Graphic Design - MIFA Media

The Benefits of Working with Women-Owned Businesses

March 18, 2024/0 Comments/in Blog/by Mary Skomial

It’s National Women’s History Month. I don’t know about you, but I love following the stories about remarkable women and girls and what they have accomplished. And it’s a dream come true to be among those who are running successful businesses of their own – and doing work they are passionate about.

Woman-owned is a wonderful thing.
As the marketplace becomes more diverse, the number of women-owned businesses in the U.S. is growing. There are a number of certifications available to businesses that are primarily owned, controlled, operated, and managed by women. Acquiring any of these certifications requires a lengthy and intense vetting process. At MIFA Media, we decided to become a certified women-owned company in the State of New Jersey. Having gone through the process, I understand why being certified is valued so highly – by both businesses and those who hire them.

Partnering with a woman-owned business offers a boatload of benefits.
When you’re looking for new partnerships, there are plenty of reasons why it’s beneficial to hire a certified woman-owned business. For starters, you can be assured that you’re working with competent business owners who are committed to providing exceptional products and services.

Working with a certified women-owned business also encourages the kind of innovation and creativity that will give your company an advantage in a competitive marketplace. Studies have shown that diverse teams are more inventive and come up with better solutions to complex problems.

By working with a woman-owned business, you can tap into the unique perspectives and ideas of experienced women entrepreneurs. MIFA Media is among a surprisingly small number of women-owned creative agencies, and we’ve earned a reputation for our award-winning, out-of-the-box solutions for clients across a range of industries. We love getting to know our clients, and they love knowing we’re hands-on, nimble, and way more responsive than bigger, fancier firms.

Diversification is good for (your) business.
Partnering with a certified women-owned business shows your company’s willingness to work with diverse markets – and to put your beliefs into practice. It can lead to bigger opportunities with other companies that support business diversity, allow you to connect with new, socially-conscious consumers (including female consumers), and differentiate your business in the community.

Women-owned businesses often prioritize creating diverse and inclusive workplaces, which often helps improve employee morale and productivity for your business as well as theirs. Looking to attract high-quality talent? Showing that you work with diverse or minority-owned businesses is critical. A majority of job seekers today consider diversity when evaluating companies and job offers.

There are tax incentives for working with minority-owned businesses.
The government has passed laws that encourage companies to work with minority-owned businesses. There are federal and state programs that offer corporate tax reductions for hiring diverse suppliers, including women-owned businesses. This can help reduce overall taxable income and tax liabilities for projects funded with federal or state grants or loans when the supplier is women-owned. And supporting supplier diversity makes your business more attractive to corporations that are seeking second-tier sourcing suppliers that work with women-owned businesses.

From tax incentives to greater productivity to fresh thinking, working with women-owned businesses benefits your company, your customers, and your community. MIFA Media is proud to partner with kick-ass clients who want to create positive and meaningful change – in both the workplace and in their branding!

Graphic Design Dictionary Digital Edition

January 22, 2024/0 Comments/in Blog/by Mary Skomial

Like my blog post with print design keywords, there are many terms used in the digital realm
that can be consuming or need clarification. Here are the most used words.

RGB: This is the color mode used for digital design such as websites, email marketing, web
banners and more. RGB stands for red, green and blue.

Resolution/DPI: As mentioned in my previous blog (The Print Edition) 300 DPI is used for
print. When designing for digital pieces it's best to save at 72 DPI. Tip: With your websites
always make sure your images are at 72 versus 300 DPI. This will make the images smaller and
optimized for web making your website faster and liked by google.

PNG: This is a file format that is used for digital only, not print. PNGs can only be in RBG color
mode. What makes a PNG special is the ability to hold a transparent background.

Hex Code: This is a 6 digit number combination that web developers will use to determine a
color in HTML. Make sure to get your hex code from your logo colors.

Mobile Friendly: This relates to website design. Your website should be "Mobile Friendly"
meaning it looks good on your cell phone along with a desktop computer. This is very often
forgotten about which is bad since so many people today use their phone to go on websites.

Hover/Mouse over: Another term used for websites. Have you ever put your mouse pointer over
a button or image and it changes colors? That is what a hover/mouse over effect is.
Favicon: The small icon at the top left of your website tab. This is sized at 16×16 pixels.
Save for web: This term is used to make sure you are saving images for digital needs. So
remember images for web will be saved at 72 DPI and RGB color format.

UX: Also known as user experience. This is the interaction and experience users have such as
you and I with a website app etcetera

UI: Also known as user interface. This is the point of human computer interaction and
communication in a device. Examples of this include the design of a display screen, keyboard,
and mouse. This also includes how a user interacts with the application of a website.

Graphic Design Dictionary Print Edition

November 12, 2023/0 Comments/in Blog/by Mary Skomial

In this blog post, I’ll explain some common terms used by myself and many other graphic designers. This edition will be based mainly on printed design work. Next month will be for digital design.

Resolution: This refers to the DPI “Dots per Inch” which means the amount of dots of ink printed per inch of paper. The standard amount for print is 300 DPI. This ensures that your images and content will print crystal clear. Web resolution is much lower which is why grabbing images off of Google will be likely blurry or distorted, especially if you try printing them.

Dimensions: This is an easy one. This is the size of the printed piece. Many times this is often forgotten about by people who aren’t designers. This is one of the first things needed before starting any project. If you change the dimensions, this can change the look and layout of the entire piece, causing more time to revise everything. So be sure before starting anything to figure this out first.

Bleed: Have you ever tried printing something from your home printer and it NEVER goes to the edge of the paper, and there is always a white border? Adding a bleed means extending the design past the dimensions of the finished piece. This then lets the professional printers trim your piece to the correct size allowing your piece to go to the very edge.

Pantone: This is a book of colors that are a standard for matching colors. It’s very important to get your logo in Pantone colors when needing the exact color. A color can look VERY different on screen than print. Having this standard allows you to know that each print will look exactly the same. Please note that this is NOT the same as CYMK or RGB. A fun fact is the name PMS comes from “Pantone Matching System”

Vector Art: One of the most important items to have in vector is your logo. Vector files can be .ai, eps, PDF and SVG. This means that when scaled up or down the file, no matter what size, will retain it’s shape and will be clear and not distorted.

Color Modes: Besides Pantone there is also CYMK and RGB. Each color mode is used for different types of design. CYMK “Cyan, Yellow, Magenta and Black” is used for printing. Did you ever look at the ink inside of a printer? It is made up of these colors. Everything from images needs to be converted so when printed everything will print correctly. RGB on the other end is for digital design. I’ll go over this in my “Digital Edition Blog Post” next month.

Crop Marks: These are the marks that printers use to cut your piece to the correct size. These marks are at each corner of your piece to ensure you get the correct final size.

Dieline: When doing more intricate design such as packaging a dieline is very important. This is the shape of the final piece. A dieline is a layer which should NOT be printed, that depicts all elements including: cut, fold glue marks and more.
Typography: This is the overall generic term which relates to the fonts in your project such as serif and sans serif fonts. Typography has so many components that I’ll do another blog breaking it down more.

High versus low resolution: High resolution means the file is print ready and saved at the best possible setting. The images will appear crisp and not fuzzy. Low Resolution means the file was down-saved. The images will appear blurry/fuzzy. This file is not for printing purposes but used many times to sent to client via email for proofing purposes since it’s a smaller file size.

Why are logo and brand design so expensive?

October 12, 2023/0 Comments/in Blog/by Mary Skomial

At MIFA Media, we understand the importance of knowing where and how your money is being spent. Weighing costs is something that we contend with every day. So we understand the knee-jerk reaction to some logo and brand design costs. It seems expensive for something that…doesn’t physically exist. BUT, and this is a big but (and we cannot lie), it is worth it! Let us break it down for you.

What are you paying for?

Knowledge/Experience

The team at MIFA Media has over 75 years of brand and design experience. We live and breathe design every day of our lives. Not only that, we’re constantly learning as well. As a design firm, our education is continuous in order to provide the best service possible to our customers. Aside from our innate ability, years of experience, and constant striving for perfection, we also keep up with the latest design trends. Simply put, we know design.

Time/Effort

When we’re working on a project, our focus is entirely on the client. We set aside a block of time where our energy is dedicated to one thing. We do this for every project we tackle. Our time is valuable, but you get what you pay for. Good design takes time and focus.

Customization/Bespoke

Every project we undertake is crafted to suit the exact needs of the client. We don’t work from templates. We figure out what the client wants and needs and utilize that information to create something bespoke. Unlike some DIY design sites, you can directly interface with us. That means you can change things on the fly or hit us with a new idea altogether. MIFA Media is here for whatever you need when it comes to a project.

My Expenses

Finally, we incur regular costs to keep the business running. We try to keep the overhead low, but we are running a business. Some of that cost has to be passed onto the clients. Overall, the quality of our work more than makes up for the price. And, as an added bonus, these expenses are typically tax deductible!

An Investment In Your Future

Don’t think of it as paying for design. Think of it as investing in your brand. If you want a strong return on you investment, you need to start with high quality work. When it comes to design, MIFA Media is dedicated to making sure your money is well spent. Contact us today for your next design project!

MIFA Media’s Year End Tips For Small Businesses

November 20, 2022/0 Comments/in Blog/by Mary Skomial

Believe it or not, we’re just about at the end of the year. And you need to make sure your brand design is looking fine for Auld Lang Syne.

Yikes – that was groan-worthy! I regret nothing.

Anyway, now’s the time to get your brand in order, get some holiday sales going, and ring in the New Year with some new business. Here are some tips on how to make that happen.

Create a design and marketing budget and start setting aside money now. Like right now. Design and marketing is important for small businesses to grow, but it can also get expensive fast. If you start saving now (and keep saving) you’ll set yourself up for the future. Channel your inner Scrooge McDuck.
Keep an eye on your competition. You should be doing this already, but it’s especially important as the year draws to a close. What trends seem popular? Should you lean into them? Forge your own path? You need to know what’s happening in order to decide.
Where are you?! An online presence is important, but it’s useless if people can’t find it. Be sure to include a link in your IG Bio so potential clients can connect with you. Alternatively, you can create your own for your personally hosted website. It’s a great way to track who’s visiting your site. Not in a creepy way. Don’t make it weird.
Plan for promotions now so you’re ready to go in the New Year. Be prepared! Timing is everything. Obtaining new business might come down to just getting there first.
Where are you?! Part 2: Make sure you have your information ready to go for prospective clients. Physical business cards are fantastic, but Digital Business Cards are also super handy. Not only does it simplify things by letting you text or email your business card, it also decreases the chance of the client misplacing your information.

And that’s all I’ve got! You don’t even have to do all of these. Even if you only manage to do a couple, you’ll be ahead of the game.

What To Do With Your Logo

June 24, 2022/0 Comments/in Blog/by dev4mifa

Tag Archive for: Graphic Design