Most Graphic Designers Aren’t What Clients Need. Are You Ready For The Future?

Summary

Summary of "Most Graphic Designers Aren’t What Clients Need. Are You Ready For The Future?"

Podcast: The Angry Designer – Graphic Design, Freelancing, Branding & Creative Business Podcast
Host/Authors: Moss and Sean
Episode Release Date: May 20, 2025

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Introduction: Confronting the AI Challenge

In this compelling episode of The Angry Designer, hosts Moss and Sean delve deep into the pressing issue of artificial intelligence (AI) disrupting the graphic design industry. Building on the momentum from their previous discussion on the "new digital divide," they explore how AI is not just a looming threat but an active force reshaping the landscape for designers.

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The Rising Fear: Designers vs. AI

Moss opens the conversation by reflecting on the overwhelming response to their last episode about AI replacing designers. "AI is fucking here. And it's already doing the work that junior designers are doing" (01:57). This candid admission sets the tone for an honest examination of AI's capabilities and the fears it instills within the design community.

Sam echoes this sentiment, highlighting the natural human inclination to fear what we don't understand: "Our natural tendency is to hate what you fear" (00:55). The duo discusses how AI's ability to generate mood boards, color swatches, and even complex designs like logos and websites is unsettling, especially for junior designers whose tasks are most easily automated.

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Client Adaptation: Embracing AI's Efficiency

As AI tools become more integrated into clients' workflows, Moss notes a significant shift: "Clients are starting to get comfortable, they're starting to get used to the speed... they're having things turned around" (04:16). This acceptance means clients might settle for "good enough" solutions, potentially undervaluing the nuanced work that human designers provide.

Sean adds, "Customers have this good enough mentality," (07:45) emphasizing that clients might prefer the convenience and lower costs of AI-generated designs over bespoke, strategically crafted solutions.

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The Unique Value of Human Designers: Beyond Execution

Moss asserts that while AI excels in execution, it falls short in strategic thinking: "AI can't mimic the thinking. You know, the strategy, the thought behind that... that's something AI can't really get to" (12:22). This distinction underscores the irreplaceable role of designers as problem solvers rather than mere executors of design tasks.

He further elaborates, "Our strength... is hinged on the thinking behind the execution" (27:38). By focusing on solving real business problems through design, human designers offer value that AI cannot replicate.

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Reframing the Designer’s Role: From Deliverables to Solutions

A pivotal theme in the episode is the necessity for designers to shift their focus from deliverables to solutions. Moss emphasizes, "Instead of saying, I'm going to give you three logo options... you say things like, we build brand identity, we'll build brand that makes your audience feel something" (30:22). This reframing positions designers as strategic partners who address underlying business challenges rather than just providing aesthetic outputs.

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Asking the Right Questions: Uncovering Business Pain Points

Central to this strategic approach is the art of asking incisive questions to uncover clients' true needs. Moss compares this to a doctor's diagnostic process: "Doctors ask a million questions... they diagnose, they ask you all these weird questions that are confusing but necessary" (16:30). By thoroughly understanding the business context, designers can tailor their solutions more effectively.

He provides practical examples of questions designers should ask, such as:

• "Why do you need this logo?"
• "What are the real goals behind your rebranding?"
• "What challenges are you currently facing with your brand?"

These questions help identify genuine business pain points, enabling designers to create solutions that drive meaningful results.

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Building Trust Through Strategic Insight

Moss shares insights from an interview with Dan from Lincoln Design Company, highlighting how clients sometimes bypass strategic input by presenting AI-generated concepts: "Customers are handing over something... and you’re supposed to just replicate it" (08:30). This behavior underscores the importance of designers asserting their strategic value to prevent clients from defaulting to AI solutions.

By positioning themselves as experts who can provide valuable insights and strategic direction, designers can cultivate trust and demonstrate their indispensability.

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The Future Designer: Integrating AI as a Tool

Looking ahead, Moss envisions the "designer of the future" as one who leverages AI to enhance their strategic capabilities. "AI on its own can't solve this because it requires somebody else to ask the right questions" (28:43). Instead of viewing AI as a replacement, designers should embrace it as a complementary tool that aids in executing high-quality work while they focus on strategic problem-solving.

Sean concurs, noting that problem-solving is one of the best and most exciting aspects of design work that AI cannot replicate: "Problem solving is kind of one of the best parts of what we do" (36:09).

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Conclusion: Embracing the Change and Staying Ahead

Moss and Sean conclude the episode by encouraging designers to adapt by focusing on strategic problem-solving and leveraging AI as a tool rather than viewing it as a threat. "AI is not here to replace us. We're going to teach you guys how to make AI your bitch" (36:42). This proactive mindset ensures that designers remain valuable and irreplaceable by offering solutions that go beyond what AI can achieve.

They reaffirm their commitment to guiding designers through these changes, promising upcoming episodes that will further explore the integration of AI into creative practices.

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Notable Quotes

• Moss (01:57): "AI is fucking here. And it's already doing the work that junior designers are doing."

• Sam (00:55): "Our natural tendency is to hate what you fear."

• Moss (12:22): "AI can't mimic the thinking. You know, the strategy, the thought behind that... that's something AI can't really get to."

• Moss (30:22): "We build brand identity, we'll build brand that makes your audience feel something."

• Moss (08:30): "Customers are handing over something... and you’re supposed to just replicate it."

• Sam (36:09): "Problem solving is kind of one of the best parts of what we do."

• Moss (36:42): "AI is not here to replace us. We're going to teach you guys how to make AI your bitch."

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This episode serves as a crucial wake-up call for graphic designers, urging them to evolve from mere executors to strategic problem solvers. By embracing AI as an ally and focusing on solving real business challenges, designers can secure their place in the future of the creative industry.

Transcript

[Moss]

Foreign.

[Sean]

You're listening to the Angry Designer podcast where we help frustrated graphic designers crush the industry.

[Moss]

Bull.

[Sean]

And share what it takes to charge what you're worth and build badass, rewarding careers.

[Moss]

We did an episode a couple weeks ago about the digital. The new digital divide. How AI is replacing designers and what kind of designers and, and man, did that resonate with people. Legend. Like, you know, the YouTube side of it just blew up. We had conversations. We had like, you, comments, like lists of comments. The whole time I was at Crop, every time I had a chance, I was on there replying to people. Some really good conversations in there.

[Sam]

Yeah.

[Moss]

You know, and, and a lot of them were, you know, haters of AI Haters.

[Sam]

You know what, Reading the comments. Yeah, Yeah, I got a sense of.

[Moss]

Fear from some of them, for sure.

[Sam]

Some of them. There was, there was more fear than anything else. It was just like. And, and I, as humans, our natural tendency is to hate what you fear.

[Moss]

Yeah, absolutely.

[Sam]

You know, I guess that kind of.

[Moss]

And I mean, again, it's. You hate what you fear. You're right. Because again, a lot of. There was, There was a lot.

[Sam]

Yeah, there was just a lot of people who didn't understand what.

[Moss]

But there, you know, there was also a lot of designers. You can tell the senior designers and, and the ones with experience, because they were all like, well, hasn't this always been the case?

[Sam]

Yes.

[Moss]

Right. Because we talked about the new divide and, and, you know, what separates, you know, how creativity now is, is, you know, almost replicated the quality portion, you know, of. Of what we do or the output AI is like doing bang on. And so what made us kind of cool and that we were able to create stuff that looked great, you know, isn't really, you know, who we are anymore. Right. And there's a certain level of designer that is now going to be axed if all they're doing is, is delivering creative. Right. Like, I mean, you know, this, this isn't even a joke. It's not like AI is coming. AI is fucking here.

[Sam]

It's in your lap, baby.

[Moss]

Shit. Like it is. And it's already doing the work that junior designers are doing. Yeah, it's, it's coming up with mood boards. It's, it's, it's doing color swatches. Right. It's doing, you know, it's like demo websites, layouts. Like, it is already doing, you know, very, you know, basic and heck, I hate to say it, even advanced creative stuff right out of the bat. Okay, okay. There was one comment that kind of you know, like, you know, made me a little sad, you know, but you knew it was coming. And there was a conceptual artist who left a comment.

[Sam]

Yeah.

[Moss]

And he was like, you know, a high has.

[Sam]

That's it for me.

[Moss]

That's it. I'm done. It's. I've lost my job because AI can now do it.

[Sam]

Yeah.

[Moss]

And of course, you know, he was a conceptual artist. And I mean, my heart goes out to you, dude, you know, and it's nobody's fault, but you know, like, you know, the reality is if. If what we were doing was just concept art, getting people's ideas and making it, you know, replicating it in the creative. And, you know, our job focused on our output only. Yeah. And. And I could see. And that sucks in that sense.

[Sam]

Yeah, that does kind of suck. Yeah. Because that to me sounds like a very creative field. You know what I mean?

[Moss]

Like this guy's doing concept stuff.

[Sam]

Yeah.

[Moss]

Right. And even like mood boards or, you know, like, you know, what are all those little screens that people would do for movie scripts, you know, they would do? Right.

[Sam]

I mean, storyboard storyboards.

[Moss]

I mean, again, this is all now by ways of. It's only a matter time if it. I already know that there's stuff out there that is doing this. Right. So, you know, it's there, it's real. And clients are starting to get comfortable, you know, with AI. They're starting to get comfortable. I have clients that are even telling me, oh yeah, I'm just going to go into chat to have IT rewrite it for me. I just like, wow. Like, you know that thing. Yeah, yeah.

[Sam]

Damn.

[Moss]

Surprised. But you know, it. Because it always felt like a dirty little secret.

[Sam]

Yes.

[Moss]

Because a lot of companies are still very anti It.

[Sam]

Yes, it's true. Yeah. There's some, some. I know one in particular that's been very. They've been dragging their heels on AI.

[Moss]

Right. Right.

[Sam]

Seems.

[Moss]

I know, I know it's a little crazy. Especially when you can start uploading it and run your own private copy on your own server.

[Sam]

Exactly.

[Moss]

Connected to anyway. But that's besides the point. It seems like clients are starting to get comfortable and getting used to the speed, you know, the. They're just having things turned around. And although I don't think anybody's expecting final quality work, I think that clients are starting to get used to the good enough work.

[Sam]

Right.

[Moss]

That's a little sad.

[Sam]

Yeah.

[Moss]

Right. Because is this, you know, is this what we're going to be dealing with is good enough? Right. And I know that we Always say, take your designs to 80%, but that's not what I'm talking about here.

[Sam]

You're talking more 50% here. Yeah.

[Moss]

Right. It's just kind of like. Yeah, yeah, whatever. Right. Like, you know, and the funny thing is, you have to admit, AI, A lot of the AI stuff that's generated looks a. Generated. Yes, it's. It's a trend right now how it looks.

[Sam]

Yeah.

[Moss]

Even if you go into Adobe stock, I swear one out of every two images is AI generated.

[Sam]

Yeah.

[Moss]

You know, which kind of sucks because that means they're cutting out. Who are they cutting out in this case? Right. Photographers. They're cutting out the photographers. So it is. There's no question that AI is definitely. Yeah.

[Sam]

Oh, sorry, I was just going to say the thing with that is, is again, when you say you look at Adobe stock and you see these things.

[Moss]

Yeah.

[Sam]

There's a. Some of them suck.

[Moss]

Oh, my God.

[Sam]

You know what I mean? And it's kind of like Hollywood how they rely too much on CG effects. It just looks fake.

[Moss]

Yeah. Well, and then CGI more than new, even still.

[Sam]

I mean, sometimes. Yeah, sometimes it gets a little.

[Moss]

But you are right, you can, you can tell those a mile.

[Sam]

And then when you see a real one, you're like, oh, yeah, it's so good.

[Moss]

I have been fooled a couple times.

[Sam]

Yeah. Yeah, me too. Me too.

[Moss]

Because some of it's been really good. Right. But I mean, like, I mean, the reality is we're, we're crazy to think that, you know, it's not already good enough, if not in the next near future. I mean, I've even seen some designers out there posting videos and, and they're almost mocking it. They're like, they go in there and they prompt, give me a logo on this.

[Sam]

Yes.

[Moss]

And then it's a shoe.

[Sam]

I know what you're talking about. Yeah. Yeah.

[Moss]

Well, there's been a couple. And then it comes a really bad logo.

[Sam]

Yeah.

[Moss]

And then they look at the camera like, what the. Right.

[Sam]

And then they do it better. So.

[Moss]

And I mean, guys, I, I totally root for us and the designer in this case.

[Sam]

Yeah.

[Moss]

But I've seen some really heavy hitting AI that can do badges that look like a million bucks, that can do, you know, hate me all you want. I'm seeing it. And those videos aren't necessarily an accurate depiction of what AI is capable of doing because I've seen it do incredible stuff already. Yeah. You got to change the prompt a little bit. You might have to work with it a little bit.

[Sam]

Exactly.

[Moss]

But I mean, again, I've seen it with my own eyes, I've played with it and the shit that's coming out is like, it's scary good. So there's no question that that output stuff is going to happen in the near future. Right. You know, and again, regardless what anybody's kind of saying that, you know, it isn't, it's not. Right. Some people were commenting that customers, you know, they weren't going to use AI. Right. They're, they're like, oh well, you know, they, they already had access to design tools and they didn't use those, so why are they going to jump AI? And I think even that isn't, they're a little bit in denial because I mean, face it, Canva, half of their client base are non designers. Right?

[Sam]

Yep.

[Moss]

Who's to say that these people aren't going to be the same people that are using AI? Yeah, right. They're pain in the ass people, to be honest. Right. And again, the idea here is that like, you know, it, it again, they don't have to do it well, they just have to do it. 50 enough.

[Sam]

Exactly. Which makes me cringe. Yeah, exactly.

[Moss]

At crop, we had an interesting conversation with Dan from Lincoln. Yeah, Right. And again, you know, that was one of the first things we hit hard on in our interview with him. And you guys will hear this in the near future, but the idea, of course, because again, so much of his business is based on amazing illustration. And I was like, okay dude, like what's up? And we were talking about that and he said now this is Lincoln design company. He said he had a customer create something in AI and then basically hand it over to him and be like, here, can you guys just do this? And it's like, you know what? Well, I mean again, it's a little bit kind of skipped a couple important steps. And I mean this is, this is in my opinion that's the worry.

[Sam]

Yeah.

[Moss]

But even he was saying it's like they, you know, it's. Yeah, maybe it would have you know, even, even got rid of some revenue stream there. Right. But even more importantly, it was the thought process, the strategy, you know, like if they're just handing you over something, you know, and you're supposed to just replicate it, it could be wrong. Who's to say that they even have the right idea that they're handing you at that, at that point, you know, and if it's already at that stage, dude, it's only a matter of time that, you know, like they knew that they Couldn't do it better than Dan, you know, and better than Lincoln.

[Sam]

Right.

[Moss]

You know, but it was good enough.

[Sam]

Yeah.

[Moss]

And that's the scary part, you know, like, in the next little while, are we going to hit a phase where customers are just going to be like, they're going to settle. Settle on. On mediocre for a little while?

[Sam]

Yeah, yeah. I. I don't know. I think it's funny. I think it's. It's the irony of that statement, what you just said. Somebody prints out something from Mid Journey or whatever and takes it to fucking Lincoln. You got to be kidding me.

[Moss]

Yeah.

[Sam]

Really? Why would you take it to Lincoln? Why wouldn't it somewhere else and pay a fraction of the price to do, you know what I'm saying? Worst case, Ontario. That's.

[Moss]

That's kind of disrespect to Dan or Lincoln, of course.

[Sam]

Oh, no, no, you just go. What you would do with Lincoln is you go straight to him and you say, I am in your hands. I trust you completely. Because you go.

[Moss]

You do it because he's the expert. Exactly, exactly. I mean, the reality is, if people are just going to use you, you know, Lincoln's got a brand, you know, and there's a lot of reasons why people would use Lincoln.

[Sam]

Yes.

[Moss]

Mainly because it's Lincoln.

[Sam]

Yeah.

[Moss]

Right. Same with Draplin. Same with James Bernard. Right. Like, when you're dealing with these people, you're dealing with experts and, you know, you're getting something. But if we don't have that, that. That star glamour, if we don't have that personal brand, that reputation.

[Sam]

Yeah.

[Moss]

And all we're doing is just delivering something or executing or handing that over.

[Sam]

Yeah.

[Moss]

Well, then why are customers gonna pay you instead of Mid Journey?

[Sam]

Exactly.

[Moss]

They'll just go into Mid Journey. Right. Like, why would they pay you?

[Sam]

Yeah.

[Moss]

If that's all you're doing, Creative.

[Sam]

Yeah.

[Moss]

Right. And so this is kind of where, you know, like, where that old topic where the topic was of our episode about the creative divide. Right. Because the thing is, is, you know, we aren't losing to AI because of just quality. Right, Right. We're losing to AI because we're focusing on the wrong kind of deliverable. Right, right. There was a point where, you know, being a creator, you know, was. Was only for a select few. Right. And now AI has made that for many.

[Sam]

Yes.

[Moss]

Not a select few.

[Sam]

Yeah.

[Moss]

Now you don't need to know the Creative Suite and this. And I get it, you know, it might not be as tailored or as perfect or as finite. As what we're able to do yet.

[Sam]

Yeah.

[Moss]

Okay. But the reality is now customers have this good enough mentality. Okay. And some. And I have a feeling that it's going to make customers feel a little bit more empowered.

[Sam]

Yes.

[Moss]

And they're going to feel a little bit more in charge and they're going to want to, you know, feedback a bit more.

[Sam]

Yeah.

[Moss]

So.

[Sam]

So, but, and, and to. With that guy with Lincoln too. Right. He. I think he was all proud of. Proudest punch that he came up with this idea so he could sell it to Dan. You know what I'm saying? So there is that. 50% is like, you have that. Wow. I created this. Well, you really don't have the skill set to do something to. To work that tool perfectly.

[Moss]

False sense of. Of capability.

[Sam]

That's exactly. Of ability. Exactly right. You think it's the tits, but no, it's not.

[Moss]

It's really not. Yeah, you're absolutely, absolutely right. So, again, I can mimic. It can definitely mimic creativity. Okay. But what it can't mimic is the thinking. You know, the strategy, the thought behind that. And that's what that episode hinged on so much yet. Well, to a point that I think it involves a very different skill set that, you know, AI doesn't have yet. Because AI still relies on a prompt.

[Sam]

Yes.

[Moss]

It still relies on a human component. Right.

[Sam]

Yeah.

[Moss]

So. So this is where it's like, you know, like, it can follow instructions. AI can follow instructions really well, beautifully. Okay, Right. But it can't think for itself. No. Okay. So you do have to prompt it. Yeah. But if all you're doing is following instructions from a customer, well, then they're going to go to AI and not you. Right?

[Sam]

Yeah.

[Moss]

So. So this whole idea, this episode we're going to do is we're going to try to explore over the course of a couple episodes, this whole, you know, the future designer. You know what? The future. Becoming the future designer with AI. Okay. Because again, these are all really important steps that I know juniors, like I said, a lot of what a junior designer does is already capable in AI and it would be hard to come out into the space right now and not kind of have a head start. So I kind of think what we want to do is maybe springboard this a little bit, because it doesn't seem like schools teaching the full picture. School seems to be definitely teaching, you know, quality execution, you know, even. Even design principles. But there's so much more to being, you know, a designer than just this. And I think that's. That's what we want to explore over the next couple episodes. And now a word from our sponsor.

[Sean]

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[Moss]

First step in making yourself the designer of the future. Okay. And this whole episode is going to be about asking better question.

[Sam]

Yeah.

[Moss]

Okay. And this is ridiculous because you're like, well, what the hell does that have to do with design? But it has everything to do with design. Right? Like the first move on every single project, even if it's a logo. Okay. Is you want to ask what is the business problem we're solving with this?

[Sam]

Yeah.

[Moss]

Okay. Because I mean, this is oftentimes it's, it's so easy to get caught up and inspired on something creative and you just want to jump into that. Okay. I mean, that's, that's the fun part of this.

[Sam]

Exactly.

[Moss]

It's, it's the artistic part that we all love. Right. But the thing is we have to resist and hold back. Right. Because doctors don't, don't automatically write a prescription based on, you know, what, what you look like or what you tell them. You know, like, doc, I got a pain in my neck. Oh my God, I got a med for that.

[Sam]

You need Valtrex or something like that? No, I Do not.

[Moss]

Right. It's true. They, they diagnose, they ask you a million questions. It may not seem like it because they're so good and they're casually. They're asking you all these weird questions that are confus. You.

[Sam]

Yeah.

[Moss]

But the reality is, you know, they're asking you about, well, what happened? How did you feel yesterday? When did this start? What does it look like? What happens when you scratch your knee and your head shakes? Like, that's never really happened to me. But like, you know. I know, right? Yeah, yeah, really, you know, but they're asking this. Or lawyers.

[Sam]

Right.

[Moss]

A lawyer wouldn't, you know, automatically going into a case without doing the research in behind it. Right. They're not asking the right questions. Okay.

[Sam]

Yeah.

[Moss]

Designers all the time will just immediately go online once they get a project. Right. And just go get inspiration and start designing. Right. Which, which is really, really, really backwards. It's the wrong way to do this because in fact, you know, the smart designers, which I read in those comments, all realize that, you know, the problem solving component is what comes with experience.

[Sam]

Yes.

[Moss]

With designers. And that's what pays the bill. That's where the money is.

[Sam]

Exactly.

[Moss]

It is in replicating, you know, replicating designs. You know, create, recreating outputs. Right. Creating five different logo concepts. It's the whole thought process of trying to find that problem. Right. And trying to solve that problem. So this way when you're asking better questions. Okay. To the customer. Right. You can start, you know, uncovering things like the real goals behind, you know, what they're trying to achieve. Right. Like what, what really is going on here. Right. You know, we want to find out what the actual pain points the business is, is, is it is having. And oftentimes don't even realize that they're having. Right, right. And then also through this, you know, through all these questions, you can find out what the expectations they have, you know, that, that, that, that what success looks like. Yeah, right. You know, customers will come to you with what they seem or what they see the problem is. But oftentimes they are so close to their business.

[Sam]

Yeah.

[Moss]

They're so close to day to day operations and this is just how they're doing it. That they have no. Fucking.

[Sam]

Exactly. Yes, yes. Think of how long it took Johnson and Johnson to figure out, you know, people can't read script anymore.

[Moss]

Yeah.

[Sam]

Like they would never, they would never get that. Right.

[Moss]

Yeah, yeah. You know, I still disagree with that.

[Sam]

I do. I do too. I do too. But however.

[Moss]

And apparently Eddie Bauer followed the Same thing.

[Sam]

And Eddie Bauer. The same thing. Yes, exactly.

[Moss]

Guys, I'll kill. Beautiful logos. I know. But, you know, the thing is, though, you know, when customer comes with you a problem, you know, because they're so close to the problem, you know, they don't even. I. It's like that example that I. That I used before about, you know, customer comes to you, and they're like, listen, Sean, I need you to build a bridge to my office.

[Sam]

Yep.

[Moss]

You know, on that little island over there. And, you know, the problem is, you know, you know, that bridge, I. I need it. But the water, it's really rough water, and there's sharks in there, and there's alligators and crocodiles. I don't know which one lives one there. And, you know, rough waters, and it's rocky, so. And so you're like, okay, thanks, customer. So that's.

[Sam]

They told me the problem.

[Moss]

Start building a bridge, and. And. And then we start going and figuring out the bridge and this, and that takes too long. So, you know, nobody ever stops to ask them, hey, why do you need that?

[Sam]

Is a bridge the right idea?

[Moss]

Well, you know, and then. And then they're like, well, you know, every day I need to send a message from my island over here to the mainland. Yeah, right.

[Sam]

Yeah.

[Moss]

And it's like, well, if you have to do that, why the are we even doing a bridge? That's your idea. And it's a stupid one.

[Sam]

It's a dumb one.

[Moss]

Why don't we do a catapult? Why don't we do pigeons that fly over there? Or, hey, so many got this thing called the Internet, you know what I mean, where we can just send a message. Like, if you have to rely on the customer telling you what the problem is. Right. Chances are, nine times out of 10, they're clueless. And it's not because they're wrong. It's just too close to it. Too close to it. So once you're able to start asking the right kind of questions, you kind of move away from being, you know, like a line item, a vendor. Yeah, right.

[Sam]

Yeah.

[Moss]

And you start becoming a partner in people's businesses because now you're helping them solve real business problems. Right? You're. You're. All of a sudden, you're not replaceable. You become a solution to that company. You know, the more problems you solve, you become an invaluable solution. And, I mean, you guys might think it's kind of ridiculous because you're like, you know, you. It's just logos, right? But even you Know, logos solve problems. Once you start asking all these questions, okay, AI is not your replacement. AI becomes your bitch, and you end up using AI to help you solve all these problems.

[Sam]

Yeah.

[Moss]

Nice.

[Sam]

Yes, that's very true. And I find that with logos, AI, it does the worst at those.

[Moss]

Yeah.

[Sam]

You know what I mean?

[Moss]

But I've. I've seen some great.

[Sam]

Oh, have you? Okay.

[Moss]

I do. I've had some great stuff. Oh, no, no. I'm. I'm not even worried about it getting there. That's why I kind of chuckle when I see those videos, because I'm like, you guys obviously a. Aren't using the right AR software, and obviously you don't know enough about it to use using shady prompts.

[Sam]

Yeah.

[Moss]

Because it's totally doing it. But that doesn't mean that, you know. Well, you know, creating a logo. Logo isn't solving a business problem because creating a logo is a total business problem. Okay. It just depends on how you approach this.

[Sam]

Right.

[Moss]

Okay. Like real business problems that a logo or a rebrand can solve. Okay. So, you know, maybe the brand looks outdated.

[Sam]

Yes.

[Moss]

Okay. Yeah, that's a real. And. And because it's outdated, it turns off younger consumers. Younger. Younger audience.

[Sam]

Yes.

[Moss]

Right. So brand. Brand overhaul can all of a sudden open up this to a whole new market and give it a more youthful vibe. Get them a whole new market. Right. Maybe the company's expanding into new markets, and that's a business problem, because the old logo or the old brand, you know, it. It doesn't suit the two medical. And the new market is sports or something. Right. I had analogy, but, you know, or, you know, maybe the competition is stealing, you know, your clout or the company's, you know, attention because they did something new and it's hot. And that's problem.

[Sam]

Yeah.

[Moss]

And maybe a new refresh logo can actually bring attention back to us. Okay.

[Sam]

Yeah.

[Moss]

Maybe they merged with another company.

[Sam]

Oh, yeah.

[Moss]

Okay. That's legit. Right? Or better yet, maybe, you know, nobody remembers them because their logo is so bad. Right. And, you know, you need something that's like awareness that actually gets people going.

[Sam]

Yeah.

[Moss]

You know, just, just, just a logo solves so many business problems. Right. But the thing is, all you got to do is ask. You're not there to make a prettier logo. Right. You're there to solve a business pain. Right. You know, and again, questions for this kind of stuff.

[Sam]

Okay.

[Moss]

To solve these business pains. Right? So, you know, number one, the easiest question is just start by asking them why they came to you Right. You know, why, why are we here? Why do you feel unique? Ask them questions like, what's not working right now? Okay. What do you like about your brand? What do you not like about your brand? What are the challenges you've had in the past with your brand? You know, what do your customers think about your brand, your logo? Right. You know, who's the market you're trying to reach? And you know, what, what have they, you know, what are they used to, what, what are they looking for and stuff. Right? There's a lot of questions that, and this is just high level questions that you could be poking and prodding. Right. You know, what's changed in the business, what's changed in your industry over the past, you know, five years that now makes you feel you need a new logo?

[Sam]

Right.

[Moss]

These are all really important questions that it you need to be asking and you need to be drilling them on it. And not only that, you need to be challenging them on their response.

[Sam]

Yeah.

[Moss]

Because oftentimes they could be like, oh, well, my logo's fine.

[Sam]

Yeah, it's great.

[Moss]

There's nothing wrong with it. Everybody loves our logo. It's just time for a new logo.

[Sam]

A lot of gradient in there and a drop shadow. No, it's not fun.

[Moss]

Yeah, see, but you know, like that, it's those kind of questions that get you you insights that actually reveal where the business pain points are that you want to address moving forward. Right? So again, the experienced designers that we've talked to and that I read on that list, they got this, they knew this and they're like, isn't that what design isn't? And yeah, you are fucking absolutely right.

[Sam]

Exactly.

[Moss]

This is what designers do. We solve problems. Yes, right. But people just assume that a logo isn't going to solve a problem, right? Oh, social posts aren't going to solve a problem. Problem. Bullshit. Okay, taking this to air. I got a list here. You know, social posts. Okay. What are the problems that social posts might be able to solve? Right? Well, sales are down on a specific problem. Okay. So again, you want to create urgency and attention on these new products that you have, right? A new service launched that you need to get out in the message out, but nobody knows about it. Well, guess what? The business problem is that. So you want to drive awareness to this, okay? You need foot traffic because foot traffic's dropped because of construction or this or that or time of year, right? So you need to start designing things with bigger, bolder CTAs, maybe directional signs letting people know that you're still open even though shit's down. Right, Right. Or, you know, brand is inconsistent. Okay. This was a huge thing that we dealt with at Zed Factor so much that the brand is inconsistent across all their social posts and their website and this and that. Right. So again, the, the, that's a huge problem, big time. So, you know, the problem you're solving, the business pain point is you're going to go make cohesive. By making it cohesive, you are, you know, strengthening the overall brand, the awareness, the image. These are legitimate problems that graphic designers solve.

[Sam]

Yep.

[Moss]

It's just that graphic designers often dumb it down to a deliverable. And this is where we have to remember we're not delivering idea ads or pretty pictures or a pretty logo. We are delivering business pain point solutions. Solutions to business pain points. Websites were a huge one.

[Sam]

Big time, time, big time.

[Moss]

Right. This was a big part of our business. Right. So users are bouncing. Right. They got high bounce rate on their homepage. Right. Well, again, you know, the site has no clear journey. If you're digging in, once you start asking the right questions, you start doing the detail, you realize that, you know, the, the user experience is horrible. People are bouncing all over the place. That's why bounce rates are high. They leave because they don't know what the next step is. Right, Right. Or maybe because it's not a mobile friendly website. Okay. You got high bounce rates, you know, from mobile devices because again, it's not responsive. Or maybe it is responsive, but the phone number is next to impossible to find or the contact information. Right. Yeah. Big part of what we did is the messaging that our customers had was way too technical. So we made it more human. That was a business problem we solved. We made their whole brand look more human. Right. You know, they looked like they were local shops. That's a problem. Because they wanted a global market. So then we made their brands look global online. So again, these are all legitimate business pain points that designers solve. We just have to change how we go about things. We have to reframe, you know, our mindset in this set. It doesn't mean we're not designers anymore.

[Sam]

No, no.

[Moss]

If anything, it accentuates being a designer. Because being a designer means we solve problems with intent.

[Sam]

Yeah.

[Moss]

Okay. What we do is intentional window. So AI will replace the stuff. The low hanging, you know, easy to do. Just the creative gone. That's fine, right?

[Sam]

Yep.

[Moss]

But that's not what designers do. That's, that's just the outcome. People who are just. And again, let it replace the Fibers let it replace, you know, the, the generators that already exist on there and the Canva generators go to it. Right. Our strength, you know, and the strength of future designers isn't just hinged on the execution part. It's hinged on the thinking behind the execution. Right. Because that's something that AI can't really get to. Okay. Without as a tool. It can definitely help, but you have to input the right questions.

[Sam]

You. Yeah, you actually have to have that mindset, that solution kind of working through it in order to do the correct prompts.

[Moss]

And let's face it, customers don't have that.

[Sam]

They don't have that because, you know, they're too close to it. Again, you need a bridge. Yeah, yeah, exactly. Yeah.

[Moss]

When you know, in fact, you don't need that, you don't need a bridge. And so that's where. That's where it's like you can't rely. So although technically AI can be an awesome tool for us in this process, AI on its own can't solve this because it requires somebody else to ask the right questions to in, you know, dig deep to make the connections. Right. And granted, if you could input all of that into AI, I'm sure it could come up with some pretty decent solutions. Okay. But the thing is, who's going to input that? Customer's not going to realize what to ask what. And again, it's not set up yet. So. So this is where you, the designer of the future, still has a huge future ahead of us. Right. Doesn't mean that we can't do the digital part. The digital part or the creative part might still happen. It's just now we might have AI aided tools like we already do. Illustrator's got a lot of AI components. Photoshop, if you use Infinity or Canva. Shit, you know, they all have AI components to them too.

[Sam]

Yeah.

[Moss]

So everybody's becoming more comfortable with using AI, but AI is only out to replace the people who are just focused on that, just that deliverable. And that's not where we are.

[Sam]

Yeah.

[Moss]

So once you discover that business problem. Right. It changes your mindset completely and it should change the way you talk about your deliverables too. Right. So instead of saying, yeah, I'm going to give you three logo options. Right. And you can just choose or let me know which one you like the best. Right. You say things like, we build brand identity, we'll build brand. That makes your audience means feel something and makes your competitors sweat.

[Sam]

Yes.

[Moss]

You know, so you give them the solution. Not. Here's the Actual logo. Right. Instead of saying, I'll design a flyer for your event, you'll be like, man, I'm going to create a scroll stopping, you know, social post that's going to grab people's attention and get signups onto your website. Because that's the problem you're solving. You're, you're almost reframing, you know, how you're going to be selling, how you're going to be thinking. You're not thinking on just the deliverable, you're thinking about the pain point that you solve.

[Sam]

Right.

[Moss]

So that's the biggest thing. Right. Because again, honestly, that's what customers pay designers for.

[Sam]

Yes.

[Moss]

Okay.

[Sam]

Yeah.

[Moss]

This way, you know, once you got that, that gap, that's a gap that AI can't close yet.

[Sam]

Not yet.

[Moss]

Because they need a. I will need us to use it. That's why it's going to be a perfect tool for us.

[Sam]

Exactly, exactly. You know what, it's funny because everything like this, we talk about this, it seems like we're coming back to Mad men in the 60s. Do you know what I mean? Like, remember the pitch that they used to do and that.

[Moss]

Love the pitch.

[Sam]

Yeah. It was great. And this is kind of. They were selling the solution to whatever their clients problems were.

[Moss]

Yep. Right, Absolutely.

[Sam]

Yeah. Because that's what I know it's a fictional show, but still, I mean, the principle.

[Moss]

Exactly.

[Sam]

That the principle was there and I.

[Moss]

Mean, look at how long that's been that, that shows, you know, based on.

[Sam]

The 60s, the 60s, it's like 50 years ago.

[Moss]

Right. Like the golden era.

[Sam]

70.

[Moss]

70 years ago. The golden era of advertising. But it's proof that, I mean people that they're not just being sold on an image, they're being sold on something much deeper.

[Sam]

Yeah.

[Moss]

Okay. You know, something internally for them, you know, for businesses, it's their problems that you're solving. Right. So, you know, and again, it's, it's, there's so much more to it than just making something look good.

[Sam]

Exactly.

[Moss]

And this is what we have to, we have to start thinking like strategists. We have to start asking better questions, you know, solving bigger problems. Because honestly that's, that's what customers rely on designers for. Okay. A creative mind solves real business pain. Okay. That is something that AI can't replace. Okay.

[Sam]

Absolutely.

[Moss]

It'll be our tool and customers will have no idea how to use it because they're not going to know what to ask for.

[Sam]

Exactly.

[Moss]

So this is definitely step one of what the future designer will look like, and yeah, I get it. Just so you guys don't go online, be like, we've been doing this all along. I get it. Okay. A lot of us have been doing this.

[Sam]

Yes.

[Moss]

But people don't talk about this. People aren't going out there and being like, this is our fucking role. Our role isn't just to make things look good, okay. It's to legitimately solve businesses problems. And logos, you know, do solve business problems. Websites solve business problems. You know, social media solves business problems. It's our job to figure out, out what that problem is and deliver the solution for that. That is what the role of the designer of the feature is. 100%.

[Sam]

Yes. I like it. I like it. Not as, not really different from what we're doing now, but we just have more tools at our advantage. Another tool.

[Moss]

It's not different than what we're doing at all.

[Sam]

Yeah.

[Moss]

And, and, and this is how I've been operating our company.

[Sam]

Yeah.

[Moss]

For the past 25 years. I go in there, I have those meetings, I ask a million questions, I joke with the customers. I spend a whole hour just asking questions. When I go to brand new companies that, you know, we've never met before, you know, it's kind of like your first meeting, right?

[Sam]

First date.

[Moss]

Yeah, first date. I'm in there over an hour, hour and a half just asking questions to the point and they call me like, wow, you ask a lot of questions. And it's. Because by the time we're done, I already know what the problem is. And I already use that in my closing pitch of that day. If you do what my success rate is for closing closing dates on that first date. So freaking high. Because again, I use. I didn't just go in and brag about us.

[Sam]

Yeah.

[Moss]

I think, well, we've been in business for this long and we've been doing this and we work with these companies that.

[Sam]

Yeah. Or let them talk. Yeah.

[Moss]

Or let.

[Sam]

No, I don't let them talk at all. Exactly.

[Moss]

I, I let them introduce their company and then I'm.

[Sam]

Right away.

[Moss]

What's the problem?

[Sam]

Yeah.

[Moss]

What's your competition doing?

[Sam]

Yeah.

[Moss]

Where are you falling behind? Why do you think you're falling behind? What about your product? What about your margins? And again, the more you have these questions lined up and the more, the more you just, you just, you're banging them out and you're asking really smart strategic questions. If I. Customers appreciate that because that means, that means they know that you're in the.

[Sam]

You're there. Yeah. Yeah. You're you're into it. Yeah, exactly.

[Moss]

Yeah.

[Sam]

Yeah, that's what they kind of want. If you go in there and you're just like, yeah, I know what to do. Do, you know, without asking any questions.

[Moss]

Yeah.

[Sam]

They're not going to have confidence in you at all.

[Moss]

At all, dude. Honestly, you know, because we're focusing on this, and our agency focuses so much on this side of things. AI I'm looking forward to integrating more AI into our process.

[Sam]

Right on.

[Moss]

Absolutely.

[Sam]

Yes.

[Moss]

So, guys, stick around because we're going to show, you know, a couple other episodes after this, and we're going to talk a little bit deeper about a few other items that we need, you know, in order to round out this future Designer episode. And I get it. A lot of you are already doing it, but a lot of you. You have no idea what we're talking about. And this is just, you know, stuff that you can't learn that. That you learn over, you know, years and years of trial and error and realizing, you know, what actually sells. This isn't the kind of stuff that people talk about because it's often not the sexiest stuff that people talk about. Right. People want to hear, like, logo design, closing sales, and when you're doing this. But the reality is, this is where the money is, and this is the game changer for designers. Okay. This is just us. That next step up.

[Sam]

Yeah.

[Moss]

For designers.

[Sam]

And arguably. I know. I know for a fact that you agree with this, but problem solving is the best. Is kind of one of the best, better parts of what we do. Right.

[Moss]

The most exciting part.

[Sam]

Yeah, I was just gonna say. I. I kind of knew you were gonna say that, but yeah. Yes, it is. It's kind of nice to have. Okay, this is what I'm gonna have to figure out here. And. And it's that rut. Exactly.

[Moss]

I totally love that.

[Sam]

Not knowing what the hell's going on and then you kind of uncover you're like, that's peeling back an onion, man.

[Moss]

That's awesome.

[Sam]

Yes.

[Moss]

Cool.

[Sam]

It's good. It's good.

[Moss]

All right, dude.

[Sam]

Yeah.

[Moss]

All right. Well, I feel good that we did this.

[Sam]

Yes.

[Moss]

All right. And let's keep our fingers crossed that we can get a couple more episodes of the same topic and. And let everybody know that AI is not here to replace us.

[Sam]

That's right.

[Moss]

We're going to teach you guys how to make AI your.

[Sam]

Yeah.

[Moss]

Right. My name is Moss.

[Sam]

My name is Sean. Stay creative and stay angry.

[Moss]

And LA Sam.