For a company that needs a design, there is more to it than having an end product that looks good. That's only one factor that helps to make a successful design.
Knowing the audience the design is intended for and then targeting that design to appeal directly is one of the most important factors for success. Whether it is a website, a brochure, a poster, t-shirt, or a company logo, chances are there is a primary audience the design needs reach.
The importance of targeting audiences through design
When it comes to designs, many business owners and designers think the best plan is to make a design for everybody. Theoretically, any person could happen upon your website or pick up one of your flyers, so the idea is to make a design with the broadest appeal. What's not being considered here however, is most businesses are not offering products or services that are for everybody.
Most businesses are going to have different groups that are most likely to be interested in the products or services they provide. This should be the primary audience for the design. You have to remember a design is a marketing tool and when you target the design for an audience that is most likely to engage, you put it in a better position to have the greatest impact from a marketing standpoint.
What designers need to know about the target audience
At the start of the design process, the business owner and the designer are going to need to identify the target audience and determine some relevant information regarding the customers the creative assets are supposed to attract.
To start, demographic information is going to be key. Consider the likely age of the primary audience, whether the design is going to need to appeal to consumers who are of a particular gender and if the company is most likely to appeal to a group that may have any special interests.
You also want to know what the target audience is looking for when they engage with a business in any given field. This can give you clues as to what should be emphasized in a design and the ways in which different elements should be presented.
If you are designing a website, then you might have some additional considerations on the technical end. These designs should be responsive, and designed to look good on most computer screens or mobile devices. You should also consider how well it integrates with the rest of the page.
How different targets impact design
Once you know a little about the primary audience for the design, you can start to consider different ways to target the design for the audience. This can take shape in several design elements and it may take some careful consideration to get it done right.
In design, color is obviously an important consideration when targeting an audience. Using the right colors in the right places can make all the difference. Different people react to different colors in different ways, so it is important to know your audience and select a color scheme that will be the most appealing.
It is a bit complicated to give a full overview of color psychology here, but there are some basic examples that can help to get the point across. Studies have suggested men tend to prefer colors like black, blue and green while having a general dislike for purple, orange and brown. On the other side, it is suggested women like blue, green and purple while having a dislike for orange, brown and gray. This may seem simple, but the context and the message you are trying to portray will also matter when selecting colors.
With that, blue becomes an obvious choice for many companies in their design and text. Not only is it popular with both sexes, but it also conveys the ideas of calmness and trust to the viewer of the design. Consider for example that PayPal puts their logo in two shades of blue. Being a company that handles financial transactions, they want to take advantage of the psychological effect the color blue can have.
Target all design elements towards your target audience
Beyond color, there are other design elements that should be considered when trying to understand a target audience. These elements include type, graphics, layout, and images.
The images, for example, should put the message front and center and should also be something that speaks directly to the audience. Additionally, in the same way colors can have psychological effects, so can images. Some visual elements can be used to suggest certain feelings or actions. A corporate audience is likely going to engage more with structured, formal compositions, while you can show more freedom to a younger audience.
Rather than starting from scratch, understanding the target audience will help elevate your design from the beginning. Remember graphic design is about solving a brief and using research - think of your design to be objective rather than subjective and personal.
Tying targeting and design together
Eventually, you will have a target audience identified and you will know what they want from the company that is using the design. You will know the type of effect the design is supposed to have on the audience. From here, it is all about using design principles to put these factors together. Consider the types of graphics that will be most relatable or ones that will encourage the desired feelings and actions. Think about the color scheme and how the different elements of the design fit together.
A good design is going to come from a collaborative process between the company that needs the design and the designer. But there is almost a third party that should have a voice in this discussion. That third party is the intended audience. When you know who they are and how to reach them, you have a much better chance at making a successful design.
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Written by Jessica Walrack on Tuesday, May 24, 2016
Jessica Walrack is a professional freelance writer with a background in sales and marketing. After 7 years in the corporate world, she stepped into the online sphere and has now been freelancing for 4 years. She specializes in helping businesses to create a stellar online experience for their audience in order to build industry authority and increase profitability. In her spare time, Jessica enjoys traveling all over the world with her family.