Are you any good at juggling?
Good design is very powerful, it has the power to trigger responses and persuade your customers to choose you. Sometimes, it’s so subtle – you aren’t even aware of it. Even now. A sentence with punctuation marks; in the wrong place. Can. Change the dynamics and effect? It has. That’s the power of design baby!
So, imagine the effect that bad or mediocre design has on your customers. Yawn. Yes, they’ve lost interest and called up Barry Bodge-it to build their new extension. It might end up neon pink and a few floorboards short, but hey; your design didn’t attract them. Your chance has gone, your message is lost … and that luxury yacht in the Caribbean? Well, forget it.
Your chance of winning or losing customers hinges on your brand image. Would you turn up at a client meeting in your joggers and t-shirt expecting to make a sale? (OK, if you run a gym perhaps … ) The point is this; to sell yourself, or to sell anything – you want it to look its best. Your design should be your best pair of trousers, freshly washed and ironed. In business it’s all about perception, first impressions and delivering a service that builds your reputation. Unfortunately, so many businesses fail to deliver the first two parts, which brings me to a far more important point; if you’re perceived as the average joe and lose your customers interest, then where are your customers? (Que Barry). It’s a darned sight easier to build a reputation when you set out to impress to begin with. So why do so many companies skimp on their design?
Alright then, how can I make my leaflet look better, you might ask. How can I turn my sweaty joggers into a finely pressed pair of trousers? Well, I’d say it’s a lot like juggling. Most people like to have a go, but most people end up dropping a ball or two. To go one step further, these juggling balls represent each element I think you need for great design. I think that you deserve to look good, so I’ll share some of these with you …
• Great Copywriting
As the saying goes “content is king”, well, that’s certainly true. Good copywriting means a solid foundation for the design – they go hand in hand. Bad grammar, boring irrelevant waffle and even how you phrase sentences, all adds up to a polished end result. Get yourself a fantastic copywriter, or at the very least make sure you aren’t afraid of the ‘D’ word (that’s dictionary!) and have clear objectives of what you want to achieve from your copy. You should be thinking about things like; who are we talking to, what is the overall tone and does this tell them what they’d like to know about our services?
• Great Photography
A photo of poor quality, that’s out of focus or stretched DOES NOT look good. Seriously, does it? Unless you’re the next David Bailey in the making, hire a professional photographer, or purchase a stock image from the likes of I-Stock. One fantastic photograph speaks volume over two amateur ones. I’m also pretty sure that those of you with a Linked in or Facebook profile picture, take pride in selecting the perfect photo. We’re part of a very visual culture and if the photos in your design don’t cut the mustard … well, there’s going to be someone else’s that do. (Same applies for clipart)
• Great Balance
Ok don’t worry, I’m not going to start talking about my inner chi. Every piece of design has an element of balance, as each part of the design relates to another. How big, how small and how close one element is to another creates a feeling of texture and stability. Another part of this is ‘hierarchy’, every piece of design needs a visual order. If too many elements in your design are fighting for attention then none of them are going to stand a good chance of being looked at! Say one thing well, or say nothing at all.
• Great Colour
Some colours just don’t look good together. Some colours, just don’t look good on you; they can make you look fat and some make you look ill. The problem is, like a lot of things; colour is subjective. That said, colour is yet another powerful element of design. Used correctly, colour can evoke emotions and raise a laid back design into an energetic frenzy. So if you want to look like a supermodel and not Dale Winton, colour is key.
• Great Typography
So many things I see that are poorly designed, have typefaces (or fonts) that have been slapped onto their design from Microsoft Word or from their systems pre-installed lists. Sometimes, it’s because it’s quick and easy; and also let’s face it: how many average people are font experts? I’m sorry to break this to you – but, by now, I think you can take it. Here goes … the majority of those fonts are tacky and fail to give your business the representation and profile that you deserve. Phew, I said it. Fonts give your design character, as well as tone and texture. By using typefaces that aren’t suitable, you’re going to stick out for all the wrong reasons. Good, solid typefaces have a variety of weights and things such as (here comes some designer speak) glyphs and italics. Be wary of falling into the ‘easy’ choices trap.
• Great Humor and Engaging Design
I love to see both visual and verbal humor in design. The main reason for this, is that it involves you as a participant – “ha, that’s funny, I get it!” the same applies for designs that are clever and make you think. Getting the reader to engage with what you have to show them is also very, very tricky. Tread carefully, as what you think is funny could be tumbleweed to your customers. You don’t want egg on your face.
Right, well – I’m sure we both need a great cup of tea now! So, let’s summarize.
• For great design you need the right thing, in the right place
• Great design sells, because it makes your business look it’s best
• If you can’t juggle the metaphorical design balls, then you’ll end up making a balls up somewhere!
There are more balls for you to juggle, but having a few of these in the air should help you create a great design – that sells you and your business. If you aren’t a fantastic ‘design’ juggler (not everyone is) then don’t worry, you’re listening to one right now. Yes, … me.
So if you’d like a hand with your … b … ahem. If you’d like a hand making your business look its best, then drop me an email at studio@daredevil-creative.com or call 01902 837 377.
For sword swallowing, give Barry a call.
I couldn’t think of anyone more deserving to be doing so well at the moment – so, I was really excited to find out that Hayley Wright (Romantic Eccentric) has recently been featured in Vogue Magazine!
We had great fun helping create the graphics for an 
