Good Design Will Make Your Business Great
It’s easy to skimp on your company’s graphic design, but your customers – and potential customers – can tell the difference. Here are five reasons why investing in top quality professional graphic design makes good business sense.
1. Get Noticed
To get noticed, you need to stand apart from the crowd — a very large, loud, flashy crowd. You may have a special product, a unique service, but will you get noticed with mediocre graphic design that looks like every other company out there? Nope.
Consider the amount of sales emails you receive in a day. If you’re anything like me, 99.9% of them go directly into the trash. In a world of DIY template designs, clip art and stock photography, your business can start looking like everybody else — Delete!
Your business is different. So your graphic design should be unique too. A distinct logo and brand identity that captures the spirit of your company is essential to your success.
2. Make A Good First Impression
When you’re going on a first date or to an important meeting, you probably don’t wear the same outfit that you wear around the house on a Sunday morning, right? A design that looks cheap and unprofessional will leave your customer with a negative perception of your business. A logo has a fraction of a second to make a first impression so don’t waste it.
Your customers may not be design experts, but they can sense whether your graphics are amateur or professionally done. No matter how big your company is, poorly done graphics can give the impression that your firm is outdated and undependable. On the other hand, good graphic design can make your company look strong, reliable and expert. Even a small startup can look established and reliable with good graphic design. Small visual cues contribute to the customer’s conscious and subconscious opinion of your company, so make a good first impression and build the customer loyalty that you want.
3. Build A Strong Brand
Think of your logo as the foundation of your graphic brand. Building your company’s brand starts with a great logo and expands to every aspect of your business. Weak and confusing branding suggests the same about your business and can turn customers away. Look at any successful company and you’ll see the same logo, colors and typefaces throughout their literature and websites. It makes them instantly recognizable, and that translates into brand recognition and sales.
In order to build a strong brand your visual identity has to convey an image that resonates with your ideal customers. Consistent marketing materials, logos, signage, etc., help shape the desired image. The visuals your brand puts forth give customers insight into your business. When brands deliver a consistent image and experience they build trust.
4. Engage Your Customers
The average attention span has decreased from twelve to eight seconds since the year 2000. Your business can be complex, with many products, sizes, colors, services and other factors. Clearly communicating what you offer can be a challenge. Small things such as paragraph length and alignment play roles in keeping customers interested.
Graphic designers are sometimes called “information designers.” A good graphic designer takes the time to understand your business in all its complexity and communicates your message affectively. Good design evokes strong emotions from your customers and is very effective at keeping them engaged.
5. Be Memorable
You know when you see someone and recognize their face, but can’t think of their name no matter how hard your try? Our brains intuitively process and remember visuals better than any other type of content. 80% of our memory is based on visuals and the brain processes them 60,000 times faster than plain text. This is strong evidence to suggest that your visual brand identity is key in creating good impressions of your business as well as shaping positive memories.
Give your customers something to remember!
Ignoring your organization’s graphic design needs can negatively impact clients, vendors, and employees. Utilizing an appropriate design can improve every aspect of your business. Consider the five reasons listed above before underestimating the importance of graphic design to your business.