What does the future of design look like?A few weeks ago Carol and I hosted a dinner in Melbourne for 20 design business leaders. Last week we attended The Design Conference. We hosted a breakfast one morning and spent the days talking to a wide range of designers, creative business owners and decision-makers.
The people we spoke to represent the gamut of the Australian design industry.
We asked two questions: what’s the state of the industry at the moment and what can we do to improve it?
Many made the point we have to change or fade away.
We have seen change – our industry has come a long way in the past decade. One change is client service directors routinely embedded in design agencies. It’s led to creative strategy and we’ve moved from planning an output to strategies for outcomes.
Introducing client service directors has changed the style of design agencies. While many of the tasks they do were previously done by the business owner, when you focus on the activities you can see why adding this role helped design businesses grow.
Here’s some of the activities handled by client service directors:
We’ve seen how good client service directors contribute to business growth and better clients.
The interesting flow-on has been the move to strategy – many design agencies now list creative strategy as part of their services. We’ve seen more and more agencies employing strategists in-house or as consultants. Richie Meldrum of Bare Brand Strat fame is enjoying success running his strategy workshops. The avid take up of his course shows the appetite for strategy in agencies of all sizes.
There is a missing link.
Proof.
Evidence.
Impact.
Only the top few percent of design agencies can afford to invest in evidence-based research to prove the value of design FOR CLIENTS. Many agencies boost their rates to add value for themselves but they lack the where-with-all to show value for clients.
Developing an evidence-based approach requires:
This approach not only demonstrates the impact of design solutions but also builds credibility and trust with clients, positioning the design agency as a leader in delivering impactful, data-driven design.
Contact me if you would like to learn more.
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Greg Branson
Greg’s passion is the research and development of methods that improve design management and the role of design in business.
Greg has developed The Design Business School to help owners manage their business better along with showing designers how to get more involved in the studio and develop their career path. Contact Greg.
