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Trying to generate creative product designs on the spot can be difficult for many reasons, unless you know where to look for inspiration. Whether you’re a furniture, fixture or lighting designer like we are, or a graphic designer, artist or any other creative professional, it’s important to have a portfolio of inspirational ideas applicable to whatever situation you’re in. This approach has helped Ideoli create innovative designs. So give it a try yourself, and see how much it helps to draw from sources of inspiration.  1. Consult with Clients We work with some of the most forward-thinking people and companies in the world. They have vision and inspiration from all over and want to translate that into products that enhance their selling spaces. So rather than trying to force our preconceived ideas onto them, we feed off of their visions to collaborate and create new, complementary ideas that help make their visions a reality. 2. Search Social Media Social networks, particularly visual platforms such as Pinterest and Instagram, offer a wealth of inspiration. To stimulate your creative juices, take a look at design boards, beautiful photography and videography, and even comment threads on sites like Reddit. Doing so helps us spot trends and keep up to date with people’s ever-changing likes and dislikes. 3. Travel While social media helps you see the world on a screen, seeing new places in person gives you new perspectives that help you discover new ideas. We travel the world to meet with clients and partners, and when we see the architecture, landscapes and culture of these places, they take hold in our minds and influences our designs. Also, sometimes the simplicity in the downtime when traveling from one location to another is a great opportunity for creative thinking.  4. Explore Nature The world holds astonishing beauty, so getting in touch with nature can help you shape new design ideas. Not only does it help inspire grand visions, but it helps on a practical level, because designs might need to take into account the local environment and climate. Similarly, as the seasons change, each has its own influence in terms of color, type, structure, durability and style.  5. Drink Up Consuming some fun beverages, like beer and coffee, while socializing tends to help you think outside the box. Sometimes you might not even be thinking about design, but the different atmosphere can make an idea pop into your head. Or you can specifically have brainstorming sessions over beer or coffee to make them more productive, and as you relax or perk up, you’ll start to approach ideas in a different light. In fact, that’s how we came up with our company’s name—Ideoli— and several other great ideas that followed. These approaches have helped Ideoli create innovative designs, so give them a try yourself and see how much it helps to have sources of inspiration to draw from. 

When working with clients and partners, we all want our projects to be successful, which includes having everything run smoothly and in a timely fashion. Great communication is key to making this happen and sustaining strong relationships. Great communication for us at Ideoli isn’t just a cliché. Specifically, it helps in business and in building and strengthening powerful relationships in these four ways: 1. Avoiding Unnecessary Mistakes There are usually a few, if not several, parties involved in the management and operation of a project. Sometimes the different parties in have different views and understandings of what’s happening or what was said. For example, a client might ask for big statement pieces in its spaces, picturing bold colors, bright lights and specific materials. However, we may interpret that to mean physically large fixtures. So rather than slowing the process by going ahead with what we think we comprehend and getting it wrong, we find it far better to keep open lines of clear communication so that we understand one another, and we avoid mistakes. The best way to do this is to request inspiration photos, renderings, samples and reference points, and to maintain open discussion. 2. Preserving Project Scope Similar to how great communication helps avoid mistakes, it helps to preserve the scope of a project. We always strive to deliver what the client wants, so great communication helps ensure that if the product the client envisions does not fit within the scope of the budget or timeline, then we can find a way to still make the project work. Sometimes we need to make sacrifices to preserve the original scope, or in the event that the client wants to shift the scope, open communication ensures that the finished product properly lines up with everyone’s expectations. 3. Satisfying Clients A lot of companies say that client satisfaction is their top priority, but, not everyone literally talks the talk. Ideoli prides itself on being fanatically open and honest with our clients about every detail and step of the manufacturing process. We constantly remind ourselves that if we complete a project and our client is not 100% satisfied, then we have not done our job properly. Clear communication ensures that we get to that point of 100% satisfaction. 4. Everyone Winning When we communicate well with clients and partners, we are ensuring our own success alongside their satisfaction. By avoiding mistakes and admitting to mistakes when they do inevitably happen, we do not waste costs and time. So great communication creates a positive cycle in which everyone wins.  Communication is at the core of Ideoli’s work, from designing, to implementing, to putting a smile on our partners’ faces! Facebook-f Linkedin-in Tumblr Envelope

We live in a digital age of unprecedented connectivity, which has made everything from communicating across the globe to shipping packages from one continent to another significantly easier. However, even though speeds are faster, shipping to international destinations still comes with some important considerations. With our global network of suppliers, partners and clients, we constantly need to ship furniture, fixtures and lighting products around the world. As such, we’ve learned the following four key lessons along the way about what to prepare for when shipping to international destinations: 1. Time of Year Shipping prices, timeline and speed vary drastically based on the time of year. For example, shipping during high-volume periods like the major domestic and international holidays can affect your shipment in a variety of ways. Often, these periods cause major delays and limited options for shipping. Customs are often closed for business during national holidays and a long backlog can be created quickly. It’s important to have open communication and plan several months in advance about what’s needed and what’s feasible so that products get to their final destinations on time. 2.  Air vs. Ocean Ground shipping is always utilized when shipping within a specific country. But getting it to that country always requires shipments via air or ocean, which come with several different pricing and timing options. Air freight is quicker but more expensive, considering that a cargo ship can carry more in terms of both volume and weight. When working on a project with clients, we develop a plan that accounts for these factors so that clients can stay on budget and on time. In the event something changes such as a deadline, we can try to change the shipping method to accommodate the new factors if we have enough notice. Ultimately, it is up to the client to direct us on when they need their orders; then we can plan accordingly. 3. Duties, Taxes and Customs  Taxes and duties have no standard formula and have so many variables across several factors. It is important to work closely with a manufacturer that understands the freight landscape and can guarantee the proper delivery to the warehouse or location specified. Ideoli ships to over 20 countries around the world, each having their own rates, policies and customs. Like with shipping options, we help our clients account for duties, taxes and customs so that legal authorities around the world do not put projects over budget … or on hold. 4. Packaging Lastly, clients need to consider how products are packaged for international transport. The size and delicateness of the items will affect their packaging, and they may need different packaging to fit efficiently in a container vs. a plane. Ideoli works closely with our partners around the world to ensure our products are packaged in a way that safely gets the items to their international destinations. It’s better to go the extra mile with packaging than have a product like a custom mirror travel thousands of miles only to wind up at its destination cracked. Ideoli has a dedicated freight team that specializes in this for our clients. Thinking about these four factors will help ensure that our international array of products arrive at your space without surprises along the way. Facebook-f Linkedin-in Tumblr Envelope