How you can use product design   Good design can increase your product’s reach in the marketplace and make it more attractive to customers. These are important factors in selling the product, improving it and getting a return on your investment. Careful product design can also help you to reduce your production costs, optimise the use of materials and minimise waste. Product design process Product designers do many things before… Read More »How you can use product design

How you can use retail design   Retail design involves creating a space for selling your goods. This could be in a high street shop, shopping centre or department store concession, but increasingly is means selling online too. Retail design principles Retail businesses have one primary goal – to get the customer over the doorstep and influence them to buy their products. The layout of your retail space is arguably… Read More »How you can use retail design

How you can use service design   Service design is a way of helping you improve your services by making them more useful, efficient and desirable for your customers. What is service design? Service design involves planning and creating the infrastructure, communication materials and levels of service delivered by staff. You can use service design at any point where customers interact with your business to: improve their satisfaction enhance your… Read More »How you can use service design

How you can use workplace design   Workplace design isn’t just about choosing the paint colours for your office space. Your work environment can directly affect staff productivity and creativity. If clients regularly visit your workplace, it can also affect how they see your company. There are many things to consider when designing your workplace, such as: architecture functional layout appropriate lighting furniture materials technology meeting rooms an open and… Read More »How you can use workplace design

Maximise the success of your design projects   For every design project you undertake, you should set clear targets for measuring its success. In many situations, customer response will be a crucial factor. For instance, if you design a new product, the key benchmark of its success will be its performance in the market. You may also need to consider a wide range of additional factors when judging the success… Read More »Maximise the success of your design projects

The design audit   A design audit is a systematic review of all the different elements that your company uses to interact with customers and the public. How to carry out a design audit When you carry out an audit, you should think about: The materials that you use to communicate with your customers – are they printed, delivered via email or in one-to-one presentations? How often do your customers… Read More »The design audit

Branding – the key ingredients   There are four key elements in a successful branding project: The big idea The big idea is the starting point for any branding project. It is a summary of your business’ or product’s ‘personality’, and what makes it different. To find your big idea, you must first look very carefully at your business and the marketplace you operate in. You need to ask yourself:… Read More »Branding – the key ingredients

Ensuring brand consistency   Consistency is an important part of branding and brand management. It reinforces your business identity, drives positive sentiment and builds consumer trust. This doesn’t mean that all of your communications have to look the same, but you should strive for visual cohesion. As a minimum, make sure that you follow set standards, such as your colour palette, visual style, font and size and spacing of your… Read More »Ensuring brand consistency

Your brand and your staff   All of your employees will play a crucial part in managing your brand because they can affect what customers and colleagues think of your business. It is important to ensure that they understand your brand and believe in what it stands for. If they do, their actions will communicate this to other colleagues and customers. Employees can become emotionally attached to brands, allowing for… Read More »Your brand and your staff

design tips for creating a successful brand   Creating a brand is a difficult task. Here are eight design tips which you can follow to help you create a successful and memorable brand. 1. Keep it simple – building a brand doesn’t have to be complicated. It can start with a clean, simple typeface that’s followed consistently through all corporate materials. Be thorough and careful when choosing the right brand… Read More »design tips for creating a successful brand