How to hire a visual information specialist

How to hire a visual information specialist, step by step

Here's a step-by-step visual information specialist hiring guide:

• Step 1: Identify your hiring needs
• Step 2: Create an ideal candidate profile
• Step 3: Make a budget
• Step 4: Write a visual information specialist job description
• Step 5: Post your job
• Step 6: Interview candidates
• Step 7: Send a job offer and onboard your new visual information specialist
• Step 8: Go through the hiring process checklist

What does a visual information specialist do?

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   Before you start hiring a visual information specialist, identify what type of worker you actually need. Certain positions might call for a full-time employee, while others can be done by a part-time worker or contractor.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

   Is the person you're thinking of hiring a US citizen or green card holder?

   Yes

   No

   Hiring the perfect visual information specialist also involves considering the ideal background you'd like them to have. Depending on what industry or field they have experience in, they'll bring different skills to the job. It's also important to consider what levels of seniority and education the job requires and what kind of salary such a candidate would likely demand.

   Here's a comparison of visual information specialist salaries for various roles:

   Type of Visual Information Specialist	Description	Hourly rate
   Visual Information Specialist	Graphic designers create visual concepts, using computer software or by hand, to communicate ideas that inspire, inform, and captivate consumers. They develop the overall layout and production design for various applications such as advertisements, brochures, magazines, and corporate reports.	$19-49
   Freelance Designer	Freelance designers are creative, independent contractors who create visual and graphic designs for their clients. They develop text and illustrated versions of brands, messages, and communications with strong visible influence with their clients... Show more	$18-39
   Designer	A designer is someone who creates a master plan of the look or workings of something before it will be made. It could be tangible or intangible objects, products, procedures, laws, events, games, graphics, services, and even experiences... Show more	$21-46

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Photography
   • Video Production
   • Adobe Creative Suite
   • Adobe Photoshop
   • Adobe Indesign
   • Web Pages
   • Animation
   • Adobe Illustrator
   • Visualization
   • Visual Materials
   • Multimedia Products
   • DOD
   • HTML
   • Subject Matter Experts

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Manage content updates and PR/communication material on intranet website and ensure content are visible on mobile phones and tablets.
   • Manage and maintain the organization s online content via a proprietary content management systems (CMS) and social media channels.
   • Manage and utilize extensive internal photography libraries and external resources.
   • Lead the development and execution of several overhead presentations, advertising design, brochure marketing, and desktop publishing initiatives.
   • Administer in house CSS and HTML training for colleagues and coworkers.
   • Develop and deliver proofreading and software training to other word processing operators.

   More visual information specialist duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in the visual information specialist job description is a good way to get more applicants. A visual information specialist salary can be affected by several factors, such as the location of the job, the level of experience, education, certifications, and the employer's prestige.

   For example, the average salary for a visual information specialist in Oklahoma may be lower than in Washington, and an entry-level engineer typically earns less than a senior-level visual information specialist. Additionally, a visual information specialist with lots of experience in the field may command a higher salary as a result.

   Average visual information specialist salary

   $65,085yearly

   $31.29 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level visual information specialist salary

   $41,000 yearly salary

   Updated December 20, 2025

   Average visual information specialist salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	District of Columbia	$96,159	$46
   2	Virginia	$90,813	$44
   3	Maryland	$90,649	$44
   4	California	$80,470	$39
   5	New York	$77,907	$37
   6	Michigan	$72,766	$35
   7	Utah	$72,076	$35
   8	Minnesota	$71,879	$35
   9	Nevada	$70,176	$34
   10	New Jersey	$69,222	$33
   11	Colorado	$67,671	$33
   12	Iowa	$65,742	$32
   13	Ohio	$63,468	$31
   14	Missouri	$62,407	$30
   15	Maine	$62,300	$30
   16	New Mexico	$59,573	$29
   17	Georgia	$58,613	$28
   18	Tennessee	$56,361	$27
   19	Texas	$51,658	$25
   20	Florida	$45,282	$22

   Average visual information specialist salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	Food and Drug Law Institute	$90,873	$43.69
   2	Brillio	$89,091	$42.83
   3	RS&H	$84,183	$40.47
   4	Delta Solutions & Strategies	$78,839	$37.90
   5	AECOM	$78,428	$37.71	24
   6	Department of Homeland Security	$77,373	$37.20
   7	Federal Bureau of Investigation	$74,533	$35.83
   8	BAE Systems	$73,294	$35.24	51
   9	City of Las Vegas	$73,137	$35.16
   10	National Park Foundation	$72,920	$35.06
   11	Pacific Architects and Engineers	$71,250	$34.25
   12	Emory University	$68,771	$33.06	2
   13	Toyota Financial Svc	$68,019	$32.70	1
   14	Woods Services	$68,006	$32.70
   15	Jefferson Consulting Group	$63,565	$30.56
   16	Victoria's Secret	$60,555	$29.11	2
   17	TEGNA	$59,429	$28.57	4
   18	United States Marine Corps	$58,842	$28.29
   19	Denver Public Schools	$55,998	$26.92
   20	Crate and Barrel	$46,779	$22.49	2

4. Writing a visual information specialist job description

   A good visual information specialist job description should include a few things:

   • Summary of the role
   • List of responsibilities
   • Required skills and experience

   Including a salary range and the first name of the hiring manager is also appreciated by candidates. Here's an example of a visual information specialist job description:

   Visual information specialist job description example

   Bowhead seeks a Visual Information Specialist to the Support the USACE-Mobile District contract located in Mobile, AL. This position will support the Visual Information Program, including audiovisual, photography, videography, graphics, multimedia, exhibit, computer animation, technical illustration, and desktop publishing.
   Responsibilities
   
   * Research, plan, design, and produce visual information projects, including visualization of creative illustrations.
   * Provides technical knowledge and analysis of highly specialized applications and operational environment, high-level functional systems analysis, design, integration, documentation, and implementation advice on exceptionally complex problems, which require high-level knowledge of the subject matter for effective implementation.
   * Participates as needed in all phases of software development with emphasis on the planning, analysis, modeling, simulation, testing, integration, documentation and presentation phases.
   * Applies principles, methods and knowledge of the functional area of expertise to specific task order requirements, advanced mathematical principles and methods to exceptionally difficult and narrowly defined technical problems in engineering and mathematical applications to arrive at automated solutions.
   * Designs and prepares technical reports, data bases, studies, and related documentation, makes charts and graphs to record results.
   * Prepares and delivers presentations and briefings as required by the task order.
   * Technical support includes technical advice on security requirements for highly specialized IT applications, technical report preparation or other services as required by the task order.
   * Take conceptual stage and abstract illustration and provide vital visual illustration for customers.
   * Using desktop publishing software to aid in the reproduction process.
   * Use highly technical software to produce images, views, or other types of illustrations for use in PowerPoint presentations that give particular visual emphasis through size, color, texture, etc.
   
   Qualifications
   
   In accordance with Executive Order 14042: Ensuring Adequate COVID Safety Protocols for Federal Contractors, candidates should be aware that they may be required to have received or be willing to receive the COVID-19 vaccine by date of hire.
   
   * A Bachelor's degree is required at a minimum in addition to nine too fourteen (9-14) years of relevant experience.
   * Intermediate to advanced level skills in Microsoft Office software suite - Word, Excel, Outlook, PowerPoint.
   * Ability to communicate effectively with all levels of employees and outside contacts.
   * Strong interpersonal skills and good judgment with the ability to work alone or as part of a team.
   
   Physical Demands: • Must be able to lift up to 25 pounds • Must be able to stand and walk for prolonged amounts of time• Must be able to twist, bend, and squat periodically
   
   SECURITY CLEARANCE REQUIRED: Must be able to obtain a security clearance at the Public Trust level. US Citizenship is a requirement for admission to this location.
   
   #LI-KC1

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   There are various strategies that you can use to find the right visual information specialist for your business:

   • Consider promoting from within or recruiting from your existing workforce.
   • Ask for referrals from friends, family members, and current employees.
   • Attend job fairs at local colleges to find candidates who meet your education requirements.
   • Use social media platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter to reach potential job candidates.

   Post your job online:

   • Post your visual information specialist job on Zippia to find and recruit visual information specialist candidates who meet your exact specifications.
   • Use field-specific websites such as dribbble, authentic jobs, working not working, coroflot.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   Recruiting visual information specialists requires you to bring your A-game to the interview process. The first interview should introduce the company and the role to the candidate as much as they present their background experience and reasons for applying for the job. During later interviews, you can go into more detail about the technical details of the job and ask behavioral questions to gauge how they'd fit into your current company culture.

   It's also good to ask about candidates' unique skills and talents. You can move on to the technical interview if a candidate is good enough for the next step.

   The right interview questions can help you assess a candidate's hard skills, behavioral intelligence, and soft skills.

7. Send a job offer and onboard your new visual information specialist

   Once you've selected the best visual information specialist candidate for the job, it's time to write an offer letter. In addition to salary, this letter should include details about the benefits and perks you offer the candidate. Ensuring that your offer is competitive is essential, as qualified candidates may be considering other job opportunities. The candidate may wish to negotiate the terms of the offer, and you should be open to discussion. After you reach an agreement, the final step is formalizing the agreement with a contract.

   It's also good etiquette to follow up with applicants who don't get the job by sending them an email letting them know that the position has been filled.

   To prepare for the new employee's start date, you can create an onboarding schedule and complete any necessary paperwork, such as employee action forms and onboarding documents like I-9 forms, benefits enrollment, and federal and state tax forms. Human Resources should also ensure that a new employee file is created.

8. Go through the hiring process checklist

   • Determine employee type (full-time, part-time, contractor, etc.)
   • Submit a job requisition form to the HR department
   • Define job responsibilities and requirements
   • Establish budget and timeline
   • Determine hiring decision makers for the role
   • Write job description
   • Post job on job boards, company website, etc.
   • Promote the job internally
   • Process applications through applicant tracking system
   • Review resumes and cover letters
   • Shortlist candidates for screening
   • Hold phone/virtual interview screening with first round of candidates
   • Conduct in-person interviews with top candidates from first round
   • Score candidates based on weighted criteria (e.g., experience, education, background, cultural fit, skill set, etc.)
   • Conduct background checks on top candidates
   • Check references of top candidates
   • Consult with HR and hiring decision makers on job offer specifics
   • Extend offer to top candidate(s)
   • Receive formal job offer acceptance and signed employment contract
   • Inform other candidates that the position has been filled
   • Set and communicate onboarding schedule to new hire(s)
   • Complete new hire paperwork (i9, benefits enrollment, tax forms, etc.)

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How much does it cost to hire a visual information specialist?