Comments on: Let Your Audience Guide Your Design! http://www.myinkblog.com/let-your-audience-guide-your-design/ A Resource For All Things Design Thu, 05 Jan 2012 16:05:32 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: prisca http://www.myinkblog.com/let-your-audience-guide-your-design/#comment-48268 prisca Mon, 01 Feb 2010 07:06:07 +0000 http://www.myinkblog.com/?p=8340#comment-48268 excellent article, and a lot points well made, thanks :) I also love the PB&J comparison, will be a good one to use — or maybe here in the UK we could use Marmite, another example of taste that splits people into groups or 'lovers' and 'haters'. I find using such analogies really helps bringing your point across to clients - the 'I want my site to appeal to all' quote is one we hear way too often - and always need to clarify. Thanks for a great read :) excellent article, and a lot points well made, thanks :)

I also love the PB&J comparison, will be a good one to use — or maybe here in the UK we could use Marmite, another example of taste that splits people into groups or ‘lovers’ and ‘haters’.
I find using such analogies really helps bringing your point across to clients – the ‘I want my site to appeal to all’ quote is one we hear way too often – and always need to clarify.

Thanks for a great read :)

]]> By: Aleksandar http://www.myinkblog.com/let-your-audience-guide-your-design/#comment-46386 Aleksandar Sun, 17 Jan 2010 17:02:37 +0000 http://www.myinkblog.com/?p=8340#comment-46386 Very useful. Thank you very much. Very useful. Thank you very much.

]]> By: Rob Bowen http://www.myinkblog.com/let-your-audience-guide-your-design/#comment-46119 Rob Bowen Fri, 15 Jan 2010 01:23:52 +0000 http://www.myinkblog.com/?p=8340#comment-46119 Thanks again to everyone for sharing the post and leaving your thoughts. And to Damian Web for following up and getting back to me. @ Melody - I love your breakdown, and it is spot on. @ Julio - I say that I walked away, but in the end of the post I explain, that this was only after several conferences with the client, and even a complete overhaul of the project that I was doing on good faith (the freelancer's worst enemy), but it was for a client that I trusted and had worked with before with more positive results. I even tried to explain that they just didn't understand the market they were approaching, and still to no avail. So it was after many attempts to get them to see the error in their approach, and after hours spent working on and refining the project, that I threw in the towel. Thanks again to everyone for sharing the post and leaving your thoughts. And to Damian Web for following up and getting back to me.

@ Melody – I love your breakdown, and it is spot on.

@ Julio – I say that I walked away, but in the end of the post I explain, that this was only after several conferences with the client, and even a complete overhaul of the project that I was doing on good faith (the freelancer’s worst enemy), but it was for a client that I trusted and had worked with before with more positive results. I even tried to explain that they just didn’t understand the market they were approaching, and still to no avail. So it was after many attempts to get them to see the error in their approach, and after hours spent working on and refining the project, that I threw in the towel.

]]> By: Julio Thillet http://www.myinkblog.com/let-your-audience-guide-your-design/#comment-46091 Julio Thillet Thu, 14 Jan 2010 18:31:56 +0000 http://www.myinkblog.com/?p=8340#comment-46091 Rob, I hear you brother my only hangup with what you state is that you say "the client wants mass appeal so I walked away" The clients will say things like this because they don't know any better. i am positive that you actually tried to give this speech to them about Mass Appeal being a myth, but alas..the client is really thinking about numbers, he doesn't know what mass appeal means, and if the client wants something that provides numbers than do your best to provide it. After all, they want a return on investment. Rob, I hear you brother my only hangup with what you state is that you say “the client wants mass appeal so I walked away”

The clients will say things like this because they don’t know any better. i am positive that you actually tried to give this speech to them about Mass Appeal being a myth, but alas..the client is really thinking about numbers, he doesn’t know what mass appeal means, and if the client wants something that provides numbers than do your best to provide it. After all, they want a return on investment.

]]> By: Justin Moore-Brown http://www.myinkblog.com/let-your-audience-guide-your-design/#comment-46007 Justin Moore-Brown Thu, 14 Jan 2010 03:52:28 +0000 http://www.myinkblog.com/?p=8340#comment-46007 LOVE this article sir. Definitely had this experience with a recent client of mine. Should have walked away after pulling teeth to get them to avoid a bad direction but stuck with them and am now paying the price. Thanks for the article! LOVE this article sir. Definitely had this experience with a recent client of mine. Should have walked away after pulling teeth to get them to avoid a bad direction but stuck with them and am now paying the price.

Thanks for the article!

]]> By: Melody http://www.myinkblog.com/let-your-audience-guide-your-design/#comment-45957 Melody Wed, 13 Jan 2010 17:44:39 +0000 http://www.myinkblog.com/?p=8340#comment-45957 I think design clients are crazy..but hey they pay the bills...the problem with design sometimes is that clients come to you for one design, instead of having it as a component of a solid marketing plan..therefore they say stuff like "we want everyone to buy it" Real marketers/designers know that 1. That's IMPOSSIBLE 2. You have a message for a specific audience. 3. If you don't know who you want to sell to then do research before wasting money. 4. Unorganized marketing creates customer confusion. Man, the conversations I've had with clients saying "you just can't 'sell' to everybody.." I think design clients are crazy..but hey they pay the bills…the problem with design sometimes is that clients come to you for one design, instead of having it as a component of a solid marketing plan..therefore they say stuff like “we want everyone to buy it”

Real marketers/designers know that 1. That’s IMPOSSIBLE 2. You have a message for a specific audience. 3. If you don’t know who you want to sell to then do research before wasting money. 4. Unorganized marketing creates customer confusion.

Man, the conversations I’ve had with clients saying “you just can’t ‘sell’ to everybody..”

]]> By: damian web http://www.myinkblog.com/let-your-audience-guide-your-design/#comment-45936 damian web Wed, 13 Jan 2010 13:23:50 +0000 http://www.myinkblog.com/?p=8340#comment-45936 "I really like the idea of making two versions, though it is more work on your part, it also offers another perspective on the project which I think is really cool." Yeah it is more time on my part, but I feel personally that it is worth it sometimes, our job is to provide a design in which the customers goes "wow" at and if it means going away from their thoughts and putting your own experienced thoughts into it they will appreciate it the more. Plus i enjoy designing so spending more time on the thing i enjoy is no hassle for me! “I really like the idea of making two versions, though it is more work on your part, it also offers another perspective on the project which I think is really cool.”

Yeah it is more time on my part, but I feel personally that it is worth it sometimes, our job is to provide a design in which the customers goes “wow” at and if it means going away from their thoughts and putting your own experienced thoughts into it they will appreciate it the more.

Plus i enjoy designing so spending more time on the thing i enjoy is no hassle for me!

]]> By: Luis Lopez http://www.myinkblog.com/let-your-audience-guide-your-design/#comment-45914 Luis Lopez Wed, 13 Jan 2010 10:05:15 +0000 http://www.myinkblog.com/?p=8340#comment-45914 I think you are right, audience is who should guide your design, obviously keeping an eye open to stay away from disaster, thay can guide you. I think you are right, audience is who should guide your design, obviously keeping an eye open to stay away from disaster, thay can guide you.

]]> By: Online appointment scheduling http://www.myinkblog.com/let-your-audience-guide-your-design/#comment-45900 Online appointment scheduling Wed, 13 Jan 2010 06:58:43 +0000 http://www.myinkblog.com/?p=8340#comment-45900 One way is to do A/B testing and let the audience decide what's best by buying or not buying your products/services depending on what design they're looking at. If you let your clients guide you with the design too much, it's gonna end up with the PBJ sandwich on the floor ;) One way is to do A/B testing and let the audience decide what’s best by buying or not buying your products/services depending on what design they’re looking at. If you let your clients guide you with the design too much, it’s gonna end up with the PBJ sandwich on the floor ;)

]]> By: Xpirt Web Design http://www.myinkblog.com/let-your-audience-guide-your-design/#comment-45867 Xpirt Web Design Wed, 13 Jan 2010 02:21:49 +0000 http://www.myinkblog.com/?p=8340#comment-45867 Great tips to follow, as usual. Great tips to follow, as usual.

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