Six phases, and you always know which one you are in
Most of the anxiety in a design project comes from not knowing what is happening. Every phase here has a defined output, a duration and a clear next step.
Discovery call
A structured 45-minute conversation about the business, not the design. Who buys from you, who you lose to, and what has to be true for this project to have been worth doing.
Research & audit
We map your category — competitor marks, visual conventions, the clichés everyone is converging on. This is what tells us where the open ground actually is.
Concept directions
Two or three genuinely distinct routes, each presented in context with the reasoning behind it. Different ideas, not restyles of the same one, so your choice is strategic.
Refinement
Your chosen route gets built properly: geometry corrected, spacing optically balanced, behaviour checked at every size it will ever appear. Refinement here is unlimited.
System & documentation
Colour, typography, layout and usage rules written down in language a non-designer can follow — because they are the ones who will be applying it.
Handover & support
Every source file, organised and labelled, with a walkthrough session for your team. Then 30 days of support while the system meets the real world.
What each side brings
Projects run late for predictable reasons. Naming them up front is the cheapest way to avoid them.
What we need from you
- A decision-maker who can approve direction
- Consolidated feedback — one response per round
- Any existing brand material, however messy
- Content and data where the project depends on it
What you get from us
- A named art director for the whole project
- A written scope before any work begins
- Status you never have to chase
- Every source file and full ownership at the end
How to give feedback that improves the work
The most useful feedback describes the problem, not the fix. It is also the hardest kind to give, so here is what helps.
- Say what is not working, not what to change. “It feels corporate” is more useful than “make it green”.
- Consolidate before sending. One considered response beats six contradictory emails from different stakeholders.
- Separate preference from judgement. “I do not like it” is valid input; it just needs to be distinguished from “it will not work”.
- Refer back to the brief. If a direction meets the agreed criteria, that is worth weighing against a gut reaction.
- Tell us when we are wrong. We will argue our position, but you know your business and the final call is yours.
Questions about how projects run
Not covered here? Ask us directly — we answer honestly, including when the answer is that you do not need what you were about to buy.
Ask a questionUnlimited refinement on the direction you choose. We do not count revisions, because a counter makes clients hoard feedback and settle for work that is nearly right. What we do ask is that feedback is consolidated into one response per round.
Start at phase one
A 45-minute discovery call. You leave with a written brief and an indicative scope, whether or not you go ahead.