Marketing Manner

Designers are communicators, plain and simple. They just don’t communicate in the way people usually think of first: with words. They communicate with images.

Just because designers think with their right brains most of the time doesn’t mean they don’t have the ability to tap into their left brain strength from time to time. I’m pretty sure they didn’t get through school by drawing their term papers!

The seeds of writing have been planted in designers’ brains since learning their ABCs; creative weeds have just overgrown the writing plant. But, with a little nurturing, designers can grow their writing plant. And there’s no better time to do that than in the present.

In today’s age of dwindling creative budgets, designers may be called upon to write and design everything from brochures to direct mail postcards to posters for the big wig’s presentation. It can be intimidating, but for those who take the risk it can be quite rewarding. But as with anything, it takes practice. Writers aren’t born with innate writing talent (at least not most of them anyway). They have to practice their craft every day. So designers can practice their writing skills and become good, if not great, writers.

Here are some tips and techniques to try out to get that left brain pumping:

Sketch words. To designers, it feels more comfortable to start brainstorming an idea by sketching out images and then adding words as they go along. But instead, try starting with words first – write whatever words and phrases you think you might need to create the message you’re trying to come up with. Words will help you focus on a concept and then you can create images that complement those words.

Review marketing materials or magazines or whatever medium you are trying to write for. By carefully reading high-traffic Web sites or popular catalogs, you can gain insight into what good writing reads like. Note the techniques and tone used in the various formats (brochures, postcards, magazine ads) of which you might be working with. Just getting familiar with the different styles of writing will help you become more comfortable with writing that way.

Brainstorm with a mind map. A mind map is a diagram that represents words, ideas and other items that are linked to a certain key word or idea. Start with the one idea you’re trying to write for, say sales. You’d write “sales” in the middle of a piece of paper and then you would write whatever words come to mind based on the word “sales.” From there, you do the same with the new words you’ve just written down. Wikipedia has a good example of a mind map: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/mind_map. You can get a lot of ideas from a mind map by writing down every single thing you think of – there are no wrong answers! Besides, you’re the only person who’ll be looking at this. There’s no one to judge you, except yourself. And that’s a topic best left to another blog.

Just write. When you sit down to write, just write whatever comes to you. You don’t even have to write in full sentences. Just let it flow. Then you can go back and … 

Edit and organize. Or organize and edit. Whichever seems easiest to you, do first. Read through what you’ve written and put a star next to the ideas and phrases that are on the same topic. Use another symbol for all the paragraphs or sentences that have to do with another topic. Then group them all together and edit what you’ve got.

Remember, the fewer the words, the better. Don’t use five words when you can say it in three. As Walt Whitman said “The art of art, the glory of expression and the sunshine of the light of letters, is simplicity.

Some of the most famous posters of modern times are the ones produced by the USSR during its communist era.  The Soviet propaganda machine was notoriously prolific, and thousands of posters were printed extolling the virtues of the “mother land”, while decrying the evil wishes of Russia’s enemies.

There were anti Hitler efforts during World War II.  During Olympic years, posters praising Russian athletes appeared regularly.  Of course, posters of Soviet heroes like Vladimir Lenin and Josef Stalin were everywhere.  There were posters, eerily reminiscent of George Orwell’s “1984” story, telling citizens to keep their mouths shut or be charged with treason.  When the state run economy needed to increase demand in a certain product (for instance, cigarettes) posters were often employed to do the job.  And, of course, there were many militaristic posters asking young men to stand up and defend the country.

These posters were not just effective in their day; they continue to be popular now.  Many people pay good money to have copies of theses posters – and similar ones from other countries – because they are so popular.

How does this relate to business?  Well, it should tell you that a poster can still be a very effective marketing tool for your small company. 

Take a look through some of the more enduring posters in history.  Look at what made them unique, beyond the fact that they are old and historic.  Try to incorporate these aspects into your own poster designs.
Basically, you should engage in a form of modern propaganda.  Obviously, you are not out to badmouth another country, or even another company (at least not explicitly).  But you are out to make your own company look better, and to make customers think of your company as the very best one in the industry.  You are trying to convince all of your target customers that your company can offer them more than any other.

In a sense, you are doing exactly what those old Soviet posters did, only your intentions are much less hostile.  At least I hope they are.

In fact, in all of your marketing efforts you should take on a more propaganda like attitude.  If you constantly remind yourself that you are engaged in a battle for the hearts and minds of the customers, you will undoubtedly create more effective marketing items.  So take a page out of the old Soviet book and increase your profits.