-
Brand Strategy versus Eye Candy – who wins?
I have been asked to pitch for a re-branding project for a regional tv station.
However I rejected the offer since the client wasn’t prepared to clarify their brand strategy but preferred to judge logos on wow factor alone.I realise tv ids have to catch the eye but they also need to represent a product and provide a point of difference than other broadcasters. But it seems some clientele sometimes judge the success in the market of a product on branding alone.
As a professional designer of 20 years am I being too hard? Has anyone else had this happen? How did you respond? What is the professional design approach? Do you use a focus group before you publish your designs?
Gribble
::: Time flies like an arrow but fruit flies like a banana ::: -
3 Replies
-
in the end, they pay the bills so whatever they want.
Now, when what they want irritates me more than it’s worth, I pass.
Sometimes as artists or as business people, we do have to pass on a gig or a client. Truth is there are wonderful matches in this world and just as true, there are pair ups that should not be done. Try to put me in a corporate environment and it won’t be pretty, but I have very little problem getting paid to make something ugly for somone who says it rocks. I just don’t like to do it habitually because thats something that will cause burnout.
-
Mr. Shackleford, er, Gribble, my sense of the matter is, they don’t really understand branding or have a strategy as such. They are creatively bankrupt and are looking for stimulating ideas from outside. If they like some design of yours, they’ll like as not wag the dog to make it conform to the tail you’ve shown them. Is this a good way to work? Not usually. But if what they do now is that awful, whatever new direction you inspire in them can only help.
I get assignments where the clients just give me a cursory brief and then turn me loose. Sometimes it’s because we have such a well-established working relationship and mutual trust, they say Ii know you can handle this, just use your own judgement and call me to see the approval stage”.
Other times, it is a very inexperienced client with no clue at all, and I prefer in those cases they pretty much abandon the work in my lap and leave things up to me. It’s what I do. Actually I find it quite exciting working this way if the stakes are not too high. I usually come back at them with rough comp pitches for 2-3 ways I’d like to go, and let them pick from those.
As to trying to drag them into more professional creative behavior, well, some folks you can educate, and some you can’t. Don’t beat yourself up over the ones that just don’t “get it”. Save your energy and best efforts for the ones that make the work worth it.
-
Thanks Mark. Very encouraging!
I have always struggled with this client since they don’t respect the craft of graphic design. Afterall, anyone with a PC and some fonts can do branding right? He’s a nice guy but AAAARRRGGHH…’Just let me use my expertise to HELP you”
There is a point I have to let go and let some other designer have the battle (I successfully designed the initial branding – on-air, print and web)
Gribble
::: Time flies like an arrow but fruit flies like a banana :::
Reply to this Discussion! Login or Sign Up