Adam Swann, head of strategy at gyro in New York wrote a nice post over at forbes.com talking about the necessity and power of good design for all businesses, “referring to design as a broad and deliberately applied discipline, with the aim of creating simpler, more meaningful, rewarding experiences for customers.”
“You see, expecting great design is no longer the preserve of a picky design-obsessed urban elite… Instead, there’s a new, mass expectation of good design: that products and services will be better thought through, simplified, made more intuitive, elegant and more enjoyable to use.”
I’ve had this same discussion twice this week, making the point that good design should be everywhere in our highly-visual world but often is not. The graphic designer’s profession is all about communicating, simply and clearly, a given idea or message… hopefully with beauty and poetic imagery that enhances it and gives it power in the viewer’s mind. This is needed everywhere from a small business that wants a professional image, to a virtual classroom lesson plan that needs to engage, interest and inspire.
“Perhaps Apple’s global dominance has elevated our design expectations, or Ikea’s vision to bring great design at affordable prices to everyone on the planet has finally taken effect, or perhaps the Internet has taught us what well-designed user experiences and good design really are. Likely, it is a combination of all.”
“What is certain is that the design bar has been raised and design-oriented businesses are winning.
Think how swiftly and strongly a design experience shapes our opinion of that brand, company or store, for good or bad. For instance, we know quickly when a website is bad. And we associate that feeling of frustration, or worse, disappointment with that brand.
Design-oriented organizations invest in thinking this stuff through. They put design at the heart of their company to guide innovation and to continually improve products, service and marketing. They recognize that a great design leads to differentiation, customer loyalty and higher profits.”
“The impact on brand is that customers see these brands as both progressive and customer-centric. Thoughtful and innovative design makes us feel good. It is no surprise that we are happy to advocate them, talk about them in social media and can be fiercely brand loyal.”
A good designer can work with a client with no sense of design and give their company a professional appearance. If pressed to make an analogy that most small business people can understand, “You don’t have to know how to tailor a nice suit, or know why it looks good on you, to know that you need one and that it enhances your professional image.” Just like you wouldn’t try to impress a client by wearing a suit made by your 14 year-old nephew, you shouldn’t have him build your website for the same reasons, no matter how much he likes Comic Sans.