Do You Need a Designer or a Stylist?
September 22, 2023 // 6 minute read
There’s no question that social media has had a profound impact on the way we receive and process information. Attention spans have gotten shorter. Image proportions have gotten…taller. And for a lot of visuals, style has been winning the battle over substance.
So why is this happening?
I would argue there are three reasons:
The constant appetite for fresh content
The blanding of style for online consumption
The payoff needing to be worth the effort
Let’s unpack each of these to understand how we got to now.
First, the fact that I mention the constant appetite for fresh content shouldn’t surprise you. After all, you’re reading this on a screen right now. You may have found this article by following a link in your social media feed.
But it’s not just countless readers wanting something new that’s the problem. It’s also search algorithms crawling the globe’s content for the latest and greatest (and maybe the most relevant). It’s your queue delivering the next fun video so you’ll watch another preroll ad.
The need to toss another log on the fire means there’s no time to sharpen the ax or consider the tree. Speed, formula and consistency are king: What have you done for me lately?
This is the domain of the stylist. A stylist is someone who, in this case, uses design tools to smooth the rough edges. There’s no underlying concept. They set the scene to elicit a certain feeling, providing a stage for your ideas.
Second, when I say “blanding,” even if you can’t articulate it verbally, you know it when you encounter it visually.
Sigh…So simple. So non-offensive. So boring. Why is this a thing? You can place the blame at the feet of algorithms yet again. If you’re a fast-follower company wanting to slide into search results, make your stuff look like the competition.
But algorithms can’t take all the blame. An equal partner is the cultural moment we find ourselves in, one where marketing messages can unknowingly offend someone. To paraphrase Oscar Wilde, while the only thing worse than being talked about is not being talked about, a lot of companies are incredibly risk-averse when it comes to being talked about, especially when they can’t control it. Blanding results in a low bar that’s approachable, once again asking the viewer to bring their own idea to the party to find meaning.
Sanitized Dada. The stylist strikes again.
And last, but by no means least, the payoff needs to be worth the effort. Put another way: What’s your big idea?
This is a more sizable lift for a few reasons:
You need a great concept. Something that’s going to make someone stop, think and act.
The visual needs to be compelling and work in service of the aforementioned great idea.
You have to deliver something that’s ownable for you and valuable for your audience.
Here’s where the rubber really meets the road, and this maxim is true for visual content both online and off. The tension comes because the fresh content and blanding are an assembly line process, not a bespoke solution. This is an approach that requires a greater investment in terms of craft (to create something unique) and cognition (asking the viewer to connect some dots). It’s an additive process, not a subtractive one.
Is this better? Should you care?
That all depends upon your goals. Once people encounter your ad, post or whatever, think about what you’re asking them to do and why. What story are you telling? How much time are you asking for? What vibe are you creating? What action are you asking them to take?
If everyone is zigging, it may be time to zag.
Additional Resources:
How Much Data and Content is Created Every Day? (Siteefy)
Johnson & Johnson unveils new logo and visual identity (Creative Review)
Patagonia’s “Don’t Buy This Jacket” campaign (Kenji Explains / Medium)
Thoughts? Questions? Let me know.
Elliot Strunk, an award-winning designer with over 25 years of experience, is the Creative Director of Studio H. You can learn more about him here.