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Fifteen years ago, the decision was easy: if you wanted a professional brand, you hired a designer. If not… well, you had Microsoft Paint. Or WordArt. Or a logo your cousin made in five minutes.
But fast forward to now, and design looks very different. Not just in how it’s made, but in how much of it we need.
If you’re a business owner in 2026, you’re not just after a logo and a business card. You’re needing:
- Social media graphics
- Lead magnets
- Sales pages
- Reels covers
- Course slide decks
- YouTube and Facebook covers
- Facebook ad creatives
And that’s just scratching the surface.
So what do you do when your business needs graphics every week… but you’re not sure if DIYing or outsourcing is the smart move?
Let’s break it down.
Why This Decision Feels So Big
This isn’t just a “design” decision… it’s a business one.
Outsourcing might sound like the obvious choice… polished graphics, no learning curve, less on your plate. But it also comes with a few very real tradeoffs: cost, time, and control.
DIYing, on the other hand, gives you speed and flexibility, but only if you know how to do it well.
So how do you decide what’s right for you? Start by understanding how design has changed…
Design is a Different Game
Fifteen years ago, you just needed a logo, a flyer, maybe a business card. You could get away with one piece of design a year and call it done.
Now? Content is your marketing. You need multiple graphics a week just to stay visible.
Even if you only post three times a week, that’s 150+ graphics a year. And that doesn’t include launches, freebies, or promos.
Design isn’t a one-and-done anymore… it’s an ongoing part of your business operations.
Which brings us to…
The True Cost of Outsourcing
Sure, outsourcing means you get something that looks good. But it also means:
- Paying $100–$500+ for each small project or update
- Waiting on back-and-forth emails
- Paying again when you want to change a sentence or CTA
- Never quite feeling like the brand is you
And if you’re outsourcing everything, the costs stack up fast. For many of my studio clients, that’s $6,000+ just to get started.
The Problem With DIY (If You’re Not Doing It Right)
DIYing your brand is smart, but only if you have the right skills and tools.
If you’re choosing colours because they look nice, or designing your logo with zero strategy, you could be doing more harm than good.
Bad design makes people question your credibility. It might even stop them from buying.
But when you know how to design properly; when you’ve learnt things like hierarchy, contrast, and how to create clean, strategic layouts, DIYing becomes a massive business asset.
You save money. You move faster. You stay consistent.
My Favourite Solution: The Design Autonomy System
This is the middle ground I teach inside my programs, and it’s what I recommend for most business owner, especially those in the early stages or scaling up.
It’s made up of three layers:
1. Ownership
You should always have access to your brand files, templates, and assets. That means your logos, fonts, colours, Canva templates, all editable, all yours.
2. Support
Learn how to design well. Understand strategy. Get feedback from a pro. This is what turns “meh” graphics into ones that make your brand look polished and trustworthy.
3. Specialist Work
Bring in the pros when it really counts, for complex projects like web design, animations, or super custom illustrations. But you don’t need to hire someone every time you want to tweak a heading.
What Most People Get Wrong
They think DIYing is either “cheap” or “cheating.” It’s neither.
When done right, DIY design is strategic, cost-effective and really empowering. You can move quickly, keep control, and still look professional.
But DIY without knowledge? That’s just expensive trial and error.
The Bottom Line? Start With Strategy
Whether you outsource, DIY or blend the two… your design needs to be based on strategy, not guesswork.
That’s what I teach in my free masterclass, Design Tools to Get to 100k, so if you’re sitting in Canva, feeling overwhelmed or not sure where to start, come join me. You’ll learn:
- The 3 design mistakes that cost people sales
- My go-to Canva shortcuts
- The one template I recommend to look polished right now
Free Canva Masterclass: Design Tools to $100k 👉 https://www.whitedeer.com.au/designmasterclass
WORK WITH JACQUI:
// DIY Design My Biz: The best course for business owners DIYing their own brand and graphics in Canva. Learn more: https://whitedeer.com.au/diy-dmb
// The Co+Creation Design Club: Design WITH the help of a professional designer in this high-touch coaching space: https://whitedeer.com.au/designclub
// Design Studio: If you’re after fully done-for-you design services my studio team can help! https://whitedeer.com.au/designstudio
