Olesya Dus: "On the importance of external design"

1. Is external design important for business?

Always, yes. And not only external design. Even if the company does not work with retail sales and is not represented in the form of retail outlets, the design of the office, production, and warehouse is important. First, it is the "face" of the company not only in front of investors and customers, but also, first of all, in front of its employees. If a company wants to instill a corporate culture, respect, style and loyalty of employees, then the first thing it should do is to clean the porch, make a parking lot and put the facade and offices in order.

At the same time, sticking a banner on the facade or making a neon sign in the style of advertising of the 90s is a straight "ugh". This is called made on "dumps". This is how whole streets are decorated in Dnipro - just horror. For example, Svyatoslava Khorobroho street. I can't walk there - my eyes start to itch from the quality of the outdoors.

The way a company looks from the outside largely characterizes it from the inside. And I often see confirmation of this: there is a huge yellow sign that can be seen from 100-200 meters away, the absence of an urn at the entrance and the broken steps immediately speak of the level of service inside this premises. Most often, there is no business at all with the client, or the product is not attractive at all. At the same time, there are the basics of neuromarketing, which literally say "orange and yellow colors on a large scale create a feeling of cheapness of the product." And if in front of us is a small black or graphite plate, with a beautiful font and on beautiful chrome fasteners - inside, most often, there will be an expensive product and good service.

Just look at the offices and stores of companies with world names. They cannot allow their brand to be questioned. Therefore, their offices and show-booms are always at a height. It's a pity that so many of us have not learned how to use a reference when designing our store.

2. How did external advertising affect the development of your company? What elements of it do you use?

For retail outlets, external design is always another point in the company's strategy. Because it is a place of sales and promotion. Making convenient navigation to the point of sale is a service. Making the design style recognizable is also a service. From the outside, it should be clear who you are and what you do. At the company "Aquantis" (Dnipro), where I worked, the showroom is decorated in a corporate style and it is visible from the street. It is immediately clear that the company is engaged. At the same time, it fits quite harmoniously into the architecture. Nothing flashy or spoiling the facade. And customers often said in conversation "Ah, is this your store on Hrushevsky on the corner?".

Today, I work in a different field and our head office of the Euro House company is decorated according to the subject of the product - design and construction services. Customers, coming to the main office, are always impressed by its appearance. Offices in the regions do not have an external design, because they are located in office centers. But everything inside, they are all decorated according to the standards of corporate style.

3. If outdoor advertising is the face of an offline business and the client's first acquaintance with it, is it worth saving on design?

The issue of saving on design is a very biased and exaggerated issue. The main resource on which you should not save is the time for the implementation of such a project.

You can do it stylishly for little money. And you can spend thousands and get aesthetic horror. If I have a pharmacy in the old part of the city, then it is enough to make a stylish metal sign that will serve as navigation and a convenient entrance group. If this is a sweet shop, then you can cover all the windows with an oracle with the image of candies, put an external pole, lightboards on the way and think that this is cool. It will certainly attract TAs, but it won't differentiate you from the same store next door. And you can make a huge bright box from advertising plastic on the roof, screw on the lights and then clean it weekly of dust, leaves, cobwebs, etc. Until it fades or becomes covered with dust. Which of these is more expensive?

Any external design begins with the target audience, idea and design. You need to spend the main part of your time on this. That is why I am very impressed by advertising and production companies, which not start with the cost and materials, but with the idea and the project.

4. You have probably often encountered ordering external design. What guides you when choosing a contractor?

The first is the way I was answered on the phone - immediately or after five switches. The second is how the contractor listens to me. The third is what questions and at what depth he asks. Frankly, it's annoying when I say "I need to decorate my office" and hear back "Well, the cheapest option is to hang a banner. Advertising plastic is more expensive. I want to ask: "Are you serious?" You should at least find out the task of this design and who it is for! And the fourth is how it reacts. If they just send me a commercial offer or a portfolio, I don't even open it. This is not a manager's job. It's called "dumps, I'm already loaded." Therefore, read it, and then call me back. If the manager comes to the facility, brings samples, offers ideas - for me, this is an indicator of his involvement. I can entrust this work to such a manager.