The power of protest graphics.
Graphic design isn’t just for coffee packaging and concert posters. Design has long been used as a form of social commentary and awareness raising. The ability to distill complex thoughts into succinct visuals is at the heart of every good designer, and nobody is doing that better right now than Gary Taxali.
Now to be fair, I don’t know Gary nor do I know if he categorizes himself as a designer, an illustrator, or an artist. But that’s not the point. Just look at these examples. If a picture is worth a thousand words, these works are a full-blown dissertation. At their core the visuals are simple, but the message they’re broadcasting is anything but.
In a world of disinformation, media bombardment and endless scrolling, the ability to stop someone in their tracks and get them to actually think is more valuable than ever before. Design can do just that. You don’t need to be edgy, and you certainly don’t need to be political. All you need is a perspective and a visual that broadcasts that perspective quickly and clearly. And that’s something you simply won’t find in a Canva template.
Where do we look for inspiration?
As a design team working with small businesses we’re often tasked with finding sources of inspiration that align with the everyday lives of our clients’ customers. Whether it’s a yoga studio, a brewery, or a furniture designer, each and every category speaks its own very specific language, and it’s up to us to learn that language before we can speak it ourselves. So how exactly do we do that?
To an extent it comes naturally to us. We have a tendency to take on clients that are in spaces we frequent ourselves. We live in Chicago after all, and are borderline obsessed with the small businesses in and around our neighborhood. We know their clientele because we are their clientele. But every now and again we work with clients that push us into completely new territories, and that’s where sourcing inspiration becomes paramount.
A glimpse into our process.
The first thing we do as part of our process is interview our clients. Over the years we’ve refined a proprietary “get to know you” exercise that not only teaches us what our clients are all about, but oftentimes shows the clients a side of themselves even they didn’t know. It’s amazing how much information we walk away with. And we use this information as our basis for creative exploration and inspiration gathering. That’s where the fun begins.
Inspiration vs. research.
We like to look at creative inspiration from a few angles: ➊ Literal design inspiration. Logos, color palettes, graphics… imagery that feels like the world we want to be in. ➋ Experiences. What is the experience like for your customers, whether it’s a physical location or a digital one? And ➌ how can we “stand out while fitting in”, meaning… what aesthetic does the category lean toward, and how can we create something that’s ownable but not necessarily a radical departure from what customers expect?
And last but certainly not least, we consider the overall vibe and energy of our clients’ typical and/or ideal customer, which helps us further define the language we’re trying to speak. So it’s a bit of a design research/inspiration gathering double feature.
Our go-to resources.
We have a pretty substantial design book collection (thanks in part to the fine folks at Counter-Print and viction:ary) and are scrollers of Pinterest on the regular. We also love hand-painted signage, vintage matchbooks, pre-1960s album cover art, old menus… there’s really no shortage of visual resources - both analog and digital - to get the creative juices flowing. And we dip our toes in as many as we can.
More than anything else, inspiration comes to us by walking in the shoes of our clients’ customers and taking the time to look around and smell the proverbial roses. Because when it comes down to it, we want our clients to become a part of their customers’ daily lives. That’s when we know we’ve done our job.
So anyway… have I told you about my podcast?
Yesterday was the longest year ever. I’m not entirely sure how to find my way back to “business as usual” right now, but hey… I have a podcast! I don’t promote it much and I should probably do that. So that’s what I’m doing here. Look up Launch Breaks on the podcast app of your choice and listen in as I fumble my way through 10 minutes of unfiltered, unedited small business-focused inspirational ramblings designed to help you launch your product or business out into the universe. That’s it. Now if you’ll excuse me I have some doomscrolling to avoid.
Entering the era of uncertainty.
Only 4 days left of democracy as we know it. Is that hyperbole? I’m honestly not sure. But I do know that none of us know what the next 4 years are going to bring for small businesses.
Photo by Tim Mossholder on Unsplash
We can take educated guesses about big business: tax breaks, price gouging, billionaire CEOs… same ol’ same ol’. But for small, independent businesses the future is much less certain and much, much scarier. So what can we do (other than the obvious rage-venting on social media)? The way I see it, now has never been a better time to build a support group: friends, family, like-minded businesses in your area, happy customers et al. We’re all going to need to proactively be a part of a bigger community if we’re going to weather this storm. And the key word here is “proactively”. Get out there, build your groups, reach out to your neighbors. It’s going to be a bumpy ride.
Arcade game design was simply amazing.
I took my youngest son to a vintage arcade this past weekend, and as much as I loved sharing the experience of playing the games of my youth, I was even more taken aback by the design and typography of the physical housings. The graphics were just outstanding. The type was innovative and quirky. This stuff was done by true artisans, not templates. And the large majority of it was done the old fashioned way: by hand. As an industry we’ve been chasing this level of expertise ever since.
2025 enters like a lion.
It’s tricky to move ahead in any sort of business as usual fashion when so many friends and strangers are suffering through yet another tragedy.
I’m not sure yet what the wildfires in California are going to teach me, and more importantly what I’m going to do to help, but I like to live my life in service to others. I know that’s a bit of a cliché, but I truly believe it. I’m happiest when I make other people happy, or at the very least make them forget their sadness if only for a brief moment.
If you or anyone you know need help and support and you think to yourself “you know… Jason and his team could really help us out here” then please oh please shoot me an email. You have our support, no strings attached. I don’t know what that looks like yet, but maybe you can help shed a little light on that for me.
In the meantime stay safe, stay strong, and give yourself permission to let others help.
It’s the perfect time for a good ol’ fashioned blog.
Social media is fun and all, but this blog’s all mine and I can say whatever I want. I don’t know what that’s going to look like over time, and honestly that’s the most exciting part.
I promise to keep things light and airy and supportive. The last thing I need is another avenue for venting my frustrations with (enter tumultuous catastrophe of the day/hour/minute here). But you know what? The only way to fight darkness is with light. And light wins every time. That’s my story and I’m sticking to it.