Here are seven planning tips to keep your project costs under control (and incidentally avoid the stigma of the "paper bag project.")

Time is money!

1. Know your marketing goals and the market you’re targeting.
2. Organize (sharp) copies of logos, photos, & other artwork before the project begins.
3. Provide your marketing consultant with details on your company’s history, products and services, previous brochures and advertising, and other pertinent information.
4. Most of us have a general idea of the “look & feel” we’re seeking for our marketing materials. Find samples of similar “looks” as a starting point.
5. Marketing is a team effort, but the fewer people you assign to review work products, the lower your fees will be (time is money).
6. Catch changes to copy, layout and other elements early in the draft process. “Author’s Alterations” (otherwise known as arbitrary changes and tinkering) to final proofs and bluelines are costly. (Charles Dickens died a pauper because of his notorious “editing” of printer’s proofs.)

7. Allow enough time for the project. Most graphic designers upcharge crash projects (although Details does not). While rush jobs are a reality in business, haste makes waste (and breeds error).