"Part of the problem these days is there’s so much choice. At some point, someone just has to say: We’re going to do it like this because I want to do it this way. Because, if you don’t, you’re going to be churning out oatmeal. You look at some graphic design today, and you can tell that nobody is in charge."
This quote from designer James Victore struck a nerve with me. He's referring to what I call "design by committee" and it's getting pretty ridiculous. When I design material for any business or organization of more than one person, it seems that everyone HAS to have their say in the design. And what you end up with is a pile of mush -- something that's trying to please everyone and ends up pleasing no one.
There's nothing wrong with running things by people to make sure you have the information correct and complete, but really -- just because Bob in Accounting doesn't like blue we need to change the whole color palette? Has Bob sat in on any of my meetings with the communications team discussing target market strategy and "look and feel"? Most likely not.
Bob in Accounting probably really doesn't care what this marketing piece actually looks like. But, because he's been asked, he's going to give an opinion. He's only answering the question, "What do you think of our new marketing piece?" Instead, say, "Bob, could you read this over and make sure the content is readable and that we've covered everything?" That gives him clear expectations and lets him off the hook.
Leave the design decisions to the designer and the Communications/Marketing folks. It's our job, it's what we do.
