Solid design is the key to growing your business. Period. Point Blank. Fin. We could (and probably will) talk until we’re blue in the face on this subject, but we thought it might be helpful to hear it from others as well. So this guest post is part of a new series on the crowdSPRING blog highlighting the importance of investing in good design. Why design? The real question is: why not?
One of the biggest misconceptions of building a company is that a good idea sells itself. In the early days of a company, it’s easy to romanticize the idea that a quality product or service is all that matters. And while it certainly does matter, it’s only a fraction of the picture.
This is not Field of Dreams. You can’t just build something. It’s not enough to be good. You have to look good.
Why? Let’s break it down.
1. People Appreciate Good Design
Let’s talk about soap. It’s been there for decades and nobody really did anything special until a company called Method came along. All they did to disrupt the entire market of soap was to create a modern brand that people would appreciate. From that, they took over shelf space in major retail stores and became one of the most popular soap brands of 2016.
You shouldn’t be pleasing people with just your product or service, but you need to be getting their attention with design as well. If your competitors are outdated, this is a great way to separate yourself from the competition. Simply use good design and leverage that in your branding and marketing.
2. Times Are Changing.
As time goes by, the age group that is now relevant for a lot of products has also changed. I look back to all this and I realize that I’m 23 years old and making a lot of decisions on things that I didn’t make a while back. Buying cars, houses, clothes, everyday essentials and so much more is now a responsibility I am accountable for. What I consider acceptable from a branding or design standpoint is very different than what my parents, or my grandparents, for that matter, were okay with.
The same design techniques that worked 20 years ago will not work today because our generation has been exposed to better. As times change, you must adapt. Charles Darwin said it best when he said that it’s not the smartest or the strongest that make it in this world, but rather those who are most willing to change.
3. Good Design Attracts The Eye.
If your designs are current, modern and impressive, people will just gravitate towards your products. It’s a fact of life. The next time you go to the grocery store, browse a random isle that you never look through and ask yourself which items on the shelves catch your eye first. I guarantee it’ll be the products with phenomenal design, branding and modern packaging.
Creating a successful product, service or website is all about getting eyeballs to it. What if you can spend less money but generate more eye balls just because something looks better than the others? Would you not take the time to invest more upfront to get those kinds of results? That’s the great thing about good design, you don’t have to spend more but you’re automatically able to generate more attention.
4. People Forget Easily.
The brilliant thing about a great website and a great design is that people will have a hard time forgetting about your brand. People often times like to use visual memories of awesome things they saw to remind themselves of certain products, sites or services when they need it. They may come across something brilliant, but have no need for it at the time but they’ll be able to reflect back to it when they need to.
Be memorable. It’s really that easy. Design helps you add to the complete package of being memorable where people will remember you for the rest of your life. It’s easy to forget about the brand or product that didn’t have something so memorable about it. People can easily forget about it.
5. It Makes Your Company Look Good.
You can have the best employees, the best services and even the best pricing but it still isn’t the complete package if your design doesn’t match it all. Every business owner I know wants to be the most impressive business on the block. As an entrepreneur, you want to be admired for your greatness and you want to be proud of your work.
Having poor design or mediocre design dampens the image your company gives out to the public. If you have everything else at top-notch standards, why compromise on your design? Spend the extra time, effort and money to create the best possible design!
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Jeet Banerjee is a successful serial entrepreneur, TEDx speaker, and digital marketing consultant. He is the founder of Daily Mondo, Visionary Media Group, and StatFuse, and author of the book Limitless Thinking. Learn more at jeetbanerjee.com.
