We Love…

Every designer has been through the process of cutting and sticking hundreds of images from design, architecture and lifestyle magazines to a piece of flimsy card, which you then prop up against your wall and stare at continuously hoping to ‘be’ inspired, in order to help create that perfect design?

It is an integral part of the design process when R&Ding a new project, helping you to understand the parameters of a given brief and to learn boundaries of the creative direction as well as involving the client in the whole creative development of their product, which in turn creates early buy in… a good thing.

Well, I spent about three years making moodboards at Uni (thats a lot of moodboards) for each and every project and became very adapt at the whole process… infact it is rather a quick and involving job… However and after reading a recent post online it made me laugh when it suggested that some agencies are using a library of pre-made moodboards to whip out in front of clients (multiple clients - same moodboards) and charging each and every time… ever heard the term ‘money for old rope’… rather cheeky I think.

Some clients find them confusing because as you’re trying to sell them the idea, showing them brightly coloured shapes and images, they’re often looking at the boards in a non-creative way and the outcome is they often see them as a design idea, not a starting point for inspiration! However, some clients find them reassuring and the idea of grabbing a set of scissors themselves and joining in, may help them understand and appreciate what their brand is actually trying to say.

So, keep going with the moodboards… BUT be sure to use them in the right way. Don’t see them as a cash cow… Don’t abuse them… and most importantly don’t hang onto them for dear life… Be flexible in your approach to enable you to best service your clients and their needs.

Cheers, Dan