Key Features of the Design Process

Key Features of the Design Process


Brief 

The first stage in the design process is getting a brief of the client which states what they want, i.e. flyer, poster, web site, etc. The brief will also include any other spec for example, colours, text, images, etc. Sometimes the customer will be open for any suggestions but the majority are specific. 

Planning 

The next stage of the design process would be planning the design, how long you are going to spend on each area and deciding which direction you're going to go with the design. 

Research

The next stage would be researching the client, their competitors and other things which are relevant. You would research the clients colours, layouts, imagery to gain a further understanding of the company and anything which could influence the design to make it stronger and maintain the consistency of the brand. You would research the competitors so you can see what you have to contend with and make this brand more dynamic and have a 'unique selling point'. 

New ideas can come from several places, for example if a web designer wanted to design something totally new and 'out there' and start a new trend he may ask original customers what they'd like to see that hasn't been done before. Also, he could check forums, attend meetings, read books and other things. Maybe the designer could create  3D webpages, it' has been done on TV and cinema so why can't it be done online and on webpages? He would have to team up with a product designer and a technology expert to figure out which direction to take but that could be the way forward to viewing webpages and the designer may have had that new idea from one comment on a forum. 

Idea development

This stage is all about the starting point of the brand coming together and identifying the quality in the brand name and making it significant to the rest of the design. In this stage the initial sketches and thumbnail drawings will be done. After you have developed a few strong ideas you would then take these into design software such as Illustrator to further them and enhance them graphically. 

Evaluate 

At this stage you take everything you have produced and evaluate it, taking the strongest, most effective points and putting them together  to create a strong, complete identity for the brand. 

Decide

At this stage you decide which idea is the strongest and which corresponds well with the existing brand, and portrays a strong image and meets the clients specification. 

Final Proof

The final stage is getting in contact with the client with a final proof. This is important so they can see the final result and make any changes they would like to the design.