What would you like to know?

My name is Joseph Cotten, and I’m what’s known as the Principal of Trend Setting Design.  I’ve been breathing air for 29 years now, been married to my wife Jessica for 6 of them, owned an Australian Shepherd + Golden Retriever dog for 4 of them, and have been a lover of good design for at least 19 of them.

The thing I love about good design is how it can communicate a wealth of ideas simply, creatively and effectively.  I view my design clients as a “source text”, and it’s my job to translate who they are into the Visual Language.

So what makes a good designer?

One thing: that designer’s command of the Visual Language.  Just like English, Japanese and Icelandic, the Visual Language has it’s own grammar, punctuation and syntax.  A high-saturated bright red will communicate a thought, emotion or idea differently than a light grey; a traditional slab serif typeface will instill a number of impressions upon it’s viewers that a modern sans serif can either counter or compliment, depending upon the skill of the typographer.  The degree to which a designer can use those visually linguistic elements to communicate ideas, the better his or her designs will be.

My goal is to make life easier for my clients by really providing solutions for them. The word “solutions” is kind of a buzz word right now in America, but it remains an accurate description of what I try to create.  For instance, my web sites come with a content management system so that my clients don’t have to pay me for future updates – I empower them to take on the future updating of the site themselves.  For more information on what I do and how I do it, check out the Prices page, and thanks for your time!

Accreditations:

Better Business Bureau Member

Graphic Artists Guild Member

Trend Setting Design is proud to be an accredited member of the Better Business Bureau and a member of the Graphic Artists Guild.  Both the BBB and the GAG promote high quality, standards-based business practices, with the GAG specializing in arts-based businesses.  The Graphic Artists Guild publishes the only national “blue book” of pricing guidelines for graphic arts companies.