Conversation between Sebastian J, Pichkaari, a communication boutique and Ezilarsan PKP, Founder, MarketExpress – India’s First Global Insights & Analysis Sharing Platform.

Ezilarsan PKP: Design Thinking & Pichkaari – Design studio, can you connect these two and give your perspective

Pichkaari: At Pichkaari, we work with a lot of change makers who are always looking for new and better ways to achieve results. User oriented thinking is our go-to process to see change, but there are other methods used to inspire creative problem solving. Design thinking is a widely used process based on the premise that everyone can be part of creating a more desirable future.

The core of design thinking involves focusing on the customer. We start with defining the problem we wish to solve. This step is not meant to be easy. We try re-defining the problem from several different angles and viewpoints. We ask different questions about the problem. Is there a better way to tackle it? It would be a shame to create a solution only to realise we were not solving the problem that needed to be solved.

It is then we get into the brainstorming stage. We try to get as many different ideas as we can from our team and also from our immediate surroundings. We let the ideas flow freely and then analyse them as a team. Once we have considered many different ideas from many angles we decide which idea to prototype.

As we finish the prototype, we run it through a small group of people as we watch the change happen and voila! We have nailed it.

Pichkaari:There’s no denying it, the world is rapidly shifting from analogue to digital. People are consuming more and more digital content on a daily basis – on mobile phones, laptops, desktop computers at work, and more – and companies that have not yet recognised this in their marketing strategies need to adapt fast.

Why is digital marketing so important? Because it is not only a rapidly growing force in the current marketing playing field, it is set to be the future of marketing, and it seems likely that digital media will soon replace more traditional forms altogether.

While older generations will no doubt lament the demise of paper-based newspapers, books, communication methods and traditional TV and radio broadcasts, those who have grown up with the internet and mobile phones as a God-given right are already embracing the brave new world of digital consumption.

The facts are that digital methods of communication and marketing are faster, more versatile, practical and streamlined, so it is perhaps unsurprising that once the technology became available we began quickly moving into the digital age. The good news is that digital offers just as much potential to marketers as it does for consumers.

But one of the main benefits of conducting your marketing digitally is the ease with which results can be tracked and monitored. Rather than conducting an expensive customer research, you can quickly view customer response rates and measure the success of your marketing campaign in real-time, enabling you to plan more effectively for the next one.

Perhaps the strongest case for incorporating a digital element in your marketing is that digital media forms are quickly overtaking traditional forms of information consumption. According to the Office for National Statistics, over 82% of UK adults went online in the first three months of this year: that’s over 40 million individuals.

The bottom line is, the digital age is here, and those businesses that fail to adapt to the new marketing climate are at great risk of going extinct sooner rather than later.

In the  context of design, a company’s total brand image starts with a great logo and expands to every aspect of the business. The design needs to target their audience in a way that is functional, attractive, and professional. The brand should provide an instant connection to the outstanding products and services that you offer, and you need excellent design to forge that kind of connection.

Employees will be surrounded by stationary, company web pages, uniforms, publications, and more. If we want a happy and healthy workplace, our employees will need to band together behind the designs that we select to represent our brand. Building a company identity starts on the inside, so employees can be committed to the brand. Good design can strengthen that sense of commitment.

Every entrepreneur wants his/her company to make a great first impression on clients, vendors, and other entities – a logo for example only has a fraction of a second to make a first impression. A design that looks cheap will cast an unfavourable light on their business, and it can be difficult to break the impression that the company cannot afford a professional design.

The usefulness of design extends beyond your logo and your website. Graphic design can produce visual aids that will help you communicate your ideas. An informative image can transmit ideas that cannot be expressed with words alone. One can use professionally designed images to create a positive impression and avoid misunderstandings.

Badly designed graphics can negatively impact worker productivity and general workplace efficiency. The website is an area of business where signs of a bad design are most likely to be observed. A practical design should include useful features, such as easy navigation, legible fonts, and appropriate colours. A website with blinding colours, tricky fonts, or hidden navigation will be a headache for clients and employees.

Utilizing an appropriate design can improve every aspect of your business.

Pichkaari: As part of my journey as a man with only one vision to make communication effective, through design thinking, designing products and packaging to enable a user to fall in love with it, I have encountered a lot of people who said that “You might go on with this for a while, but eventually it would not shape into a viable business.”

And then here we are, just finishing a little over three years and with a brand new swanky office space in addition to our old office. A sea of projects and happy customers apart, I have never felt so alive. It sure is no child’s play and there were times when I doubted myself, not on my entrepreneurial skills, but on my patience and insecurities a person trying to make a difference faces.

Competition from other entities in the same category can also pull a bright mind down. Technical hassles and resources can be a hindrance for a short period of time, but my advice to would be entrepreneurs would be to cling on with all your passion, perseverance and courage. If you really believe in your idea, you will eventually see it bloom with flying colours.