Those who see faces see hearts. Those who see designs can see how a company is organized. Design is present in all kinds of organizations and is fundamental to a company’s success.
According to Adobe, organizations with strong design performance outperform those that neglect this aspect by 219% on the Standard & Poor’s index, one of the most important in the financial industry, over a 10-year period. Apple’s rise since the mid-21st century, for example, allows us to see just how important design can be to a company’s success. Steve Jobs himself recognized this.
“Design is not just what it looks or feels like. Design is how it works.”. Steve Jobs
This statement came on the 2nd anniversary of a product that revolutionized the portable music player market, the iPod. It happened in November 2003, and Apple was still at the beginning of its rise.
It’s a powerful statement that clearly demonstrates the impact design can have on a company’s success, and one that aligns with Apple’s own success. But how can we say that design is profitable for a business? Here are 6 reasons why:
1 – Design Helps You Stand Out
Competition, in any industry, is always present, and you have to overcome it through differentiation.
If the product or service you offer is similar to that of your competitors and the price is similar, the truth is that consumers may not feel particularly inclined to choose one. This is where design comes in, in the way it can influence a choice between two “similar” products. Not least because, generally speaking, we tend to associate the most beautiful with the best.
In other words, all other factors being equal, those who use design stand out.
2 – Building Strong Relationships
Design can evoke emotions, and these are the foundation of many relationships (along with trust, as we know). With this in mind, it is desirable to convey emotions through a company’s design in order to keep the customer engaged in the relationship.
The best designs tend to use colors that are in harmony with what they are selling.
3 – Functionality
We know that it’s not enough for Caesar’s wife to be honest, she has to look the part too. Things work differently in design. It’s not enough to look beautiful; you have to be beautiful… from a functional standpoint.
In other words, you need to combine good design with a good experience, which can ultimately be achieved through functionality.
A well-designed website, for example, helps drive conversions because it keeps potential customers engaged on the site, something that is crucial, especially at a time when people’s attention spans are shrinking. While a well-conceived design from both a visual and functional perspective doesn’t increase user focus, it can help keep them on the site and thus bring them closer to a potential conversion.
4 – First impressions last
The first interactions between people are often remarkable. In fact, some say it takes no more than seven seconds to make a good impression. The same applies to a company’s website.
The better impression you make on first-time visitors, the more likely they are to stay. In other words, it’s important, and even necessary, to have an impactful design in order to keep them and subsequently achieve a conversion or, possibly, positive word of mouth.
5 – The Most Popular Platforms
The importance of design extends across multiple platforms. It’s not just the website that needs good design, but social media as well, where much of the marketing effort of some organizations is focused today.
And it doesn’t just have to be on Pinterest, which is more geared toward design, but also on more general social networks such as Facebook, Instagram, or even Twitter (in fact, a Buffer study found that tweets with images receive 150% more retweets than those without). All of these require a significant design effort. This will make it easier to stand out from the competition, make an impact on potential customers, and, eventually, expand your brand’s reach.
6 – Consistency
It would be hard to imagine a brand succeeding if it constantly changed its logo or the colors of its branding. In this sense, it is important to maintain a consistent color scheme, not only to preserve the brand’s identity but also to nurture the emotional connection with customers with whom relationships have already been established and from whom loyalty is sought.
Having a well-crafted design is therefore crucial, because it will be something that stays with the company and its customers for years to come.
You now have half a dozen reasons why you can effectively design your company’s success. Contact us and give your business an upgrade.
