From the category archives:

marketing

Does Good Design Matter?

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Does it matter if a design is good or not? Before we can deal with that question let’s ask a more basic one: What makes a design good? To answer that question, we should first begin with what good means. Without a definition, it’s unlikely that any design can be considered good or not, since [...]

Loving It: Seduction, Satisfaction and Graphic Culture

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To be promoted in our design-driven culture, a product must be packaged in such a way that it becomes meaningful to the person using it, so that they become an evangelist for it. This requires thoughtful planning and execution of a design strategy

My New Cards

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Business cards are like souvenirs.

Don’t Design For The Client

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Design for the audience and not the client.

Creating Lovability

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How can you invest your product or service with “lovability” and create devotion in your customers? Here are some options: Love it yourself. If you’re not passionate about it, how can you engender passion in another? Know your market. Markets are made up of people, not statistics. Spend time with your market before you offer [...]

A Before and After Case Study

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I was asked by a client to re-design a print ad laid out by someone else. The original layout (above, left) was cluttered and confused. The ad, for an author’s book signing events in upscale communities in Los Angeles County, was going to appear in a local cultural magazine. What was needed was a visual [...]

Design As Your Ambassador

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Graphic design represents ideas and values. A design is not in itself the idea, but the expression of it. Design points to something greater than itself. In most cases design serves as an ambassador, not as the self-expression of the designer, but as the expression of a business or organization to its audience. The value [...]

It’s the 57th Anniversary of the Barcode Patent

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Today is the 57th anniversary of the barcode. Google is commemorating this day with a barcode logo. I remember discussion about the bar code while I was at Art Center – its necessary prominence on the back of any package or the front of any magazine – being the downfall of all that is good [...]

The Obama Logo: Iconography, Ideas and Politics

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This is an excellent discussion of the power and influence of visual imagery – design and illustration – to change ways of thinking, morals and systems for good or for bad. No matter what your persuasion, you need to understand what’s going on. As you view this, consider how you’ve been influenced. Video from PJTV, [...]