Design is a vital piece of the Marketing spectrum, influencing an audience by evoking thoughts and emotions and driving performance. A brand expresses itself through design, aiming to attract and engage people for whom the visual experience is resonating and appealing.
Most of the information that we process is optical, which means that our ability to create powerful designs is essential to our communication capabilities.
Elements of Design
- Hierarchy, Symmetry and Direction
- Text Placement
- Typography Styles, Weights, Sizes
- Layout, Format and Sizing
- Use of White Space and Line Leading
- Images, Graphics and Shapes
- Effects and Animation
- Colors, Lightness and Shades
- Icons, Indicators, Gestures, and Symbols
- Balance, Alignment and Proportion
- Contrast, Emphasis and Repetition
- Lines, Patterns and Textures
- Commonalities, Groupings and Variety
- Rhythm and Harmony
The practice of design requires the following:
- A clear objective and a defined outcome
- Definition of the dominant expression, mood or emotion
- Knowledge of the intended audience and what they gravitate to
- Simplistic initial draft with the ability to scale up
- A foundation that is guided by space, contrasts and alignments
- Assess each aspect of a design for value, prominence and appropriate placement
- Eliminate constraints and complacency by getting out of the proverbial box to challenge your creativity
- Test versions of a design with specific differences (i.e. color schemes, layouts, messaging, CTA) to assess response levels
- Embrace that visual messages are more likely to be consumed than excessive content
- Randomness can be confusing – create a reliable flow and progression
Most essential is to bring passion to your designs and cavort with your imagination!
Showcase your work and be willing to hear the feedback, both favorable and critical. Of importance is to understand that design is subjective and based on partiality. We cannot deny personal preferences. With that in the forefront of your mind, allow opinions to be shared with recognition that their input is not a judgment, simply a viewpoint.
Design is powerful and persuasive. Give it magnitude. Structure your production process to give design the wherewithal to be discoverable, flexible, visionary, effectual, artistic and a paramount expression of the brand.