Get more constructive design feedback from clients

When you’re creating a new brand, capturing a client’s design feedback is critical to the process. In most cases, clients will want to make changes or see additional concepts. Understanding your client’s needs and asking the right questions is a skill set you can actively develop. It’ll help you ensure you always get constructive feedback and in turn, improve your work.

Presentation is everything

The best way to set yourself up for success is to present your concepts in deliberately. Start and end your presentation with your strongest concepts. Provide mockups of signs, marketing collateral, or even swag. Showing the brand in context can really sell them on your vision.

Show them a variety of concepts to show a contrast of ideas. If you have concepts that follow a theme, group them together. Even breaking down a logo into important elements before revealing the entire concept can help explain its story.

The Netflix effect

Providing a variety of concepts is great, but showing too many can work against you. How many times have you opened Netflix and twenty minutes later, still haven’t picked a show?
Keep it minimalistic. Giving the client too many options makes the process overwhelming and difficult, especially when there are multiple decision-makers. Present only a handful of solid options and their decision process will be smoother.

Create a survey of ideas

A great way to gather feedback before you begin the design process is to put together a survey of logo examples.  Be sure to show them examples from their particular industry so they can relate to them.
If you’re working with an eye care company, examples of construction logos will be difficult for them to relate to. However, you should show them plenty of examples within the style they are looking for. Together, you can identify elements they like and don’t like within this set. This will give you a clear direction for where to start with your branding concepts.

Dig deeper for constructive feedback

Often clients have a difficult time expressing why they like or dislike a concept other than attributing it to their gut reaction. It’s your job to probe them with smart, direct questions. We call this precision questioning

You have to dig deep to get helpful feedback. Ask specific questions about your concepts. What don’t you like about this font? Is it too thick or too thin? Would you like to see more colour options? Asking deeper questions can also lead you to questions you may not have thought of.

Your main goal should always be to knock it out of the park for your client. However, more times than not, you’ll have multiple stages of revisions with your client. It’s up to you to gather as much constructive feedback as you can at each stage to help them arrive at the winner earlier.