Maximize visual design expertise for student success

If your time is already stretched too thin or you lack extensive visual design training, your best chance for success this fall may be outsourcing your visual design to an expert. Award-winning designer Aaron Hines, who you may also know as our Director of Customer Relations, shared some insights on engaging a visual designer:

• Make sure you set up and stick to a timeline. Start with when you need to learn drill and work backward.
• When does your guard staff need the drill to write the choreography?
• Back to the date your designer needs to have your instrumentation, equipment changes, prop specifics, and source material to meet these dates.
• Stick to these dates! Expecting your visual team to bail out late music deliveries or late design choices is not conducive to a healthy relationship or a product to be proud of.
• Think through all aspects of your vision and design to ensure accomplishment. 
• Does your budget allow for the props you want to have?
• Can your team afford to spend time learning how to build, use, and get props to and from rehearsal?
• Can your booster program pull off your vision financially or pragmatically? (not just building it but also transporting it to and from competitions) 
• Provide your designer as much information as possible.
• Do you have any field restrictions at your main rehearsal space? (For example, you may only have a 20-to-20 practice field.) Or maybe you rehearse in a parking lot where there is a light pole on the 35 front hash. If this sounds familiar, ask your designer to work around these restrictions, so your team doesn’t have to adjust at the last minute for the performance.
• Your designer should also know:
• The level of complexity you would like. Factors such as the amount of rehearsal time, the group's experience level, how many pages you can learn/clean in a season, and the performance venue (college gameday, national competition, middle school parent performance night) are important to review.
• Where your guard staff would like equipment changes to happen and how many members go to what implement.
• What are your prop specifics? Where? How many? What size? Are they used to hide performers and perform equipment/costume changes behind them?
• Whether you plan to add/subtract members per movement to accommodate changes to your team or if your initial numbers will be used throughout the design.
• Details the strengths and weaknesses of your ensemble so the design can be tailored to your specific team.
• Engage a designer who utilizes the benefits of modern technology. Drill sheets in PDF format, Cast Lists, Production Sheets, and Video Animation synced to audio are irreplaceable benefits to efficient rehearsals and a staff who can focus on educating the ensemble.

Behind every creative design of mine is a detailed and educational approach to the students' success. Over the years, I have highlighted issues that either sweetened or soured a relationship and student experience. Good luck out there!