A few days ago, the owner of my company was in the middle of saying something and he caught himself. He started to say that he wanted us to “bang (a project) out.” he then corrected himself and said that he wanted us to “hit it out of the park.”

It made me think, though the terms are similar, there is a really big difference between “bang it out” and “hit it out of the park.”

The goal of any designer is to always “hit it out of the park” but we often don’t have the time. One thing that constantly amazes me about our agency is the speed in which we usually work. Too often we’re forced to “bang something out.” But we’re always striving to do great work at breakneck speeds.

I’ve found that there are a few ways to help the process of banging out good work.

Knowing the client’s vision is the best way to help speed up the process. With familiar clients, we usually have a much better chance of developing something they like the first or second time around.

If you’re not familiar with your client’s past work, do a little bit of research. Viewing the client’s history, as well as their competitors often gives me the guidelines in which I need to work. Basically, know what industry you’re working with and stick with the previously established guidelines.

Showing the client multiple options is the best way to get an approval. This may not be an option if you’re under a crazy deadline, but if there is time, it will definitely help. I’ve found that more often than not, people tend not to stray outside of their comfortable limits. Offering them a familiar design, as well as an envelope-pushing design gives the client a sense of ownership. Instead of just giving them something and saying “here it is”, they are able to be involved and make decisions. They’ll usually go with the safe design, but once in a while you’ll be pleasantly surprised.

All of these suggestions can help with any project, but when I’m under the deadline gun, I find that these help me bang out high quality work, really fast. It’s not necessarilly the way I prefer to work, but that’s life in the big city.