17 key learnings from 7 years of running our small design studio
Less is more, time currency, smart clients, marry the product, tell them when the logo sucks, and many more learnings from 7 years of running our small product design studio.
Prachi Nain
2 years ago | 1 min read

In June 2021, Bayzil, our small design studio turns 7 🥳.
Sharing our 17 key learnings from the past 7 years.
We hope these will help someone out there. Don't make the same mistakes we made. Take the risks worth taking.
- You don't need a 20+ team of designers to pull any project. During the 60+ projects (product, app, and website designs) that we delivered, there was never a moment when we felt a lack of (wo)manpower.
- Clients value your time more when you value it more.
- Build connections with people, not companies.
- Keep your time currency 'days' instead of weeks/months. Work with people who think in weeks, not months/years 📆.
- Charge for the value you provide instead of the hours you put in.
- Ask your client the tough questions (about the product, customer, timeline, costs, etc.) in the beginning. Set the expectations right.
- It's ok to tell them their logo sucks! Use better words though 😉.
- It's ok to tell them if you see something terribly wrong with their product/design. Smart people appreciate that. Again, use better words.
- It's on product designers to nail the right problem even when the client doesn't expect you to.
- Learn to write concisely. Think concise. Both feed into each other.
- Think product first, UI later. Pixel creators are common in the industry. Designers who 'get the big picture' are few. Define the product first.
- Use the latest tools and technologies like Figma, Sketch, Framer instead of old-school tools like Photoshop and Illustrator.
- Recommend better tools, technologies, and partnerships to your clients even though that's not part of your job.
- Don't be married to your designs. Stay married to the product.
- The smaller the project cost, the bigger the expectations. Go for high-value work instead.
- Adopt agency thinking (Belief that you can figure it out all by yourself).
- Take testimonials soon after a project is over.
Less is more.
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Created by
Prachi Nain
Self-taught product designer | More of a writer ✍️| Avid runner 🏃🏻♀️ | Forever learner 🙌 | Love sharing my learnings about product and UX design ❤️

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