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03182012

Why you should be using Dropbox

By on March 18, 2012 in Productivity with 1 Comment

You may or may not have heard of it. Maybe you’ve been using it for a few years now, but that’s okay. You can always use a reminder of how awesome it is.

I’m talking about Dropbox.

Dropbox is a huge part of my workflow. Whether it’s saving important freelance comps, proofs or documents for on-the-go, see-them-anywhere use, or for just passing a few photos back and forth between friends and family, it is pretty seamless. I like products that just work, and this is definitely one of them.

Here are 5 reasons why you really should be using it:

1. A great way to share files. You can share entire folders, or just send direct links to files that you want to share with others.
2. Desktop experience. Install the desktop version and designate a folder on your desktop as your “Dropbox Folder”. This folder will then become a mirror of what is on your Dropbox account. Want to upload a file to Dropbox? Just drag it in the folder, and forget about it. Next time you open Dropbox, there it is.
3. Mobile apps. Be it on iPad, iPhone or Android devices, the mobile app works just as seamlessly as the desktop or browser version.
4. Syncs and runs automatically. You don’t have to click a button that says “Sync Now” every time you want to make sure all of the files are in sync. It syncs by itself.
5. It’s free! No, seriously. You get 2gb of space, plus everything mentioned above for free-ninety-nine. Get started!

If you click this link to sign-up, we both get extra space! Dropbox let’s you get up to 8gb for free by inviting friends. You earn 250mb for each person you refer. Awesome, right? Right.

02222012

David Ogilvy’s thoughts on writing

By on February 22, 2012 in Advertising, Writing with No Comments

Below is a memo from David Ogilvy to his staff at Ogilvy & Mather in 1982. If this was important then, I would say it is even more important now. Words of wisdom from the legend.

The better you write, the higher you go in Ogilvy & Mather. People who think well, write well. Woolly minded people write woolly memos, woolly letters and woolly speeches. Good writing is not a natural gift. You have to learn to write well. Here are 10 hints:

1. Read the Roman-Raphaelson book on writing*. Read it three times.

2. Write the way you talk. Naturally.

3. Use short words, short sentences and short paragraphs.

4. Never use jargon words like reconceptualize, demassification, attitudinally, judgmentally. They are hallmarks of pretension.

5. Never write more than two pages on any subject.

6. Check your quotations.

7. Never send a letter or a memo on the day you write it. Read it aloud the next morning—and then edit it.

8. If it is something important, get a colleague to improve it.

9. Before you send your letter or your memo, make sure it is crystal clear what you want the recipient to do.

10. If you want ACTION, don’t write. Go and tell the guy what you want.

David

Number 4, 7 and 10 really jump out at me. Good things to remember.

From the book: The Unpublished David Ogilvy: A Selection of His Writings from the Files of His Partners
Image credit

02192012

Sleep on it

By on February 19, 2012 in Productivity with No Comments

Give yourself a break and look at it later with fresh eyes.

Whether it’s a long copywriting project, a web layout, or a new visual identity, every project reaches a point where you just need to stop and take a break. This is so important in a project’s development. A good night’s sleep, or even just a short 20 minutes cat nap, can make all the difference in the quality and progress of a project. Oftentimes, I find myself working to a stopping point late at night, and then forcing myself to stop and go to sleep. Then, I wake early, look at the piece with fresh eyes, and almost always solve the problem I had, or improve my design in some way. This is a huge time saver, and ultimately produces better work.

Some of the most productive people in the world take a short nap every day. Why? Because it’s a change of pace, a chance for your mind to wander in dreams, and for your body to rest. If you keep a healthy work/life/sleep ratio in mind, you may just find your best ideas come when your eyes pop open after needed rest.

02112012

Ring, Ring, Ring, Ring, Ring

By on February 17, 2012 in Creativity with 1 Comment

Sometimes an idea seems so obvious once you see it executed well.

BUT, I maintain that this ad is a stroke of brilliance, and a great example of thinking outside the box, and seeing the same old things in a truly brand new and unique way.

How many other examples of circles, rings, hoops etc. are going through your mind right now? Makes you think, doesn’t it? I’m going to try and apply this principle in future work I do. It’s obvious that really great things come from looking at, and thinking about something in an entirely new way.

Credit to Felix Heyes, Josh King and Ben West for their work on the ad. Spot on, sirs.

02102012

Who’s listening?

By on February 13, 2012 in Mindset with No Comments

Who’s reading your posts? Who’s viewing your portfolio? Who’s listening?

More people than you think, if you’re working at it. If you’re consistent, and putting things out there, people will see it. I think it’s that simple. People can’t see what isn’t live, but you’ll be pleasantly surprised when you get an email that says something like:

“Hi, I was just surfing the web for a designer to work on
a new project with me and your site came up…”

These are good messages to get. It’s easy to feel like a new blog, portfolio or site isn’t getting seen by anybody, but you really will be surprised at who’s listening. Analytics can tell you a lot about numbers, but what they don’t tell you is the impression your content made on the visitor. This is a stat that comes full circle, through interaction. Someday, that person will let you know they’ve been listening, or, in the case of my previous example, you’ll get connected, start working on something awesome, have more great content to put up, have more people listening, and around it goes.

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New work: Gourmet Fruit Bouquets

By on February 9, 2012 in Portfolio with 2 Comments

A site that I designed just recently launched, along with the identity and collateral designs as well. Gourmet Fruit Bouquet’s doors are officially open.

I had a great opportunity to work on a project in 2011 with Gourmet Fruit Bouquets. They make edible fruit bouquets, chocolate dipped strawberries, awesome dipped apples and more. They came to me before any design had been done, and asked that I design the identity, website, and assist with all art direction to establish the company’s image and collateral. Their doors just opened in Johannesburg, South Africa. Yep, South Africa.

Being kind of a nut about logo and identity design, I was naturally pumped when I had the chance to work on this mark from the ground up. Most identity projects will go through many revisions before it’s “just right”. I thought it would be fun to post some of the logo iterations that didn’t make the cut, but still show good direction. Ultimately it was all of the “failures” that got us where we ended up.

Here is the logo that the client ultimately decided on:

And here are a few of the other previous iterations:

What lesson do we learn? Just because a logo looks “good” doesn’t mean it accomplishes the objective completely. Everything from audience, to product, to price point, to location and more have to be taken into account. If the mark isn’t feeling like it fits into all of those critique points well, it doesn’t matter how pretty it is.

See the full portfolio entry here

01252012

The quest for perfection

By on January 25, 2012 in Mindset with 3 Comments

Ask yourself, when has a project ever turned out perfect? Think about it. Perfect?

So often, creatives are on a quest for perfection. Ultimately, this only serves as a roadblock to launching something great. You see, there is always more than one great, creative solution. Brainstorm a few ideas, pick a palette, pick a layout, choose a tagline, adjust the shadows and gradients, and send it out. Solve the problem. The trouble is that we end up in a never ending circle of tweaking, re-doing, reviewing, discussing, pretending that we can achieve a “perfect” solution. There is no perfect solution for any project, but there are many “right” ways, and “great” ways to finish the project and get it out the door.

I believe that great ideas turn to great products/solutions when one works hard on a few possible solutions, lays them out, picks one, and sends it out. Not when those solutions are laid out, rearranged, thrown out, and the process begins all over again. Having something out there is almost always better than having nothing out there.

Don’t let the frustrating quest for perfection stop you from doing something really great.

Food for thought.

01192012

The start of something new

By on January 19, 2012 in Uncategorized with 4 Comments

Taking a leap. Jumping in. Putting it out there.

All common expressions for that moment when you make the decision to start something new. With this redesign of my design portfolio, I’m also implementing a blog which I hope will help do a few things.

First, I want to learn consistency in publishing content. Second, I want to contribute. I love reading what other creatives willingly contribute. I’d like to take my chance to offer what I know, and how I see things.

Finally, I want to try something new. I want to take the leap, jump in, and put it out there. So here goes.