I wish there was a catch-all term for design and what it can do for a company. But there simply isn’t. Revolutionize? Thrust? Propel? Accelerate?
How about…Innovation?
Aligning Design with Innovation
That’s right. I’m going to align innovation with design. I think it fits. I think it’s important and it captures the essence of what it does and should do. It is much more than aesthetics like so many people think of today. The simple truth of the matter is that design is innovation.
And for me, I would venture to say that innovation is highly important today, quite possibly more than ever before. Never has there been such a scramble for great products, for market share and 2 seconds of consumers time. Never has there been the amount of products that come out ever single day. I mean, walk through the mall and you have 50+ stores selling the same stuff!
Make Your Purple Cow
So I say, make your purple cow. And you better do it now. Make that product that stands out and has some serious “WOW!” or some other term you prefer. It better excite people! It better make them think they can’t live without it! It better innovate an entire industry.
Enter Design
It can take an outstanding product and make it unforgettable. It can turn heads. It can embed itself deep within the consumer to the point that they want to sleep with it. Think Apple. I know it’s cliche but it works. They made us need something we didn’t even know we wanted. Think iPad.
Don’t overlook this important detail of giving your service or product the polish it deserves. Today’s marketplace is overcrowded and you don’t have a choice. We will always find what you do somewhere else from someone that has taken the initiative to design well.
Okay, I Get It. What Now?
While you very well may have the know how of your industry, you likely will need to some help when it comes to actual design. And by design I mean, HOW it solves a problem, WHAT problem it solves and how EASY it is for consumers to use.
All these and more have to come in sync to make a product incredible. It has to make the person remember what they just saw or used and want more of it. There’s no replacement for it. Don’t scrimp on design. Don’t let this all important aspect of your business be trusted to just anyone. Hire a professional and trust them.
Do you have any pointers for hiring professionals? How has a professional helped you to truly innovate in the past? How has an amateur hurt your innovation?