Digital Design and Marketing, welcome to the new era
Digital Design and Strategy is what I’m talking about today but before I get into that I would like to start at the beginning: At the end of August I left my job of over 18 years at McCann Port of Spain. It wasn’t an easy decision. In fact it was prodded along by a general shift in the industry. A shift from traditional advertising to this “new” digital focus. Everyone wants to be on digital but many don’t know where to begin, how to start and where to go. What is clear though that most, if not all businesses, believe they can do it themselves. This is the new era and it’s scary to those who sat in the comfort of an agency, surrounded by bureaucracy and hidden behind layers of paperwork.
No longer are clients happy to sit and open a newspaper and see their ad and think “Yes I am getting a ton of sales today.” Now they open up their phone and begin whatsapping their digital strategist complaining that they when they were Facebooking they didn’t see the ad for their product. In the near future they will be sending a “snapchat-esq” video to the marketing team demanding to know why sales for the product are down last quarter and where are the “online conversion reports.” I envision in less than five years the owner of businesses will be continually be updated with real time reports generated by the system and not by a human. In other words no one will need to send any messages, video or otherwise, because the computer will have the result as a morning notification.
Where is the map for the digital design and strategic landscape?
If you are a marketing professional, you know what your targets are. You know, simply, that you need to make x to turn a profit of y. This cannot be achieved by sitting at home and reading blogs about “conversions” and “ROI.” You, the marketing professional need to strategise the next month’s plan to get out there and sell your product. This is where ReidDesigns comes in. I have the expertise and the experience to help you come up with that strategy. I can also help execute it by pulling together a team of writers, visual creators and analysts to see you make your sales targets under budget and on time.
That sounded like a sales pitch. But its the truth. I believe strongly in being with the client on a one on one basis to keep the plan going. When it comes to an online strategy everyday is a new insight, a learning experience and an “ah-ha” moment. If you feel overwhelmed by “CTR, IMPRESSIONS, CRTs” and the rest of the alphabet soup, dont worry. Worry about who your market is and where is there are logical avenues for growth. Let me worry about how we’re doing online.
But you’re a graphic artist, what does this have to do with digital design and strategy?
The answer to that is “nothing”, and “everything”. My background as a designer gives me a leg up on the competition as a strategic content creator. For example, I designed my logo to represent a simple idea: thinking out of the box. We all need to think creatively and we all need to understand that what we project ourselves as online must represent who we are as a company. Marketing still needs a creative thought, a creative way of doing what someone else hasn’t done. You still need to differentiate yourself from the competition. You still need communication, a visual theme, and most definitely kick-ass branding. All under budget and within cost of course.
What are you hoping to achieve by this blog?
I’m talking design predominantly. I’m going to talk about font usage, keyword research, the right image for the right wording, what is aesthetics and how it applies to user experience. I will be talking a lot about what I know, agency life and teaching people how to become Graphic Artists. I will also be talking about the state of the industry. How things are changing and why you shouldn’t be scared, overwhelmed and embrace the change. We are in a recession, people are not spending, things are looking bleak, but there is no reason to throw in the towel and say, “game over man” we have to keep moving, we have to push forward and we have to try.
Who’s with me?
Please leave a comment below. Ask me a question, but don’t spam thanks.