Business Perspectives: How client expectations are evolving

In today’s rapidly changing business and design landscape, clients want more than a final deliverable—they’re looking for strategy, education and long-term value. From building internal capacity to creating consistent brand stories, the expectations have grown.

We asked RGD firm owners to explain how client needs have changed for them over the years, and what new priorities are shaping the future of creative work.

Meggan Van Harten RGD, Co-CEO at Design de Plume

While tech trends and tools are always shifting, the deeper change we’ve seen is a growing demand for education and consultation. Clients now want more than just a final deliverable. They want to understand the thinking behind the work and learn how to sustain it internally. There’s an increasing appreciation for strategy, process and long-term capacity-building. At Design de Plume, we help clients see how our design process, grounded in the IIDEAS lens, can serve their goals far beyond a single campaign. This approach builds confidence, strengthens partnerships and makes our work more sustainable and impactful.

Vida Jurcic RGD, Partner and Co-Creative Director at Hangar 18 Design Continuum

In the past, clients looked to designers and ad agencies to provide solid communication strategies, beautiful design and clever creative that would help their brand get noticed and stand out in the marketplace. Now clients are asking for a whole lot more, often for less. Today, it’s all about content. How creative or interesting is that content may not always be as important as just having lots of it out there. Devising creative, engaging content that will be on brand is what we strive for. Clients are more sophisticated now too and are also asking for internal and external brand stories. These were always important, but now they’re even more vital to maintain consistency of messaging and an emotional connection with the brand. There’s a lot more competition out there!

Elia Kanaki RGD, CEO at Rossul

It really depends on the niche and the type of clients you’re working with. In our case, the most notable shift isn’t necessarily in what clients are asking for, but in how informed they are when they ask for it. Over the years, we’ve seen a growing awareness and appreciation for the fundamentals of the design process—things like user research, usability testing, accessibility and iterative prototyping.

Whereas before, clients might jump straight to aesthetics or features, now they’re more likely to come to the table asking about workflows, design systems and how to build products that scale. They’re also more likely to understand the value of discovery phases, journey mapping and even cross-functional collaboration with development teams. This shared vocabulary and mindset make it easier to have strategic conversations early on and ultimately lead to stronger outcomes.

Jean-Pierre Lacroix RGD, President and Founder at Shikatani Lacroix Design

Design has emerged as a critical strategic business-building tool for organizations that embrace the power of design thinking. The major shift we are witnessing is the growth of strategy-led design solutions. No longer are clients looking for great design; they are looking for effective business-building design solutions that drive desire. Clients now view designers as strategic creative partners, not dissimilar to advertising agencies. This shift does require design firms to recalibrate their offerings and approach to ensure it’s not about “what I think is right” to these options, but answers your strategic business needs.

Carolyn Shaw, President and Chief Creative Officer at Humanity

Client needs have evolved. Agencies used to be more specialized—one for social, another for branding, another for digital. While that still exists, clients increasingly want a single partner who can do it all, streamlining strategy, execution and creative under one roof.

Budgets have also shifted. Clients expect more for less, and agencies have adapted, finding ways to be more efficient. At the same time, this has made high-quality services more accessible. Smaller organizations can now tap into great video production, once reserved for brands with million-dollar budgets, thanks to nimble production houses and content creators.

Another big shift is that many organizations have brought more day-to-day creative in-house. So when they engage with an agency, they are thinking beyond just deliverables—they want strategic partners who understand their business, not just their branding. Agencies that can offer insight, adaptability and cross-disciplinary expertise are the ones thriving in this evolving landscape.