05 Aug Why Small Business Should GET CREATIVE

It is quite easy for small business owners dealing with limited budgets to be tempted to undervalue the importance of their visual communication plan.

Here are some reasons for making your visual identity a priority:

It may be cliche, but it is true: you only have one chance to make a first impression.

In our fast-paced culture, people make a lot of decisions about a company based on visual appearance alone. Design can instantly convey a level of trust, friendliness, and quality. A cheaply thrown together logo or design can instantly label a company as untrustworthy or low-quality, making it harder to gain customers early on.

Design tells people who you are.

Conveying the appropriate idea about what your business does through your business graphics tell your story quickly. Graphics need to fit look like they belong in the industry your company is targeting. A spa should convey a different feeling than a construction company. Fonts, colors, and graphics can paint an image of relaxation or of strength and reliability. A good designer can help you draw the appropriate audience.

Get recognized and remembered.

A professional designer knows how to keep your identity consistent across a wide range of media. Your brochure, website, mailers, and ads should be immediately recognizable to customers who have come across your company in other media. Consistency is memorable, professional, and dependable.

Be uniquely you.

All small businesses need to stand apart from their competition. Design can help customers who are weighing which company to give their business. These differences can include things like pricing, quality, service, location, or status. A creative design can help a small business stand out and appeal to customers who are looking for certain qualities.

Convert viewers to customers.

A well-designed website or mailer is a good thing. A well-designed website or mailer that has effective calls to action and converts is MUCH BETTER. Design should not only be attractive, but it should also compel and influence. The number one rule of design is that it needs to communicate! If it is unreadable, inappropriate or incomplete, all is lost. A well-designed website will direct visitors to take action and lead them to feel confident in reaching out to you. To gain business, you need to first actually ask your viewers for that business. If your collateral and website do not contain calls to action, then opportunities will be lost.

Hear me now, or believe me later.

Businesses that don’t invest wisely in quality graphic design in the beginning more than likely will end up going through a costly rebranding at least once. High-quality design stands the test of time. Paying for great graphic design initially will help garner more business early on,  preserve a positive brand image, and save the cost and time of redesigning in the future.