Marketing guru (no relation) Seth Godin shares his insights on collaborating with a designer (link).We’d start by breaking down #5 - clearly outlining your goals:

1. Where do you want to be in 3-5 years?
1. See Guru Virtue 10: Vision . Design is an investment, returns should continue for years.
2. What makes you different?
1. Don’t compare, redefine the playing field.
3. What do you want people to say about you?
4. How will you get them to say it?
5. Who will you be addressing?
6. What do you want your product/website/material to accomplish?
7. How do you intend on introducting your new venture?
8. How will you manage this project during and after roll-out?
9. What do you, the client project lead(s), spend most of your day doing?
10. How much (and what kind of) time can you dedicate to this new venture?

Those last two items are most important - at 12gurus we “infiltrate, relate, and collaborate” for success - if we can’t get face time with your team we’ll have a hard time expressing your voice. A close relationship keeps projects on-track and allows for quick adaptation – you’ll end up with version 2 on the 1^st try