Not enough designers do this

Hey,

I’m back, again.

I know my last newsletter was a month ago, and I did say I’d be around like the old days.

That didn’t quite happen… but there’s a good reason for it.

I picked up a new client project.

The strategy was signed off, and I moved into the design stage. It’s my most enjoyable part of the process, but if I’m being honest, I need the space to be in it properly. So that’s where my head was.

And the newsletter took a backseat for a bit.

But I’m excited to be back, because this project has given me a lot to think about. And I want to share 2 things it’s reminded me of, about what it means to use strategy in design.

Before we get to the learnings, quick context:

I’m working with a UK-based dog accessories brand, which happens to be based in my home county.

It felt like a full-circle moment, especially since I moved to Dubai in 2024. But I still know the area, the lifestyle, and the audience there, and that familiarity has shaped the project in a way I haven’t quite experienced before.

But we also almost didn’t work together.

They first reached out to me last September, but I didn’t have availability and had to turn them down. They came back again this year specifically wanting to work with me (Which still feels weird to even say because younger me would never have imagined that happening)

The brand has been around since 2020. When they first started, they put together the logo themselves using a typical Canva-style script font.

It worked for them in the early days. As it so happens, the business evolved massively, but the branding still reflected the version of the business from when they first started.

By the time they reached out to me, they could feel the disconnect themselves.

They never had a full visual identity system, so they struggled with consistency across packaging, colours, content, and overall presentation.

Also, their industry is heavily saturated, with a lot of logos looking and feeling very similar. So they were struggling to stand out. When they came to me, they said:

“We particularly wanted to work with you because of the strategic depth you bring in the projects“

And they wanted that for their brand.

They found my work felt less literal and “typical”, compared to what they’d seen from other designers.

And it all boils down to the way I include strategy in my design process.

It’s not just about “including a strategy stage” or “running a strategy call”. If anything, the way I run these has changed significantly over the years. I just used to follow a set of questions, note the responses, and tick ‘em off.

But it’s different now.

I focus on properly understanding what’s being said and staying on certain topics until they’re fully clear to me.

Which brings me to my first learning:

#1: The best ideas come from small comments clients make mid-conversations

As I’ve gotten more comfortable with running these strategy calls, I’ve realised the key is to hold good conversations and be attentive.

Doing so can lead to a serendipitous moment when an idea sparks in your brain mid-conversation. But for that to happen, you need to be really listen to what the client says. As opposed to going through a list of questions and then figuring out “design ideas” afterwards.

For example, during the strategy call, I understood that the brand was wanting to lean more into its British roots and identity as they bring more of their products and production into the UK.

A big part of the strategy conversation was around creating a brand that felt more timeless and story-led long term.

On the call we kept coming back to the word “timeless” because it’s one of those words clients use a lot, but it can mean something completely different depending on the brand.

I was trying to really understand what timeless specifically meant to them beyond just aesthetics.

That was when my client said:

“Nature never changes, it always shows up. So I think that’s kind of what I would call timeless.”

They started talking about how nature moves in cycles, how it’s familiar and consistent, and especially in the UK, how the countryside changes through the seasons every year but still always feels recognisable

The second they said that, an idea clicked in my head.

I could picture British landscapes and countryside-inspired visuals running throughout the brand. It linked perfectly with dog walks and the environments their audience already spends time in.

This made me realise, if I’d just been following a questionnaire, I’d have got “timeless” as a one-word answer and moved on, when the real insight was sitting just in the perspective.

Which also brings me to my 2nd insight:

#2. Branding that’s hard to copy is branding rooted in real story

Fun fact: every single illustration and pattern used on this brand’s products is hand painted by the founder herself.

When she told me that, my first thought was:

In an industry full of mass-produced companies, there’s a handcrafted element behind this brand. That’s a rare angle, yet most people wouldn’t even realise it because none of it comes across in their branding.

A lot of dog accessory brands are heavily trend-led, whereas this brand has a much more personal and in-house feel behind it. The products are designed, illustrated and created with intention.

And especially with the rise of AI and templated design, this human element becomes a strong differentiator.

This then became a big part of the creative direction.

I decided we should explore ways to bring more of that handcrafted, hand-painted feel into the identity itself so the branding reflects the story and process behind the products.

I’m still in the design stage, so I can’t show you where it’s going yet.

But my gut feeling is that this direction perfectly matches where they want the brand to go and aligns far better with their actual audience’s tastes, than what they had before.

It’s clearly different as compared to most brands in the industry.

Their competitors still feel very DIY and product-focused, without a proper identity system behind them, so I’m confident this redesign will help them become memorable and support the brand as it grows and scales over the years.

Branding that’s rooted in a real story is almost impossible to copy. Anyone could recreate a colour palette or a font. But they can’t replicate why a brand exists. And when the identity is built around that, it sticks.

If you want clients to choose you for your strategic depth, and not just your aesthetic, the Strategic Brand Identity Lab will show you how to make that shift.

I’ll see you soon!

Abi 😊

PS. I’ll be sending these insight-based emails every other Monday. So don’t freak out if you don’t see it in your inbox next week. I’m still around. :)