Defining your visual goals: recipe for success

I've just been reading Talking the Designers Talk, Can You Articulate The Reasons Behind Your Designs.

It's a thought provoking article that discusses communication between designer and client. I read it and chuckled at the examples given, both of "sloppy" communication and of "to-the-point" design-speak communication. I vote for something inbetween!

My job as an art director/designer is simplified when my client and I define the visual goals and objectives of the project we're creating. Here's the recipe for defining these goals:

Audience
We define primary and secondary audiences (mature, hip, young, corporate, non-profit, consumer, professional, baby-boomer, international, multilingual, etc).

Image
We discuss the image that we want to leave with those audiences (elegant, edgy, socially conscious, friendly, scientific, expert are some adjectives that come to mind).

Media choice
We compare the various media that can be used (web site, blog, brochure, report, video, book, magazine, display, etc.), which ones will reach the target audience(s) most effectively and the strong points of using various media in combination.

In addition to these descriptions of the visual goals, we also discuss budget, timeframe and evaluation... to be sure we have the same expectations of the design process.

Budget and timeframe
How can we succeed without knowing the resources available? The time available? So we discuss the budget and timeframe, which will certainly affect the visual goals we are developing.

Evaluation
It's important to agree on the ways we will measure the success of the project. If the goals and objectives have been clearly defined, it will be easier to evaluate the success of the project. We will have an agreed upon list of terms and definitions to check the project against, rather than a vague feeling that the project meets or fails to meet client expections.

Mix these ingredients together well, bake them right and you've got the recipe for design success. May it serve you well!