Why is graphic design important for my business?

What is graphic design and how can it play an integral role in shaping your future success as a business?

The existence of graphic design dates back to 1440 with the invention of the printing press. Yet, despite its historic routes, it’s more important now in determining a business’ success in the marketplace.

Graphic design is ingrained in the modern digital world we live in today, forming the basis of any website, white paper, social media post, leaflet, business card and branding.

Without quality graphic design, you’ll only portray a mere shell of an idea or concept. Imagine McDonald’s without the glossy billboard graphics advertising chicken nuggets or the iconic golden arches/M appearing across the internet. Or picture Audi trying to flog one of its cars on social media with just words alone and no flashy image to complement it.

Graphic design brings words around it to life and sells a service or product through visual representation. It’s an art form which every advertising and marketing strategy should centre around.

Get this right and there’s no limit to what your business can achieve.

What is graphic design?

First things first, what is graphic design? Well, according to the American Institute of Graphic Arts (AIGA), graphic design is defined as “the art and practice of planning and projecting ideas and experiences with visual and textual content.”

In layman’s terms, graphic design is a means of communication, which allows businesses to portray ideas or messages in a visual way. Whether this is achieved through a memorable, yet simple, business logo or a complex layout of a website to enhance the user experience (UX) – graphic design is at the heart of the marketing process.

The act of graphic design consists of taking graphical and textual elements and implementing them into different forms of media and marketing collateral. Every design sets the tone and creates a mood of a campaign, playing on consumer behaviours and cognitive tendencies.

5 reasons why graphic design is important for business

For any business, graphic design must be at the forefront of operations. Getting this part of the process right can help in a number of ways. Here are five key ones to get you started.

1. Enhance sales
Well-crafted graphic design can boost sales. At the end of the day, people are attracted to colourful, visual things.

Creativity kills competition. There are loads of businesses who offer the same thing as you, but it’s those who can showcase these things in style that thrive. Customers need to feel assured that they’re going to receive a premium service and something that goes above and beyond the industry standard.

Graphic design can visually tell someone how their problems can be solved or what life will feel like to encourage them to take action.

2. Establish a strong brand
Graphic design is the core of any business’ brand, which in turn, is the image of how you want your business to be perceived. Poor branding will make your business look unprofessional and uninspiring, while strong branding will make you look slick and inviting.

Every great brand is formed through beautiful graphic design. Whether it’s through the company logo and business cards or the website and printed advertisement, your branding indicates who you are, what you do and why you matter.

Abandoning the graphic design process is effectively setting your whole business up to fail

3. Improved content readability
While content is king in the marketing world, it doesn’t mean your message will always resonate. The digital age has created a need for speed and a growing impatience. Not all customers want to sit there reading blocks of text. Instead, they need something visual to break things up or portray a message in a split second.

Social media has taught us to flick past things quickly and only stop on images that catch our eye. Therefore, without brilliant graphic design, your post, advert or other digital marketing campaigns will get lost within the sea of information on the internet.

Graphic design covers the layout and structuring of your content too. By picking the right typefaces, colours, images and so on, you can drastically improve the readability of your content.

4. Build credibility through consistency
If you want to be recognised as a credible business, you must create consistency in your communications. Anyone can write or produce a top-notch marketing campaign, but very few can do it time and time again.

To avoid being the Chesney Hawkes of the marketing world, you need to consistently create standout graphics to complement your content. Do this, and your customers will recognise you as a thought leader and reliable source to turn to.

5. Optimise internal credibility for added productivity
Just like customers, your employees want to invest in something they believe in. Creating a visual identity which encapsulates your business’ ethos, values, creativity and vision can inspire your team to commit to you in the long run.

Think of it this way, if a customer service operator recognises you as the best in your industry through powerful graphic design and branding, they probably won’t jump ship to a competitor with uninspiring visuals. Professionals want to work for the best and be a part of something that looks fun, inspiring and innovative. Your graphic design can determine this.

Graphic design services
Need a hand with your graphic design? At Eighty3 Creative, we can help you boost brand awareness and improve sales through quality graphic design.

To see some examples of our work, visit our case studies page. Or if you want to find out our graphic design costs, get in touch with us today for a free quote.

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