Technically Speaking
Design is not just pretty pictures
As Account Executive at Jack in the box, pieces of design work are across my desk 95% of my day, every day.
While I’m not personally a graphic designer, I 100% appreciate excellent design work. I have an eye for knowing what looks good, and I understand what needs to be communicated in a piece of design. This is how I know great design isn’t just about the way something looks, but the way the information needs to reach the relevant consumer and how the message is organised and presented.
An example I like to use is ‘one ad, one message’. Each time I receive a client brief, this is something I think about in detail (there is nothing worse than trying to cram everything into one advertisement, poster or flyer). I will then work with our creative team to ensure the right message is communicated correctly, for the target audience. There are many things that make certain audiences tick, whether it’s that trendy font aimed at a young female audience, or larger more simple text aimed at an international audience whose second language may be English. It’s knowing people read left to right, top to bottom and how the design leads a customer through that process.
The more I am exposed to, the more I also understand those little extras that need to be included dependent on the product, service or industry – sometimes it’s ingredients for food or cosmetics that must legally be there, or terms and conditions related to a sale. These items flag in my mind automatically so each piece of design is not only aesthetically pleasing, but technically correct. One I see each and every week in the newspapers are ads with either no brand, address or contact number – how do these even make it through the proofing process?!
Jack in the box has been lucky enough to be recognised internationally for our branding work over the past four years, receiving multiple awards from the Summit Creative International Design Awards. Our achievements with branding are driven through absolutely thorough strategy and research, which then informs design. We utilise team members at the studio to undertake a process called ‘The Red Team’, where someone who has not been privy to the process assists in objectively looking at the work and uncovering any miscommunication or left hooks.
I often muse over bad design that has been printed or published and wonder: “What was the point in spending money on that print or media, when the design doesn’t actually communicate what is intended?” I view it as such a waste.
Design is the exciting part of a project, but don’t be fooled – the technicalities that inform great design are very real – and it is the difference between effective communication, and just a bunch of pictures and words that don’t communicate at all.