Junior Graphic Designer – JGD4590

R.W. Mercer Co.; City of Cohoes (NY); Hybrid; USD 80,000 - 105,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Remote or hybrid work

Professional development support

Creative environment

Career growth opportunities

Job summary

R.W. Mercer Co. seeks a Junior Graphic Designer for a full-time contract to support marketing, communications, and digital initiatives across platforms.

The ideal candidate will bring foundational design skills, a strong portfolio, and the ability to translate briefs into polished visuals under senior guidance. Familiarity with Adobe Creative Cloud and basic motion graphics is a plus. This role operates remote or hybrid in the United States.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree or equivalent education in Graphic Design, Visual Communications, Digital Media, Fine Arts, or a related discipline preferred.
• 0–2 years of professional, internship, academic, freelance, or equivalent experience in graphic design or related field.
• Strong portfolio demonstrating creativity, design fundamentals, and examples of digital, print, branding, or marketing materials.
• Working knowledge of Adobe Creative Cloud, particularly Photoshop, Illustrator, and InDesign.
• Foundational understanding of typography, color theory, composition, spacing, visual hierarchy, branding, and layout principles.
• Familiarity with creating content for websites, social media, email marketing, presentations, and digital channels.
• Strong attention to detail and a willingness to learn and improve design skills.
• Ability to understand briefs, project requirements, and stakeholder feedback and incorporate into design assignments.
• Good written, verbal, communication, and collaboration skills.
• Strong organizational and time-management abilities with the ability to manage multiple assignments and meet deadlines.
• Ability to work independently while contributing within a collaborative creative environment.
• Familiarity with Figma, Canva, After Effects, Premiere Pro, or comparable applications is a plus.
• Exposure to motion graphics, UX/UI design, video production, or interactive media is an advantage.
• Basic knowledge of digital accessibility and design best practices is preferred.
• A positive attitude, creative curiosity, and eagerness to develop professionally in a fast-paced design environment.

Responsibilities

• Assist in developing creative visual concepts and original graphics for marketing, branding, communications, digital, and print initiatives.
• Design and update brochures, flyers, presentations, advertisements, social media graphics, newsletters, and branded collateral.
• Create visual assets for websites, email campaigns, online platforms, internal communications, and digital marketing initiatives.
• Collaborate with marketing, communications, product, sales, and business teams to understand creative requirements and project objectives.
• Translate written messaging, campaign concepts, business requirements, and creative briefs into effective visual solutions.
• Apply established brand standards, including typography, color palettes, imagery, layouts, icons, and other visual elements.
• Edit, enhance, crop, resize, retouch, and optimize photographs, illustrations, and graphic assets.
• Assist with the development of templates and reusable design assets for consistency and efficiency.
• Prepare accurate, production-ready files for digital publishing, presentations, advertising, and print production.
• Manage multiple assigned design projects while maintaining organization, quality, and deadlines.
• Participate in design reviews and incorporate feedback from senior designers, managers, and stakeholders.
• Maintain organized source files, assets, templates, brand resources, and project documentation.
• Research current design trends, techniques, and industry best practices.
• Support basic motion graphics, animation, video editing, interactive content when required.
• Coordinate with printers, production vendors, freelancers, and external partners.
• Review completed designs for accuracy, consistency, accessibility, and alignment with project requirements.
• Contribute ideas for improving workflows, templates, and efficiency.
• Ensure deliverables align with brand guidelines and objectives.

Job description

We are seeking a creative, motivated, and detail-oriented Junior Graphic Designer to join our team on a full-time contract basis. The Junior Graphic Designer will support the development of visually engaging and brand-aligned design materials for marketing, communications, digital initiatives, and organizational projects across a variety of platforms.

The ideal candidate will bring strong creative thinking, a willingness to learn, and foundational technical design skills. This individual should be able to interpret creative briefs, written concepts, and business requirements and translate them into polished, professional, and engaging visual materials under the guidance of senior creative team members.

Key Responsibilities

• Assist in developing creative visual concepts and original graphics for marketing, branding, communications, digital, and print initiatives.
• Design and update brochures, flyers, presentations, advertisements, social media graphics, newsletters, promotional materials, and branded collateral.
• Create visual assets for websites, email campaigns, online platforms, internal communications, and digital marketing initiatives.
• Collaborate with marketing, communications, product, sales, and business teams to understand creative requirements and project objectives.
• Translate written messaging, campaign concepts, business requirements, and creative briefs into effective visual solutions.
• Apply established brand standards, including typography, color palettes, imagery, layouts, icons, and other visual elements.
• Edit, enhance, crop, resize, retouch, and optimize photographs, illustrations, and graphic assets for various applications.
• Assist with the development of templates and reusable design assets that promote consistency and efficiency.
• Prepare accurate, production-ready files for digital publishing, presentations, advertising, and print production.
• Manage multiple assigned design projects while maintaining organization, quality, and adherence to deadlines.
• Participate in design reviews and incorporate feedback from senior designers, managers, and internal stakeholders.
• Maintain organized source files, creative assets, templates, brand resources, and project documentation.
• Research current design trends, creative techniques, emerging tools, and industry best practices.
• Support basic motion graphics, animation, video editing, interactive content, and multimedia projects when required.
• Assist with coordination involving printers, production vendors, freelancers, and external creative partners.
• Review completed designs for accuracy, consistency, formatting, accessibility, and alignment with project requirements.
• Contribute ideas for improving creative workflows, templates, production processes, and design efficiency.
• Ensure visual deliverables are consistent with established brand guidelines and communication objectives.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree or equivalent education in Graphic Design, Visual Communications, Digital Media, Fine Arts, or a related discipline preferred.
• 0–2 years of professional, internship, academic, freelance, or equivalent experience in graphic design, visual communications, marketing design, or a related creative field.
• A strong portfolio demonstrating creativity, design fundamentals, and examples of digital, print, branding, marketing, or communication materials.
• Working knowledge of Adobe Creative Cloud, particularly Photoshop, Illustrator, and InDesign.
• Foundational understanding of typography, color theory, composition, spacing, visual hierarchy, branding, and layout principles.
• Familiarity with creating content for websites, social media, email marketing, presentations, advertisements, and other digital channels.
• Strong attention to detail and a willingness to learn and improve design skills.
• Ability to understand creative briefs, project requirements, and stakeholder feedback and incorporate them into design assignments.
• Good written, verbal, communication, and collaboration skills.
• Strong organizational and time-management abilities with the ability to manage multiple assignments and meet deadlines.
• Ability to work independently on assigned tasks while contributing effectively within a collaborative creative environment.
• Familiarity with Figma, Canva, After Effects, Premiere Pro, or comparable creative applications is a plus.
• Exposure to motion graphics, animation, UX/UI design, video production, or interactive media is an advantage.
• Basic knowledge of digital accessibility and design best practices is preferred.
• A positive attitude, creative curiosity, and eagerness to develop professionally in a fast-paced design environment.

Compensation & Contract Details

Annual Contract Rate: $80,000 – $105,000 per year, commensurate with experience, qualifications, creative skills, and scope of responsibility.

Employment Type: Full-time Contract.

Schedule: Approximately 40 hours per week, Monday through Friday.

Contract Term: Initial contract assignment with potential for extension or renewal based on business needs, project requirements, and performance.

Work Arrangement: Remote or hybrid, depending on organizational and project requirements.

Professional Development: Opportunities for creative training, software development, design workshops, industry learning, and professional certification support.

Creative Environment: Collaborative environment providing opportunities to contribute to marketing, branding, communications, and digital design initiatives while learning from experienced creative professionals.

Growth Opportunities: Opportunities to expand design responsibilities, contribute to larger creative projects and campaigns, develop specialized design skills, and progress toward mid-level or senior design responsibilities.

Qualified candidates will be contacted for an interview.

Equal Opportunity Employer: We are committed to creating a diverse and inclusive workplace. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, gender, sexual orientation, national origin, genetics, disability, age, veteran status, or any other protected characteristic.