“The trade of advertising is now so near to perfection that it is not easy to propose any improvement.”
Dr Samuel Johnson. Writing in the Idler, 1759.
FROM APPROACH TO PROCESS.
In Approach, we wrote of many things – but not all.
In Process, we start where the planning ends and the actual production begins…
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PROCESS CHOICES
FIRSTLY – If you buy design services on a regular basis you can try us out for an upcoming job and see how we fit with the way you work – or discover the way we work.
This Process has been the entry point for many long term clients.
Even in pure Design Support Services, we aren’t just knocking out AI or Clip Art flyers.
We understand the marketing tactics behind your projects, how to rationalise Design suggestions for internal dialogue and support your vision or simpler brief by producing high quality graphics.
SECONDLY – If you already like what you’ve read to this point you could jump straight into a discussion about a specific larger project.
Maybe one you’ve been trying to get off the ground for a while?
Those more complex all-encompassing or simply bigger projects where we are second to none in any level of support you need, we would tailor a Process just for you.
Starting where initial discussions, consultancy, briefs, and presentations have been completed – here are ideas as to how we might work together.
DO YOU HAVE SPACE YOU NEED FILLING?
SCENARIO 1:
BRAND ROLLOUT.
If the first expression we design and develop for you is a new or updated Brand, it should be a straightforward process to roll it out across your entire business landscape.
But to implement that roll out fully takes a well organised plan and a lot of cooperation. This is the same for a core business brand as it is for any other more specific project – including those which have to Shake Hands with a previous as well as any New elements.
To explain…
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SCENARIO 2:
THE SPECIFIC PROJECT.
If you bring us onboard for a specific project – anything from a Website to an Exhibition Stand, a rollout of Branded Environments, or a coordinated Product Launch – the very first question we ask is:
“What does this need to shake hands with?”
- HAND SHAKING is the process of coordinating each item or project in a creative chain, where one stage “shakes hands” with the next – seamlessly passing on styling, voice, brand elements, and design structures. Using Blue Strawberry Elephant for the design of each step ensures total continuity.
- HANDING OFF is where a project stage, brand guideline, or graphic element is passed completely over to a third-party manufacturer, developer, or an in-house non-design department. It is in these abrupt hand-offs where anything that can go wrong – any mismatch, loss of brand rules, or dilution of style and spirit – routinely does.
Great sign and large-format producers, artworkers in print companies, and web programmers who live entirely in coding worlds are highly skilled. However, you will be very lucky if they can transpose a holistic brand style – never mind consistent colour palettes – into their specialist areas.
It simply isn’t their job to create stylesheets with spatial qualities, place figures on a ground to align negative and positive space with the brand style or apply design theories that include foveal views and layering.
They don’t inherently know which elements in size, shape, or colour must Shake Hands with the previous or next in a series.
Some Brands don’t make a dent on the psyche
…others are real Steamrollers
FLEXIBILY CONSISTANT.
Whatever your scenario, you will never be stuck on a rigid track.
While continuity is maintained across all outcomes (you can see examples in our top Navigation Bar), we have chosen two design services at opposite ends of the process spectrum to show you how this works.
While the journey from concept to installation of Physical Media is vastly different from launching your presence on the Web, Blue Strawberry Elephant can produce both simultaneously, or as a linear rollout – ensuring flawless continuity across your Brand…
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Unlike agencies that specialise strictly in one discipline, we have grown up through every tech and trade era.
Our legacy culture goes far beyond the original creative we are known for. Regardless of the format, marketing channel, or project type, the core of our process remains identical.
Not as far apart as they seem
EXAMPLE 1:
PHYSICAL MEDIA & THE BRANDED SPACE.
When translating a brand into physical reality, we cover the full spectrum of environmental design:
- Interior Design & Large-Format Displays
- Exhibition Stands
- Wayfinding and Signage
- Vehicle Livery
- Outdoor Advertising…
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We understand the way artisans work because we have hands-on experience with the crafts involved. In turn, they appreciate our practical knowledge and respect what they contribute to the final installation. Trades enjoy our particular attention to detail:
“It makes a nice change for a client to find a Design Company that knows what they are doing with the practical side of sign manufacture and installation.”
— John Spencer, Spencer Signs
Using a Branded Interior as an example: We don’t just produce print-ready artwork from the original concepts. We get deeply involved in the world of architectural plans and elevations, producing 3D digital walkthroughs for both the client and the installers when needed.
We coordinate and quality-control the manufacture, bringing visual and spreadsheeted plans to the site for final size checks and Just-In-Time (JIT) arrival of all components in order of use—ensuring the most efficient installation possible.
Crucially, we secure an agreement with you to make on-site executive decisions up to a specified level, with a direct line on the day for anything above that.
There are always fellow participants on site before us – construction trades, carpet fitters, decorators, IT, AV, data, or voice installers running on or behind schedule around our branding installation teams.
Having the authority on the day to confirm our adjustments and decisions before letting the installation continue saves you immense time, stress, and money.
Created in Each Space
EXAMPLE 2:
WEB PRESENCE.
We have been producing successful websites since 1997; you are looking at one right now.
Nothing in marketing and design has changed more frequently than digital technology and platforms. Yet regardless of the type of website required, our job – first and foremost – is to make your site look significantly better than your competition.
In that respect, the digital world is no different from any traditional media.
We start with the visual impact, then build out the essential functionality for the catalogue, e-commerce, or service description platform you need…
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Already, there are IT guys screaming at their screens.
We disagree with the screaming. You deserve the absolute best representation of your Brand, your marketing concepts, and your products.
When you have worked hard to build a standout brand, the last thing you need is for that identity to be watered down by a rigid template, or by non-designers plonking your brand-new logo in whichever place is most convenient for them.
(However, we do frequently collaborate with in-house and third-party developers at our clients’ request.)
Created for Outer Space
WEBSITES BEYOND THE VEIL.
Where we choose not to go is into the deep backend layers of technology connecting your website to proprietary, custom-built accounts software, CRMs, warehousing, or stock control.
Clients often have long-standing contracts for that specialized backend tech. It usually works extremely well and should not be disturbed. We call this world “Beyond the Veil.”…
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As long as we have amiable support and cooperation from your tech providers, you can have the best of both worlds: a brilliant, beautifully branded front end, and a clean interface that feeds those backend systems exactly what they need.
We build front-end architecture with off-the-shelf, instant-response frameworks that message your customers while simultaneously uploading data “to the veil” for your backend providers to grab and automatically update accounts, warehousing, and delivery systems. We then provide those backend teams with consistent design elements to brand your internal and customer-facing messaging forms.
There are things you just don’t touch
KNOLLING EVERYTHING IN BETWEEN.
While physical media and web presences may seem a world apart, you now see how Blue Strawberry Elephant accurately retains your branded image by producing both expressions under one roof.
But it doesn’t end there.
In the animated Knolling Layout on our home page (which we discuss more in TOOLS), there is an iPad displaying a spreadsheet, a stopwatch, and a micrometre.
We do actually use all three—including the micrometre from time to time…
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In that layout, the spreadsheet represents the ultimate tool in every project we execute.
Unlike most design companies, we carry your project from absolute start to finished installation. That means managing all the organisation, project management, and structural reporting to allow you to report and overview internally.
We take care of the details to give you total peace of mind – allowing us, and you, to concentrate entirely on what we are each good at.
It could be a Venn Diagram – a pretty strange one but still…