27 October 2009

Firing a Bad Client, A Love Story

"You may not remember me, but we worked together a while back and you actually fired me," the caller said after introducing himself. I felt the tentacles of my memory reaching back many years to a contentious relationship, one of the three clients in 15 years of business that I have resigned. I remember what a gut-wrenching decision that was as a business owner of a relatively new business. I also remembered why I'd done it.

"What you may not remember is that I had a particularly difficult boss and I was the conduit between you and him, so I hope you do recall it wasn't me who gave you the grief," he continued. "I've always respected you for the way you handled that situation, that you had the confidence to resign. You said you felt you couldn't add value and we'd be better served by another agency. You were very nice and professional about it. If I had been in your shoes, I like to think I'd have done the same thing."

I thanked him and asked what I could do for him now, twelve years later. He told me that he was now with a large technology company. He remembered we had good experience creating brands and websites for this kind of company and if my memory of him was not tainted, he'd like me to come in and pitch some work.

For years, I had maintained the impression that I was persona non grata with this person, when in fact I had differentiated myself in a positive way that took more than a decade to come back to me. Whether or not we win the business, I'm reminded that being true to oneself and making the unconventional decision can be a differentiator.

Photo courtesy Photos8.com

Categories: General
Posted by Paul Regensburg at 10:07 AM   |  3 Comments

22 October 2009

Design Gets Big

As a classically trained designer, I was instilled with the best practices of the Bauhaus in how to make things functional and beautiful and that in fact function can be a form of beauty. The integration of form and function presaged the digital era and is certainly the driving force in web design, user interface and information architecture.

As we are reaching a point where good product design and graphic design are more ubiquitous, there is a new movement afoot promoting the idea of "Design Thinking," I'm not sure if the term was coined by Tim Brown, the CEO of IDEO, a prominent industrial design firm, but it certainly figures large in his new book, "Change By Design," which was favorably reviewed by the NY Times this past Sunday.

The book is just out so I've not read it, but did listen to the fascinating video at http://www.ted.com/talks/tim_brown_urges_designers_to_think_big.html. Brown's contention is that the form follows function definition of design, has resulted in a narrow definition of design as about aesthetics, images and fashion. Brown contends that as we are in a time of change on par with the industrial revolution, "Design Thinking" is synonymous with innovation and can be applied to the big problems of our day, such as healthcare, transportation, clean water, education and so forth. He touches upon these applications of "Design Thinking" at a high level. I will read the book to gain better insight and plan to share it in future posts, in which I'll address the expanding role and relevance of design in the changing world.

Categories: General
Posted by Paul Regensburg at 12:23 PM   |  No Comments

20 October 2009

Welcome to Driving Rain!

This is my first post and I'm pretty excited. The blog will be a place to discuss how differentiation — in creative, client service, marketing relationships, brand messaging, user experience — can be applied to what you do for your customers. I'm also looking for serendipitous dialogues, the unexpected and often meaningful interactions that can happen when one puts themselves "out there." In the long run, we know that this blog will be much better if you share your thoughts with us.  So please feel free to let us know what you think, either by commenting, or if you would rather email us, we'd love that as well.  Social media gives us the ability to all share and collaborate on ideas, and the discussions we have here will be much more valuable for everyone if you share your thoughts and opinions with us!

And above all else, thanks for stopping by!

Categories: General
Posted by Paul Regensburg at 10:55 AM   |  2 Comments