Design Writing

Design writing technique: cut ups

My best writing comes when I make a game of it. Figuring out how to do something in new ways keeps it fresh. It's serious play if you will. There are lots of ways to do this but the oldies are still the goldies, as this lovely little video shows:

http://vimeo.com/2412336

Strunk & White get a ticking off

This is grammar geeky but might interest a designer writer or two out there.

Design Writing Tip 2: Turn up the point size

On the death of the designer adjective

'Designer' as an adjective is rapidly loosing it's cache. It used to be that any object prefixed by the word designer equalled better. A designer kitchen was a better kitchen. A designer handbag was a better handbag. But not any more. Now designer = expensive, wasteful and dumb.

There's been a lot of talk recently about whether economic hardship is good for design. And there are decent arguments on both sides. But it would be wrong to think that the death of the designer adjective is an an overnight consequence of our chaotic financial system. This has been brewing for a while. 

The 'fashion victim' label grew together with the designer fashion labels. There was always criticism of people who's self-worth was determined by the cost of their purchases. But as they were the ones invited to the fashion parties, it was never that stinging. Yes it's frivolous but it's also fun, rang the response. And it sort of worked until you question the value of the those very purchases.

Dana Thomas' book Delux: how luxury lost its luster demonstrated that the creation of meaning through branding has replaced any inherent meaning in the object itself in the fashion world. Designer garments were made in the same factory as cheaper ones. The only difference was the branding budget. 'Designer' didn't mean better. It meant more expensive.

The creation of intangible meaning wasn't limited to fashion either. It spread to other forms of design. Philippe Stark was an early example and others caught the wave. Karim Rashid openly presents himself as a brand and evangelizes this in books and interviews. The same thing happened in graphic design, interiors, architecture and it even began creeping into interaction design which is just escaping the computer labs. 

For designers this made sense. As a brand you can put your name on anything. Prada could build a house, an architect could have a perfume. It all got squished together into the Design+Art+Fashion Unholy Trinity. And we were just getting the ultimate in personal brands — celebrities — in on the act. Rappers were becoming fashion designers and actors architects.

Well that's over now. The designer fashion thing was already waning. People I know who work in the biz wouldn't wear the stuff themselves. In the other fields the party's over too. Sales were down at Design Miami this year. That 50,ooo dollar footstool doesn't look quite as desirable as it once did. Karim Rashid might have to tone-down the pink of his suits.

If designer as an adjective really stops being a plus and becomes a minus (which is how it feels right now), how should designers communicate? Here's a few thoughts:

1. Kill the designer word.

A designer kitchen isn't a better kitchen now. Quite the opposite.

2. Be like Jonathan Ive

We all know that Mr Ive is head of design at Apple but it's not his name selling the products. Tell stories about the product and why they matter and how they help people. Don't expect your name to sell anything worth having.

3. Focus on the quality

People now want value for money. And that doesn't necessarily mean the cheapest option. Howies recently launched a range of products that are designed to last. The label gives space for three different owners. Think about it. If you buy something that lasts and is designed to have a decent resale value, you'll get somewhere. 

4. Tell stories

People still want experience and meaning. But it has to be real. Focus your communication on the product. Talk about the ideas that brought you to the solution. Talk about the trials, tribulations and crazy hours. Explain why it matters to you.

5. Get over yourself

The technology is there to involve people, so stop talking at them through big logos and impossible lifestyles. I posted before on Camper's Bank of the Imagination. It might not be perfect but it's getting at something. 

So I'm not advocating a back-to-basics approach. I'm saying that it's time for something new. Let's be creative in our communication and let the designer adjective rest in peace.

Frog Design Magazine

Frog have this magazine concept on their website. I kinda like it but feel that there's more they could do. It needs some energy or perhaps this is just me?

Design Writing Tip 1: Remember the reader

I'm currently watching a group of curators from different institutions trying to describe a forthcoming design exhibit. They need two sentences. So far it's taken three months and now they have three different texts that will be voted on next week. None of these texts are any good and the chances are slim that they'll reach an agreement. It's painful to watch but instructive. So why are they having such trouble?

The curators each have their own agenda and this is the first time that these different institutions have collaborated. It's political and often petty. It's all about them. They forgot their reader. 

If they remembered that they are writing for someone else, the whole process would be easier and would produce a result—namely that they can communicate what their exhibition is about in an interesting way so that people attend.

Remembering the reader is the first and most important rule in writing. Everything else comes from that: style, structure, tone, stories and all the rest. Lose sight of your reader and they will walk away.

Core 77: How not to write like a designer

Here's a nice post over on Core 77 by William Bostick that gives 5 great writing tips for designers: How (not) to write like a designer.