8 types of graphic design careers to explore
Explore the most popular career paths for graphic designers in 2022 Determine what type of graphic design specialty suits your skills and interests
Interested in building a career in graphic design? Graphic design is sometimes thought of as a single discipline, but in reality, there are many different specialties within the field. While some graphic designers are generalists and can work on multiple types of projects, others specialize in more specialized types of graphic design skills.
Whether you are a beginner interested in becoming a graphic designer or an experienced professional looking to transform into a different field, keep reading to explore the most popular career paths for graphic designers in 2022.
1. Brand Identity Design
2. Marketing and advertising design
3. Packaging design
4. Web and user interface design
5. Printing and publishing design
6. Lettering and type design
7. Graphic Illustration
8. Data visualization and infographic design
1. Brand Identity Design
When most people think of graphic design, they associate it with logo design. However, logo design is just one aspect of the larger specialization of graphic design that is brand identity.
Outside of logo design, identity designers also create the complete look and feel of a company’s visual presence. As part of this, they create color palettes, determine what type of image the company will use, determine the typography, and create other accompanying visual elements.
Brand Identity Designers are responsible for creating visual identities for the companies they work for. For this reason, they are usually responsible for creating brand style and usage guidelines that point to the work of other designers, including marketing designers and web designers.
Graphic designers who specialize in branding work usually work on:
- Brand strategy
- Typography
- Color palette
- Logo design
- Business card and/or fixed
- Icon system
- Brand guidelines
"I focus on guiding clients on a journey to develop and share their brand story in a clear and authentic way. I am. " - Emily Johnston, brand designer.
2. Marketing and advertising design
Whether displayed online or in print, marketing and advertising design are key elements of any company's promotional strategy.
Since the goal of marketing and advertising is to persuade consumers to purchase or sign up for a product or service, graphic designers working in this field need to have a strong idea of behavioral psychology when it comes to purchasing behavior.
Graphic designers who specialize in advertising and marketing focus on resource building, such as:
- Print and digital advertising
- Social media graphics
- Podcast cover art
- Banner
- Marketing Email
- Brochures and posters
- Billboard
- Vehicle wrapper
- Pitch deck and presentation
3. Packaging design
Physical products require packaging. Everything from grain boxes to designer clothing tags needs to be designed by someone. That's where the packaging designers come from.
Such graphic designers need to have a strong understanding of branding as well as consumer behavioral psychology to create a package that customers want to purchase.
They must be proficient in color theory and typography, as well as in any law or regulation regarding information that needs to be present in the packaging (such as nutrition information).
4. Web and user interface design
Web and UI designers create designs for websites and apps. They must have a strong understanding of design principles, as well as an understanding of the user experience design and basic coding principles.
While web and UI designers may not actually do any coding, understanding the strengths and limitations of code that empowers websites and apps makes them a more valuable part of any design team.
If you are a graphic designer specializing in web design or user interface, you can work on projects like landing pages, marketing websites, app design, game interfaces, or WordPress sites.
5. Printing and publishing design
Graphic designers worked entirely in the print world, and in 2022 there are still plenty of opportunities for this type of print design work.
Graphic designers in the printing and publishing industry need to understand the principles of good design as well as the technical features of creating print-ready files. They must have a strong understanding of color theory and typography, as well as what type of picture works best in a print vs. digital environment.
Print and publishing designers usually have their hands on all kinds of print-related projects, such as:
- Book cover
- Magazine and newspaper layout
- Menu design
- Album cover
- Commodities and clothing
- Brochures and flyers
- Stationery
6. Lettering and type design
One of the most often overlooked features of graphic design is character and type design. These graphic designers create everything from typeface and fonts to hand-laid designs.
Type and lettering designers need to have a thorough understanding of the typographic principles, which makes the typeface readable, and how concepts such as cornering and line-height work with the overall readability of a typographic design.
Hand-lettering artists often create things like symbols, flyers, murals and even wordmark logos. They can create designs by hand or digitally.
On the other hand, type designers often focus more on creating typeface (although they can also create one-off custom projects). There is a lot of overlap between what lettering and type designers do.
7. Graphic Illustration
When you think of graphic design, you may not immediately think of images. However, there is a demand for graphic illustrators in 2022 as brands continue to look for custom illustration work (also known as product illustration) for their online presence.
Graphic illustrators are usually tasked with creating illustrations for commercial and editorial purposes, as well as web design and live illustrations on social media. These types of graphic designers often create their images digitally, but some may use more analog tools and then digitize their images.
As a professional graphic illustrator, you will work on all types of images, including:
- Digital products
- Blog posts and articles
- Books and magazines
- Games
- Clothing
- And much more.
If you are a graphic illustrator, you can also create stock illustrations for wider use. It can be a good source of passive income as well as a way to build a reputation as a painter.
8. Data visualization and infographic designer
Data visualization and infographic designers need a strong understanding of how data can be presented accurately and in ways that make it easier to understand.
Working in this type of graphic design role means you need to understand how to work with large data sets and how to make that information digestible for people who are not data scientists.
It is helpful for data visualization and infographic designers to have at least some background knowledge and data science experience. The better they understand the data they are presenting, the better equipped they are to translate that data into easy-to-understand visuals.
Infographics and data visualization can be static or interactive (e.g. used in dashboards).
What kind of graphic design career is for you?
Whether you choose to specialize in a particular type of graphic design or become the jack of all trades, you should keep in mind that those who have a focused specialization can often pay a higher price and usually have a higher demand for the job. . No matter what type of design career you choose, be sure to create an attractive design portfolio that reflects the type of project you want to hire. Sign up for Dribbble Pro today to build an instant portfolio and get ready for new opportunities.