We call our library
‘The Design Business Review’

It’s a library of articles about the business of design.

The articles are based on real questions from real design businesses — pricing, positioning, client management, mental wellbeing, and the research we've done into what actually works. Many originated from knowledge earned from 30 years running a studio, and updated with research and insights from mentoring sessions with Australian designers.

New articles land every Wednesday morning AEST, straight to your inbox.
Got a topic you’re interested in but can’t find? Let us know… we might be able to help.

burn out, designers burn out, profitability, productivity for designers, productivity for creatives, using timesheets, profitability for designers, profitability for creatives, benchmarks for creatives Greg Branson burn out, designers burn out, profitability, productivity for designers, productivity for creatives, using timesheets, profitability for designers, profitability for creatives, benchmarks for creatives Greg Branson

Busy? Profitable? Burnt out?

When we ask creative agency owners how things are going we often hear the same answer. “We’re busy, not profitable enough and feeling burnt out”

Busy and profitable don’t mean your business is healthy.

In our work we see agencies looking at financial performance and team wellbeing as two completely separate issues.

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managing a design studio, managing a creative studio, managing an agency, benchmarks for creatives, benchmarks for design studios, benchmarks for agencies, profitability for designers, profitability for creatives, business of design Greg Branson managing a design studio, managing a creative studio, managing an agency, benchmarks for creatives, benchmarks for design studios, benchmarks for agencies, profitability for designers, profitability for creatives, business of design Greg Branson

Busy may not = profitable

Busy and profitable are very different things. A busy diary can be one of the most dangerous indicators in a design business. Activity feels like progress but keeping an eye on some key metrics tells you whether progress is real. Here’s 2 key business metrics worth measuring – and what they look like for high-performing Australian design studios.

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