Design school taught us how to create but not how to deliver results. Here’s a handful of tools we learned in the field:
From Pretty to Purposeful
We were taught to focus on aesthetics, but what clients really need is big impact. In order to think strategically we need to understand the client’s brand, be clear on their goals, and design with data in mind.
This means:
- Setting up a strong on-boarding meeting. You don’t always get a clean brief from a client but with our brief template we’re able to guide clients through a thorough on-boarding that helps get to the heart of what they want stylistically and from a business perspective.
- Using marketing data & strong tracking. We use market research and keyword research to help understand the audience and design deliverables. When we create interactive or website content, we track performance using tags to help inform future decisions for the brand.
Beyond the Software
Mastering the tools was just the start. Real success comes from understanding people.
This means:
- Communicating ideas clearly. When we are presenting initial design concepts, we rely on virtual or face-to-face meetings over email. This allows us to hear the client’s initial reactions, thoughts, and reasoning straight from the source. Often helping clients find the right design language for their feedback live on a call helps to make the next iteration that much closer to their vision.
- Leading Clients Through the Process. We’re the agency, not our clients. While the process might seem second nature to us, it’s brand new for them! Walking through the steps, what to expect, timelines and deliverables, helps to keep the relationship strong and on track.
- Collaborating with cross-functional teams. We don’t just have designers on our team! We have web developers thinking about user experience and accessibility, and digital marketers thinking about optimizing for ad results. Working with all these inputs helps to strengthen our design.
Designing for the Brand, Not the Ego
We all have our creative voice. But great brand work isn’t about your style – it’s about the right fit.
So we focus on:
- Adapting to fit the brand identity. We bring our unique perspective and data driven insights to create ideas that we think will resonate with the target audience.
- Honouring voice and tone. No matter what our preferences, it’s important to go back to the brief when it comes to voice & tone. What we create for the client will represent them, so it’s important it reflects their message.
- Finding a fit. We weave our design style into all of Sore Thumb’s brand resources, and this helps make sure that the clients who vibe with us find us! And sometimes we have to be upfront in saying that our design style might not match what the client is ultimately looking for.
From Case Study to Conversion Story
In design school, the goal was to build a beautiful portfolio. In the agency world, beauty needs to deliver results. We prioritize connecting to the client’s market, measuring and reporting on real outcomes, and telling the brand story in an impactful way.
If you have a brand story you’d like to tell – reach out!
