one of our favorite sites to find fonts, but you can search anywhere online for one that suits you best.

#4: Pick Your Favorite Colors
Colors play an important factor in completing your design. The color you pick will determine the contrast and compliment colors that will come from the mind of a designer. They also depict different moods to incorporate into the design. Just as the last two rules go, a quick search on the internet will help you determine what colors you would like to incorporate. A little goes a long way especially when in communication with your graphic designer.

#5: What Is Your Company
You may not think of it as a big deal, but as we have stated before: the more information you give your graphic designer, the better. Give as much relevant information as possible regarding what you represent or what your company is exactly. Is your company a daycare center? If so, then your graphic designer will most likely create something child-like and cartoony. Letting them know who you are and what you're about helps with their creative process.

#6: Whats the "Vibe"?
Issa vibe! The definition of vibe states "A person's emotional state or the atmosphere of a place as communicated and felt by others." Examples of some vibes are tropical, corporate, girly, or vintage. A vibe is how a graphic designer will describe the look of something they are working on. With a vibe provided, they will make sure to make the design fit the desired vibe. It will keep the designer on track and fit the theme you are going for. Another valuable asset!

#7: Busy Or Simple
Determining if you want a busy or simple design is a key factor to the graphic designer. A busy design has lots of text, elements, information, and colors. Let's call the busy part of the spectrum an 'ice cream truck'. Usually on these trucks there is a lot of pictures and prices, making it look very busy. Meanwhile on the opposite side of the spectrum there is the simple look. This visual usually looks minimalistic and has hardly anything on it. Simple shapes, flat text, and limited variety of color are all examples of a 'simple' design, such as a taxi cab! Figuring out where you want to land on this spectrum will help the designer visualize what to do with what they are given.

#8: Your Target Audience 
Do you know who you want your target audience to be? If so, you guessed it! Tell the graphic designer! A younger teen audience would require a hip fresh design while an older audience might be more inclined to a corporate professional look. Whoever your audience, it is important the designer knows about it. If you don't have a target audience, it's fine. However if so you should still let the designer know. That way they can cater to a look that fits everyone. Yes it's possible!

#9: What not to do
Graphic designers don't want to waste your time nor have their time wasted. Avoiding confusion at all costs is a goal to create with them. If you aren't too sure what you want then you most certainly should have an idea of what you don't want. Ruling out any elements can help the graphic designer get a grip on a vision of their project. Whether you want to stay away from the color purple or avoid a certain ugly font, let the designer know.

#10: PATIENCE
Full disclosure: graphic designers are not magic! In some circumstances a project can take hours on hours on end, and making different proofs and drafts is not a walk in the park. These tasks can be tedious and stressful at times, so this is just a reminder to please be patient and have a positive attitude. Getting upset at the graphic designer is not going to make them work quicker! In fact, designers work best along side someone who is willing to work together and communicate effectively. If you plan on collaborating with a graphic designer, go in with a positive attitude and a passion.

Common Misconceptions About Vehicle Wraps

The vehicle wrap industry is in a constant growth with new materials, technologies and installation methods. Due to such a large growth and talk of wrapping vehicles there have been some myths and misinformation floating around so we would like to clarify some of these common misconceptions about vehicle wraps. 

Myth 1: Leased vehicles cannot be wrapped.

We often apply vehicle wraps to leased cars. The wrap serves as a protectant of the paint on the vehicle and can be removed when your leasing period is over.

Myth 2: Only white vehicles can be wrapped.

What a myth! We can absolutely wrap cars of any color, make and model. 

Myth 3: Wraps are a waste of money.

Compared to other types of paid advertising, vehicle wraps are the most cost effective. 

You already own your vehicle and with a onetime payment you own your wrap so there are not any monthly costs. The vehicle is driven daily getting more exposure than any online advertising host, plus the wrap often pays for itself with one or two jobs gained from a potential client seeing your wrap and using the services offered.

Myth 4: I (the customer) can install and/or design the wrap myself. 

This is not so much a myth, more of a suggestion. Sure, a lot of people can design the wrap and install it themselves but as the professionals here at Fast-Trac we advise against this if you do not have experience. 

Vehicle wraps are laid out on custom templates, designed and prepped for print in certain ways to ensure accuracy when installed. Clients that layout their own wrap risk their project taking longer if our design team must edit the files to fit properly on the vehicle. When wraps are purchased at Fast-Trac Designs we take your information and produce your layout then after approval and printing is complete we install in house. So, no need for our clients to attempt designing, installing and risking having a wrap with flaws.

Myth 5: Vehicle wraps are permanent.  

False. We can remove vehicle wraps and the only thing that may cause difficulties is 

if the wrap has been on for over five years and not maintained (cleaned, waxed etc.) 

Nonetheless we can still remove the wrap and even apply a new one.

We hope this information helped you understand vehicle wraps a little more. If you have more questions or have heard some other myths about vehicle wraps feel free to ask in the comments below. 

Passing A Decade

It is official, Fast-Trac Designs is 11 years old. It has taken a ton of hard work and dedication to grow from a garage based business. Our success and continued growth has been amazing and we could not have done it without our customers. The ones who return and the ones who refer, every client makes this possible and we are so grateful. We look forward to continuing to provide screen printing and vehicle wraps here in Arizona and cant wait to see what the future holds.

Protect Your Investment!

A goal of every company is to grow, right? Fast-Trac Designs is very excited to introduce another division of our company called Wrap Detail LLC. We provide hundreds of clients whom are also business owners with vehicle wraps and we will also now provide care and protection for the wraps. 

  Wrap Detail LLC currently has three products available that were specially created by Fast-Trac Designs to  keep your vehicle wrap clean as well as protect it from the elements we drive through daily. 

  The first is Finishing Touch spray that is to be used after washing while the surface of the vehicle is still wet. a few sprays will eliminate water spots & remove any remaining residue. 

Finishing Touch can also be used on any surface including windows, chrome, paint and certainly on vehicle wraps. 

  Next is the Fast Wax. Fast Wax spray will shield your vehicle wrap from minor scratches, keep your 

wrap looking new and only needs to be used every 3 months. This wax also features rain dance technology that repels water drops to keep your wrap spot free. The final product is another wax called Water Craft Wax. This is great for boat wraps and keeps your boat looking new! 

  Only supplied and sold by Fast-Trac Designs these items can be purchased for $20.00 each or $35.00 for both the Finishing touch and Fast Wax. We will also refill your bottles at our shop for $15.00 each.

If you would like more information on Wrap Detail LLC contact us at 623.780.1168 and don't forget to

Wash, Rinse and Protect your investment with Wrap Detail!

The Best Cheesecake in Town

  Susie's AZ Kitchen is sure to make your mouth water featuring homemade lasagna and famous ribs as the main course then for dessert the owner of this food truck created Better Than Sex Cake and she also offers The Best Cheesecakes in Town. You cannot go wrong with these options and you will definitely come back for seconds.
  Owned and operated by a veteran, Susie's AZ Kitchen food truck can be seen at local events, fundraisers or you can reserve them for your personal occasions.  
  The wrap on this food truck completed by the team here at Fast-Trac features a suitable color combo along with retro looking layout and amazing photos of the food that are sure to send you cravings. 

What Do You Know About Dog Training?

  A well trained dog can amaze a crowd and impress your friends but the main focus on dog training and obedience school is to have a well behaved pup as well as a protector. A few months ago we met a new client that specializes in several types of dog training. Located here in Phoenix,       Desert Sky K9 All Breed Dog Training has all of the knowledge needed to teach your furry friends right from wrong and of course how to do tricks. With over 20 years of experience in family pet training and working K9 training, Mark and Gail are sure to provide an effective and useful learning experience. 

  We hope hundreds of potential customers for Desert K9 see there full custom vehicle wrap that was designed, printed and installed here at Fast-Trac Designs. Since they do specialize in training the Malinois breed our design team was sure to incorporate that photo into the wrap design and a gorgeous photo of an Arizona sky. Another service we provided to Desert Sky K9 is custom printed T-Shirts featuring their logo with diamond plate texture. We were very excited to see them on a news special showing off their new apparel and well trained pup. 

Here at Fast-Trac Designs we enjoy seeing our clients succeed. We had a great time working with Desert Sky K9 and look forward to their next project. 

Do You Have Proper Artwork?

If you are looking into having vehicle wraps, large format graphics or T-shirts done you will be asked this question. Do you have proper artwork? Maybe you are uncertain but the Fast-Trac Designs team is here to help you understand proper art formats, unusable art formats and what options you have to acquire the necessary art in order to complete your project.

First we would like to tell you about raster art and vector art. Raster art is what most internet images and photographs are formatted in. Made with pixels, (small squares that make up the image.) raster art cannot be manipulated without distorting the picture. Therefore, if we enlarge a raster image it will become pixilated (blurry.) Some raster files can be used depending on resolution of the photo however the image may still become pixilated. Raster file types are commonly .jpg .png .tiff & .gif

Now for vector art. This is what we need in order to properly produce vehicle wraps, screen printed apparel and other large format prints. When art is created in vector format it is made with lines and points that allow the ability to enlarge the art and it will never lose resolution. This art format is created in design programs such as Adobe Illustrator. Vector file types include .ai, .pdf & .eps

I know, now you are asking "Can my raster art be converted into vector art?" The answer is YES! We do have a very knowledgeable design department that can recreate your art to be the proper usable vector format.

Whew! That is a lot of information, but don't worry because the team at Fast-Trac Designs is here to guide you and your artwork is just the beginning. We work with our clients throughout the entire design process on every project. We hope that this helped you understand if you have proper artwork.

Graphics & Monsoon Season In Phoenix

    Monsoon season has arrived! With this muggy, humid weather we have been baring we thought we'd share some helpful advice and information about your signs, graphics and magnets.

Of course when the high winds kick up we do advise that your sidewalk signage such as A-frames and Flags are brought indoors. This will avoid damage to your signs and also avoid risk of traffic accidents if you are located near a high traffic road.

     Now when it comes to graphics such as wraps and vinyl lettering the high humidity will not negatively affect your decals. However, Storing your vehicle in a garage or carport will be beneficial to keep clear of flying debris or hail.

    Lastly, vehicle magnets would be the most concern in monsoon weather. High winds may cause them to blow off, dust will take away the magnetic strength and the humidity/heat can warp the magnet. To be sure this does not happen remove your magnets and store them flat in a cool, dry place. Clean the surface that you adhere your magnets to and clean your magnets front, back and edges using a nonabrasive cleaner.

With this advice your signs, graphics and magnets should survive the weather for this time of year.

For more information about Fast-Trac Designs and our services visit us on the web at www.fast-tracdesigns.com  

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