Creative Strategy and the Business of Design Paperback – June 14, 2016

This book is a great resource for all creatives looking to add more value to their work and have a deeper understanding of the necessary process behind design execution. It has approachable, actionable steps that you can begin implementing immediately. This book will help you become a more thoughtful designer and increase your understanding of the strategy behind any design brief or project.On a personal level, I always felt like I was missing a piece of the puzzle when working on creative client projects. I knew there was a more strategic way of beginning new design projects, but wasn't quite sure how to get there consistently. This book helped me solidify my project process, understand the language around business and strategy, know the right questions to ask when beginning any design project and understand how to organize incoming information to better inform my design goals.I was able to start putting Douglas's concepts into practice right away and have already seen a shift in the way I structure and execute new projects.Thank you Douglas!

I only wish I came across Creative Strategy and the Business of Design and Douglas Davis’s important work sooner. His point of view and what CSBD teaches not only educates, but elevates our design community. I’d first come across Douglas Davis on The Futur podcast, and knew right away I had to pick up this book--I was not disappointed. Since then, I’ve not only been able to transform my perspective of design, but also my approach to creativity and design as well. By coincidence, I’d recently been able to connect with Douglas through his work with AIGA, and I am now growing my side hustle in design to include branding and brand strategy.Having worked as an in-house graphic designer over two years, I heard these four words all too many times: “Just Make It Pretty”. Although I knew my team and I had the same goals for our clients and our company--the concepts, language and jargon of business always intimidated me. To boot, there was always a lack of understanding on both sides of our team. Yet over time, I’d always wonder why I was not part of any strategy meetings, or only get pulled in at the end of them--to take orders and push pixels.CBSD is an essential resource for creatives, creative entrepreneurs, and creative teams, teaching you the language, framework, and tools you’ll need for your business as well as devising and implementing successful strategies and strategic thinking. Davis’s work is thorough and in-depth, yet his approach and writing style is down-to-earth. This book is packed with insights, references, resources, examples, personal anecdotes--including gems from Davis’s mentors, peers, and students. Or you can train in slaying your creative career dragons by taking on and tackling the number of exercises and projects to reinforce the powerful framework of creative strategy.

This was part of an idea to start a Web/digital product small business and its a great read

I’ve worked in advertising for over 15 years and was nodding my head to a lot of what Douglas outlines in this book. The distinction he makes between a creative idea and a creative business solution was spot on, as well as the subjective power playing that goes on with creatives in many agencies (all agencies I’ve worked at, to varying degrees). He offers sound advice for navigating these scenarios and making sure to balance art (the personal part) with the business (the part you are in service of, like it or not) via sound strategies and articulation of those strategies in the moments that matter.

This book is a fantastic resource for any creative or designer aiming to break through and level up as a creative professional. In this book Davis recounts his experience as a junior level designer and when he began to understand that to have a seat at the table where important decisions are made- we as creatives need to learn the language of business and speak directly to the objectives of stakeholders and clients.Davis lays it all out in easy to digest, insightful, and engaging storytelling paired with a tactical approaches creatives can easily reference and put into practice. The Creative Strategy Framework devised by Davis alone is worth the price of admission and has changed the way I personally approach any creative brief. Since reading this book and understanding the concepts I’ve gone from being a set of hands merely existing to execute someone else’s vision, to playing a strategic creative role as a senior level creative. Get this book, put the learning to practice, elevate your status.

I've been to art school and I earned my Masters of Fine Arts in Luxury Fashion Marketing and Management, and I can honestly say that reading this book was like reading 50 course books in one. The principals on strategy emulated those of the Blue Ocean Strategy, and the numerous insights collected from actual professionals in the field were not only beneficial, but advantageous for any creative wishing to break out of the "order taker" role. If you need direction in your practice, then you need this book. It's well written, intriguing, beautifully designed (as a graphic designer, I also geeked out on that aesthetic), and streamlined. The practical information is specific enough to apply (thereby increasing your trade skills), yet there is enough philosophy behind the teachings to extend your knowledge with other sources (which Douglas Davis also provides, to boot). Like I said: It's the next best thing to reading 50 books in one. Savor every word of it.