Scroll through LinkedIn, and it’s all about wins, growth charts, and scaling. And sure, success is important. But in the kind of work we do – design, branding, products – the story’s a bit more complicated.
We used to talk a lot about success, too. We’d frame everything around results.
We wanted to prove our value with data, because that’s what everyone expected – design that pays off. But that’s not the full picture. It never was.
If you’ve ever read Dan Ariely or dug into behavioral economics, you know people aren’t logical. And not everything that matters can be tracked in a spreadsheet. Branding and design especially sit in that space. They’re emotional. They’re personal.
So, saying you should only invest in design for growth or pure success? That’s BS. Most studios out there are focused on one thing: results. And they’ll do anything to get there – even if it means lowering the bar visually, simplifying the message to death, or using design tricks that “convert” but feel cheap. You’ve seen those landing pages. Long copy. Times New Roman. Terrible design. But hey – it works, right?
But here’s the question nobody asks: Does it make you happy?
It might convert. It might even make you money. But does it bring you any joy? Are you proud of it? Or are you embarrassed when someone asks what you do, and you don’t really want to show your site? See, that’s the thing. You can have success – and still feel nothing. We believe that great design should perform and feel right. It should feel like you. Not just the stripped-down, “optimized” version of you. But the one that’s proud to own the company, proud to lead it, proud to show it off.Because here’s what we’ve seen again and again – when you love how your brand looks and feels, when the design we craft together makes you light up? That energy flows straight into your customers. It’s contagious. They feel it too.
Design is more than data. It’s more than usability. It’s a feeling. A sense of “this is right.” That unexplainable moment – like sitting in your new car for the first time. The smell. The touch. The quiet excitement of something made just for you.
That’s what we aim for.
Not just “this performs well.” But “this makes me smile. ”Not just “our numbers are up.” But “this feels better than I ever imagined. ”Not just “we launched.” But “I can’t believe this is mine. ”That’s the missing piece. That’s the joy.
And sure, ask our clients – we're still data-geeks. We study the target group. We do the strategy, the research, the logic. But what we’re really after is something deeper.
Even a successful design can check all the boxes, and still feel off. Still feel like… something’s missing. Our job is to fill that gap. To craft something that not only performs, but makes you feel something. That’s the kind of success we care about.
That’s Joy Through Design.