We like to keep up to date with what’s happening in our industry. Here’s what we’ve discovered lately and the latest on the Leading Hand team!

The value of brand custodians

A brand custodian is someone who manages how a brand is presented over a period of time. Like an ambassador, they maintain, evolve and protect the brand across all its channels, platforms and media and take responsibility for safeguarding its identity and integrity.

Spring Highlights 2023

Highlights of our recent work across animation, branding, graphic design and web design.

Is your SEO-asis possible or just a mirage?

Finding your SEO-asis is a long road, sure, but well worthwhile for any business. And it starts with not only choosing the right path, but also understanding what you want to achieve with it.

The power of a great network

We’ve been around for 22 years, which means we’ve done a few things right over that time.

It’s been a minute…

In fact, it’s been a year since our Creative Director, Jamie Carroll, finished up teaching at Enmore TAFE Design Centre.

Flame Security International goes from strength to strength

In recent weeks the Steadfast Risk Group made a strategic investment in Flame Security International. Just one more indication of the growing success of this innovative Australian company.

Designing for Better

When we develop design solutions for clients in the ‘social good’ space, we at Leading Hand Design believe it’s critical […]

Design Trends for 2022

Disruptive colours and typography, neon-lit futurescapes, retro ’90s throwbacks, and the rootin’-tootin’ Wild West: these are just some of the […]

Branding of Waves Fitness & Aquatic Centre

The new Waves Fitness and Aquatic Centre, in Baulkham Hills, will be opened in 2022. This state-of-the-art facility will offer […]

Five Ways We Make Your Branding Work

Over the years we have worked with many different brands across a wide variety of sectors. One thing we’ve learnt is that it really helps to partner with a creative team that knows how to make your branded assets work across everything that you do, every day of the year.

User Centred Design

We start every digital project firstly by investigating and learning as much about the product and service being offered to market

LHD Welcomes Claire Cavalan

We are delighted to announce that Claire Cavalan has joined the Leading Hand Design team. Claire has a clear passion […]

Leading Hand takes the pledge!

Every age counts. The team at Leading Hand Design have taken the pledge to speak out and take action against […]

Sustainability at Leading Hand Design

Sustainability is a priority in our studio practice, from concept ideation to proofing, material selection, right through to production.  We […]

Testimonials

Testimonials for Leading Hand design and digital agency.

10 Reasons Why Small Agencies Make Good Sense by Brett Osmond

I’ve always been a jack of all trades. I like the idea of being able to turn my hand to […]

Celebrating another 3 years!

We are delighted to have signed another three-year partnership to provide a full suite of design services to Riverside Theatres and more broadly to the Parramatta City Council.

Countdown 10 to 1

Leading Hand is 20 years old on 1 July. To celebrate this auspicious occasion, we’re going to feature 20 jobs that we’ve done along the way. Here are the first 10 to get you started!

20 Hands Down!

Leading Hand is 20 years old on 1 July. To celebrate this auspicious occasion, we’re going to feature 20 jobs that we’ve done along the way. Here are the first 10 to get you started!

Reflecting on Working From Home by Alex O’Sullivan

In March 2020, the coronavirus passed through Australia’s notoriously strict border security and plunged Australia into chaos. Firstly, toilet paper […]

Creating Accessible Content

This is a guide to creating accessible content for people with disabilities. As content creators and consumers, we should be […]

Diversity and Disability in Illustrations: Part 3

The final instalment of our insight series focuses on how disability and diversity are represented in illustrations in Australia and […]

OUR RFSA DONATION

We recently pledged to donate $5.00 to the NSW Rural Fire Service Association for every person we sent our Christmas […]

Diversity and Disability in Illustrations: Part 2

This insight series helps us understand how Diversity and Disability can be represented authentically in illustrations. The aim of this […]

Diversity and Disability in Illustrations: Part 1

This three-part series explores into how Diversity and Disability are represented in illustrations. We hope it will be helpful for […]

Action on Elder Abuse

We are thrilled to have been appointed by Elder Abuse Action Australia (EAAA) to be the content producers for a […]

Genna Joins LHD

Welcoming Genna Espino to the team has been a wonderful way to end the year. Genna is a talented designer […]

Welcome Jake Moody

We’re thrilled to announce that Jake has joined the team at Leading Hand Design. Jake is a graduate of Western […]

Creating a Great Website: Part 3

Welcome to the final part of our Insight Series designed to help you create a great website. Part One looked […]

Creating a Great Website: Part 2

This Insight Series is designed to help you understand what’s involved in creating a great website. Our aim is to […]

Creating a Great Website: Part 1

This three-part series is designed to help you understand what’s involved in creating a great website and give you handy, […]

Hi (Vis) from our newest client!

Leading Hand is excited about designing the environmental graphics for this new school in Sydney’s north west.

Telling Stories Larger Than Life

We’ve designed graphics for the built environment on a number of architectural projects including several schools and office environments.

Branding and Web Design

An organisation’s brand strategy is the starting point for great web design.

A New Chapter Begins

Leading Hand has become a patron of Sydney Writers’ Festival.

RUSS THE BUS 2018

We are all booklovers at Leading Hand and passionately believe that reading is fundamental to a successful and happy life. This makes working with the team at Sydney Writers’ Festival pure joy.

THINK MOBILE FIRST

Re-designing your website? Think Mobile-First. Many people planning and commissioning new websites are fixated with desktops,

GOING SOCIAL AT HARPER COLLINS

James Kellow, HarperCollins Publishers Australia MD invited me to speak on social media and to facilitate a panel of social media savvy authors.

WHAT IS ENVIRONMENTAL DESIGN?

Environmental Design embodies art direction, graphic design and illustration. It is regularly used in architecture on walls, stairs, ceilings and any number of architectural surfaces and also often on the surfaces between buildings such as playgrounds, walkways and a myriad of other open spaces.

Design Education

We are always learning and enhancing our design skills. Last week Caitriona and Vanessa attended Adobe MAKE IT 2017, touted as Australia’s premier creative event. Here are some takeaways.

When Adelaide Met Legal Aid

As we begin work on the 2018 edition we wanted to reflect on the partnership, not only with Legal Aid NSW but with Peter Coad who has provided the cover art for every edition.

Accessibility for All

At Leading Hand we love learning new things, partly to satisfy our own curiosity and answer an oft-asked question: “How do we do this?”, and partly to be able to expand the services and expertise we offer

The Write Stuff

The write stuff for Sydney Writers’ Festival. We absolutely loved working with the talented and dedicated Sydney Writers’ Festival team this year.

ASA Partnership Launch

We are pleased to announce a partnership with the Australian Society of Authors (ASA). Leading Hand will offer members of the ASA an exclusive online audit.

Professional Sales Web Design

We worked closely with the QuikStand team to develop every aspect of their new website from digital strategy, to images, copy, design and development.

Getting in Shape Online Workshop

The Getting In Shape Online Workshop, is a one day workshop designed to help improve your online presence.

Senior Copywriter Joins Leading Hand

It’s with great pleasure that we welcome the wonderful and talented Cate Lane to our Leading Hand stable.

11 Tips for Achieving Better SEO Results

There are a number of things you can do to improve the performance of your website. Here are 11 tips for achieving better SEO results that really work.

Designing a Low Cost Website

We settled on Adobe Muse to help us create this low-cost online presence because it gave us the design flexibility…

Developing A New Visual Identity

EDGE’s invited Leading Hand to develop their new visual identity and online resource to celebrate their new Darlinghurst studio…

Building Consumer Trust

Consumers are moving away from institutional trust to distributed trust. We are increasingly more likely to trust a stranger…

Tell Great Stories

When writing for online be sure to tell a great story. Stories are all around us. It’s story that captures our imagination.

Web Design Trust and Credibility

“Websites must establish trust and present themselves as credible to turn visitors into customers.”

Out Of Site Out Of Mind

A UI tip. It is a false assumption to think that if people want to find something on your website they will. It’s just not true.

In The Age Of Digital, Dare To Print

If you intend to make something physical these days it probably needs to be beautiful to warrant it being produced – beautiful to view, to hold, to smell

Online Behaviour – Heads Will Scroll

Smartphones have taught us how to scroll and swipe and these behaviours are now well and truly entrenched.

Satisfice Will Suffice

A great web design may need to sacrifice copy, in order to … satisfice its users!

Be Led By Clients, Not Tech Giants

Marketing is just one endeavour that gives your brand meaning. Your digital marketing needs to be in step, always…

Sometimes Less Is More

There can be many pitfalls associated with social media. They’re like good friends, you should be able to count them all on one hand …

A Winning Website Is Never Finished!

Your new website requires attention to drive performance. Be sure to test your UX and XI, get data, review and …