Design Dialogues is a collaborative effort between members of our team to spark conversations around topics that concern and interest us as creative professionals. Each month, two of us will sit down and talk about design, creativity and our day-to-day life at the studio.

A concept ignites the beginning of any project that comes around the studio. It is the heart and soul of our design perspective, and without one our approach would feel empty and vane, even if the execution is flawless. But what makes a concept strong? What is the key to successfully communicate a client’s and our own vision as designers? Studio designer Adelchi García and creative leader Diego Olguín sat down to discuss this very important topic that sets the tone to the entire process of a branding project and how it is crucial to be open and listen to all parts involved in it.

First, we need to understand that more often than not, a client will come with a very clear idea in their heads: what they like and don’t, what they want to communicate and how they want to do so. With that in mind, a concept usually starts from there: the client’s needs. Our job as creative professionals is to receive this information and translate it into foundations to build from. Then comes our take on the project, how we interpret the client’s input and what we want to achieve with that particular project. Finally, there should be a marriage between these two perspectives; a perfect bond between the client’s request and the creative’s vision. From that marriage, a strong concept is born.

The designer then comes in, a key player that will serve as a translator for the ideas presented and turn them into a tangible reality. If the concept is solid and well communicated, the designer will be able to build a strong, well-structured execution that will communicate the intended information. Sometimes a translation is so good that it speaks for itself, and that is what we aim for at tbpmx.

We often come across projects with disruptive/new business models, and their audiences need to be educated about them. This is a particularly tricky part when coming up with a concept, for you need to communicate this very technical axis in an interesting, eye-catching way. That is when we head back to the concept and integrate the same narrative so the final audience can understand, connect and empathize with these new models — which is the ultimate goal.

How a brand connects with the audience is the ultimate test. After all the hard work, planning and execution, a project is released to the world: it is no longer protected by the walls of a studio. When a project is free from our “protection” it goes out to be seen, heard or experienced, and if we’re lucky the interaction with the people that experience our brand will have a positive response to it.

We romantically see our branding projects as a constellation with three main stars: designer, client and the audience; the concept then translates into the almost imperceptible lines that connect the stars. These lines ultimately give sense to the end product, resulting in a cohesive translation that reflects the intention of all parts involved in the project.