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The day you launched your website, you were really excited. It may as well have been your own flesh and blood. Now, five years later you can hardly stand the sight of it. What's changed? Did it actually get worse or simply lose that “new site smell?” Websites aren't the only pieces of collateral that can age like this—that video you show at expos, the brochure you hand out to customers, even your business cards and logo can lose their luster.

But why? Does good design change? Why would something need to be redone? Is that a sign that it wasn't done well enough the first time around? To answer these questions there are five areas that you can use to evaluate if your vendor needs to change along with your collateral.

Styles Change

Just like that brown shag carpet you had growing up that is no longer in fashion, visual preferences change. But that doesn't mean that there is no hope for longevity. An expert firm, with the right input from you, is able to design collateral that will age well, and won't scream “2008!” on January 2, 2009.

Technology Changes

Ten years ago, web designers were constrained to 216 colors and 14" monitors. Most home users were using slow dial-up modems. Today, sites can offer you large, full-color images, motion, and advanced coding. So when a visitor comes to an older site, it is quickly obvious. This problem exists with videos and printed pieces as well. Your team needs to stay current without focusing exclusively on technology and loosing sight of purpose.

Perspectives Change

That couch you had in college was perfect. If was soft and comfortable, but you can't imagine that thing in your house now. You grew up. If you start to realize that the quality of your collateral was never really up to snuff you may have hired a discount shop the first time around. You have trained yourself to notice quality and while discount value was good enough then, you might now find yourself shopping with more discerning tastes now.

Content Changes

Changing content can be a problem on the web as well as outdated product videos or brochures. A website from a few years ago may have never been designed to contain a blog. The new content had to be shoe-horned into the old design. This is why it is so important for the design team to know what content their container needs to hold before they begin the process. An egg crate holds eggs well, but it just doesn't hold up when someone adds a melon to it.

Brand Changes 

Today organizations evolve. They may get bigger—or smaller—and want to represent themselves accordingly. Maybe your organization that was a start-up ten years ago, would rather be portrayed as an experienced provider now? The marketing collateral needs to change to reflect the new brand personality.

When a marketing firm, or a coworker, comes hinting it's time for redesign, it may be a sales pitch or it may actually be true. And just because your material needs a refresh, doesn't necessarily mean that the firm that created your old collateral shouldn't be considered for the next round. Things change, but the firm you choose to partner with should anticipate change and work in a way to give your collateral a long and healthy life.

by Peter V Cook

A top graduate of Asbury College's acclaimed Media Communications program, Peter is as creatively wise as he is technically savvy. He knows business and marketing while spending his days where the rubber meets the road in code and design. Peter also writes at his blog, PeterVCook.com.