How can you use mood boards to improve graphic design research?

Mood boards are visual tools that help you collect, organize, and present your design inspiration. They can help you improve your graphic design research by clarifying your goals, communicating your ideas, and generating feedback. In this article, you will learn how to use mood boards effectively in different stages of your design process.

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1 What are mood boards?

A mood board is a collage of images, colors, fonts, textures, and other elements that represent the mood, style, and direction of your design project. It can be digital or physical, depending on your preference and purpose. A mood board is not a final design, but a way to explore and experiment with different concepts and themes.

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2 Why use mood boards?

Mood boards can help you improve your graphic design research in several ways. First, they can help you define your design problem and goals, by narrowing down your focus and scope. Second, they can help you communicate your design vision and strategy, by showing instead of telling. Third, they can help you generate feedback and collaboration, by inviting others to share their opinions and suggestions.

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Lilian Santini 🦊

Brand Strategist • Creative Director • Fractional CMO ✨ I help businesses grow with strategic clarity and bold creativity
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While mood boards are excellent tools for visualizing a project's direction, they also serve as a platform for emotional resonance. By carefully curating images, colors, and fonts that not only align with the project's requirements but also evoke a specific emotional response, you can better tap into the psychological aspects of design. This can be crucial for projects targeting specific consumer demographics or evoking certain brand values. Emotional resonance also aids in more impactful presentations, as stakeholders are more likely to connect emotionally with your design vision, thus making your case stronger.

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3 How to create mood boards?

There is no one right way to create a mood board, but here are some general steps to follow. First, gather your design inspiration from various sources, such as websites, magazines, books, art, nature, or your own sketches. Second, select the most relevant and representative images and elements that match your design brief and objectives. Third, arrange them on a board or a screen, using a grid, a freeform, or a thematic layout. Fourth, refine your mood board by adding or removing elements, adjusting colors and sizes, and adding labels or annotations.

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4 How to use mood boards in the research stage?

Mood boards can be an invaluable tool during the research stage of your design process, offering a visual reference and direction. They can help you explore various design styles and trends to see how they fit your project and audience, compare and contrast different design options, identify gaps and opportunities in your design research, and uncover new ideas and insights.

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Lilian Santini 🦊

Brand Strategist • Creative Director • Fractional CMO ✨ I help businesses grow with strategic clarity and bold creativity
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Mood boards are not a 'set and forget' asset; they're iterative by nature. As the project evolves, so should your mood board. This dynamic aspect allows you to continuously update your research, refine your objectives, and reconsider your design options. Keep it up-to-date with new inspiration and feedback to ensure that it remains a relevant, guiding tool throughout the project.

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5 How to use mood boards in the presentation stage?

Mood boards can be a great asset during the presentation stage of your design process, enabling you to showcase your design concept and strategy to clients, stakeholders, or team members. By using mood boards, you can explain your design rationale and decision-making process, and how they align with the project requirements and goals. Additionally, it's a great way to demonstrate your design skills and creativity, and how they add value to the project and the brand. Furthermore, it allows you to solicit feedback and suggestions to incorporate into your design revisions and iterations.

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6 How to use mood boards in the evaluation stage?

Mood boards can be useful during the evaluation stage of your design process, helping you to assess how well your design meets the expectations and needs of your target audience, and measure its performance against project criteria and objectives. Additionally, mood boards can provide insight into how your design compares to the competitors or benchmarks, as well as help you learn from successes and failures to identify areas for improvement and growth.

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7 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?

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Lilian Santini 🦊

Brand Strategist • Creative Director • Fractional CMO ✨ I help businesses grow with strategic clarity and bold creativity
Report contribution
In the age of remote work, digital mood boards can be a vital asset. Tools that allow for real-time collaboration can make the mood board a living, breathing document that team members can contribute to from anywhere. This sort of collaborative approach ensures a more comprehensive representation of ideas and can reveal blind spots that might have been missed in a more traditional, one-person controlled mood board setting.

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How can you use mood boards to improve graphic design research?

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1 What are mood boards?

2 Why use mood boards?

3 How to create mood boards?

4 How to use mood boards in the research stage?

5 How to use mood boards in the presentation stage?

6 How to use mood boards in the evaluation stage?

7 Here’s what else to consider

Graphic Design

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How can you use mood boards to improve graphic design research?

1

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3

4

5

6

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1 What are mood boards?

2 Why use mood boards?

3 How to create mood boards?

4 How to use mood boards in the research stage?

5 How to use mood boards in the presentation stage?

6 How to use mood boards in the evaluation stage?

7 Here’s what else to consider

Graphic Design

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