The ‘double diamond’ shape that the creative journey should take, fanning out for exploration and honing in for refinement
Every designer and creative needs a process to follow. A structure that defines the separate parameters for creating engaging creative content that communicates effectively and with purpose. Each project and brief may well require its own tailor made approach, but this should at least serve as a guideline for tackling projects and addressing the needs of the client and end user. Here I briefly deconstruct my process and the elements within it.
Learn, analyse, research & immerse
Let’s assume we have a comprehensive brief as our starting point. The first section of the process entails fully immersing oneself in the ‘arena’ of the artwork. Engaging with research is vital. Who is the consumer? What are their habits? Why should they care? Splitting off into separate areas and branching out in the discovery is useful, and should at least cover:
Market research (Audits)
User research
Design research
Qualitative & quantitive research
The most important aspect of the initial part of the process is that we expose problems, take nothing for granted and assume nothing. Ask questions. This way we understand what is required as best we can. Establish the needs of the consumer.
Recognise patterns, understand problems
Now we have a plethora of quality research relating to our study, we can move on to analysing the patterns of our findings. Are there any consistent themes of visual language that are being presented within the market sector? Are consumers in this field already navigating design semiotics? We now need to extract meaning from the discoveries, in order to identify potential solutions to the problems we uncovered. We should categorise our findings, then condense them, making sure the core of what we found is clear. Use these shorthand representations to start telling meaningful brand stories. We should be able to draw closer to the root of the problems as the process unfolds.
The testing phase of the process
A lot of designers start here in the process, skipping sections 1 & 2. Visual exploration should always be underpinned by a solid foundation of research where we build the profile of what is needed throughout the project. Stage 3 is the testing stage of the process, where we put the findings of our research into conceptual and visual frameworks and start developing ideation techniques. Techniques such as:
Moodboards
Brainstorming
Sketching
Concept building
Ask for feedback too! No-one can or should design in isolation; we’re social creatures that create content for the world around us and the people in it. One persons’ perspective usually isn’t enough. Then trial it: build mock-ups, get more feedback, place it in the arena it’ll end up in, ask what people think. Assess these aspects until all involved parties are happy to progress.
The making and the doing bit
On paper, this bit sounds like the easiest, but it’s not, it’s where we need to be the most detail oriented. We have all of our learnings to draw from, and they’ve influenced us up to this point. Now we need to move forward with our strongest creative options and ideas, and make sure they embody the journey of discovery we’ve embarked upon. This is where we build. Where we tell the story. Where we record what we’ve learned. Where we consider, reflect and package our work up in a neat bow. We make sure that what we have created is fit for the next stage of its journey. We should have already encountered any potential risks that could arise upon final delivery. This end process sees us all the way through from fleshing out our final ideas, to shipping them to the client, once that’s done, we evaluate and prepare to do it all again!