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Most designers complain that their clients "always pick the boring option."
Usually, that’s because the designer didn’t give them a bridge to the bold one.
In our latest podcast episode, @Alex Aperios shared his 3-option presentation strategy:
The Safe Idea (The baseline)
The Middle Ground (The compromise)
The Wild Card (The one that actually makes them stand out)
The trick isn’t just showing the Wild Card. It’s framing the safe option as the "invisible" choice. You show them exactly what "standard" looks like, so they can finally see why they need to be bold.
We also got into why he defends the Kia rebrand (a hill he’s willing to die on) and how skating taught him more about brand loyalty than design school ever could.
Watch the full episode: https://youtu.be/sp23QtaC9x4?si=GgYOzscmDEEo3goA
Hey Daniel, this is great content. Just out of curiousty, how do you decide whom to welcome on your podcasts? And where can i see the full episodes of theese podcasts? Thank you!
My take: most clients don't actually want the boring option, they want cover if the bold one flops. A three-option spread gives them permission to be brave without feeling like they're taking the whole risk alone. Does Alex's framework hold up the same way for smaller budget...
the "bridge to the bold one" insight is really helpful! i think kia's logo redesign is a great real world example of this
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A Brand Guideline Template - Free for Designers & Creatives 🎁
I’ve created this brand guideline template to help designers present their brand identity projects in a more structured, professional, and polished way.
It includes sections for:
— Brand identity
— Logo guidelines
— Color palette
— Typography
— Visual direction
— Brand applications
— And more
✨ Want the editable source file?
Just comment “TEMPLATE” below, and I’ll send you the editable source file for free.
Feel free to use it, customize it, and make it your own.
If you find it useful, save this post and share it with another designer who might need it. ❤️
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Great template!
Good design isn't about adding more.
It's about knowing what deserves to stay.
For this client, we focused on the UI design and creative UX flow - simplifying the experience without making it feel basic.
Less noise.
Better flow.
More intentional interactions.
Simple product. Thoughtful design.
Looks super clean. Any plans to share the before screens to showcase how much the UX improved?
What happens when you stop chasing the market and start watching it?
For Oracle Perps, the answer was a visual identity built around precision, transparency, and signal over noise.
Oracle Perps is a market intelligence platform that tracks the positioning of leading perp wallets across Hyperliquid, Phoenix, and GMX — turning real-money activity into sentiment, live market intelligence, and graded predictions.
The challenge was to create a brand that could feel institutional and trustworthy without becoming cold or predictable. The identity needed to communicate observation, intelligence, and quiet confidence while standing apart from the visual clichés of crypto and trading.
The result is a dark-first visual system built around a precise geometric mark, a refined wordmark, and a restrained visual language designed to make complex market signals feel clear and intentional.
A quiet identity for a platform built to see what others miss.
Building a brand that deserves to be remembered? Let’s talk.
in love with this logomark!