Most people think graphic design only consists of logos and websites, while design is so much more than that! It’s the labels of the brands we interact with on the shelves in our homes, it’s the products we buy, the magazines and pamphlets we pick up, the billboards we drive by. Design can be difficult to define, but what’s even harder to define is good design, impactful design. Design and marketing often go hand-in-hand and, I mean, why wouldn’t they, it only makes sense. As Von Glitschka, a talented illustrator once said, “Marketing without design is lifeless, and design without marketing is mute.” Here are a few core values that, I believe, allow design to be labeled as good or impactful and enriches a marketing strategy.
Good design lingers. It could linger for a moment in the mind or linger for generations. A passerby may see a poster and it catches their attention, they recall it in their memories when retrieving information. It is, in essence, an interaction. If a design lingers, even for a moment in the mind of a viewer, it has done its job. It’s that idea of recollection, it causes us to create associations and connections. If the design causes a viewer to stop and think, to search, to understand, it lingers, it interacts, it impacts.
Good design always considers user interaction. As a designer, it is easy to get caught up in design elements, that we put so much time and effort into but, communication can get lost. When it comes down to it, design is communication. It is its own language. It is a combination of color, letters, lines, composition, grids… the list could go on and on and it can be as simple as it is complex. When we start doing things just to make them look “cool” or because we’ve always wanted to do them, that is when communication can easily be lost. Truly consider the communication quality. This may lead you to reexamine or even discard some ideas or elements or even push some further and that is a true, cherished, and great skill to have. Good design is not something you simply “have an eye for,” it is simply the ability to interact.
Lastly, good design takes risks. When a designer takes risks, their work and design has a unique pull to it. It draws the viewer in to linger longer. As designers, marketing managers, or business owners, we cannot hide in the shadows of comfort, and timidity. We have to push ourselves outside of our usual realm sometimes in order to engage our clients and visitors in a more profound and exciting way.
If you couldn’t tell, design is something that is easy for me to “geek out” about because in the culture we live in, it surrounds us and it impacts us more than we truly know. I’m the type of person who walks into the local grocery store one day and notices they redesigned their chip bags. I stop and stare at them, pick up a bag and contemplate the design. Now, you don’t have to go to that level to understand or see that design impacts how we interact with the brands, products, and companies we purchase or see. Design changes and it often changes with the times and sometimes that is what makes good design so hard to define. It is an evolving, ever-changing element as trends go in and out of style and new trends appear out of thin air. But, I believe, if we narrow it down to these core values, good design can be anywhere. As you contemplate how you want to engage your customers or those who will interact with your brand or company, consider if it will linger, if it considers the user’s interaction, does it communicate well, see if it embodies a bit of risk. Design can, most often times, act as a first impression, and trust me, you want that first impression to be one that is positive and lasts, and good design can do that for you.
Thanks for reading!
Audrea King
Graphic Designer