DESIGN TALK. NEGOTIATION. QUESTIONS FOR PERSUADING

DESIGN TALK

NEGOTIATION

QUESTIONS FOR PERSUADING

WHEN A CLIENT WANTS MORE (BUT DOESN’T WANT TO PAY)

I Lead in. Answer the questions:

a) Do you think that clients often ask designers to do extra work or work outside original agreements? Have you or someone you know had such experience?

b) What is the best way for a freelance designer to negotiate the terms of extra work?

c) Is it right to say no to the client who asks for too much work or wants to pay little?

II Watch the video and answer the questions:

1 What does the client want the freelance designer (videographer/photographer) to do?

2 How much does the designer want the client to pay? How much does the client want to pay?

3 How does the client try to influence the designer? What are his arguments to make the designer do extra work for free or for a small sum of money?

4 Does the designer accept the client’s terms? Does he agree to do the extra work for a small sum of money? How does the designer show his position?

5 How does the conversation end? Will the designer do any work for the client? Will they work together in future?

III Focus of communication. Questions for persuading.

a)    Study the example from the dialogue.

Designer: Yeah. That doesn't sound quite like in the middle, does it?

It’s a tag question that looks like a statement and ends with , does it?

  

 We usually need questions with tags ( ,don’t you, does it?, etc.)  to check the information that we think is correct. We know or think that something is true and believe the other person agrees with us. We don’t want to find out new information; we want the other person to say that we are right.

So in the dialogue the designer believes that the sum the client is ready to pay is too small, so he uses a tag question to persuade the client that the sum he wants to pay too small (the sum is not in the middle between the big sum the designer wants and the small sum for the work without extra task).

b)    Study the rules.

·       We use auxiliary verbs in question tags: He works as a designer, doesn’t he?

·       We only use pronouns in question tags: Ted works as a photographer, doesn’t he?

NOTE!

that ] it

That doesn't sound quite like in the middle, does it?

someone/somebody/everyone/everybody ] they

Everyone knows their agency, don’t they?

everything/something ] it

Something is wrong with the colours, isn’t it?

Tense		auxiliary verb /verb in question tag	example
Present Simple	am/is/ are	aren’t, isn’t (am/is/are)	Shapes just like colours  are important design tools, aren’t they?
			I am in charge of this project, aren’t I?
	V Vs	don’t, doesn’t (do/does)	Rectangles give a sense of stability and formality in poster design, don’t they?
Past Simple	was/were	wasn’t, weren’t (was/were)	Rectangles were the most common shapes in design, weren’t they?
	Ved V2	didn’t (did)	The designer mixed green and yellow colours, didn’t he?
Future Simple	will +V	won’t (will)	They will mix green and yellow colours, won’t they?
Present Continuous	am/is/are + Ving	aren’t, isn’t (am/is/are)	The designer is working on the logo now, isn’t he?
Past Continuous	was/were + Ving	wasn’t, weren’t (was/were)	The client was discussing the layout for 2 hours yesterday, wasn’t he?
Future Continuous	will be + Ving	won’t (will)	The agency will be working on our corporate style all June, won’t it?
Present Perfect	have/has + V3	hasn’t/haven’t (has/have)	Jess has already presented her portfolio, hasn’t she?
Past Perfect	had + V3	hadn’t (had)	Tom had drawn the logo by hand before he scanned it to work in Photoshop, hadn’t he?
Future Perfect	will have + V3	won’t (will)	You will have printed all the invitations by the end of the week, won’t you?
Present Perfect Continuous	have/has been + Ving	hasn’t/haven’t (has/have)	You have been working in that agency since your graduation from college, haven’t you?
Past Perfect Continuous	had been+ Ving	hadn’t (had)	Jess had been working on the logo for 3 hours when the client called and cancelled the order, hadn’t she?
Future Perfect Continuous	will have been+ Ving	won’t (will)	By June we will have been working on the new logo for 2 months, won’t we?
Modal verbs	can	can’t (can)	You can also take several pictures for us, can’t you?
	would	wouldn’t (would)	The clients would agree to change the design, wouldn’t they?

·       POSITIVE SENTENCE ] NEGATIVE TAG

Shapes just like colours  are important design tools, aren’t they?

NEGATIVE SENTECE ]POSITIVE TAG

The designer didn’t use geometric shapes in logo design, did he?

IV Practise. Correct the question tags in the sentences.

a)    The design course focuses on visual communications, does it?

b)    Students are studying typography and illustration, aren’t students?

c)    Students were making sketches adding minimal colour, were they?

d)    Tom wants to learn how to use the newest design skills, didn’t he?

e)    The course is not just about doing posters or magazines or leaflets, isn’t it?

f)     Students can get also into animation and motion graphics in general, don’t they?

g)    The course’s really broad, aren’t it?

h)    Students have access to all of the Adobe programs, have they?

i)      Last year young designers got the chance to work with 3D printers, don’t they?

j)     The logo design has been influenced by ideas of modernism, has it?

k)    Our rivals believed that they could design a better posted, didn’t rivals?

l)      Your creative director considered ornamentation a frivolous waste of effort, doesn’t he?

m)  The clients will tell you that for their leaflet function is very important, will they?

n)    The client chose the design was based on the symbols of  European history, was he?

o)    Our design process had included surveys and interviews, has it?

p)    The brochure design is not the most colourful, isn’t it?

q)    Tom has created a good example of universal design, haven’t he?

V Choose the correct tag to complete each sentence.

1) We agreed on the price of 800,

A did we?            B didn’t we?                   C do we?

2) You're asking me for more things,

A didn’t you?   B is you?   C aren’t you?

3) That’s a lot more for a couple of photos,

A isn’t it?    B was it?       C hasn’t it?

4) That seems a little unreasonable,

A does it?  B doesn’t it?     C  has it?

5) Other designers would probably charge you $800 just to take photos,

A won’t they?   B wouldn’t they?   C wouldn’t other designers?

6) You have a lot of choices to make,

A  had you?   B  don’t you?   C has you?

7) You can choose to work with whoever you want,

A did you?   B can you?    C can’t you?

8) It doesn't seem to work for you,

A  does it?      B works it?   C has it? 

9) The time is drawing closer,

A  isn’t it?    B isn’t the time?   C  is it?

10) You don't want to lose money and pay rush fees,

A do you?  B  don’t you?   C won’t you?

VI Complete each question by filing the gap with a question tag. Use contractions (don’t) where possible (write don’t, not do not).

1.    During first meeting with the client we were exploring the symbol of lips in logo design, _______________________?

2.    We made sure that all three elements of the logo were really easy to read, _______________________?

3.    Certain letters in the logo will be tricky to draw, _______________________?

4.    Letters cannot flow into each, _______________________?

5.    I sent you the initial sketches, _______________________?

6.    The client liked the idea of creating a small stamp, _______________________?

7.    You can see the development from the original rough logo to the final one, _______________________?

8.    We have been exploring the idea of embossing, _______________________?

9.    Jack is an expert in interactive design, _______________________?

10.Our designers have a lot of experience in pattern making, _______________________?

11.The woman isn’t qualified for a job of a graphic designer, _______________________?

12. It’s not too late to make changes, _______________________?

13.You didn’t have any specific changes in mind, _______________________?

14. That doesn’t give us  any time to design the new signs, _______________________?

15. The texture artists took care of the details in game levels, _______________________?

16. You haven’t had a chance to have a look at the cover ideas I left you, _______________________?

17. The first poster doesn’t look  too dark, _______________________?

18.This corporation needs a non-traditional logo, _______________________?

19.We can use a different typeface to make it look modern, _______________________?

20.She specialized in print design, _______________________?

21.The client will send more information about the specifications later, ___________________?

22.It will be about a week before posters are printed, _______________________?

23.That font is difficult to read, _______________________?

24.You warned the client that the editing might take longer, ______________________?

25.The designer will e-mail you the new version when it’s ready, _______________?

26.People won’t be able to read this poster from the distance, ________________?

27.In this image all the colour and shapes blended together, _______________________?

28.You’ll look at it again when it’s completely finished, _______________________?

29.The client didn’t ask to add a few more details, _______________________?

30.The designer has just finished a drawing for the café sign, ______________?

31.You kept the original concept, _______________________?

32.You told me to darken the background, _______________________?

33.The client liked the way they designed the new logo, _______________________?

34.The designer will have finished the logo by tomorrow morning, _______________?

35.You can erase the border around the picture, _______________________?

36.You can make a pretty simple adjustment, _______________________?

37.The client prefers brushwork that seems to flow, ________________?

38.The photo’s too close to the company name, _______________________?

VII OVER TO YOU.

A) Work with pairs. Write questions with question tags to check information you think you know about other students in the class. Ask follow-up questions if possible.

Fernando- You went to art school, didn’t you?

B) Create a dialogue between a designer and a client (similar to the dialogue in the video). Use at least 3 tag questions.