Communication design can be described as a problem-solving process that can be broken into four steps: (1) define, (2) research, (3) develop concepts, and (4) implement solutions. Research should be a part of all design process determined by the scope and budget of the project. Concept mapping is a non-linear approach that outlines what is known, what is needed, creates associations and themes, and helps generate ideas. Good design takes time that involves generating and assessing concepts. Time is also spent editing, revising, refining, and evaluating ideas.

In conclusion, defining the design process is complicated as it has many stages and involves many steps at each stage. Complicating it further is the reality that every project is unique in its parameters, goals, time period, and participants. This chapter is meant to facilitate the beginning of how you define your individual design process by basing it on general guidelines. If you are still developing an understanding of your personal design strengths and weaknesses, allow extra time for each stage and track your time for each stage. You’ll soon discover if you fall into the category of a brainstorming, conceptual, or project development type. Conceptual designers find it easy to develop multiple concepts, but less easy to take the steps to develop them to their full potential. Project development types are the opposite — finding concepts hard to create, but developing projects quite easy. Allow extra time to discover which category you fall into and also to develop strengths in your weaker area. As you gain experience developing design projects, you will start to personalize your design process and be able to estimate how long it takes with a fair degree of accuracy. This will help you to estimate project design costs more accurately and gauge the steps needed to bring a project to a successful conclusion.

 References

Clare, R. (2006). Competitor analysis – A graphic design perspective. Ezine Articles. Retrieved from http://ezinearticles.com/?Competitor-Analysis—A-Graphic-Design-Perspective&id=306043

Frey, C. (2008). How to generate breakthrough ideas using a concept tree. Retrieved from http://mindmappingsoftwareblog.com/concept-tree/

Gianatasio, D. (2013, July 2). Happy 25th birthday to Nike’s ‘Just Do It,’ the last great advertising slogan. Adweek. Retrieved from http://www.adweek.com/adfreak/happy-25th-birthday-nikes-just-do-it-last-great-advertising-slogan-150947

Grossnickle, T., Feldmann, D., White, A., & Parkevich, N. (2010). Millennial donors: A study of millennial giving and engagement habits. Achieve and Johnson Grossnickle Associates. Retrieved from http://cdn.trustedpartner.com/docs/library/AchieveMCON2013/MD10%20Full%20Report.pdf

Harris, R. A. (2013). A handbook of rhetorical devices. VirtualSalt. Retrieved from http://www.virtualsalt.com/rhetoric.htm

Tanyel, F., Stuart, E. W., & Griffin, J. (2013). Have “Millennials” embraced digital advertising as they have embraced digital media? Journal of Promotion Management, 19(5), 652–673. http://doi.org/10.1080/10496491.2013.829161

Suggested Reading

Dubberly Design Office. (2009, March 20). A model of the creative process. Retrieved from http://www.dubberly.com/concept-maps/creative-process.html