DESIGN STRATEGY: Solving Business Challenges Through Design

In this video Sean Tambagahan (Founder and CEO of Butler) talks about the importance of designing from a strategy, as well as how to conduct a proper design strategy session.
Strategists care about solving business challenges. Designers care about solving design challenges. Design Strategists are focused on solving business challenges through design. This video explains what design strategy is, why it's important, and how to do it effectively through discovery.
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We help brands connect with their audience in a digital world through strategy and design.
Our goal is to support, enhance and amplify your brand by designing meaningful experiences for your users that are authentic to your brand’s voice and culture.
Visit www.butlerbranding.com for more information on how we can help build your next design/marketing project.
Phone: [phone]
Facebook: / butlerwebanddesign
Instagram: / butlerbranding

[@thedylanrogers]

Hearing this 7 years in the future, the substance and message is still very impactful.

[@loopzz5526]

exactly

[@megankelly4195]

Would love to see a video on how to design/layout a killer project brief.

[@ButlerBranding]

That's a good idea!

[@marteynewman-adjiri6569]

I really love your content. These are things you can’t learn by schooling but only through working with creative teams or through years of research and hardworking. I feel like you’ve save me two to three years with just this video. Amazing stuff so please keep it up.

[@ButlerBranding]

Glad to help. Stay tuned - a lot more coming.

[@WilliamWeekesJr]

Sean, this was extremely informative. Thank you so much for sharing this information. Looking forward to more from you.

[@balddog642]

This is a brilliant presentation. I’ve learnt a lot that I can use in my copywriting business. Great process nicely explained. Very well done, Sean.

[@AlexDeardream]

Only after this video I got this term. Thanks, author. It's a brilliant piece of information.

[@tareqyosef]

very informative am trying to learn more about business strategy .... thank for video

[@ivanprince850]

This is such good content for me because I do branding.

[@LyleCrumbstorm]

Just watched How To Manage Design Projects and now this one. Rock solid! Excellent everything. I feel like I owe you money now for all this information. I'm going to tell random people on the street to watch these videos. A++!

[@ButlerBranding]

LyleCrumbstorm you're awesome! Thanks for the encouragement, and I'm glad to know this was helpful. Thank you for spreading the word! -sean

[@mcad006]

Great and simple presentation. Glad you clarified that the “Designers really don’t just make things look pretty.” They should be included in the preliminary phase - as well as be able to understand all those pertinent details in order to apply “tactics” to their creative design execution. Thanks for the presentation.

[@ButlerBranding]

Thank you 🙏

[@Brian_Chui]

I like this presentation very much. Just one thing though, Many people are mistaken design is how things look and making it pretty, it is totally not. Great design it’s about “how it works”, and that’s what the core of design is. Making it pretty is merely a mean to an end. The most important thing is how things work when being used - especially in a product or a website or anything has to do with interaction with end-users, it needs to work well for that particular purpose. If not, that’s not design, that’s just "veneer". But Other than that, this presentation is fantastically presented, thank you

[@ButlerBranding]

Thank you for the insight

[@BenGKaiser]

Love the Humble Beast shirt - Beautiful Eulogy is a great group!

[@ButlerBranding]

Beautiful Eulogy is the best!

[@antonionavarrojr2848]

This was a great refresh. Thank you.

[@AndreasWiehrdt]

Great job in explaining how it should work! Wish at least some of my designers would have a clue about strategic topics. Always inspiring, watching your videos.

[@ButlerBranding]

🙏 thank you

[@jazgulmadazimova9282]

This is great! You are right to the point. Thank you!

[@ButlerBranding]

Thank you! 🙏

[@sarah4247]

EXACTLY WHAT I'VE BEEN LOOKING FOR. I AM SUBSCRIBED.

[@ButlerBranding]

Woot!

[@squeezetruck]

Oh man. I have used the hospital analogy so many times XD

[@ineuifity]

Design strategists are designers too, not all designers work to make things look pretty. Designers that only care of stylistic components are generally called stylers. A visual designer is very different from a graphic designer to an illustrator and an user interface designer. Design is a big umbrella word for a lot things, as everything is designed. There are many expressive designers who do also consider the how and why. Especially designers who can work in companies that value design research. Lumping all designers as people who make things look pretty is an over simplification. The general public tends to not understand the differences and needs to be articulated.

[@ButlerBranding]

Good insights. We talk a little about this (but not too in depth) in the video "What's the difference between art and design" kzbin.info/www/bejne/j361koqwgZqjbZY May be an oversimplification as well, but at least the conversation is started.

[@tpmiranda]

Most of what has been talked about in this presentation, to a certain point, is Design A-Z in my college course. It's even more pronounced in Masters in Product Design. The main notion is that a Designer isn't "a guy or gall that makes things pretty". That's the old idea of a Designer. A Designer now is more of a common denominator in a project, with a particular skill of developing a new product and communicating it. We've studied drawing and illustration, CAD, photography and other representation and expression techniques, reprography and typography, strategy, communication theory, interaction and semiotics, materials and manufacturing processes, financial and design management, entrepreneurship, eco-design and eco-efficiency, history of design, innovation and system engineering. We're expected to understand and integrate with the client we're working with, understand their goals and their competition, check what they can do best and what they could do to innovate, how much they're willing to pay to make one product, how much their consumers are willing to pay to buy the product, use the resources we have as efficiently as possible, have a very good understanding of the state of the art, find in the competition their strong and week points and see were we can be innovative and differentiator, cater to the necessities and wishes of the consumers, make a product that stands out, that is doable, transportable, sellable, reliable... so on and so on. Oh, and this while being able to communicate and work together with all kinds of professionals, and be able to build a network of knowledgeable technicians and providers. And this is just chipping the tip of the iceberg. No wonder it is hard for me to explain what a Designer is to someone, besides "a guy or gall that makes things pretty", because there are times that *strategically* a designer might have to do ugly, disgusting and awful things.

[@ashishahuja765]

I usually don't comment on videos but you man deserve! Nice job :-)

[@ButlerBranding]

ASHISH AHUJA ah, Thanks! I feel honored :) glad u liked the content -sean

[@ashishahuja765]

Butler Branding i follow chris do from a long while maybe 1year ;-) you and chris both are awesome!

[@ButlerBranding]

ASHISH AHUJA Chris is my dude! We love The Futur

[@user-nb5jf7ow8l]

very informative and great example story!

[@ButlerBranding]

Thank you!

[@TheOmar1389]

that was great presentation ..........thanks .

[@ButlerBranding]

Omar Alamari thank you!

[@aparnarasane9524]

Great example & content. Would like to see how to whiteboard during brainstorming session.

[@ButlerBranding]

Thanks for the feedback, and the suggestion on content. stay tuned, more videos coming. we will be giving an open and transparent look into our own rebranding process, as we are going through the transition.

[@fayyazb]

This was GOOD! Thank You for sharing!

[@ButlerBranding]

Our pleasure! 😎 thanks for watching

[@sanadishiva]

Do you have any video where it says how a new brand project works in Agile Methodologies? That is a very much required now a days.

[@ButlerBranding]

We don’t have any videos an agile project management. We personally incorporate waterfall project management methodology. We do have a video on that here kzbin.info/www/bejne/kIuTiHSjoJKXZ5I

[@arvindbhallamudi9585]

I'll have to say that design is NOT about 'making things pretty'. I can't believe you said it so many times. As an industrial designer, I'm confident that the design of a product or service is a lot about research, brainstorming, ideation, engineering, technology, business and so much more. It's about why, what, how. Design is creating something new and integrating different disciplines into a solution. Design strategy is simple terms is using the human-centered design thinking process to solve business requirements!

[@ButlerBranding]

I’m pretty sure u need to rewatch the video, because you are literally arguing my point. So, amen to what you said!

[@sujeethange8033]

I appreciate the content! Thank You!

[@ButlerBranding]

We appreciate you! :)

[@trappy76]

Thanks for this. I'm a graphic designer who is wanting to implement more strategy into my process. This really helped. Cheers

[@ButlerBranding]

My pleasure! It's always great to hear more designers seeing the importance of strategy in their process. Cheers to you and your success as you travel down the rabbit hole.

[@trappy76]

Butler Branding Agency I’ve heard how deep that rabbit hole can go.

[@beauxflamiano5502]

Sean, Great video!!!

[@ButlerBranding]

Thanks, Beaux! :)

[@santiagokunst3365]

Good Job dude! cool video

[@mubarakbutt3105]

waoo amazing

[@sorianosoul]

Thanks, super usefully!

[@ButlerBranding]

Thank you!

[@TomBrunberg]

this was golden!

[@ButlerBranding]

Tom Brunberg thank you! Hope it helps

[@philipodallo7950]

This just reminded me of Scrum...👍🏾

[@ButlerBranding]

I can see that

[@TyrantTitan.]

Can we please have a moment of silence for John? -_-

[@ButlerBranding]

R.I.P.

[@LeafarMind]

What?! Did he die?

[@NasivateLifestyle]

That two weeks later, "johns dead" had me dying in laughter!

[@ButlerBranding]

😂

[@mahamo92]

This content is amazing :)

[@ButlerBranding]

Thank you!

[@MasterplanAgencyTR]

First of all, thanks for this great content, I really appreciate the time & effort put into this. + I have a question about this process though; where does 'brand positioning' fits in this process? Is it decided during 'strategy' session, or does it require a whole different process?

[@ButlerBranding]

Sorry for the delayed response! To answer your question - Brand Positioning is determined during the strategy session. That's part of the framework. Asking who our audience is, and how to properly position ourselves for them.

[@drainsh3085]

🔥🔥🔥

[@karimlonguar5826]

Hi Sean, I am a bit confused with all these diffrent strategies!!! I am wondering if this Design Strategy is used when designing a Brand strategy or a UX strategy or can be used for both? Thanks

[@g-da-da-da]

Great job!

[@ButlerBranding]

Greg Fisher 🙏 thanks!

[@muskduh]

thanks for the video

[@ButlerBranding]

No problem!

[@Pritam750]

Great content!

[@ButlerBranding]

thank you! :)

[@jamesrusso72]

Awesome Sauce!

[@ButlerBranding]

Thanks! 😎

[@EduwareIzekor]

I have a question: the process I am accustomed to is the first example you gave where the client delivers the brief. After we send the client a quote we find it hard to determine a correct pricing because, we know that even though we ask the client alot of questions there will still be some functionality elements we might have overlooked. We did not fully do a user research, or the client gave a shalow user report, or we did little user reaserch. So sometimes we end up under quoting/pricing the project and also with some scope creep. I believe that using this system we can better price projects because the briefing is in our control. My question is how do you setup the pricing? is it done in milestones? because after the discovery fase, I believe the project can be better priced? what are your thouhgts on this? Looking for a way to set this up...

[@ButlerBranding]

Eduware Izekor there are a couple ways we have done this. One way is charge for discovery as a standalone. $2500-$5000 and we spend a half day with you doing strategy and rrally digging into your business. After that, we will have a list of everything we should do, and how it will look... don't just charge to put together a proposal, actually provide a consultancy service. Other option is to bid as high as you think you'll need to go to serve them the way you want to, and include discovery as part of your process. You avoid the risk of underbidding.

[@EduwareIzekor]

Butler Branding this is very clear. I can work with this. Taking notes :)

[@marioronci6342]

brilliant!

[@ButlerBranding]

Thanks Mario! Glad you found it helpful

[@georgemoss]

I may want to hire you guys just because of the humble beast tee! Great video

[@ButlerBranding]

Hey! Yeah, they're the best. Especially Beautiful Eulogy 😎

[@georgemoss]

@@ButlerBranding I just posted a video of my last trip to Israel. Propaganda was on the trip with me

[@ButlerBranding]

@@georgemoss 😯 did I see Canon and Derek Minor, too! Must have been a blast

[@georgemoss]

Butler Branding Agency yea! It was dope!

[@AdProductionPH]

Hi Sean, I just crossed about this video and been watching most of your content! Thank you for providing such wonderful content. I'm sorting out ways to make my sales process as simple as possible. I'm curious, what's inside or things you cover inside the proposal vs project brief? I'm kinda confused because you mentioned that client should pay you first as a deposit before you send them a proposal. Can you please help me to elaborate? Thanks in advance!

[@ButlerBranding]

The proposal has a project overview in it. So you know what you are selling your client. However, we do not conduct a comprehensive strategy without payment. We do create proposals before payment, but we want to try to do as few proposals as possible. So we talk about money, upfront and early. When they agree to the rate, and the general scope of work, we charge a deposit, and then schedule a discovery session so that we can build out a more comprehensive strategy.

[@diez9017]

Great video guys! can you please share your brief template ?

[@ButlerBranding]

Diez thank you! We are putting together a package that has all of that in there - stay tuned! :)

[@VicenteLatagJr]

Hello Butler Branding / Sean I'm currently refining my UX process and found your content, so it's gonna be a very big help on how can I control the scope of the project and focus on the actual outcome. I just have a question, I'd like to know how do you charge for your strategy session and how do you convince the clients? For example, the client is hesitant on doing this because they already know what they want. Hope you can help. Thanks Sean!

[@ButlerBranding]

If they already know what they want and just want someone to push pixels, we may not be the best solution. The problem is most people THINK they know what they want, but when it comes time to deliver scope changes, or expectations aren't met because the direction wasnt clear. The way we charge for discovery most of the time is by including it in our cost. We just increase our minimum level of engagement to account for the $5,000 extra it takes to conduct strategy (our current standard rate for Discovery). So if you charge $5,000 for a website, for example, just say you charge $10,000 and it includes Discovery/strategy. If they say they dont want it, say "part of our process it to understand, in detail, what, exactly, we are going to design... if you want us to remove strategy from the equation, we would have to increase the rate to account for more revisions." If they dont want to work with you, then they may not be your customer.

[@rudradipdas4251]

@@@ButlerBranding : that is completely correct - if you want us to remove strategy from the equation, we would have to increase the rate to account for more revisions

[@karimlonguar5826]

Love the content. I understool the brain storming session (Discovery). However I don't know how I can create a Breif since during the brain storming session we have not discussed about Competition, stylescap and messaging? How I can overcome this? Thanks

[@ButlerBranding]

Hey Karim! Glad you're soaking up the content. This video was an overview of Discovery, not a deep dive into it. When conducting a Discovery Session, you should include exercises that cover messaging, design, competitive audit, etc. We plan on rolling out content covering all the exercises we pull from.

[@karimlonguar5826]

@@ButlerBranding Thanks for your response that will be awsome if you roll out content covering all the exercises you pull from. I am already familliar with CORE however I am searching on how to create a proper Brief so I can hand it to production?

[@muhammadassaf5568]

thank you

[@ButlerBranding]

You're welcome 😎

[@ARock603]

Hi Sean, exceptional content, I was asking myself a quick thing: you said not to diagnose immediately but how do you estimate the work before the discovery and come up with a price to submit to the client before starting anything? E.g. Maybe you submit a price that involves Strategy, Logo design and website but after a discovery session you realize the main focus for marketing the company is offline so they don't need a Website. How does it work in a case like this?

[@ButlerBranding]

You're exactly right. What I do is spend most of the initial call (during the sales process) diagnosing as much as I can until I get an idea of all we will have to do. I state a price and scope right then and there. If they agree, I put together a proposal and collect a deposit. Now we move to the first step of the project - DISCOVERY. This is where we discovery HOW exactly we will do WHAT we said would do. We know going into it that we are doing a brand identity system and website, for example. But during Discovery we find out how exactly we should build the website. Sometimes insights are uncovered that may change the scope, but usually we are pretty good at diagnosing in the sales process to land on an accurate price. Think like construction. Itll take $x amount to remodel your kitchen. Then the contractor realizes after demo that there are structural issues that need to be addressed. Its expected that variables can change the scope.

[@ARock603]

​@@ButlerBranding Super-fast and super-comprehensive answer, thank you so much! +1

[@adoreos]

Really great content. Thank you! PS. You got a type error - "Srategy" 0:57.

[@ButlerBranding]

Dor Bens thanks! Yeah, by the time noticed the typo it was too late. Good eye!

[@Ludvio]

i just wanna say i love you

[@ButlerBranding]

We feel the love ❤️

[@akhilakhil7719]

Hi bro, really found ur video usefull.. i applied for strategic des managemnt course... but since im new to this subject. do u mind tellin me wat dis subject has on future placement nd job opportunities. and plz do note me on d job profile of a strategic design management designer.??!

[@ButlerBranding]

For future placement and job opportunities, strategic thinkers are always needed in design and marketing agencies. If you're a solo-preneur you will be doing strategic and creative thinking. If you have a team working under you, then you'd likely be the strategist giving direction to the creatives. If you are an employee of an agency, you'd be working with both the C-Suite Execs and Creative Design teams. Long story short - there's a need for strategic thinkers in design.

[@akhilakhil7719]

Butler Branding thnk you sooo much for the reply... lookin forward for ur next video ...

[@akhilakhil7719]

Hey currently doin Strategic design management @NID India. Its really gd. tnkx for the tip

[@claritocruz7612]

Hey I’m a fan. I think you accidentally mispelled “Strategy”.

[@ButlerBranding]

Shhh, don't tell. 😉 We caught that in editing, and decided to just post it anyways rather than to reshoot.

[@parabingola]

What's the difference (if there is any) in your opinion between design/ux design strategy and product strategy ?

[@ButlerBranding]

Not a big difference if you’re talking about digital products

[@digitalCr8]

designer - 'is this pretty?' OMG. Really? Holy chit man, you're marginalizing what designers do. Please stop.

[@ButlerBranding]

Seems like you missed the point - that's exactly what we are talking about. We are designers. We are encouraging aspiring designers to value strategy.

[@AbhishekKumarPodcast]

It's Strategy and not srategy.

[@ButlerBranding]

Shhhhh, dont tell anyone 😉

[@AbhishekKumarPodcast]

Haha sure! 🌝

[@karimlonguar5826]

Hi Sean, I am a bit confused with all these diffrent strategies!!! I am wondering if this Design Strategy is used when designing a Brand strategy or a UX strategy or can be used for both? Thanks

[@ButlerBranding]

Karim, this particular video is advocating for strategy in general. The goal is to think strategically before thinking creatively. There are many different frameworks or strategies for UX or Brand Identity or design in general... I would not overthink it. Try to incorporate what you know, then tweak as you get experience.