As a designer, you have the incredible power to drive meaningful change for your clients by addressing their most significant challenges and aligning design decisions with their business objectives. However, many times, you may find yourself stuck in the perception that you’re only here to create deliverables like logos or websites.
There are two reasons for this feeling:
- Clients may perceive you as a designer who solely offers deliverables.
- You might not fully believe in yourself as a problem solver.
In this blog, we will delve into the first reason and explore actionable strategies to reposition yourself as a problem-solving designer.
Because when you embrace your role as a problem solver, it opens doors to exciting opportunities! You can charge more for your design projects, offer additional services like clarity calls and brand audits, and diversify the income streams within your business – all while providing valuable solutions in shorter timeframes.
So, are you ready to unlock your potential as a problem-solving designer?
In this blog, we’re breaking this up into three different sections:
- The risks of being perceived by clients as a designer that only offers deliverables
- How to position yourself as a problem-solver before working with the client
- How to position yourself as a problem-solver after a client has reached out
The risks of being perceived by clients as a designer that only offers deliverables
I understand how frustrating it can be to work with clients who don’t fully value your input:
- Feeling frustrated when your ideas and expertise are dismissed is completely natural. You pour your heart and soul into your work, and it’s disheartening when it’s not recognised or appreciated as it should be.
- When clients continuously reject your ideas or fail to acknowledge your efforts, it’s easy to disengage emotionally from the project. Instead of delivering your best work, you might find yourself simply going through the motions to meet their demands.
- Doubting your abilities is a common response when your input isn’t appreciated. Remember that confidence comes from within, and you’ve got all the skills needed to excel in your craft!
Moreover, when you constantly face these challenges, your creativity might take a hit. You might find yourself sticking to safer, more conventional designs to avoid conflicts with clients.
The good news is that there is a way out of this situation! By reevaluating key aspects of your design studio, you can position yourself as a problem-solver rather than just a creator of deliverables. It’s time to shine a spotlight on your expertise and the value you bring to your client’s projects!
Let’s break this down together, exploring how these challenges can be addressed even before you start working with a client and while working with them.
How to position yourself as a problem-solver before working with the client
Before you even embark on the creative journey with a client, there’s an opportunity to position yourself as a true problem-solver. How? It all starts with your brand positioning & messaging, design packages, and pricing strategies!
Your brand positioning & messaging
It all starts with your brand positioning and the messaging that follows. Your website’s headline is a powerful space to showcase your approach. Let’s check out a couple of examples to illustrate the difference:
- “Stunning Designs Tailored to Your Needs”: This messaging emphasizes your ability to create visually appealing and customised deliverables – logos, websites, and more. The focus is on the end product, highlighting aesthetics and alignment with specific client requirements.
- “Bringing Your Vision to Life”: This messaging positions you as a skilled executor, dedicated to translating your client’s ideas into tangible designs. While this may sound helpful, it implies that the client is the expert, not you, the creative problem solver.
The first examples revolve around deliverables, while what you’re aiming for is to emphasise your problem-solving capabilities.
Here are a few headlines that focus on problem-solving
- “Designing for Impact: Where Creativity Meets Results”: This messaging showcases your commitment to creating designs that not only captivate visually but also deliver measurable results for your clients – that’s real impact!
- “Elevate Your Brand with Purposeful Design Strategies”: This messaging positions you as a partner ready to elevate your client’s brand with purposeful design strategies aligned with their business objectives.
Your messaging should be tailored to the right audience and embrace your unique brand voice. But with these changes, you’ll inspire potential clients to see you as the problem-solving expert you truly are!
Your design packages
One common mistake, which I’ve also made myself, is creating packages solely based on what we know our clients need.
This looks something like this:
- Brand Strategy & Research
- Primary Logo Design
- Secondary Logo Designs
- 5 Logo Variations Total
- Brand Fonts
- Colour Palette
- Illustrations & Pattern
- 25+ Brand Style Guide
It’s not enough to simply list the name of your package and use bullet points to mention the deliverables you’ll provide. You need to show that you understand their challenges and position your packages as the solution they’ve been seeking.
Instead of just listing the deliverables, let’s focus on how each element benefits your clients:
- Brand Strategy & Research to gain in-depth market insights. We will conduct extensive research to understand your industry, target audience, and competitors. This strategic foundation ensures that your brand stands out and deeply resonates with your audience.
- Distinctive Logo Design to create a lasting impression. We will craft a unique and impactful primary logo that embodies your brand’s personality and values. We’ll also provide multiple logo variations, ensuring consistent and adaptable brand representation across various platforms.
- Visual Style Guide for a consistent brand presentation. We will provide you with a style guide to maintain brand consistency, ensuring that your visuals always speak the same language.
Always be careful with listing the number of logo variations or revisions, as it may lead clients to focus on price comparison rather than the strategic value of the services provided.
It can inadvertently encourage clients to opt for the lowest-priced option of your own services or the services of another designer without them fully considering the overall expertise, strategic thinking, and problem-solving capabilities you can offer.
Highlighting the strategic approach, collaboration, and long-term impact of your packages can help shift the client’s focus towards the value of the solutions you provide, rather than just the quantity of design assets.
For example:
- Original: Unlimited Revisions
- Reframed: Collaborative Design Process to Perfectly Tailor Your Brand Identity
The pricing of your design packages
By shifting the focus to the benefits and collaborative nature of your design process, clients view your packages as an exciting opportunity to elevate their brand and achieve their business goals. It’s not about a simple cost comparison based on quantity; it’s about the long-term impact your services can have on their brand’s growth and market positioning.
The better you can get potential clients to understand the strategic value of your work and its potential impact on their bottom line, they become more willing to invest in their brand’s future success.
Which in turn, will allow you to price your packages for profit. To learn more about how to do this, continue reading here. Or download the price your design packages for profit guide below.
Showcasing case studies of design projects
By presenting real-life examples of how you identified challenges, crafted creative strategies, and achieved remarkable outcomes, you offer tangible proof of your expertise. This is where case studies come in as they provide an in-depth glimpse into your problem-solving process, building trust and credibility with potential clients seeking transformative design solutions.
While portfolio items make a quick visual impression, showcasing your design skills and aesthetics, case studies take it a step further, showing clients the true power of your problem-solving abilities!
How to position yourself as a problem-solver after a client has reached out
When you’re all about solving bigger problems for your clients, it’s vital to ensure your internal processes align with this approach. Two key elements of your design process hold the key to showcasing your problem-solving genius: consultation calls and the brand discovery phase.
It’s time to transform them into collaborative exploration journeys, delving deep into your client’s pain points, objectives, and goals. This in-depth understanding becomes the bedrock of your effective problem-solving – paving the way for design solutions that truly make a difference.
The consultation call
During these consultation calls, it’s all about going beyond a quick sales pitch and immersing yourself in your client’s world. Let’s explore some crucial questions that will unveil the true essence of your potential client’s needs.
Their current situation:
You can choose to start with this question or save it for later, depending on the vibe you want to create. Initiating the conversation with this question can lead to a natural flow where clients express themselves freely, touching upon vital aspects you may have planned to ask about. It fosters a deeper connection and builds rapport. Alternatively, if you prefer a more structured approach, begin by asking about their goals or what prompted them to reach out to you in the first place.
Their goals:
Understanding whether a client is vision-focused or deliverable-focused is crucial. Tailor your questions accordingly to delve into their aspirations. For vision-focused clients, try asking Dan Sullivan’s vision questions:
If we were talking 3 years from now and you were looking back over those 3 years, what has to have happened in your life and business, for you to feel happy with your progress?
This approach helps uncover their long-term vision and aligns your work with the bigger picture. For deliverable-focused clients, consider Jonathan Stark’s “3 Why” questions:
- Why this? What specific problem will this solve for you?
- Why now? Why is it important to tackle this project at this moment, instead of waiting?
- Why me? Why have they chosen to reach out to you rather than opting for a more cost-effective option?
These questions provide insights into their mindset and help you determine if they align with your values and expertise.
Their struggles
Let’s go beyond surface-level issues and explore the deeper obstacles they face in their business. Sometimes, clients mistakenly believe that a new website or brand design will magically solve all their problems. By delving into their challenges, you can identify any underlying issues that need to be addressed for successful collaboration. Remember, working with clients who value and appreciate your expertise is key to a great partnership.
Of course, alongside these crucial questions, you’ll also address design-related inquiries, project scope, logistics, timelines, and necessary deliverables.
the design proposal
Use the answers from the consultation call to craft a custom design proposal tha showcases how your services can help them reach their goals.
For a full guide on how to write a design proposal check out this blog.
The brand discovery phase
Before we delve into the nitty-gritty, let’s clarify the difference between brand discovery and brand strategy. While offering brand strategy can indeed elevate your pricing and help solve bigger issues, many designers mention it in their packages when all they’re actually doing is a brand discovery phase. You can read more about my thoughts on this [insert link], but for now, let’s focus on levelling up your brand discovery phase.
Within the brand discovery phase, there are three powerful approaches to enhance your understanding of your client’s businesses:
The way you conduct your brand discovery phase
Using a questionnaire may seem quick and convenient, but it often leads to surface-level answers that lack depth and clarity. By incorporating a Zoom call into your process, you get the best of both worlds! You start with a questionnaire to capture essential information from the get-go, and then you arrange a call to delve deeper and clarify any remaining details.
It may require a bit more time at the beginning of your project, but to me, it’s always been worth it.
Asking the right questions
Instead of only looking to understand the design preferences of your client, this is your chance to get a deeper understanding of the core business objectives of our clients.
So that you can align your creative decisions with these strategic goals, ensuring that every element of the design serves a purpose in creating an impactful brand identity that resonates with your client’s audience and reinforces their brand positioning.
Market research
Ah, the underestimated and overlooked treasure – market research! Many small businesses miss out on its value, relying on assumptions and intuition about their target audience instead. However, market research is the key to understanding the target audience, identifying opportunities, and gaining a competitive advantage.
Take the time to dive deep into your client’s industry, competitive landscape, and most importantly, their target audience. Armed with this knowledge, you’ll design with purpose, aligning your creative decisions with the expectations and preferences of the intended audience. It’s the secret sauce for success!
And there you have it…
Embracing your role as a strategic designer is not just about solving immediate challenges with clients or levelling up your pricing game. It’s a smart move that sets you up for long-term success in a rapidly changing world, where AI solutions are making their mark on design.
While I believe AI might streamline some routine design tasks, it can never replicate the magic of your creative problem-solving and your innate ability to connect with each client on a personal level.
But as the market becomes more crowded with AI-driven options, giving clients with small budgets more choices than ever, standing out to reach higher-paying clients becomes even more crucial.
