If you’re in the business of designing anything from buildings to websites, you already know that design can be good for business. After all, more attractive products tend to get more attention—and therefore get purchased more often—than unattractive ones. In fact, statistics show that attractive visual designs can significantly improve your bottom line in many ways, whether you’re a large corporation or a small-business owner.
While design professionals understand the important role that design plays in business, there’s still many people out there who don’t yet appreciate the concept of design as an investment. We’ve rounded up 5 reasons that prove the value of design and the importance of hiring a good design agency. Keep reading to learn more!
1. Statistics that prove the power of design
Are you somebody who loves cold, hard proof numbers to convince you? Then this point is perfect for you because we go through all the numbers that prove that design is beneficial for a business.
A group called The Design Council studied around 63 company portfolios that traded with FTSE (Financial Times Stock Exchange) over a decade. The group found that the companies that focused on the design aspect of their business outperformed the FTSE 100 index by 200% more than the companies that placed lesser emphasis on design. To understand this statistic better, imagine this- every $100 a company invests in design, they increase their turnover by $225. So this proves that investing in design gives your business a long-term profit.
2. Good design creates a strong first impression
This pandemic has made many businesses shift online and there is a high chance that a customer’s first encounter with your business is your website. This means that your website is the very first impression of your brand. First impressions matter a lot, that’s why good design is crucial.
A study titled Trust and Mistrust of Online Health Sites, had 15 participants report their first impressions on websites. By the end of the study, it was determined that badly designed websites were mistrusted or rejected immediately. The design-related issues constituted 94% chances of a person not reading the website. So it doesn’t matter if your content is good, because as long as your UI design is bad, the website doesn’t stand a chance.
3. Good design establishes your identity and makes it memorable
Design is so much more than just the external appearance of your product, brand, or business. While your business might make a deeper impression on the customers with good customer service, and with good quality products, what really makes your business memorable is always your design. From your brand logo to the choice of colours you use, everything needs to be carefully chosen to leave a lasting impression on your customers.
A study conducted by The Malaysian Journal of Medical Sciences talks about how colours affect memory performance. The study states that colours play a huge role in how effectively we remember a product. They have the potential to help you easily store and retrieve important information. So using selective colours and unique design concepts can establish your brand identity and keep it fresh in the minds of your customers.
4. Design promotes brand consistency
Consistency is key to form a successful business. Being as consistent as possible in terms of your logo, brand colours, etc. will ensure that your customer remembers as much information as possible about your brand. For example, when you think about Coca Cola, you always associate it with a red and white logo. The same stands for the Nike brand. This is because they are consistent with their brand design. One way to ensure that your brand design stays consistent is to follow a strict style guide for your brand.
5. Packaging design can change customer’s perception
Presentation is everything. Having a product that’s well presented with a good packaging design makes all the difference. This is the reason chefs labour over how food is presented on the plate, because the majority of the food consumption is determined by sight. “Eating with your eyes” is an important factor that goes into both plated food as well as packaged food. How a customer perceives your food is determined by its packaging design.
For example, when a 7UP bottle was tinted in a green colour, customers perceived the taste to be more lime and lemon based, whereas when the packaging was altered to be more yellow, the customers perceived the taste to be more lemon based. So just the packaging of your product can alter the perception of your product even where there is no alteration in the product’s composition. The smallest of changes in packaging can change how people react to them. This applies to non-food based products as well.
Conclusion
Businesses that incorporate design into their operations and marketing techniques enjoy greater success than those that don’t. According to Adobe, companies that focus on strong design outperform companies that don’t by 219% in the S&P index. What’s more, design has the potential to influence every aspect of your business, from your product or service offerings to your customer support methods to your company structure. So what are you waiting for? Hire a creative design agency to elevate your business to the next level. Also, keep checking this space for part 2 where we cover more points.
