Joel Caruso

is a freelance interactive designer/developer working in West Palm Beach, FL.

Logo/identity design and web design/development services are my passion. I design user experiences for the web that start with strategic thinking centered around your brand/message and evolves into visual design that follows a purposeful design process designed to accomplish your goals. Let's work together to take your creative project to the next level. email me

WEBSITE WORK
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Trained in the art of communication design and armed with ninja-like web coding skills, I graduated from Skidmore College in the year 2000 with a degree in Psychology and Communication Design. I've got 12 years experience as a graphic designer and web developer for ad agencies and private companies. I work under the umbrella Caruso & Co. Design Studio where I use my design skills and web development know-how to focus on innovative, cutting-edge UI design for strategic web applications that get results.

Here is a bit about me and what I've been saying on twitter.
If you are looking for a creative, professional freelancer with agency-level design and development skills for work relating to UI/UX/web design and development, identity/branding design, or flash animation/coding, then we should talk. call me: 305 523 9291

DESIGN WORK // WEB PRINT IDENTITY
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PROJECTS / UI DEVELOPMENT
AJAX Blog Posts Interactive blog post manager.
AJAX Tabbed Blog Posts Tabbed interactive blog post manager (built this for truth campaign originally).
Avatar Creator Upload an image, scale/crop it as desired, and save.
Google Maps: Boston MBTA Map overlay of Boston's MBTA subway system, javascript implementation.
Google Maps: truth Tour Map tracking locations for the truth tour bus, flash implementation.
Interactive Map Custom interactive map created for Walden Woods.
Interactive Shopping Cart Web 2.0 style interactive drag/drop javascript shopping cart.
MP3 Upload / Player Upload mp3s, manage and play them.

I am currently available for freelance work. My services are best suited to small businesses and entrepreneurs interested in long-term relationships, but I will consider all projects and am also open to working with local creative groups in Jupiter, West Palm Beach, Boca Raton, Fort Lauderdale, and Miami on a freelance or contract basis. Here's what you can expect by working with me.

Small business or startup? I want to build your brand. From logo design and brand strategy to marketing materials such as brochures, trade show graphics, and direct mail pieces, to mobile application UI design and widget development. Let's upgrade your print and digital presence.

Ad Agency / Creative Shop? If you need a seasoned freelance designer/developer that won't need your constant supervision but can take direction and handle or lead projects under deadlines successfully, then I'm your ace in the hole. Let's talk

© 2012 Joel Caruso. All rights reserved.
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Strategy / Discovery

We'll start working together on a project by sketching out a plan.

Maybe you have a specific idea about what the end result needs to be, or you may have a more general idea about what you'd like to accomplish and would like to talk through some possibilities. Here are a few of the questions we'll need to answer to get the project started on the right path:

What are we creating?
Define creative & technical specifications.
What are you hoping to accomplish?
Discuss project objectives and desired results.
Who is the target audience?
The creative and UI design stages will focus on addressing their needs/concerns.
deadline & deployment?
The schedule and requirements will help frame the project scope into a tangible plan which I will use to provide you with an accurate quote.
What about project logistics?
We'll cover any assets needed, how invoices are handled, and ensure the feedback process keeps the project moving according to plan.
Design Process

After we initially discuss your project and make an agreement on a plan of action, we can get started on making the magic happen!

I will take what I've learned from our talks and do any additional research necessary in order make more specific recommendations. We will cover all major features and decide what stays and what goes. I will suggest we keep relevant features that will contribute to the overall success of the project as we've previously outlined in our talks, and will try to convince you to remove any unnecessary features or distractions. Your constant feedback will be key throughout each step of the design process — the specifics will depend on the type of project, but will likely include:

Information Architecture
I begin to map out the plan and specifics we've talked about in more concrete terms.
The Idea
Here's where I explore concept design through sketches.
Interface Design / Prototyping / Visual Design
Ah yes, all the pieces should start to come together nicely now. This is the part where my girlfriend gets jealous of all the attention my computer gets.
The devil is in the details
If we're building your website, I'll be testing it in every browser, under all circumstances, and by as many people as possible. If we're designing your logo, I'll be triple checking that it comes across as intended and quadruple checking every pixel is in place.
Analyze > Revise
This step is especially crucial to any web-related project, but applies to most any other project I do as well. In order to deliver a product of the highest quality, we need to listen to user feedback, analyze how the product is being used, identify where improvements can be made, and stay on top of the latest technology & social trends to ensure the product remains relevant. Some things are constantly evolving — technology changes the methods your audience uses to interact with your brand, and culture constantly reshapes the window of social perception that can alter how your audience views it. Part of my commitment as a designer/developer is to understand and recognize these factors and use them to not only deliver a product that works as well as we've planned, but is also built to stay ahead of the curve.
Professional Experience
Designer/Owner Caruso & Co. Design Studio [ 9/2009 » present ]
Senior UI Developer Arnold Worldwide [ 10/2008 » 9/2009 ]
Interactive Designer Arnold Worldwide [ 10/2006 » 10/2008 ]
Graphic Designer The Kessler Group [ 6/2005 » 10/2006 ]
Graphic Designer Fish & Richardson P.C. [ 12/2001 » 11/2004 ]
Digital Production Specialist The Greco Ethridge Group [ 6/2000 » 8/2001 ]
Geek Speak Abilities
Adobe Creative Suite I especially ♥ Illustrator, PhotoShop, Flash, Fireworks
HTML / CSS / XML / PHP / SQL / ColdFusion / Flash AS3
JavaScript / AJAX / JSON / Jquery / Prototype / Mootools
OOP / MVC / APIs / SOAP / REST
CMS / ModX / Wordpress / Drupal
Web Apps / Widgets / UWA / GGE
SEO / Analytics / QA / SVN
If what you're looking for isn't listed here, I probably have experience working with it, just ask.
Joel Caruso
Designer. Artist. Italian. ISFP. Humanist. Musicophile.
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