“A Picture Is Worth A Thousand Words”.

This phrase dates back to 1911 to the Syracuse Advertising Men’s Club when Arthur Brisbane is quoted as saying this. There are also similar phrase traces back to Chinese Proverbs, Napoleon Bonaparte, Leonardo DaVinci, among Henrik Ibsen, among other languages.

For the image show above, we were asked to create an illustration of a battery backup powered sump pump operation.
Unlike previous designs, this was among the first sump pump designs built with internet capabilities, allowing homeowners to know the status of their sump pump operation while away from home. Our client was a small, local plumber who decided to design a system that was not currently on the market. Our role was to design an illustration that accurately showed how the process worked. We needed to simplify a complex process into an easy to understand graphic.

After discussing how the system worked, and listening to the designer of the system, we began to sketch out some thoughts. We decided that a ¾ overhead isometric stlye illustration would best fit the style of this mechanical water flow process. Each of the components were supplied as visual materials for the illustrator to study, then were carefully recreated in digital format. By creating them in a digital format, they can also be easily leveraged for future use in other marketing materials. Once the design was done, the client made some small edits and recommendations until the final rendering was complete.

After the illustration was approved, the local plumber used the new marketing materials that were printed to sell his system to homeowners. His customers were really excited to see such an innovation that no other company could offer. He was selling them to people, and the graphic illustration really helped consumers understand how it worked, which helped justify the extra cost compared to a regular sump pump system.

In addition, the local plumber caught the attention of a major, national manufacturer of sump pump systems. The CEO of the company told the plumber…”I asked my team to design a similar system for the last 2 years, and they didn’t get it done.” In fact, the internal team of the big manufacturer hadn’t even started the design. What happened next was simply amazing. The CEO of the plumbing manufacturing company made an offer to purchase the technology from the local plumber. A very generous offer.

The local plumber ended up relocating to work at the headquarters of the sump pump manufacturer. Not only did the CEO buy the technology, but he also made the plumber the chief design officer of the product to help ensure top product quality on the mass scale production. What started as an idea had now transformed into a life-changing financial reward, huge promotion of work title and a very useful innovation for the world to use everyday.

We can help you communicate your product or service with an illustration. Let’s talk about what you need to take your idea to the next level.