In Part 1 of this post, I explained how an ROI analysis can empower corporate design departments and solidify their role in the brand building process. Today, we’ll talk about why this information is beneficial consultants and how it can change the client/consultant relationship.

Accountability Leads to Partnership: Benefits for Design Consultancies

Now let us assume that consultancies are selected and compensated based on how their work contributes specifically to brand profits. How would that change the client/consultant relationship? What if a firm was selected for an engagement not because it submitted the lowest bid but rather because it made the biggest financial commitment to brand success? What if compensation was not based on an hourly rate or a fee structure but instead the mutual financial success of both the brand and the consultancy? What if design firms billed their costs but only took their share of profits when a pre-determined amount of incremental sales, market share, or profits had been exceeded? What if the design firm shared in 5% of the incremental profits? This is again just a tiny portion of the additional earnings over and above the pre-determined ROI expectation. How would that change the game?

Proceed With Caution, but Proceed!

Here’s where we separate the men and women from the boys and girls. If you firmly believe, as I do, that your process generates more value that any other marketing effort can; and if you believe based on this series of articles, that design can and should be quantified, then the next (big scary) step is to prove it to yourself, your organization, and your clients. Start slow, and proceed with caution, but start!

Begin by selecting a prototypical assignment. Measure the market share and profits before initiating design. Conduct the real-world research discussed in this article. Launch the new design in a half dozen retail locations, and compare sales with identical markets. (more…)

If you like typography and information design, take a look at these sketches from the Type Workshop. The concepts are mostly fundamental, but the drawings uniquely and effectively express the ideas. It’s good stuff.

via I love typography

If you’re shopping for your favorite designer this holiday season (or for a treat for yourself), there are some great gifts out there that you should know about. Tees, books, and accessories that reference the design world let designers show off a bit, and they’re always fun.

The Pantone Matching System is a well-known and much-loved design tool, especially among graphic designers. A number of small bags, backpacks, notebooks, business card holders, and other things are currently being produced in a range of Pantone colors. Anyone carrying one of these items would quickly be recognized as a member of print design community.

This Pantone backpack comes in several popular PMS shades.

There are also tons of t-shirts that signify a certain design sense. If your in the market for one, check out chopshopstore.com, a division of favorite design firm, The Chopping Block. The “Sir Freelancealot,” (more…)

I.D.’s Annual Design Review is actively seeking entries. From Julie Lasky, Editor, I.D magazine:

One of the oldest and broadest design competitions in America, I.D.’s Annual Design Review showcases the material, culture and evolution of design. Each year, entries are judged by leaders in the industry, who, along with I.D.’s editorial team, narrow down the abundance of submissions into today’s most cutting-edge design.

Enter the Annual Design Review today.

Why should you? Because if you have confidence in your work and just know that it’s the best … then you stand a reasonable chance of having it featured in I.D.’s August 2008 issue, along with the other winners of the Annual Design Review. It’s the best way to make a move to the center—of attention— and gain worldwide exposure for your finest work.

You can enter your best in the categories of: Consumer Products, Graphics, Packaging, Furniture, Environments, Concepts, and Interactive Media

The deadline of December 1, 2007, is fast approaching, so get your entry forms and get going.

I recently wrote a post about point-and-shoot product photography - a task many web designers will perform again and again. Taking photos is one thing. Getting them ready for the web is another.

1) Original files and retouching. Always duplicate your original image before you begin adding details and correcting flaws, and work with the highest quality files available. Even though your images will probably end up small and low-res, you should keep a full-size, high-res version handy. You never know when you’ll need it, but I can assure you that when a magazine asks for a print-ready version, you don’t want to have to start from scratch.

2) Signature thumbnail treatments. Adding some type of treatment to your thumbnails can anchor them in the massive grid common to most e-commerce sites. A border or a very (very!) subtle drop shadow will keep your thumbnails from seeming as if they’re floating in space, and will also frame cropped images.

Shanalogic.com uses a fine green line produced in CSS to create a signature look that both suits her brand and grounds the thumbnails.

The trick here is to keep your treatments as simple and subtle as possible. Make you’re your treatments are consistent with your brand and the overall appearance of your site. Color can go a long way in this regard. Your treatments should be really easy to reproduce, so I’d recommend using a saved Photoshop style or action. (Create your own, (more…)

We’ve nearly reached the end of our quest to empirically demonstrate design’s direct impact on bottom line brand success. In my first post, “The Quest for Quantification”, I explained a Northeastern University accredited methodology that proves design’s value and detailed the exact moment in time and the specific process which unequivocally and irrefutably identifies design’s specific contribution to brand sales. I analyzed the relatively small but deep and rich data set that proves design generates more than 50 times the ROI of advertising.

In my last post, “Being Careful Of What We Wish For”, I addressed several real-world concerns about the quantification of design and concluded that proving its value can be a good thing - a very good thing in fact, but if and only if, the information is handled properly.

So what’s left to do? Now that we know we can quantify design and should quantify design, we must determine what should be done with the information. What is the end game? Now that we’ve proved that every dollar invested in design generates an unprecedented return, who is interested? How will management interpret all of this? (more…)

As much as we may be afraid to admit it, it’s that time of year again: holiday shopping time. In some posts later this season, I’ll share some fun gift ideas for the design-savvy people in your life, but let’s first focus on a different gifting dilemma. What (if anything) do you give your clients for the holidays, and how do you go about doing it?

A gift can be a warm expression of thanks and a pleasant reminder of your availability, or it can seem a blatant attempt at sucking up.

First off, send a note to anyone who paid you this year - nothing fancy, just a simple card with a friendly thank you. A generic “Happy Holidays” message is usually best. Try to steer clear of religious themes. Address the card to the person you dealt with most or the entire team, and always sign the card yourself. (Printed envelope labels are fine though.) Be sure to send the card to the office; having it delivered to a client’s home is usually not appropriate.

If you have a lot of clients, you might consider designing your own holiday cards. You can use a small printing service like moo.com or psprint.com to print them. The extra bit of design will be appreciated and will remind your clients of your skills.

Consider sending a gift only to your top clients, the ones you’d like to work with more. Sure, you’re sucking up a bit, but you’re also letting them know that you appreciate all the good work that they’ve sent your way. The gift should be simple, (more…)

You asked your legal, copyright and trademark questions, and Jean has answered! All questions are taken from comments posted on the original ‘Ask Jean’ post. We invite you to ask more questions.

Hi Jean,

I do a lot of PDF editing and on occasion have been asked to “unlock” a secured document.

Do you know of any existing legal forms that would require a prospective client who makes such a request to a) state that she is the owner/creator of such document or b) state that she has permission from the owner/creator, granting permission to extract, copy, or reuse information from the specified document.

Any information or insight you can provide would be greatly appreciated.

Sincerely,
David

Dear David,

I don’t know of any “forms” that fit the bill, but there are definitely legal issues raised by such requests. I would not agree to unlock a secured document without some kind of release, which should not only set forth what you have stated above but also indemnify you or your firm. That should release you from any claims, in the event that your actions create a legal problem. This is a legal risk you should not be asked to take without some protection. Have an attorney draft a release for you that includes a lot of legal protection.

Best,
Jean

I live in San Diego, and last week, there were fires here. Boy, were there fires here.

My family didn’t have to evacuate, like we did during the fires three years ago. So aside from the smoky air and having the kids indoors all week, it was mostly business as usual. We were very fortunate.

Naturally, I had my backups ready to go. Everything was saved on two flash drives. Then, something strange happened.

I started getting phone calls from clients. Their emails to me were bouncing! My ISP’s email server had gone down.

I immediately switched to a Hotmail account I’d created just in case something like this came to pass. I sent messages to all my clients from the account, so they would know what was going on. It got me thinking: we all know we should back up our data, but what about our systems?

I was prepared, because I had a Hotmail account ready to go. My alternate address isn’t anything cool, revealing, or personal. It sounds professional, and I use it only for business. The account is also a paid account, so it can handle larger files.

I also have a dial-up internet account, so I’ll be operational even if my primary ISP shuts down. I can serve my clients from any computer, anywhere, no matter the status of my ISP, primary email server, or web host.

These days, email is an essential form of business communication, but all kinds of events, both local and distant, can cause outages.

As a professional, are you prepared?

Lumen Eclipse is an outdoor media arts project located in Harvard Square, MA. Works produced by local, national, and international artists are displayed on two large screens in the square, thereby encouraging public interaction with motion-based art. The project also exists online. At lumeneclipse.com, visitors can view artworks, read artist interviews, and learn about upcoming events. Updated monthly, the exhibitions feature original works that celebrate creative motion through animation, video, film, and motion graphics.

Lumen Eclipse is currently reviewing pre-produced work from established and emerging visual artists looking to showcase their work in a public forum. There is also an artist-in-residence program that comes with a stipend of $2,000. More information about these opportunities can be found here.

via coolhunting