Landscape designers have a lot to keep in mind when working on a project for their clients. With many different tasks to balance and prioritize, they need to keep track of what’s most important before presenting their finished work to their client. Let’s take a look at what the most important things are that a landscape designer should include in their design.
The most important things a landscape designer should make sure their designs have are functionality, a visually pleasing aesthetic that fits the target audience, making sure it follows safety standards, and ensuring it includes all requirements from the client’s end. Following these four guidelines will ensure that the landscape designer has completed the job successfully from their end.
Let’s take a deeper look into each one of these topics to better understand what it takes to deliver each one successfully, and why each one is so important to be included in a design. Let’s dive right in and get started!
A Design Must Include Functionality
A very, very important part of any job is to make sure if something is created, it must function correctly. If it doesn’t, there isn’t much use for the object. Likewise, in a design project, a landscape designer needs to make sure that any space they design functions properly. Whether the space’s main purpose is to look gorgeous, or it is a park or public space that serves another purpose – this purpose must be met for the landscape designer’s project to be a success.
Let’s look at an example to make more sense of this. Let’s say the space in question the designer is creating is a playground for a public school. The playground of course needs to work properly and the kids should be able to play on it. The swings should swing, the slide should slide, and the monkey bars should monkey… I mean the kids should be able to swing across on them. The overall design of the space should flow well and make sense for the size of the school. It should fit the theme of the school, and of course, be safe to use for the kids. If not, it doesn’t serve its purpose as a playground for an elementary school.
This concept can be applied across the board regardless of what the design project is. Whatever the project may be, it should properly function the way it is meant to.
A Design Must Be Aesthetically Pleasing and Fit the Target Audience
One of the most important parts of a designer’s job is to make sure the space is aesthetically pleasing to the viewer’s eye. This look may vary depending on the client commissioning it, and the clientele it is meant for. What is beautiful to kids will vary from what is beautiful to adults. If you are catering to an artist community their perception of beauty will likely differ from a group of doctors. So, it is hard to judge beauty with a single definition. However, the overall concept should align with what the client commissioned, and please the audience it was designed for.
Think about the playground we talked about above. It is geared toward kids, so making the space fancy with references and spaces that only adults would understand wouldn’t make much sense. On the other hand, if the designer is creating a space for a five-star restaurant, then a space with playthings and spaces to draw doesn’t make much sense. Whatever the design concept is, it must be geared towards its designated audience.
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Make Sure the Design Follows Safety Standards
Another important part of a landscape designer’s work is following safety standards. Just imagine the problems that would ensue if playgrounds and parks were built without following proper safety rules! It is crucial that a landscape designer properly learn and follow all safety rules to make sure structures are built correctly and will stand the test of time.
A landscape designer may be in charge of designing parks, playgrounds, and many other areas. Each of these spaces will have different safety rules in place that may differ from one another. Taking into account all regulations and making sure they are followed is a huge part of seeing a design through.
You likely will be creating your design through some sort of 3D rendering program. Utilize these programs to make notes of what sort of safety precautions need to be taken, well before the project enters its construction phase. This will save you from forgetting anything and anyone else who sees your design will also see all of the notes you made on safety measures.
Following Through on the Client Vision
The last topic we will take a look at today is making sure the client’s visions are properly taken into account and delivered. When a designer takes on a job, of course, they have creative freedom and the ability to make changes where they see fit. But at the end of the day, they are working for someone else who is commissioning their work.
A designer needs to properly understand what it is that the client is asking for and needs to be sure they are working this into their design. Not doing so may end in a frustrated client who ends up with a product they did not ask for.
During the initial phase when you are working with your client on coming up with a vision, be sure to take careful notes on everything they want to see in the final project. These notes will be helpful to refer back to once you start designing. If you have a good rapport with your client (which you hopefully will) check in with them periodically to see if your design is headed in the right direction. All of these steps will help avoid any trouble at the end of the project.
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Bringing it All Together
If you are a landscape designer or are working towards becoming one, then make sure you follow the four guidelines we talked about above when working on your designs. If it helps, make a checklist and make sure to check each item off the list as you are working on your design. Make sure to be thorough, you must give each job 110% and follow through on every requirement.
Keep in mind the example we talked about above with the children’s playground. The playground must function as a playground in that the kids should be able to play in it and have fun. This is making sure that the playground has functionality. The playground should also be aesthetically pleasing to the kids, and make sense to them. Since the space is geared toward children, it doesn’t make sense to add any references or spaces that only adults would understand or use. This ensures that it is aesthetically pleasing and is geared towards its target market.
Making sure that the playground follows all safety guidelines is a huge must! If not, there is no way of guaranteeing that the slide isn’t going to crumble while a child is halfway down! Lastly, the playground should align with the visions of the school or individual who is commissioning it. Often, schools have their colors that they may wish to see in the playground, or they may want their school mascot or founding members incorporated somehow. Whatever it may be, make sure to include all of their wishes in the design.
You should be able to apply these concepts to every design project you take on. Running through a mental checklist like we just did above will be very helpful in checking to make sure you hit all the boxes! Good luck, and make sure to keep these guidelines in mind as you work your way through projects!
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Frequently Asked Questions
How long does the typical design project take – how long will I have to design each project?
Design projects usually take anywhere from three months to a year – depending on the scale of the project. The design phase will take place at the beginning of the project so that construction can begin once the design has been finalized. How long exactly you have to design the space will depend on what you decide on with your client. Be sure to negotiate enough time into your contract before signing, to ensure you won’t rush and under-deliver.
How do I know what safety regulations need to be followed for my specific design?
If you are unsure of what regulations need to be followed for any given design, check with your local government before proceeding. They will be able to let you know exactly what safety precautions need to be followed for your specific design. If you want to learn more, there are courses you can take for landscape designers and online classes/videos you can learn from.
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Meet Shawn Chun: Entrepreneur and Landscape Business Fan.
I’m a happy individual who happens to be an entrepreneur. I have owned several types of businesses in my life from a coffee shop to an import and export business to an online review business plus a few more and now I create online resources for those interested in starting new ventures. It’s demanding work but I love it. I do it for those passionate about their business and their goals. That’s why when I meet a landscape business owner at a job site, driving down the road or anywhere else I see myself. I know how hard the struggle is to retain clients, find good employees and keep the business growing all while trying to stay competitive.
That’s why I created Landscaping Business Boss: I want to help landscape business owners like you build a thriving business that brings you endless joy and supports your ideal lifestyle.