OUGD504 STUDIO BRIEF ONE - FINAL FEEDBACK SESSION

I presented my mock up designs to a group of my peers and a tutor during this feedback session, to get their opinions on my nearly finished leaflet and any design changes I could make, and to ask them questions about queries I had with my work so far.

Feedback:
People generally thought that the illustrations on the back of my leaflet worked really well as they were, however it was suggested that I could think about using a background colour instead of coloured illustrations, to help the stages stand out more. It was also commented that the illustrations on the front of the leaflet were simple and self explanatory, and the text doesn't make them useless as is the case in a lot of publications, where the illustrations are there only to make the text look less dense, but don't actually help to inform the reader.
An Erasmus student commented that the £ sign I used for the last stage is only relevant in Britain, which is something that I hadn't even thought about living in Britain myself, I hadn't considered if my publication was produced in Australia or USA for example, where they have different currencies, but still speak English. It was suggested I could replace the £ with coins or notes, so you can still tell it is money, but the currency is unknown. This is a really good idea which I will definitely follow up.
I informed the group about the spacing not being right and it not folding properly, and they said I should use a less heavy stock and to think about the width of each section so the wrap around fold fits properly.
To solve the issue with the different sections not being clear when folded up, my tutor folded it in accordion style, which is something I hadn't considered before, but worked very well with my leaflet and didn't require any changing of sizes either. This way you can see the colours from each stage from the closed view, but also the pattern in between each colour change as well, so the stages are a lot more clear and defined.
It was also suggested that I could just stick with the teal colour but have it going from light to dark like I had tried with my green experiments earlier in the brief, as this would make it look more sophisticated, as most people weren't a fan of the beige either.
Finally, one of my peers commented that although it's a leaflet, it is very aesthetically appealing from both sides, due to colour choices and my illustrations, so would easily work as a poster on both sides, which could be useful for students learning the design process, pinning it up on their wall to remember. This is something I hadn't considered when producing my leaflet, although it is a good idea for it to work as both a poster and a leaflet, as it has more purposes and means people are less likely to throw it away if it looks 'pretty'.

This is the accordion fold applied to my leaflet. As you can see the different parts of the fold are clearly shown with the colour from inside the leaflet being shown between the patterned background. You can also see the information being visible as well, which makes it look untidy, so this is something I should try and hide as best as possible without affecting the inside aesthetic.

Taking this feedback into consideration I am going to experiment with the teal gradient colouring, to see if this looks better than my current teal and beige colouring. I will also experiment with the accordion fold, as when it was tried in the feedback session some of the information form inside the leaflet could be seen as it came up high enough. I will also change the £ sign to either notes or coins or both, to make my leaflet more universally current. I will print my final leaflet on much lighter stock, which I have already selected from the library, which is slightly off white but has an slight texture to it, so it's not as smooth and perfect.