Catalog is a Real Page-Turner
When was the last time you read a catalog? Not glanced through the merchandise and scanned a price or two, but actually read the text? Ever? That changed with the new JC Penney catalog. Pretty in pink on the outside, … Continue reading 
Dive Into Re-branding, The Water’s Fine
We’ve all seen it. The kid on the diving board, scared to jump into the water, scared even more by what their friends might say if they climbed back down the ladder. I meet people like that. They want a … Continue reading
A New ROI: Return on Ideas
A wise man I knew once told me something about a particular auto company that shall remain nameless: scratch the paint and you can see the soup can label underneath. He didn’t mean it literally. He meant the product wasn’t … Continue reading
Business Is Still In The Cards
Just when it seems almost everything has gone high tech, someone hands you their business card. Sure, the little cards have evolved over the years. Today’s versions can be personalized with unique papers, inks, etching and photos – even messages … Continue reading
Bring That Rabbit Into Focus
According to the old proverb, “If you chase two rabbits, both will escape.” That’s especially true in design and marketing. Lacking focus is the surest path to failure. When I ask a potential client who he or she envisions to … Continue reading
Design Is About Being Practical
The opposite of conflict is compromise, yet many people confuse compromise with defeat. Successful design and marketing are based in compromise. Very few initial ideas are unchanged by the time a campaign goes to press. Along the way there are … Continue reading
When A Photo Crowds Out The Message
Have you ever seen a magazine advertisement that was made up entirely of words? That’s because the appeal of an image is undeniable. One expertly staged and properly chosen photograph can be worth a thousand words – and even more … Continue reading
Your Brand, The Final Frontier
Gap recently beat a hasty and well-publicized retreat after it introduced a new logo without first telling the people most interested – its customers – the reasons behind the change. Once mass hysteria over the new logo spread, it was … Continue reading
Design Recognizes Vitality of Paper
In the movie “Ghostbusters.” One of my favorite lines is when Harold Ramis as Dr. Egon Spengler turns to Annie Potts and deadpans, “Print is dead.” Five years ago, Sports Illustrated President John Squires repeated Egon’s proclamation and added, “Get … Continue reading
Putting You Face-to-Facebook With The Crowd
How many friends do you have? Not real friends. Facebook friends. There is a difference. I can tell you how many friends I have in real life, and it’s nowhere near the number of friends I have on Facebook. That … Continue reading
Designing From the Inside Out
Ever since the dawn of instant coffee, people crave immediacy. It’s a demand that frustrates and challenges today’s designers. Without an endless supply of duct tape, people aren’t going to sit still long enough to be educated by unfamiliar concepts … Continue reading
Should Some Brands Come With “Sell-By” Dates?
From ice cream to bottled water, nearly everything that goes past our lips has a “sell-by” date on the package. Wise to check on meat and milk, but water? If it’s a week past the date, does water lose something? … Continue reading
Marketing And Sales Aren’t The Same Thing
In bright, bold lettering the huge sign out front read “Men’s suits, 50% Off!” Potential customers formed a line that snaked the parking lot. But once they got inside, the majority walked away disappointed. You see, the promotion was for … Continue reading
When A Company Tunes Itself Out
I had my doubts when I heard last fall that longtime (since 1921) retailer RadioShack was finally attempting to join the 21st century with a rebranding. Rather than an engaging redesign, the company’s decision was to simply drop the word … Continue reading
A Different Green Thumb
Regardless of the roller-coaster temperatures outdoors, the gardening season is here. People are eager to realize the personal fulfillment of putting a seed or a plant in the ground in May and a couple months later enjoying the fruits and … Continue reading
Bring Focus Into Strategy
A point of convergence. The clarity of an image. Close attention. The center of interest. The most important information being presented. All these words describe one very important word: focus. I’ve often heard people say how something “really brought that … Continue reading
Speak Figuratively
If a picture is worth a thousand words, then a figure of speech should be worth at least nine-hundred. When you say something that causes the listener to interact with the statement and visualize it, or put context around, or … Continue reading
A Brand You Can Bank On
How long is a brand? How deep? Better yet, what is a brand worth? All intangibles, as difficult to measure as dedication and integrity. But still possible. A brand’s true value, once the creative process is complete, comes not from … Continue reading
Smart Mobile Site Links
I’ve been to a lot of sites on my mobile phone. But for the first time ever (I think) I saw a button that allows me to call, without having to dial a number. When you’re creating a mobile experience … Continue reading
Visual Ergonomics
Design can be summed up as the translation and organization of information. Just like a spoon or weed whacker fits well in your hand, a brochure or billboard fits well in your eyes. The art of getting the viewer’s attention … Continue reading
Advertising Your Brand
EVERYTHING a brand does is advertising. All the tiniest details. Most people these days point to Apple as a delightful brand. But that’s hardly based on their TV ads. It’s based on how elegant (and reliable) their products are to … Continue reading
Reaching Baby Boomers
They’re defined as the generation born between 1946 and 1965. Dubbed “baby boomers,” it’s no less than 78 million Americans. At ages 45 to 64, they may not be the prime youthful group most marketers target. But they comprise nearly … Continue reading
Will Everyone Have an iPad?
It’s already been said a thousand times, but the iPad will revolutionize the publishing industry. Why would a newspaper (or magazine) continue to print itself when readerships continue to shrink. I am amazed that our local paper has full page … Continue reading
Design Has a Fudge Factor – Positioning Doesn’t
Tune in to CNN and nearly every day there’s a new poll gauging the public’s approval or disapproval of someone or something. When the numbers are distant, the result seems clear. But when they’re a few points apart, we are … Continue reading
Playing Ketchup
Heinz Ketchup recently introduced ketchup lovers to a new way to enjoy their product. Their latest innovation is packaging that allows the choice of dipping or squeezing. While their press release claims this to be a monumental achievement, I do … Continue reading
Does My Website Make Me Look Fat?
Back when you went *live*, your website was sooooo hot. It was lean, had the right balance of text and graphics, just a few clicks to everything anyone needed to know. Made you feel great, didn’t it? What’s happened since … Continue reading
Recognizing the Keepers
A visit to the apple orchards near Nebraska City in the fall can be a fascinating experience. As the harvest comes in, the apples are sorted by machine and by hand according to variety, size and grade. The very best … Continue reading
Marketing Budgets and Virtual Agencies
Emily Thornton Calvo, for HealthLeaders Media
says, “In this economy, healthcare marketers are watching their budgets more closely than ever. Hospitals endure rising costs, pressure to increase access, and let’s face it, they’d rather spend money on the latest CT … Continue reading
Viral Marketing
Internet videos pop up everywhere and we all watch them from time to time. They get passed around through e-mail, MySpace, Facebook, and of course you can find them on YouTube. If they catch on and go Viral, they have … Continue reading
Would You Like to Biggie Size That Brand?
The other day I was sitting in a McDonald’s drive-thru when I noticed a sign on the wall inside that said, “The dictionary is the only place where SUCCESS comes before WORK.” Believe it or not, the same cheap slogan … Continue reading
