Member-only storyMicheal XingFollowUX Collective--Share“When has anyone, ever, in real life, promoted an event or exhibition by holding up a poster?” — It’s Nice That’s Lucy Bourton, on the peculiarity of designers presenting works onlineA few weeks ago, I embarked on an online adventure that involved sifting through countless images for packaging inspiration. I don’t recall ever sourcing visual references so intensively before. But here I was at work, creating four different mood boards, hoping my company would finally decide on designs to use on their pouches and labels.During this extensive search on platforms like Pinterest and Behance, I once again pondered visual branding issues. In the past, I’ve discussed how designers tend to portray themselves or their companies as bigger than they are. Now, I’ve noticed another flaw in the (unspoken) design system of graphic artists, specifically related to how they present their projects through Mockups.Current advancements in technology have undoubtedly made design tasks more convenient for designers. Along with AI tools, digital mockups are widely used to preview works on marketing collateral before printing. However, the ease of using mockups has also brought forth new problems. The vast creative liberty in this area has resulted in a disconnect between mockup designs and real-world branding practices.For example, a designer may showcase a housing complex project with branded mugs, paper bags, and scotch tapes. This raises a question: Why would a housing complex need to advertise itself using scotch tapes?Aside from contextual problems, this essay will address various brand design discrepancies that arise from the use of mockups. We will examine each type of print collateral, discuss their potentially misguided applications, and reconsider the appropriateness of using such mockups for projects.----UX CollectiveFreelance Graphic Designer, overthinker, and desires humour. AKA Faux Icing on Instragram: https://www.instagram.com/faux_icing/Micheal XinginUX Collective--4Jared M. SpoolinUX Collective--10Rosie HoggmascallinUX Collective--31Micheal XinginUX Collective--6UX Movement--9Ronni SouersinThe Generator--20Daley WilhelminUX Collective--81Kristen WaltersinAdventures In AI--288Ignacio de Gregorio--13Clive Thompson--32HelpStatusWritersBlogCareersPrivacyTermsAboutText to speechTeams