Multimedia designer

What does a multimedia designer do? Salaries | Typical employers | Qualifications and training | Skills

Multimedia designers (also known as multimedia specialists, developers or producers) use specialist software to create resources that can be accessed online or on digital devices. Many of these resources are used in education and training, recruitment and communications.

The role can involve creating assets in a variety of formats (for example, videos, infographics and animations for training purposes) or in a single format (such as interactive e-learning activities). The skills and experienced needed will be very different depending on what outputs the organisation wants. However, there are some common tasks.

Typical duties include:

• meeting and liaising with clients and colleagues to discuss briefs, requirements and project progress
• creating mock-ups, scripts, storyboards, wireframes and other resources to illustrate the final product and its functionality
• creating multimedia assets alongside animators, programmers, writers, video producers, VR developers, sound engineers and artists
• developing and using skills and expertise in design packages such as Photoshop, Illustrator, After Effects and Premiere Pro
• keeping up to date with technological and software developments
• developing and implementing quality assurance processes to ensure resources are accurate and error-free
• testing resources and making amendments
• arranging copyright clearance for any images used
• presenting the final products to colleagues or clients
• monitoring the impact of digital assets – for example, views of a YouTube video – and using this information to plan future multimedia resources.

Pressure to meet deadlines means that extra hours may be required at times. Promotional prospects are excellent for employees willing to change job regularly and to move into managerial positions.

Graduate salaries

Data from World Salaries – which is compiled using official government salary data, salary surveys and other sources such as job postings – states that a multimedia designers working in London will typically earn around £49,700 per year. The lowest average salary in London is around £23,800 and the highest average salary is around £81,200. Salaries will be slightly lower overall in areas outside of London.

Earnings will rise with experience, especially as you start to build specialist skills and a sense of what different clients and projects need.

Typical employers of multimedia designers

• Software/multimedia houses.
• Central government.
• Charities.
• Telecommunications companies.
• Advertising agencies.
• Local authorities.
• Engineering firms.
• IT consultancies.
• Computer games companies.
• Training companies.
• Insurance brokers.
• Manufacturers.
• Publishers.
• Educational organisations.

With experience, you could become self-employed and work on projects for a range of organisations. You could also choose to focus on a specific medium or tool.

Vacancies are advertised by careers services and university departments. You’ll also find them on specialist job sites and on sector-specific jobs boards.

Qualifications and training required

There are routes into this profession for school leavers and graduates.

Many employers look for graduates with degrees in design, illustration or another creative subject. Others focus on more technical fields such as IT or games design. Almost all employers will seek graduates with hands-on experience of the software they use. A portfolio with examples from your degree, placement(s) and work experience will help you demonstrate this.

If your degree doesn’t involve a relevant placement, look for internships, voluntary work and opportunities at your university (for example, producing recruitment videos) as ways to build up the contents of your portfolio.

School leavers can take an apprenticeship in digital media or communications. This involves studying part of the week while working in a related job.

Key skills for multimedia specialists

• Excellent communication skills, including the ability to explain complex concepts to people without experience of this field.
• Excellent technical skills across a range of packages and media.
• A good eye for design, layout and detail.
• Imagination and creativity.
• Time management skills.
• Organisational skills.
• Analytical skills.
• Problem-solving skills.
• Teamworking skills.

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