a good half of the clients (and maybe more) bring JUST their personal perspective to the table. they no relevant data to support the marketing moves they are about to make. I say JUST because they will not be the consumers of what's being produced, pitched, etc. they're out of touch. they're opinion is not as valuable as those of the marketing professional who does this work day in and day out, has seen what works, can see what people are buying, etc.

clients often view the work as tastemaking. marketing is less about creating demand than it is about finding and following demand. publicity creates demand. you can put a twist on demand, but you can't really create it from scratch. you can't really will it into being. many believe that design is purely subjective, and think that you shop or buy design. i can go on and on about this, but minds shouldn't be for sale. they should be for hire, to work on behalf of an effort – ultimately to serve the consumer (and not the client or the marketing pro!)

let me pause to be clear, especially since i am using some provocative language. i care a ton about what i do, and i absolutely give my clients 100% of what i have. this is exactly why it has to hurt some times. otherwise, you are underserving the client and their audience. you are laying down to someone who doesn't know what they need, why they need it, how to do it, etc etc. you know what i'm saying here. every creative does.

there are some very savvy, smart clients who have done their home work. i'm not speaking to them here. i'm talking to the others, the majority who really don;t get what this is all about.

look at this from another angle. it's like they say in sales, if you don't close them then someone else will. that person may let the client down, not care as much as you, not have your talent, etc. you can't afford to let that client get less than they can. you would be slacking off, in a way, and doing them a disservice.

you need to fight some times and that means a little pain before it can all feel good. if it goes too easy, then it may not be the best work that's possible. they should have separation anxiety from preconceived notions. those thoughts don't typically lead to the winning solution. they should be forced to think about what might be successful despite it not being their idea. if they had the answers, they wouldn't need our ideas and talents.

i'll close by saying that, for me, feeling this way is not arrogance. it's believing that all of the time, effort, experience, trial and error, wins and losses, and talent you've cultivated for 10, 15, 25 years is exactly what the clients wants and needs. they wouldn't be seriously considering you or already working with you if they didn't. you give them less and you are essentially telling them they are not worth the best that you're capable of doing for them. i don't know too many clients who are willing to pay someone to give them a half, quarter or no effort. you do exactly what they ask you to do and you're almost giving them nothing.

However, if you're commenting on design then we have fundamental differences in our philosophy. The user of my design should never feel “a little bit of pain along the way.” That would be a failure on my part.

[Jeff]

This post was mentioned on Twitter by jboogie: New blog post: Elegant, efficient and sophisticated: my design philosophy (http://cli.gs/5VDRp) #ux…

lately, i'm making sure that people feel the power, speed and effectiveness of my mind in motion. i'm free with ideas and go big very quickly. you can be as polite as you'd like, but you also need to close. that means a little bit of pain along the way. people don't want to let go easily, or spend money, or trust you to drive the ship. we all need to do some amount of discovery, wrestling, proving worth, etc. sure, be as nice as you can in this process, but make certain you put in the real work and don't be afraid. we are always competing with the ever-formidable voice in his/her head that says “do nothing, wait on this, trust yourself, why should i listen to him/her?” you get my point here.

I also agree fully with obvious as a component of design. If I need to perform an action I shouldn't have to hunt for it. It should be obvious how to do something — even in a just-in-time context.

And finally, conversation (which should always be polite – my wife constantly reminds me is critical to the interaction. Tell your side of the story. Wait for user feedback. React. Tell the next piece. And do it in a polite and helpful manner. Love it.

Great approach.

[Jeff]

Like you, my design philosophy has changed a bit over the years, and the words are occasionally switched out for others. Currently, it looks like this:

Simple – create experiences that allow the user to complete a task and accomplish goals in the most straightforward way possible. This means having a deep understanding of who those users are, and having restraint in the face of growing scope.

Obvious – create interfaces and experiences that don't need explanation. Users should feel like the interface was created just for them, at the very moment they're in. Location of elements, labeling, smart flows and clever affordances all contribute to this obvious quality of interfaces.

Polite – an interaction is a conversation. As with a conversation in real-life, we should strive for respect in our interfaces. Feedback, clever error handling, anticipatory interfaces and smart copywriting are some elements involved in creating a polite experience.

Thanks for the post – great stuff!