Brand Insights is the editorial channel where Inkbot Design publishes thinking that exists outside the service structure — commentary on significant rebrands, analysis of shifts in the B2B marketing landscape, observations on how artificial intelligence is changing the practice of brand strategy and visual identity, and the occasional opinion piece on what the industry is getting badly wrong.
The branding industry generates a lot of noise. Trend reports are written by trend analysts rather than by project executors. Opinions are shaped by what generates engagement rather than by what is true. Awards that reward visual novelty over strategic rigour.
Brand Insights is the counter to that — a space for the kind of thinking that develops when you have 17+ years of agency practice to draw on and no particular incentive to tell people what they want to hear.
Stuart Crawford writes from Belfast, where Inkbot Design has operated since its founding, and from client engagements across 21 countries. The perspective is always practitioner-first: what is actually happening in brand strategy, what is working, what is failing, and why.
If you want polished takes from someone who observes the industry from the outside, there are plenty of those available.
If you want the view from inside a working branding agency that has run strategy workshops, designed identity systems, and managed global rebrands in the same week, this is it.
David Carson didn’t just break the rules of graphic design; he set fire to the rulebook. From Ray Gun to Nike, his “grunge” aesthetic revolutionised how brands communicate. Discover why “chaos” is often a better business strategy than “clean” and how to apply his radical principles today.
Most modern branding is a sea of beige. April Greiman, the pioneer of “New Wave” design, provides the blueprint for breaking the grid without breaking your brand. Learn how her technical mastery of the early Macintosh and hybrid imagery can rescue your visual identity from mediocrity.
Most entrepreneurs confuse branding with decoration. Massimo Vignelli spent his career proving them wrong. From the NYC Subway to American Airlines, his systems-based approach offers a masterclass in building brands that outlast their founders and ignore passing trends.
Milton Glaser wasn’t just a designer; he was a master of cognitive connection. For SMBs, his work provides a blueprint for branding that survives market shifts. We reveal the technical mechanics of his genius and how to apply it to your business.
Paul Rand didn’t just design logos; he engineered corporate identities that lasted decades. We reveal the technical and psychological principles behind his most famous work, from IBM to NeXT, and why his “Design is Everything” mantra is more relevant in 2026 than ever.
Most entrepreneurs treat fonts as an afterthought. Adrian Frutiger treated them as a mathematical solution to human communication. From the “Frutiger Grid” to the signage at Charles de Gaulle, we explore why this Swiss master’s work is the blueprint for your brand’s visual clarity.
A forensic breakdown of the essential branding tools for modern agencies. From strategy and visual identity to asset management and AI, we cut through the hype to find the software that actually pays for itself.
Choosing the right hardware isn’t about aesthetics; it’s about billable efficiency. Inkbot Design reviews the 7 best laptops for designers, focusing on screen accuracy, thermal performance, and ROI.
As a design agency owner, I’ve bought both. My verdict? The Apple Pencil is a specialist’s instrument. The Logitech Crayon is the durable, cost-effective workhorse for 90% of business and design tasks. This is the no-nonsense guide to which one you should actually buy.
Stop chasing the “magic pen.” As a brand consultant, I’ve seen more bad ideas sketched with expensive tools than I care to count. The right pen isn’t about price; it’s about purpose. Here’s my no-nonsense breakdown of the 7 best sketching pens that actually serve the graphic design process, from logo concept to vector.
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