Are you really innovative?
Who doesn’t want to be innovative? It may not be your positioning statement or used prominently on your web site but for a design business, it’s a mandatory requisite. To be called a creative agency you have to be innovative.
Client’s expect it. Truly innovative design businesses get more work. They attract better staff. And that results in more profitability.
To be innovative you need to identify an unrecognised and unmet need, and then create a business that offers services that are desirable, feasible and viable. DBC can help you do that.
Desirability, Viability, and Feasibility
IDEO first came up with a venn diagram that shows how these three factors interact to develop an innovative business. It’s not an easy thing to do; to get all the pieces working in harmony— the client segments, communication, design value proposition, pricing, financial model etc.
You have to get this right to be truly innovative.
Asking the right questions is just the beginning:
Desirability
What’s the design value proposition? Do people want your service? Does it make sense for them? Does it satisfy an unmet need?
Viability
Can we build a sustainable design business? What has to be done for this business to work? What are the costs? How will you pay for it?
Feasibility
Does this work? What resources do I have? What do I need. Will it function properly so that I have a future business?
The DBC Design Business Model Canvas
We’ve conducted the Design Business Model Canvas workshop with designers, photographers, writers and interior designers and without fault, each one as grown their business with more profitable work from happier clients. The canvas tells the truth – whether a plan is viable, a business is sustainable, or a problem solvable. The three factors IDEO identified for an innovative business match the canvas building blocks exactly.
The client segments, client relationships, competitors, and communications channels all determine how desirable (and competitive) your service is.
The design value proposition, key resources and key partners show how feasible your business will be.
The income and revenue streams demonstrate the viability and sustainability.
Innovative design businesses are more successful. They attract clients. They are more sustainable and more profitable. Problem is claiming to innovative isn’t the answer. You need to be able to prove it. The Design Business Model Canvas helps you do that. It can be used to measure an idea or demonstrate to a client how innovative you are.
If you want to prove how innovative you are, book a Design Business Model Canvas workshop.
Got a question? Want to share your point of view? Please feel free to email me.
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Greg Branson
Contact Greg Branson if you would like to learn more about the many programs the DBC offers.
Greg’s passion is the research and development of methods that improve design management and the role of design in business.
Greg has developed The Design Business School to help owners manage their business better along with showing designers how to get more involved in the studio and develop their career path. Contact Greg.