In this post, our Founder & Creative Director Ben explains why having faith in the design experts you hire leads to the best work.
You don’t tell your surgeon how to hold the scalpel. So why do some clients feel the need to art-direct designers down to the pixel?
It doesn’t happen often but, when it does, it’s pretty obvious. You’re brought in as the expert, then suddenly you’re being guided through font choices, layout tweaks, and “just a small change” requests that slowly add up to something else entirely.
Challenge us but don’t steer every detail
The funny thing is, when I look back at our best work… the brands, websites and campaigns that actually worked in the real world, they all came from the same place: trust.
Not blind trust, and definitely not passive clients.
The best ones challenge us. They ask the right questions early. They bring insight we simply don’t have yet. We genuinely value that at Jory&Co. But once we’ve aligned on the direction, something shifts. They stop trying to steer every detail and trust us to do the job they hired us to do.
And the difference is huge.
The work is stronger, the process is smoother, and the energy on both sides is just better. The end result also stands out more, because it hasn’t been diluted by endless rounds of “what if we tried…?” along the way.
Compare that to the opposite. Design projects where every decision gets revisited, the brief keeps shifting, and trust never quite lands. You can feel it in the work. It becomes safer, slower, and less clear – and, ironically, less effective.
The best work makes you pause for a second
I think part of the issue is that design has never felt more accessible. With Canva, AI, and a thousand templates at your fingertips, anyone can make something that looks fine.
But “fine” isn’t what moves people.
The difference between something that looks good and something that actually works is usually invisible unless you’ve spent years doing it. And that’s the bit clients are really hiring.
Sometimes the best creative is the kind that makes you pause for a second. It feels a bit bold, maybe even slightly uncomfortable at first, because it stands out rather than blends in.
Challenge is good. It sharpens the thinking and improves the outcome. But there’s a point where challenge turns into control, and that’s where things start to slip.
So the real question is: How do you build enough trust early on that you don’t have to fight for it later? Curious how others approach this when it comes up.
We partner with environmental and social impact organisations that want to make a difference. If you’re ready to put your trust in Jory&Co, get in touch at hello@joryand.co or DM Ben on LinkedIn
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