# General Business Category > General Business Forum >  Red Giant Design Studios - Mark Atkinson

## AmithS

Hello everyone,

I would like to share my experience with you regarding Mark Atkinson and the Red Giant Design Studios in Durban.

As some of you may know I recently have embarked on a new business venture (it is something that I am very passionate about and will post more in a new thread).  

As I am on a very tight deadline to complete the branding\identity of my business I decided to give Mark a try as my regular designer was not available due to other commitments.  Now firstly I dont have tons of experience with designing but I do have a fair amount of experience and have complete designs with a few companies.  

Mark was more than willing to assist me with logo and business card designs, being very accommodating and patient in explaining how they work, pricing, design formats etc

Now the magic about the whole experience started with the questionnaire that I was sent.  A whole host of very important and relevant questions where asked which makes one think about their business as they are completing it. (I also think it is important to note that all other designers I dealt with where in person where as with mark, he is based in Durban and I am based in Pretoria and all correspondence was done mainly via email) 

I must admit the first part that I was concerned with was that all other designers I dealt with normally supplied between 3-5 logo concepts where as with Red Giant they provide 2 concepts.  After providing Mark with the questionnaire on Friday mid day, I received the 2 concepts on Monday (which is super quick if you have done logo designs before) 

I must say my wife and I where completely impressed.  Now here is the thing, you get 2 concepts vs. 3-5 but the logos are so well taught out and carefully made with great detail that anymore concepts are definitely not necessary, actually the first one designed was the one I chose.  All the questions asked are definitely reflected in the logo.  THESE GUYS LISTEN TO WHAT YOU TELL THEM AND REALLY HAVE AN EXCELLENT FEEL FOR THEIR CUSTOMERS TASTES AND NEEDS Now this was really a first for me where I only had 1 revision to make to the chosen concept logo and that was to move 2 words in the logo probably 2mm to the left.(just because I am picky  and I had to make at least 1 change  :Wink: ) It is not often that you come across designers that take so much pride in just concepts and not the final product where you normally have to give them a whole list of revisions.

The same went with the business cards, after being so impressed with the logo designs Mark produced a stunning professional business card design. Even the image file formats supplied to me where amazing as with other designers I would be locked in to use their services even if I wanted to change a background colour where as now I have much more freedom to work with the designs .

It is really a pleasure to work with people who are in touch with their customers needs and deliver real results which leaves you with one less thing to worry about in this fast paced world of ours. Which was a major bonus for me not having to worry about the designs as I knew they were in very capable hands.

I take my hats of to Mark and the Red Giant team, they are truly passionate about what they do, professional and deliver a customer service level that is hard to find these days.

Mark, thanks again for taking a huge responsibility of my hands, which really gave me time to concentrate on other important tasks during my new venture start-up.

I would definitely recommend the Red Giant Design Studios services to anyone looking for a world class customer service experience and breathe taking graphic designs.

Regards,
Jwalker

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Mark Atkinson (14-Aug-11)

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## mother

Wow, well done, Mark & team! Obviously one VERY happy customer. Word-of-mouth feedback like this is worth so much more than paid advertising, because obviously, next time I'm in need of a design team, I'm going to consider you guys for the job.

JWalker, are you gonna show us some pictures of the logo & cards? Or is it still too early to reveal?

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Mark Atkinson (14-Aug-11)

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## Mark Atkinson

Wow!  :Embarrassment:  It's moments like these that make all the hard work completely worthwhile. Thank you so much, JWalker.   

It was an absolute pleasure working with him to create the logo and business cards for his new venture.  I think there is a common misconception with design related work that if a design comes out below-par that the designer is not worth the money he is getting paid.  In some instances this may be true, but the reality is that great designs come about from the *combined* efforts of the designer and the client.  In this instance, JWalker provided us with *comprehensive* and *exhaustive* answers to our questions.  Because of this, we were able to gain a better understanding of his needs and tastes.  I almost feel bad with so much credit being given to us, as with the direction he provided us with, it was really not difficult to put together the designs he liked so much.  :Smile: 

It was truly refreshing to work with a client who knew almost precisely what he was looking for - all he needed was a bit of creative edge from our side to produce the designs.  :Smile:  

I'm totally flattered and overjoyed with this unexpected reference for Red Giant Design, thanks again JWalker.  I have a feeling it's going to be an awesome week!  :Wink: 

@Mother - Thank you! If JWalker agrees I will post the final designs for both his logo and business card.  :Smile:

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## Blurock

Well done guys! Another satisfied customer. :Clap:

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Mark Atkinson (14-Aug-11)

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## Mark Atkinson

For everybody who's interested, here are JWalker's designs.  :Smile:  Just click on the images for larger versions.

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## IanF

Are we meant to see a key in the S in Singh?
Great logo!

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## Blurock

Wow! Great logo. Says it all.  :Thumbup:

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Mark Atkinson (15-Aug-11)

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## Mark Atkinson

> Are we meant to see a key in the S in Singh?
> Great logo!


Yip! We used negative space to include a "hidden" key - a reinforcement of the slogan, "Unlocking business potential."

Thanks Ian!  :Smile:

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## murdock

well done mark...i believe with the passion and motivation you have...you are going places...just a word of advice just becarefull of getting tooo big too quickly...rather build a solid customer foundation and grow...within your means.

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Mark Atkinson (15-Aug-11)

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## Mark Atkinson

Thank you Murdock.  :Smile:  I certainly hope so. I'll be sure to make sure our growth is controlled. Thanks!

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## AmithS

Hey guys,

Thats what I like the most about the logo, even tough I chose a traditional naming method by using my surname, the unlocking is shown in the key and potential in the arrow.

What is really good for me in addition is that the logo and card represents the professionalism of my business as well as it is fresh and modern look and feel (not a old school style logo of a old school style consulting firm  :Smile:  )

Thanks,

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## Blurock

Another happy customer! Mark and his team designed and completed our web site during December 2012. I am sure it also involved a lot of late night work. 

We are already ranked on the first page on Google search for "plastic water meters". You are welcome to have a look. Some honest comments will be appreciated. http://amanzi.co

Thank you for a job well done Mark. :Applaud:

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Mark Atkinson (14-Jan-13), wynn (14-Jan-13)

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## Mike C

> We are already ranked on the first page on Google search for "plastic water meters". You are welcome to have a look. Some honest comments will be appreciated. http://amanzi.co


Nice clean presentation.  Loads quickly - informative and professional.  Nicely done.

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Mark Atkinson (14-Jan-13)

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## Justloadit

Nice - loads quickly, clean, but left me wanting more information about the products with specifications, and pictures. 
Time to start loading all the brochures on your products


Something which has nothing to do with the website and company, so apology to you Bluerock, but irks me, however it has to do with where we all live, and the political crap that we have to wade through. That is the part about being "predominantly Black owned", we are in a modern society, and while we continue with this degrading to whom it is supposed to uplift practice, as per the government requirements, we will never rid ourselves of this racial discrimination shackles that we were supposed to have shed at the start of our South African democracy in 1994. 

If I am an overseas client looking for new suppliers, I really could not give a rats ass about who the members of the company are, and if the company is based on a specific continent, I would expect the majority of the company to be predominantly from the continent they are manufacturing in.

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## Blurock

@Justloadit, thank you for the feedback. In our case our market is South Africa and later hopefully the rest of Africa. Any form of discrimination goes against my grain and I have to agree that quotas and BEE is demeaning to those people who are supposed to benefit from it.

In our case we are 4 individuals who think alike and with similar moral standards and principles. There is no free ride and everyone has to pull his weight. We each still have our own businesses, but this is a benefit as our different business backgrounds and experiences create a synergy which is highly beneficial for the new business. :Wink:

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## Citizen X

Hi Mark,

I would like to take this opportunity to commend you for the great lenghts you go to have happy customers! :Thumbup: 
Your business can only go from strenght to strenght. Well done!

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Mark Atkinson (14-Jan-13)

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## Mark Atkinson

It was a pleasure working on your site, Blurock.  :Smile:  Not too many late nights were involved, so I can't claim too much credit there. 

As for the rankings, it's great that you're there already but just bear in mind that you may jump around the rankings while your site is still new, as Google figures out where in the rankings is best suited for your website. This is often termed "The Google Dance".  You should probably look to add more explanatory text content to your product pages as we go forward, just to beef it up a bit. 

I appreciate the feedback and kind words, Mike C, Justloadit and Vanash.  :Clap:

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Blurock (14-Jan-13)

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