Being a graphic designer is a lot like being a visual translator—taking someone’s ideas (sometimes barely-formed thoughts or half-sentences) and turning them into polished, professional work. But every designer knows that no matter how refined your skills, you’ll still find yourself navigating the weird, the wonderful, and sometimes the wildly confusing requests that clients sometimes throw your way. Welcome to strange client requests.

It’s all good, this blog is just a bit of fun. We exist to help our clients navigate through the vague and unknowns. It’s part of the fun at the end of the day. And a great feeling when you take the vague and hit the target for the client. So here we go…

Here are just a few real (and surprisingly common) gems that designers everywhere have encountered, and maybe had a little laugh (or maybe a little moan) about.

“I hate bullet points. Can you make the list… not look like a list?”

A classic! Clients often have a deep emotional reaction to certain design elements: bullet points, Times New Roman, or anything remotely resembling Clip Art. The request to disguise a list as not a list while still keeping it… a list… is a fun exercise in design diplomacy. Icons? Dashes? Just vibes? Designers get creative fast.

Often there’s something underlying with these requests, so if we can get to the bottom of that, happy days! All part of the life of a graphic designer.

“Can you make it pop?”

Ah, the holy grail of vague feedback. “Pop” could mean brighter colours, more contrast, bigger fonts, sparkle animations, or maybe just a psychic sense of excitement that somehow needs to radiate from the design. It’s your job to guess what flavour of “pop” they’re craving this time.

This is when we need to interpret through questioning and always go back to the goal and problem that was outlined at the beginning of the project.

“Can you make the logo bigger?”

No graphic design blog would be complete without this infamous line. It’s basically a rite of passage. At some point, a client will request the logo to be just a little bigger and then again, and again, until it’s almost larger than the design itself. The Bigger Logo Law is somewhat eternal.

At some point, our marketing brain starts to kick back in though, and we again discuss why do we need it bigger, what are we trying to do. When we pull back away from aesthetics, and start dealing in problem solving, then a solution usually comes along too.

“Can you use this photo? It’s from my phone, and I took it at night, but I really like it.”

Designers are not magicians, though occasionally it may seem like. Design is a craft that has rules but also has to obey the laws of physics. Trying to make a grainy, low-res, poorly lit image look like it came from a professional photoshoot is a bold request—yet it happens all the time. Bonus points if the client says, “Can you just Photoshop it to look better?”

And as we move into the new ear of AI tools, this is changing into, “Can AI fix it?”, and you know what, just sometimes, occasionally, it can! We have a new tightrope to walk…

“Can we make it look like Apple meets Disney meets The New York Times?”

Sure! Let me just mix ultra-minimalist tech aesthetics, whimsical cartoon energy, and journalistic credibility into a single layout. Easy peasy. (Spoiler: It’s not.) 

Again it’s about digging into and beneath the request, going back to the brief or the needs of the piece, there’s usually an answer. 

“I want something really clean, but also colourful. And bold. But subtle.”

Welcome to contradictory design briefs, where clients want something simple… but also dramatic. Calm but exciting. Professional but edgy. It’s a puzzle, and your job is to make all the pieces fit without compromising the integrity of the design (or your sanity).

“My cousin’s roommate is kind of an artist and had some notes…”

There’s always that one person who isn’t part of the project, but suddenly becomes the Creative Director via email chain. Their design experience? They once made a MySpace layout. Their confidence? Unshakeable.

This is genuinely one of the hardest to deal with. But again, it’s part of the job and one we need to deal with delicately and without ego.

And now, my all-time favourite and very real request…

“I don’t like the colours you’ve shown me’

– And we replied, “But… that’s… all the colours… in the visible spectrum…”

Yes, this really happened. But again, deep breath and try to grasp what the client is struggling with. After a brief discussion we begin to see a way forward. All part of a day in the life of a graphic designer (well maybe not every day, this has only happened… twice!)

Final Thoughts

Designers know that strange requests come with the territory. It’s all part of the creative chaos, the weird and wonderful journey from initial idea to final design. And honestly? These oddball moments often lead to some of the most inventive, hilarious, and memorable parts of the job.

So next time someone says, “I hate bullet points,” just smile, nod, and get ready to reinvent the wheel. Again.

Jeff

Caffeine Creative are an experienced team based in the Cardiff area. We help with graphic design, web development, company values, social media, branding, video production, drone shoots, and more. To know more please contact us.