[ July 21, 2009 ] [ by Sara Williams ]
Often those in the industry (graphic designers even!) think a designer’s job is to do that and only that—design. That is, the job is supposed to be to create a design that visually communicates the brand strategy and receive the “thumbs up” from the client. Check. Check out . . . well, not quite.
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[ June 12, 2009 ] [ by Paul Welty ]
[ May 28, 2009 ] [ by Steve Chalk ]
OK, it seems that about once a year the ‘next great social media tool’ emerges. This year, it seems to be Twitter. Last year, it was Facebook. A couple of years ago, LinkedIn was all the rage. That leads me to a couple of burning questions:
[ April 17, 2009 ] [ by Michael Sheldon ]
Wordpress, especially 2.7, can do a lot for small sites and blogs once you’ve got the basic install up and running. And let’s face it, with so many hosts providing one-click installs of WP and Plugins available via direct downloadable updates now, administration is much easier.
Further, the revamped user interface is a huge boon to finding what an author needs quickly. And on the design side, being able to easily select templates to apply to a page now is a wonderful improvement and helps separate the setup and design part of the site from authors’ needs.
However, it’s not a quick solution for any content management system (CMS) problem. There are many sites which just won’t quite work on WordPress. For example, recently a client was discussing whether WordPress could handle their many thousands of pages as they migrated from static hand-linked html. (It was good that they wanted to move to some modern CMS.) However, the site isn’t really designed to center around blog entries, and their static page count is huge. Both of these factors work again WordPress, despite it’s recent advances.
All we had to show them was how long the single page selection menu would be in the administration to give a good example of some of the shortcomings still inherent in WordPress as a full-fledged CMS. Even with plugins such as Page-mash, there’s only so much effort that’s been put into general site control that you would normally expect in a modern CMS. So while we’re certainly very happy with the changes that have come out in WordPress, it’s still not everything for everyone.
[ April 13, 2009 ] [ by Sara Williams ]
Typography on the Web has come a long way in the last couple decades. In the past, Web typography was rarely well designed due to technical limitations. Although constraints do still exist, doing a little extra to create clear, readable typography on the Web is both possible and smart.
Quality Web typography improves communication. It also enhances flow and interactivity. Your written content is usually the most valuable element on your Web site. Thus, prioritizing your Web site typography is actually highlighting your most profitable resource. Below are three basic, but important rules to abide by when considering typography on the Web.
[ February 27, 2009 ] [ by Paul Welty ]
Both missions and revivals try to attract converts, but they work in different ways. The “downtown mission” of movie lore attracts people by offering food and shelter. And, usually in unspoken exchange, they seek to convert these people. A revival directly caters only to those people who want to be converted. Which one is more like selling today?
[ January 30, 2009 ] [ by Paul Welty ]
Synchronous communication requires an equal time and attention commitment from each party. In contrast, social media typically relies on the convenience and flexibility of asynchronous communication. That is, it allows parties to communicate even when they are not online at the same time. The flexibility ensures ease of use of the tool. The communicator can post whenever and the recipient can pick up the message when it suits. Email is a good example of this. This mode of communication is efficient for both sides because it takes little time to “drop off” or “pick up” a message when you don’t need to think about the overhead of synchronous communication—thinking about the other person, waiting for them to respond, thinking about your response, and so on.
Recently, however, I have seen an increase in the synchronicity of social media. Twitter and Facebook now seem to demand, and receive, constant attention. Status updates get replies in real-time. Tweets are answered in seconds. This indicates that these media have become synchronous: the parties are in communication at the same time. And, in so doing, these media are losing their efficiency. As they lose their efficiency, they become more like work. That is, they demand more and more time from participants. And as this happens, we can expect the use of social media in the workplace to come under increased scrutiny, especially in this economy.
We have to be careful when considering why is it communication that we call social that we don’t relax in what’s on synchronist communication. Synchronist communication apparently risky because they have–require much higher commitment from both parties. Instead, be sure to focus also on a synchronist communication, in fact we’re underestimating the importance and the role of the e-mail.
[ October 13, 2008 ] [ by Sara Williams ]
What makes a great logo design? I think it is a combination of technical, strategic and aesthetic factors that combine in just the right way. Often, if the typography was just slightly larger, or the color was just a shade brighter, it wouldn’t work. Let’s face it—it’s difficult to design a smart, successful logo that resonates with an audience. It is elusive and complicated, and you can’t always identify why it works. It’s much easier to spot a poorly designed logo and know why it’s unsuccessful. Below are three suggestions to correct the missteps I see most often.
1. Create your initial logo as a vector file.
“Vector” logos, or logos built in Postscript, allow for maximum usage. You can scale the size of vector files greatly without loss of quality or sharpness. This means that the same logo file that looks great on a business card will also look great on a billboard. Also, vector graphics are small in file size. This makes them much easier to manage and share. The bottom line—for print design, a vector logo will always look and act best. Your design agency will typically start with a vector logo, but can provide Web-friendly files from this format also.
2. Design your logo in black and white – at first.
It is best to avoid color while in the first round of logo design. If you design a logo that works without color first, you can avoid the possibility of the logo relying on color for its visual impact. This is important because most logos end up being displayed in black and white at some point—in a newspaper or on a fax or copy. Once you do add color, it is best to limit it to two if you can. Too many colors can confuse the eye rather than helping to focus it. Limiting your colors will also save you money during the printing process. Since there is no limitation to color usage on screen, many companies shave been tempted to overuse color in their Web design. Bad design, however, is bad design in any context.
3. Simplify. Simplify. Simplify
Overly complicated logos are often difficult to read and understand. This is true even at a large scale, but especially so when reduced in size. And since these complex logos are difficult to really see, they are almost impossible to remember or recognize. Companies often mistakenly perceive their logo as their entire brand platform. Thus, they try to communicate everything about their company in the mark, instead of the essential, overarching qualities. You do need to put a lot of complex thought into your logo behind the scenes, but you do not want the viewer to see that in excessive detail work, color, or font usage. It is best to communicate a company’s brand attributes with a clean, simple logo design.
4. Always consider your logo’s size and ratio.
As a rule, logos should be recognizable and readable at a quarter inch. At some point, most logos will need to be reproduced at a very small size—on a plastic pen, key chain or usb drive. It is also best if your logo is not overly horizontal or vertical. Most logos will not be a perfect square, but a conservative width to height ratio is ideal. A balanced mark is adaptable, making it easier to successfully place in a variety of layouts.
[ September 4, 2008 ] [ by Paul Welty ]
Okay, maybe that’s a bit of an exaggeration. We all use adjectives and adverbs when we write, and it doesn’t always mean we’re ignorant or lying. And of course all adjectives and adverbs aren’t bad. But clear ideas are best expressed primarily through nouns.
[ September 4, 2008 ] [ by Paul Welty ]
We’re all familiar with the importance of marketing and its role in the enterprise. Mainly, good marketing helps increase revenue and decrease costs. But there are other uses, especially in transforming a company’s culture.
