Design ROI

                          Recently, I read a interesting article Measuring design ROI , it told
                          me why need measure return on design investment.

As a designer, I always think about: how can I solve the problem by design; how it can be a sustainable solution; how can it exercise in beautifying. But I never or rarely think about how it could increase revenue for the client. It is undeniable that design is one of the commercial tool for clients.

How can we convince clients to invest more budget to design instead of  others. The overall investment includes all sorts of other factors, perhaps including:

• Cost of materials/goods
• Possible changes to manufacturing processes
• Tooling costs
• Engineering costs
• Distributions costs
• Staff time spent on a project
• Write-offs of old materials/products
• Other sales, marketing and promotional activity

There are a tipcial examples shows that how design make benefits for clients as follow:

Design group Seymourpowell’s work with shower company Aqualisa led to the use of digital technology in the bathroom for the first time, with the Quartz and Axis products securing more than £30 million in sales in the four years since launch in 2005. At the same time, the designs halved typical installation times, delivering time and cost benefits to suppliers and installers.





Innocent Drink’s This Water product saw sales rise by 100 per cent and market share increase from 0.4 per cent to 4.1 per cent following a rebrand by packaging design group Pearlfisher.





For an initial design investment of around £5,000 Nottingham brewery Castle Rock saw its barrel sales growth double following branding by The Workroom.






Some benefits are obivous, Some are not.

How to measure design ROI?

Sure, it is hard to quantify, but maybe we can take a "softer measure" like before and after research such as:

Rebranding shift, perhaps to change perceptions or to compete with a rival product or service

Increased visitors or footfall

Longer dwell time

Clearer information on forms and leaflets and therefore fewer calls to customer helplines

Use of more sustainable materials

Innovation or conceptual research leading to possible new products

Increased product sales or market share 

There are some examples that companies and organisations take design as most significant factor to achieve great results.

Manufactors& Designers/ Architects: MAGIS & Konstantin Grcic
                                                             

Companies& Design consultant:        Morrisons’ supermarket &Landor Associates
                                                           Air New zeland & IDEO
Designers own business:                   Terence Conran & Habitat
                                                           James Dyson & Dyson