What's in a name? And the power of repetition...

I'm taking a momentary break from a website I'm designing for a client. I'm encountering something I encounter a lot with small businesses and nonprofits - inconsistent naming conventions. What do I mean and why does it matter? Let me put it this way, when I worked full time at an ad agency, one of the things we were trained to do AS we worked, was make sure things were always referred to by the same name wherever they appeared. For designers its an aspect of branding 101. It meant if "Wonderous Widgets" appeared 3 times on a page, 10 times in a brochure or 100 times in a website, it appeared as "Wonderous Widgets" in every single instance, in each and every format throughout a given campaign. Not sometimes as "WW" or other times as "Fancy Widgets", or occasionally as "Great Gadgets", but ALWAYS as "Wonderous Widgets".

Its a bit like the opposite of writing, where you try never to use the same word twice. In writing its assumed everybody understands the meaning of common words and for artistic reasons you want variety. When it comes to specific services, products or campaigns you are promoting that are unique to your business - using the same word or phrase to describe them each and every time will help your customers know what you're talking about. Otherwise you run the risk of confusing or distracting them [with thoughts like, "are Wonderous Widgets the same as Fancy Widgets? Is one better than the other? I definitely want the best Widget. I better wait until I'm sure I'm getting the best Widget possible. Maybe I'll try another site].

Of course what stands in the way of small businesses and nonprofits being able to do this successfully, is time and energy. It can be very time consuming to keep all the naming conventions square. But what's WAY more time consuming, is when you don't have any...

It takes a little planning ahead, a system and some discipline. Make yourself a cheat sheet - or as we call it in design, a "style guide". It will help you remember what your naming conventions are. And if you decide to change the way you name something, then remember, you want to change it EVERYWHERE it appears. And if you're working with a designer, you'll save yourself a bundle of cash if you make these decisions before they start working on your creative campaigns. :-)

If I had more time, I would have written a shorter letter - T.S Eliot

As a designer, small business owner (and former film editor), I struggle with this concept constantly. It’s a big part of what separates good design from not so good design. How do you pack the essence of a company or organization into a tiny symbol that will translate in a nanosecond their audience – that’s the very point of logo design. And by extension, really, all kinds of design.

Reducing things to their essence takes way longer than you think. It’s all about trial and error. It’s often a bit of a meditative process for me. I play around with different ideas, let them marinade for a few days, come back with fresh eyes and reconsider them.

Reducing things to their essence it’s critical. Why? Because otherwise you distract and confuse your audience from their main purpose – being inspired by what you have to offer. And ultimately you loose them.

I’ve had many clients over the years struggle with this. I see them wanting to pack in ALL the information onto – whatever it is – their web page, their brochure, their newsletter, their business card. Their desire is that people will have all the information. The reality is, though, people just don’t absorb information that way. We have a very limited attentions span. By giving someone ALL the information, you’ve making it next to impossible to retain ANY of the information. Its rather counter-intuitive.

For any design or advertising campaign, choose one or two points to address - max. Highlight them. Any additional information you want to pack in there, keep it in small text or better still, leave it off for the next campaign. while first impressions matter, you’re building a relationship. You don’t need to, nor should you expect to, sell someone in the first introduction. Studies show that takes about 7 times before people will buy a product or service. That means they need to hear about you 7 times before they are sold. And that includes being sold on an idea if you’re a not-for-profit. Use that information to your advantage. Pace yourself and think strategically about your campaigns.

I’ll end it there for now. You get the idea. Less is more. That was our mantra back when I was at RISD. Make it yours in all your promotions. When you have something to say, a lot to say, give yourself the time you need to reduce it the essence. Remember, you may have other opportunities to say more another time – does it really belong in this piece now? Ask friends and colleagues for feedback (especially if you know a designer). And practice restraint. Your audience with thank you – by actually getting your message.