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It should come as no surprise that, as a design agency, we consider brand design to be one of the most effective investments in a company's success. We have always known intuitively that good branding has a major economic impact. And yet, even we sometimes struggle when we have to argue the economic value of our services. One thing is certain: intuition is unfortunately not a reliable argument in this context.

On the occasion of the tenth anniversary of our corporate design for ELEMENTS – a provider of hardware and software solutions for media workflows – we took the opportunity to look beyond our design horizons. How do number-driven management consultants actually view our discipline? How is our design teenager doing today? And what can be learned from the history of ELEMENTS about the value of strategically anchored brand design?

From website relaunch to brand work

In 2016, Heiner Lesaar, co-founder of ELEMENTS, contacted us with a desire for change. The official reason was the aging website. The company had a solid market presence, but felt it was time for the next step—and was ready to invest in it.

Our analysis quickly revealed that the website had communication weaknesses, but the real potential—and also the greater leverage—lay way deeper. When we asked the ten employees at the time what made ELEMENTS stand out, we got eight different answers. At that point, it became clear that we first had to lay the strategic groundwork before we could meaningfully discuss design.

What everyone agreed on was the vague assumption that, compared to the big players in the industry, there was “room for improvement” in terms of brand and design. As a designer, it's easy to come up with arguments as to why things work aesthetically – or why they don't. But we were dealing with entrepreneurs who wanted more than just a new coat of paint. They wanted impact – strategically, emotionally, and, of course, economically.

Evidence instead of gut feeling

Anyone who has ever dealt with designers may suspect that numbers are not necessarily our strong suit—especially when it comes to growth-related data or return on investment (ROI). So we approach it the way we handle all topics when we reach our limits: we find someone who knows better about it than us. Management consulting firm McKinsey took the lack of evidence regarding the economic evaluation of design as an opportunity to publish its own study aimed at closing this gap. The result was the publication “The Business Value of Design” (2018, Benedict Sheppard, Garen Kouyoumjian, Hugo Sarrazin & Fabricio Dore).

The study examined 300 publicly traded companies over a period of five years and evaluated them using the McKinsey Design Index. Four factors were central to this:

Analytical Leadership – Design is a top priority and is managed in a measurable way
User Experience – Design is considered holistically across all touchpoints
Cross-functional Talent – Design is not an island, but a team task
Continuous iteration – Design is tested, reviewed, and further developed

The core of the study is as clear as it is comprehensible: successful companies treat design not as an aesthetic gimmick, but as a strategic management tool. The figures in the study are clear: companies with particularly strong design expertise achieved 32 percentage points higher sales growth and 56 percentage points higher shareholder returns than their competitors. The decisive factor was not “beautiful design,” but how consistently it was implemented and lived.

Brand as a foundation

Back to ELEMENTS: The will to change was there—and it came from the top. But in the holistic user experience an inconsistent picture emerged. “We knew what we stood for, but we couldn't show it precisely – and certainly couldn't communicate it consistently,” recalls Lesaar. What we then developed together was not just a new design, but a strategic brand identity. A communicative foundation with a clear narrative that would henceforth serve as a reference point for everything: product design, website, trade fair appearances – and ultimately also business decisions. Heiner Lesaar emphasizes how important the moment of identity creation was for him. “Before, we were a loose bunch of tinkerers. It was as if you had provided us with the right jersey for our team. Suddenly, we knew who we were and which direction we had to run in.”

In an industry that defines itself primarily through technical performance data, we positioned the Düsseldorf-based company through intuitive usability and aesthetic excellence. Everything contributed to the shared promise: “Human-centered media storage.” The result was a consistent brand experience—not only visible, but holistically tangible both internally and externally.

When investments multiply

The new brand identity changed something for ELEMENTS. Inquiries became more precise, discussions at trade fairs more concrete, partnerships more strategic. Perceptions shifted. “We were seen differently. More confident. Clearer. Bigger – even though we weren't at that point.” Lesaar describes how the new brand identity opened doors to projects with major players in the industry: “Almost all of our target customers were big names. They are used to a professional appearance in terms of external presentation and naturally expect the same from their contractors. If you can't play at a certain level here, you'll forever remain the little guy – no matter how good your work is.” This is where the (design) compound interest effect is particularly evident: a strong brand attracts more suitable customers. More suitable customers enable better projects. Better projects strengthen reputation and market position.

Every investment pays off in the next one. Growth is not linear, but exponential – provided the brand is managed consistently. Of course, this only works in conjunction with strong products, entrepreneurial foresight, and operational excellence. Good design alone is not a viable business model. But strategically anchored design reinforces precisely these qualities – and makes them visible and tangible.

Structure creates sustainability

As it grew, ELEMENTS established its own design and communications department. Design became a structural component of the company – in line with the “cross-functional talent” concept of the McKinsey study. Our brand guidelines enabled the team to continue the brand independently and implement it consistently in everyday life.

Ten years later, the design system developed in 2016 is still in use. What seemed like a major investment at the time has been put into perspective over time. The company has grown from ten employees to many times that number, with branches in London and Los Angeles added to the Düsseldorf location. ELEMENTS' clients now include industry giants such as Apple, Disney, Netflix, National Geographic, Red Bull, and Tagesschau.

We continue to work together on specific projects today—because good design is not a finished product, but a process. Or, to use the logic of compound interest: if you stop investing, you interrupt the effect. “A brand is a promise that must be redeemed again and again,” says Lesaar. And perhaps that is precisely the crux of the matter: a strong brand not only changes how others see you. It also changes how you make decisions yourself.

Substance ensures returns

Brand design is not an aesthetic luxury – it is a strategic lever. The decisive factor in brand management is not whether something is “beautiful” – but whether design is anchored in the company, user-centered, implemented in an interdisciplinary manner, and continuously developed. Those who understand branding as a management task invest not in superficiality, but in substance. And substance generates returns – if you let it work for you in the long term.

For those who struggle with investment decisions, here's some good news to conclude: unlike the private pursuit of returns with as little risk as possible through diversification of different asset types, it pays to put all your eggs in one basket when it comes to branding – your brand equity will thank you for it.