Design projects are continuing to decrease.
In one company, a design team of 50 people reportedly vanished completely.
Around me, more and more people are losing their projects, one by one.
Of course, this is the impact of AI.
Almost all designs can now be generated easily.
"No matter how much AI advances, designers won't disappear."
——The people who said that are the ones disappearing first.
I myself have worked as a designer for 8 years, handling over 200 projects, including those for listed companies and prominent politicians.
I have even landed a single design project worth over 15 million yen.
As a result of sharing insights based on my strengths as a designer, I now have over 80,000 followers.
I have supported the income and career growth of over 100 designers, with 94.5% of them achieving orders of 300,000 yen or more.
I also published a book through KADOKAWA and received many positive comments.
Because of my own experience of becoming a designer in one month with no prior experience and changing my life, I have been supporting the self-actualization of designers.
To me, this reality is far too cruel.
Was my path wrong?
Will my students be swallowed up like this?
——However, even in this environment.
There are designers whose projects are not disappearing but are actually increasing, and whose unit prices continue to rise.
It's not that their technical skills are exceptionally high.
Yet, their projects don't stop, and they can continue to call themselves "designers."
What separates life and death for a designer?
I will write about the facts I arrived at after seeing the vast number of designers about to be swallowed by AI.
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The value of "making things" has already plummeted.
In the last year or two, the design industry has changed all at once.
Claude Code. ChatGPT. Midjourney. Figma Make. Adobe Firefly.
Tasks that used to take several hours a short while ago now finish in minutes.
・Banner production
・Thumbnail production
・SNS creatives
・LP design
・Document design
Jobs that used to be outsourced can now be done by in-house staff using AI.
In the past,
"I can make websites"
"I can use Photoshop and Illustrator"
That alone was enough to get work.
But now, the honest feeling of companies is this:
"We can make that much in-house with AI."
In other words, the value of "making designs" itself is rapidly declining.
It might be hard to accept, but this is the truth.
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It's not designers who die. It's "people who only make what they are told."
Don't misunderstand here.
It's not that the job of a designer is going away.
What is disappearing is:
"People who only make things look pretty as they are told."
That's why designers need to redefine their roles themselves now.
Conversely, there are areas that AI can absolutely never replace.
・Giving meaning to "Why are we making this in the first place?"
・Defining requirements for "Who should we tell what?"
・Digging up the real issues that the client hasn't been able to verbalize
・Creating a worldview and brand born from non-verbal information
・Judging the final output and building trust with the customer
These cannot be decided by AI alone.
AI is good at creating answers.
But humans decide what questions to ask and what problems to set.
In other words, the person who will have the most value from now on is:
Not someone who can design, but someone who can architect.
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Successful designers aren't selling design.
This is what I want to convey most.
The more successful a designer is, the less they are actually selling design.
What they are selling are results and the process to get there.
For example, someone making an LP (Landing Page).
A typical designer says:
"I will make a beautiful LP."
A successful person says:
"I will architect an LP that increases conversion rates, from the appeal to the user flow."
For an SNS designer,
Instead of "I will make stylish post images,"
It's "I will architect everything from the concept to posts that increase save rates."
What companies want isn't design.
It's results, such as sales.
Therefore, for people who can think backward from results,
Work is actually concentrating more because of AI, rather than decreasing.
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Companies aren't looking for "makers." They are looking for "deciders."
And another thing that very few people truly understand is sales and direction.
Let me introduce a consultation I actually had.
"I want to do branding, but I don't know where to start."
What this company is looking for isn't "someone who will produce what they are told."
It's "someone who can organize what should be made and provide direction."
Specifically, someone who can do things like this:
・Extract issues from the client
・Set targets and goals
・Analyze competitors and think about appeals and copy
・Manage schedules and tasks to move the project forward
・Utilize AI to align the image of the output
・And take responsibility for the results
In short, a director.
To begin with, there are actually few designers who correctly understand "what kind of occupation a director is."
That's why you can stand out all at once just by being able to do this.
And it is sales that proposes that value and gets the job.
Unless you are a full-time employee, have a fixed monthly contract, or have no trouble attracting customers through connections or SNS,
You cannot escape the sales process of hearing, estimating, and proposing as a freelancer.
Rest assured. Sales is not a talent.
Research what the other party wants and offer it. If you prepare, anyone can do it.
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In the AI era, "movers" are stronger than "makers."
Those who will be valued from now on are those who can use AI to:
Move teams.
Build brands.
Generate sales.
Grow businesses.
In other words, people who can use design as a weapon to move business forward.
Design is not the goal. It's a means.
AI is the same.
People who understand this will become even stronger because of AI.
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One piece of harsh news.
"Because I like design."
"Because I like making things."
You can no longer survive on that alone.
Companies aren't paying for beautiful design.
They are paying for results.
Therefore, people whose only weapon is production at a level that can be replaced by AI
Will lose jobs, unit prices will drop, and they will be caught in price competition from now on.
This isn't a story about the future. It has already begun.
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But there is hope.
That's why there is only one form to aim for from now on.
Become "someone who can produce results with design," not just "someone who can design."
Results aren't just sales.
It's the value the customer expects.
People who can create outputs that exceed those expectations
Will continue to be chosen even in the AI era.
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Designers are dead.
—— Half right, half wrong.
What died was design as a task.
What survives are designers who can grow businesses.
AI didn't erase designers.
It only eliminated people who can only do design.
So, there is only one thing to do now.
Not to master design,
But to understand the business that lies beyond design.
People who can do this will undoubtedly continue to be sought after by the market 5 or 10 years from now.
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I support the training, career change, and independence of designers for those who seriously want to change their careers.
Now, for those who register on the official LINE and send "Sales Method,"
I am giving away a free "77 Sales Media" list so you won't have trouble finding sales leads.
I only want people who seriously want to change their current situation to come.
▼ Official LINE (Please send "Sales Method")
