In my last post, I addressed a new and irrefutable ability to quantity design’s ROI. Way cool! Now we can prove design’s specific contribution to bottom line profits! That’s gotta be good. Right?
Well…Before we jump at the prospect of quantifying design, we should strongly consider if we should.What are the ramifications of measuring design? How will this change the process? What are the valid concerns?
In this post I will address some of these concerns and provide my thoughts on why proving design’s value is a still a good thing—in fact, it’s a very good thing if, and only if, the information that results from this process is properly positioned.
The Real World Concerns: Disbelief
When first sharing the design ROI concept and methodology with folks, the most common first response is ”you simply can’t do it”. With the myriad of influences driving the purchase decision, how can we possibly extract design’s specific impact on sales? How can you isolate design from the impact of advertising or promotion? How can you control competitive activity or Wall Street dynamics or the rainy Tuesday that prevents folks from shopping? Many believe that you just can’t.
To these naysayers, I refer to the market-proven test outlined in the article referred to in the last post. In every brand identity/packaging redesign effort there is a “golden moment” during the transition period where the old and new designs are on the shelf at the same time. Launch the new design architecture, in its entirety, into select retail markets and measure sales against the old design in identical retail markets. This real-world, controlled test can and does unequivocally calculate the incremental sales that the new design generates. All market dynamics are kept the same. It’s the same advertising, the same pricing and promotion, the same competitive activity. The consumer dynamic is also exactly the same: it’s the same Wall Street conditions and the same rainy Tuesday. Design is the only variable, and its sales impact is irrefutable.
Denigrates “Integrated Marketing”
Even if we can do it, some still believe that we should not quantify design. Some of these folks are concerned that extracting design from its other complementing marketing services downplays the role of brand integration. These folks say, “I’ve invested so much of my life incorporating design into an integrated synthesis with all other marcomm efforts, why should we extract it now?”
To these folks I suggest that we prove which component best drives sales so as to determine which element all marcomm efforts should be synthesized around. If design best impacts sales, then advertising, promotion, and all other communications efforts should be built on design as the cornerstone of the integrated brand identity platform. In simple terms, design should be the first five minutes of marketing, and not the last.
No Time/Budget to Verify
Many folks express the very real concern that they simply cannot afford the resources to do the ROI analysis. I don’t have to tell you that corporate design management is already greatly overburdened. These folks work faster and with less than any other corporate function. So it is not surprising to hear, “I’m squeezed for time and budget as it is. How do I justify the additional effort to do the post-launch analysis?”
To these folks I say: with accountability comes autonomy! Why are the vast majority of corporate design functions funded by marketing’s budgets? Why does marketing often have the last say over design aesthetics? If we unequivocally quantify the value of design, then the design function should have its own budget, set its own timetables, and verify its own process. Some global cpg companies have already made their design teams financially autonomous and these design managers know that this process was well worth the fight.
Why Should I Be Quantified?
The design function has lived so long “under the radar screen of accountability”, that many are concerned about being “bean counted.” These folks ask, “Why would I ever voluntarily quantify my value?”
With the wealth of information at executive management’s disposal today, every business decision is founded on its direct impact on the bottom line. To designers who are happy living under the accountability radar screen, I say embrace and control your own quantification process or have one thrust upon you.
What Happens if Design Fails?
Another valid concern is what’s to be done with negative results. “What do we do if and when design didn’t move the needle?”
The goal of measuring any process is to establish the best practices that drive its success. Less than stellar results should be analyzed as fervently as the most positive case studies. Analyze the process, the decisions, and the qualitative and quantitative research insights that drove the design decisions on these projects. There is as much—if not more—to learn from these lessons as those of the most wildly successful projects. Only hard results provide the hard evidence that changes deeply rooted protocol.
“So, what’s this really all about?”
The most surprising and insightful concerns are expressed by those who voice ROI’s overall purpose. “What’s all this for? Is this just an elaborate sales pitch?” A design consultant touting the unprecedented financial value of his/her own process is most certainly going to be met with a raised eyebrow. To a great extent, while this might be the right message, I am, perhaps, the wrong messenger.
That’s where you come in. I’m hoping to engage you in a “Design ROI Consortium” where we can collaborate through an unbiased, respected publication like Notes on Design and/or through a trusted industry organization like The Design Management Institute. These well known resources might be the better collectors of the data and the more credible voice of the message. Learn more at www.dmi.org or email me directly at Rob@wallacechurch.com for details on how to participate.
My next post will outline the true benefits of quantifying design’s ROI to corporate design departments and consultancies alike. I will talk about how proving design’s value can lead to corporate design’s freedom from marketing’s purse strings and arbitrary analysis. I will also share a vision on how quantifying design can eventually change the consultant/client fee-based paradigm to compensation based on merit. And I’ll suggest the best models to follow and how to start the process.
Stay tuned! Stay engaged! It’s a brave new world for design, and we are poised at its dawning.
