The first impression is always the last. Imagine you visit a library and are looking for a book. You picked a book but put it back because of the bad design on its cover. You haven’t read the book yet but still, you’ve judged it through its cover.
The Impact of Design Transformation on Business Success
Design is not a choice for your business; it’s a tool that will not just differentiate you from your competitors but will build a strong relationship and emotional connection with your customers.
It will tell a story that no one will ignore, and due to that story, your brand image will be elevated, and people will start trusting your brand.
Most people think that only a pretty aesthetic or complex logo will be able to represent their brand, which is not true. A logo can be anything unique that tells your business objective or maybe your identity.
For example, we see many businesses such as Pinterest that use the first letter of their name, and their logo seems very simple without any complex design and patterns, but it clearly represents the brand/business’s objective, how?
As the ‘P’ clearly represents the brand name ‘Pinterest’, so whenever someone sees it, they quickly recognise that it’s the logo of Pinterest. Secondly, ‘P’ also represents the main objective of the platform which is to ‘Pin’ boards and images.
So it tells us that any form of design can have a huge impact on business growth and success because it makes the brand unique, distinctive, and confidential. And the more people are familiar with a brand, the more likely it is for them to convert into consistent customers.
Importance of Logo for a Business
We can understand the importance of logos for a business by the fact that back in the day when there were no modern tools, technology, or anything like that. Shepherds used to make unique patterns with an iron tool and then after warming it enough, place it onto the sheep’s body just like a stamp.
It showed their symbol and differentiated them from the competitors or other shepherds’ sheep.
So, a logo or a distinctive design isn’t a modern thing or a choice, it has been considered a compulsory thing for businesses throughout history.
Design Consistency: Building Trust, Avoiding Confusion
A design is not considered successful if it can’t stop people from standing for a while and looking at it. And only a clear, non-cluttered, and attractive design can grab people’s attention.
Yet even if a brand chooses a clear, non-cluttered design, if they are changing it again and again, people won’t be able to recognise their business and will be confused. So even if a brand’s logo, design, or overall colour scheme attracts people, due to an inconsistent image they won’t consider them as a reputable business to shop from and move on.
Why Design Matters: A Personal Example
Now some people might say why does design matter at all?
Well, I can give you a personal life example. One of my friends is a great shopaholic and once I saw her ignoring buying from a brand, I found their products quite reasonable and good in terms of quality, but she ignored buying from that brand.
I was curious, so I asked her why she didn’t buy from them. She said I don’t like their packaging design and way of presenting the product so I don’t find it appealing enough to spend money on.
I was quite shocked because to me it was just the quality of a product that mattered the most. But I was wrong, if someone can get the same product but it looks better and is more appealing, they will prefer buying it over the other… even at a higher cost.
Seems silly, but it is what it is.
Design Sells: Leveraging Colour Theory
Understanding the colour theory is crucial in design. Just like a logo, the colour scheme shows your brand’s identity. You might be thinking that only bold colours look good and they should represent each brand to catch customers’ eye or maybe attract them and convert them into consistent buyers.
I would say that’s kind of a ‘business delusional thing’.
If your brand/firm provides life coaching services, you should use soft earthly colours instead of going into sharp red, navy blue, or pitch black colours. Soft colours when used right build an emotional connection, which will benefit you a lot in terms of winning the trust of your valuable clients and making them feel that you care about your potential clients and you want them to succeed.
Although soft colours are considered to be just used for targeting old people, in that case, it isn’t true.
Any colour can go with a brand if it conveys its message or shows what the brand is all about.
Utilising Colour Psychology: Examples from Real Life
Why is Orange Used in Restaurants?
There’s hardly a city on Earth that’s without a fast food restaurant. And when you visit a restaurant you might notice that the whole environment seems very cosy, why?
Because of the presence of orange colour, with a little involvement of yellow colour.
You might be thinking what it has to do with the orange colour. Well, when I was a kid, I used to think of it as a presentation of fire and cooking and whatnot.
But that was just an average kid’s thoughts and imagination. The orange colour is associated with evoking a sense of hunger and appetite. Not just hunger and appetite but it has something to do with letting people leave the restaurant as soon as possible.
Restaurants want customers to eat fast and leave the place as soon as possible so they can make room for other customers.
So that’s why they use orange pigment all over the restaurant to wake people’s hunger and also when they’re done eating, the colour stimulates their feeling to leave the place, in this way, other customers can enjoy the tasty food too.
Pretty smart, don’t you think?
The Calming Effect of Blue in Hospitals
Hospitals are considered chaotic and tense places, so to minimise the element of stress, the blue colour is used everywhere in there.
Blue is a cool colour and refers to a peaceful and relaxing environment. This colour is used to calm patients and reduce immense anxiety and depression.
The sky is blue and that’s the main reason why psychiatrists ask their patients to look at the sky more often to relax their nerves and to cope with depression.
So as you can see, there’s more to colour than meets the eye.
Harnessing Design for Business Success
The right design and colour can transform a business to new heights. As a business coach, you might have advised clients to build trust with their customers.
A consistent design and colour scheme play a major role in building trust among customers. I can give you my example; I’m used to visiting a nearby restaurant once a month, and there are two parts of it, one just for fast food lovers and the other for people who enjoy different cuisines, and although I go to eat fast food, I prefer sitting in the cuisine hall, even it costs way more than the fast food area.
Why?
Because of the pretty aesthetics, cosiness, and colour scheme. So, if your business is visually appealing and consistent, people will not question spending more.
