01
Strategy first
I start with your business, your market and the people you need to win, before I open a design tool. Every decision after that has a reason behind it.
About
I've been on your side of the table.
I'm Barry O'Connor. I've spent over 20 years in branding, design and marketing, and I've run my own business, so I know what a brand has to do for the person paying for it.
Designer by trade. Business owner by experience.
Before Barry O'Connor Design, I set up and ran my own agency, Red Man Media. We worked with names like Cairn Homes, Glenveagh, McGarrell Reilly and Peroni. I hired people, took risks, ran campaigns and juggled a thousand moving parts. So I know first-hand how hard it is to build something from nothing.
These days I work directly with businesses at a turning point: launching something new, growing past their first brand, or changing direction. The estate agent leaving a big firm, the builder going after bigger contracts, the coach whose work has outgrown a template logo. That's when a brand matters most, because people are judging you before they've seen what you can do.
You'll work with me from the first call to the final file. No account managers, no juniors, no hand-offs.
- 20+ yearsin branding, design and marketing
- 50+ businesseshelped across Ireland and beyond
- Dún Laoghaireworking with clients all over Ireland
- IDI memberInstitute of Designers in Ireland
Good design pays its way.
A few results from the work, each one checked against the original reports.
€18M+sold in John O'Sullivan's first year, on a brand built from scratch
2% to 5.6%Smart Storage's conversion rate after a UX redesign
1,000+leads for Cairn Homes' Albany Lodge launch
2,000+leads for McGarrell Reilly's Hansfield homes in Dublin 15
Smart Storage, Albany Lodge and Hansfield were Red Man Media projects.
What I won't compromise on
Three things that hold, whatever the size of the project.
02
Honest advice
If you don't need a full rebrand, I'll tell you. If something won't work, I'll say so early, while it's still cheap to change.
03
Built to launch
You get a brand you can actually use on day one: signage, stationery, templates and a website, not just a folder of logo files.
How I work
Five stages, from first question to launch day
Discover, define, design, launch and support. See each stage with real work from The Design Corner, from the research and journey maps to the website and the campaigns that followed.
See how a project runsBrands I've worked on
From multinationals to ambitious startups, over twenty years.
"Barry brought purpose to the design of my new logo, capturing the essence of 'Sean Kennedy Fitness' in the most efficient way possible. His deep understanding of my brand and vision was clear from the start, and the final design aligns perfectly with who we are as a business."
"We are extremely pleased with the work carried out by Barry and the Red Man Media team. They have provided us with some outstanding design initiatives that have improved the quality of our offering. The service is always prompt and professional which makes them excellent value."
Ready when you are. Let's talk.
A 30-minute call about where you are and what your brand needs to do. No pitch. If you're not ready to talk yet, ask for a free review of your current brand instead.