How I run a design session, minute by minute. The 100+ reference method.

Design sessions aren’t really a popular framework in our industry. I first learned and practiced the backbone of this through Pavlo Vrzhesch’s course, then adapted it so the final synthesis happens right in the session. Most agencies skip straight to "kickoff call → 3 concepts → revise → ship." This is different.

Here’s what a design session actually does:

• Builds a concept from the elements, words, and phrases the stakeholders chose themselves
• Co-creates the end result with the owner and the marketing team
• Brings fun back into the brand process
• Shows you how a business sees itself, not just what the market demands

In the end, you walk away with material for the entire concept. Insider stories. Fun moments. References to real situations inside the company. And everyone in the room got to speak - so the next presentation is 10x easier to land.

Co-creation is the whole game. When stakeholders see their own language in the final concept deck, they defend the direction for you in every future meeting. You stop being a vendor showing work. You become a partner shipping something the team already owns.

1-2 hours. 2-4 people from the client side. No pre-prepared concepts from me. Just references and the right questions.

Here’s how I run it now ( ˘ ³˘)♥

How I run a design session, minute by minute

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How I run a design session

100+ reference method