Perceived Value

What do you as an individual want whenever you spend money? 

Value.

The reality is that whenever there is an exchange of Funds we want to get the best value out of the money we spent. How many of you go to the liquor store and drink some of the cheapest beer you can find? You work hard for your money and never want to spend it on something you don't feel is worth it. As strange as it sounds you may not think about this as much as you think you do. Once you have determined something is worth it you will continually spend money on it and be ok with it costing what it costs. A big example of this is coffee, while it stays at a relatively consistent price most people drink coffee everyday and spend 3-4 dollars on it not thinking twice about it even though you can go to the gas station for cheaper coffee or make your own at home. You have decided that coffee has that much value and you are willing to trade your money for it. On the opposite side of things you have Netflix; Chances are that you have Netflix and pay between 8-12 dollars for it but did you know it was once cheaper and many people get very upset about a 1-2 dollar price increase. If you think about it, Netflix costs about as much as 1 movie ticket, meaning that if you watch one movie per month it's about worth it but we all know that we watch Netflix many times making Netflix a great value. I am in the minority but I would pay for Netflix for double or triple the price because I think it has good value. 

So what does this rant about value have to do with design? Well as a designer I am constantly faced with the value proposition. I have my prices set as such so that I can provide for my family and what I feel I am worth. I think trading your money for my services is good value and that's really what you want when working with anyone. What can be difficult is helping people understand where they will find the value in creative services. 

Branding

Branding is the process of getting your business a visual identity including a logo, Patterns, colors, photography, business cards and more. Where is the value in this? Well we live in a society that doesn't just expect but really demands you to have a professional logo with proper color usage and typography. Hiring a designer means you are getting years of experience with those things as well as working with a real person that can give you feedback regarding the design experience. This also means that in the future you have all your design materials layed out. You know what type to use, what colors to use and often times where things should be put and that at the end everything will match your brand. You also now have a relationship with someone that understand when you need something done quickly and is able to work on your timetable. You receive a logo that you can use for really as long as you are in business and will attract client after client to you bringing in huge amounts of value. 

Website

A website is another Critical piece that you need when operating your business in 2019. It is very often the first impression you will make on your clients and having one that is not outstanding is simply a mistake. When deciding how to create your website keep in mind what value you can get out of it. A good website will secure the call from a client and often times the work. A bad website will oftentimes cause clients to simply look at the next person doing what you do. A website can bring in 50-70 percent of your business or more and not investing in it because you don't see the value is simply a mistake. Trading in what seems like a high amount of money now will turn out to be a huge amount of value in the future. 

If you have any questions about this post or about my services please don't hesitate to reach out!

Thanks for reading and if you have any questions please don't hesitate to reach out!