Guided decisions, not design approvals

I recently saw a video clip from one of those Japanese reality game shows — a contestant was trying to cross to the other side of what I can best describe as an oversized dough mixer while walking across a loosely hanging platform over a river. It was hilarious — she was being tossed around and squished by the rotating obstacle, all while trying to hang on to the shaky platform. She made it in the end, but by that point, I was crying with laughter!

The video was titled “Getting a Design Through the Approval Process.” A statement, perhaps, on the struggle faced by designers while trying to get their design approved by clients.

Relatable?

I was about to share it with my team, but then I realised that I couldn’t relate to this situation. I know this is an “in-joke” in the design community and I totally get the humour. It’s not something a designer enjoys though.

I used to think that this would be the reality of a design career when I started out, but I’m happy to say it hasn’t been so. With my team, we’ve approached design work with a different set of principles. Of course, we’ve come across clients who are used to an ‘approval based’ design process, but we’ve never worked that way.

Just in case you were thinking of all the scenarios where you felt like that girl in the video — I have good news. It doesn’t have to be this way. Below, I’m sharing how we work to avoid this. I hope this resonates with you.

Guided Decisions

Our design process is very much a collaboration between the client and ourselves. Our client is trying to create something and needs help. That’s why they hired us — to help them achieve their goal.

We bring our experience, skills, and guidance to the project, and we rely on the client to share their business knowledge and make decisions. We never assume that we know their goals better than they do. We also don’t “present options” — we discuss concepts and come to mutual decisions, which we then review and refine. There is rarely a case where we spend enough time on our own to even be able to present “completed mockups.” We continuously share our work in progress to get feedback and collaborate on ideas — and we like to do this in person.

Thus, we seldom find ourselves in a situation where we are left feeling frustrated that “our” design didn’t get approved.

Specifically, there are a few things that help us achieve this:

1. We share our design process before the project starts — this sets expectations right. We have declined projects where we felt our way of working would be a mismatch for the client.
2. We meet with the client regularly — at least twice a week. At the beginning of a project, we already send out invites to reserve time for design meetings in the coming weeks/months. After that, we plan our work based on everyone’s availability.
3. We never share design work before a meeting. We review all progress in person — so that we can share context. We invite discussions and feedback, not yes/no.
4. All reviewed design work is accessible by the client at any given time — this means the client doesn’t feel pressured to approve details on the spot. They can review and have a thorough look in their own time, and bring their thoughts back for the next discussion.
5. We substantiate our work by giving clear reasons for our recommendations — this is the value we provide to our clients. We don’t shy away from friction, but we try our best to keep it productive. Agreement for the sake of avoiding confrontation means we’re not giving them proper guidance. Pushing for a design based solely on “I think it’s better” or “it looks good” says we don’t care about their feedback. We do our utmost to present all scenarios and perspectives to justify our direction. Sometimes it means more work than what we had initially planned for, but this unpredictability is part of the process of solving complex problems.
6. We don’t fool ourselves into thinking we know better than the client. If we’re any good, we know our domain. But very rarely do we know theirs.

It’s important to remember that the client is parting with their hard-earned cash to pay us. They are invested in making this work. With a multitude of variables at play, it’s hard to predict the outcome of any project. If we can do a decent job during the design phase, hopefully, the project will also succeed.

Once the project is over, we will get paid. But the client is stuck with what we deliver. We need to make sure we do our job well.

So, if I had to imagine myself in that video, I would be cheering for and guiding my client through that blender. And if I did my job well, I’d be able to get my client through to the other side in one piece.