• events 2012
• about
• authors
• media
• speakers
• workshops 2012
• sponsors

The organic process of design

by Raul Sarrot

Design, oh Design… What an organic process. Some people think that design is a rational process and often wonder why there are some many variables and so little certainties in a process that is ‘supposed to be’ pretty straight forward. Well, yes, there is a rational process or component in place, but also there’s a strong emotional process involved. An organic process, you might say, as normally both parties involved (clients and designers) are emotional beings, and in this case designers are on a very organic task: creativity.

The other part that seems to be quite organic within the design process is the brief. So when a brief arrives to the ‘design table’, on a clinical white piece of paper, freshly printed and still warm (or even as that ellusive ‘unread’ email), it often only encompasses a small picture of what is needed, said, thought or even agreed by ‘the client’. Well, we can’t complain, the name is concerning on itself…. ‘brief’.
‘How come!?’, some clients would say. ‘The brief is clear and it’s your business to create the desired outcome’. However, in normal practice, to understand a brief often requires much more than reading it. Quite often to understand what are we supposed to do we need to go further, talk to people and get a full debrief of the meeting, read the full strategy document (if there is one), or even more, do some research first hand to understand things (meaning the client’s unspoken expectations, the product or the company reality and/or needs).
But, hold on, we thought it was a pretty straight forward exercise. Well, not really. A brief sometimes is quite volatile and has a very limited life… It lasts only until the client change their minds (so the ‘ever-changing’ virtual brief) or —knowing the odd times we live in— if the person who commissioned the job (or the person who wrote the brief or even the strategy) is still employed by the company.
Design, oh, Design, what an organic process.

One of the speakers at the recent SemiPermanent09 rightly put it into words: ‘Design is about people’. What a true gem. It’s good to have this in mind when our clients think (as they thought on the last century) that is ‘just about their product’… when business people think it’s ‘just about making a margin’ or ‘the only important thing is the bottom line’… When brand strategies think it’s ‘just about the brand essence and the brand personality’, when account managers think it’s ‘just about client satisfaction’, or when we —designers— think that is just about having a bit of fun and making it look cool. So, then is when I value that comment: Design is about people. This meaning that any design or visual representation of an idea/brand/product or organisation — to be successful— should somehow have a strong concept laying underneath, and most importantly should talk to people. Yes, that’s right, should be relevant to all people in the value chain. The agency or studio, to understand it and to be proud of it. The client, to buy it, use it, pay for it and be proud of it. And ultimately, for people, to see it or read it, understand it, buy it or use it and yes, to be proud of it.

Raymond Loewy said some 40 years ago ‘Design is about solving problems’. Then, Alan Fletcher properly fine-tuned his comment saying “Design is not only about solving problems, it’s also about adding value and making a difference’. Fantastic clarity.
Now, what would be the best statement to define DESIGN these days? I still prefer to think that ‘Design is about making sure we transform a ‘need’ into a relevant message that both talks to people and triggers the desired results.’
And, because it’s about people… It’s not about talking, it’s about being heard.