The times, they are a’changin! It’s an election year and the young’uns in this country are not happy with the way government works—or doesn’t work. They’re even more upset with big corporations. On the global playing field, dictatorship after dictatorship is falling to democracy at an historic rate. In suppressed regimes around the world, women are battling for their rights with a sense that ever-elusive victory is now within their grasp.

Bottom line? Doing things the same way is no longer acceptable. People are seeking new ways of doing things—ways that don’t cause harm to the environment, the fragile global economy or the poor.

 Why the groundswell for reform now? Is it the Mayan calendar’s prediction for cosmic transformation? The passing from the zodiac Age of Pisces to the Age of Aquarius? Whatever is prompting the current groundswell of change, we know that in order to thrive, we must unlearn much of what has become part of our DNA.

Unlearning is a conscious mode of new thinking, an open mindedness, a willingness to listen, a creative perspective that allows us to look at issues and problems with a fresh perspective.

Finding that new perspective starts with us as individuals. When we change what we can control —ourselves—that change impacts those around us, which in turn triggers a ripple effect of change in the world.

We are all unlearning much of what we thought we knew. Designers are charged to craft messages with pictures and words that reflect society; we may be ahead of the curve in our unlearning ability. It is our job to listen, and then take our lead from what is being said in the world around us. Great design is the result of processing gooey, intangible, emotional feelings and instincts, and integrating that emotional intelligence with a synthesis of data, facts and information.

As creatives, this has always been our commitment: to think differently about problems and find solutions.

– Dave Kuettel

The evolution of digital access is the biggest change in communications since Gutenberg. Change is difficult, but designers are adjusting, adapting and creating a new vernacular—just as we have in the past.

When website design first came on the scene, the scope of design was narrowed to an      11” x 8 ” landscape page. As far as design transitions go, that one was pretty easy.

Of course, things got more complicated as digital technology expanded. As search engine optimization became critical to being found online, the emphasis turned to words. Visual design has taken a back seat to key words and verbiage. But I predict that there will be an aesthetic backlash.

The greatest opportunity for designers in the digital age to reintroduce the power of visual communication seems to be in the arena of app development. It’s almost as though we are reaching back to remember the emergence of multi-media design for CDs, where successful design meant presentations and stories with a beginning, middle and end told in a graphically pleasing and meaningful manner. Today’s storytelling design must incorporate an added dimension: interactivity.

If you want to identify the leaders of the trend toward interactive design, look to the publishing industry.

Great design is appearing as static books and magazines are translated into dynamic, interactive multi-media presentations. Publishing is breathing life into stories told with words and pictures, by creating customized outcomes that are individual to each viewer.

Our challenge, as designers, comes from the fact that these stories are best witnessed on an iPad, laptop, computer or TV. Mobile devices, by their very nature and small scale, present designers with a narrowed design scope—micro-design. But this challenge is also a fresh visual opportunity.

In the digital age, design has been sacrificed to copy, programming and development. But the backlash against poor design has started. I’m excited to see how the well-designed apps coming out of the world of publishing will influence micro-design in advertising.

How can I make such a bold statement?

Because today, consumers are in charge of the shopping experience.

Yep. It’s the “whole new world “ of digital commerce. This is one of the greatest paradigm shifts in the history of commerce, and it is still in its infancy. For the first time in 5000 years, merchants are no longer in control, and marketers must learn to cultivate customer relationships through two-way conversations.

In a world where customers find you, verses you finding them, design is more relevant than ever. Design reaches out to potential customers, highlighting the value, features and benefits of products and services.

To be successful in today’s market, attention to design is imperative. Product design, architecture, pattern/texture design, promotional marketing design, digital design, in-store design, packaging design, direct mail design—all facets of design must be ratcheted up a notch to adapt and respond to consumer viewing preferences.

Effective creative plays a vital function in an evolving digital market that has tipped traditional merchandising and marketing thinking upside down. Today, creative professionals visually marry the product to the value message, and then relay it in a relevant way through merchandising and marketing. It is compelling creative work that attracts new customers, interfaces with them, prompts sales, and creates loyalty and advocacy. Design has never been more important to business success.

- Dave Kuettel

The tension between creativity and social conformity is an age-old conflict.

When we come into the world as newborns, our parents are full of glee and hope. They dedicate themselves to raising a unique individual with unparalleled talent, brilliance and creativity.

For our first five years of life, our parents are focused on stimulating and nurturing every sense: sight, smell, taste, touch and hearing. We learn, grow, and laugh—and are rewarded by our parents’ delight.

The road to creativity and brilliance is set. Or is it?

Over the next 12-16 years, the social message takes a sudden turn. We enter school and encounter a new set of rules for success. These are based on conformity. Our educational system awards the child who conforms, not the child who marches to the personal beat of a creative drummer.

By the time we graduate into the real working world, our creative confidence has bowed to the pressures of compliance. Then, suddenly, the message changes again. Businesses are faced with competitors in China, Korea and Asia, where the formula for success is grounded in conformity. Besting these competitors means thinking outside of the box, but how can we climb out of the box with the generic, boiler-plated and scripted tools we’ve been taught?

In order to compete successfully, we have to rediscover our creativity by fostering a work culture that values the power of fresh thinking and rewards the courage to take chances. If we are willing to reach beyond the safe confines of conformity, the rewards of innovation will always be within our grasp.

– Dave Kuettel