Strategic Adjectives
When in the beginning stages of a design, I recommend using descriptive words before you settle on colors and imagery.
Creative Process
“Think about it . . . deeply. Then forget it. And and idea will jump up in your face.” —Don Draper, Mad Men The creative process can be used to achieve any goal, whether business or personal. Once you have a clearly defined goal or problem follow these steps:
Design Strategy
design: to form or conceive in the mind for a definite purpose strategy: a plan for obtaining a specific goal or result More and more companies are using design strategy as a business tool. Design is more than making something look nice superficially. It is a creative process that has a clear goal in mind, and […]
Spotlight on Massimo Vignelli
A few years back I had the sublime pleasure of seeing Massimo Vignelli speak at a design conference. I snapped this photo with my phone when his definition of graphic design came up on the screen. Vignelli passed away this year, so it’s a good time to reflect on his career. You have seen his […]
Why Design on a Grid?
Think of the grid as the design’s skeleton; you can’t see it, but it gives structure to what you do see. The majority of publication and web designers arrange type and images on a grid. The viewer doesn’t see the grid lines, but can see evidence of them in the rows and columns throughout.
Growing Opportunities for Design Consulting
John Rousseau of Creative Review makes the case for expanding opportunities for design consultancy—as long as a few challenges can be overcome. Introducing design into existing companies is complex and expensive. For the best results, design thinking cannot be treated as a fad to be discarded for the next business fad that comes along.
Design Strategy: Case Studies
Designers don’t just make web pages and publications look nice. Good design is all about effective communication. While aesthetics is one side of that coin, strategy is the other. Design strategy is designing with a purpose: targeting an audience, understanding how they think, and creating work they find attractive and engaging. It makes communication focussed, […]
Designing a Logo
This is a real world example of the creative process at work.
Case Study: Selling More Chocolate
from the Wall Street Journal article by Elizabeth Holmes When Godiva wanted to get people to eat more chocolate, it had an 85-year brand history to overcome.