From Strategy to Design Pt. 1

Do you ever wonder how creatives get to the end product of a logo, design concept and/or brand identity? Some people might think we creatives sit down with our colored pencils, put ourselves in this magical creative place of unicorns and wizards and BOOM all of a sudden there are these pretty pictures we present to the client! That actually sounds more like an acid trip. Believe it or not, there is a chronological method to the madness. A good, experienced designer will have his/her own specific strategy they follow.

The Process of Understanding

So, let’s say a client approaches me for a rebrand. When I sit down with them I am all ears. I want to soak in as much as I can and learn about their business, the things that make their business unique, how it functions, their demographic, and what excites them about what they do. I want to see their current materials and web presence. This gives me an overall understanding of where they are coming from. I want to know what brings them to me, and most importantly their goal. Once I have a solid understanding of the business and current strategy I begin an assessment of my own to be sure our goals align.

After my assessment, I will look at other businesses in that space. I want to see what they are doing, and how they perceive themselves. I look for a common thread and most often try to differ my line of thinking. Now that I have a solid understanding of the clients business, and goals I start the creative process. I want to build out a solid foundation through vague terms that will lead me to more specific avenues and concepts.

Building the Foundation

I will start out with a five category list. I will come up with several words per category that pertain to the clients business goals, then create imagery for each word listed. The list looks something like this:

  • Culture: cozy, friendly, etc…
  • Customer: Overwhelmed, mother, etc…
  • Voice: professional, inviting, l etc…
  • Feel: relaxed, secure, etc…
  • Impact: protected, safe, love etc…

From there I combine five words (a word from each category) using the imagery associated with each word. The combination of these words create their own identity. By now, I usually have a solid concept to work with. After I have a concept in mind, I repeat this process trying out different word/imagery combinations resulting in new concepts. By now I have several concepts to work with that are all very different from one another.


Originally published at foustcreativeconsulting.com on August 22, 2017.

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Foust Creative Consulting

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Foust Creative Consulting provides strategic direction for marketing, branding, customer acquisition, business processes, reporting & IT services.

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