News & Musings

The Resurgence of low tech in the age of technology

Today’s insatiable consumerism with the latest, greatest digital devices has brought us every feasible type of entertainment and media at our fingertips. Cell phones older than a year are incredulously considered Jurassic technology. We could hardly imagine a world without must-have applications; such as iTunes; delivering every song, movie and novel on demand. Hot items; such as the iPad and Kindle; ensure we’ll always have our favorite newspaper and stay on top of the best sellers. These streamlined digital tools are making our lives less cluttered and more efficient. What more could people want? The constant acquisition of the hottest new gadget seems to be leaving us wanting something more, something else, something tangible.

A nostalgic desire for a simplified, tactile world has found it’s way back into our hearts. The age of soulless homogeneous branding has had it’s cage shaken. Although the “always on brand, always on message” perfectly manicured corporate brands aren’t going to completely disappear anytime soon, we are seeing a deep need to return to what is truly important and timeless. Perhaps it’s the recession that has reminded us about what we are yearning for to feed our souls? The comforting nostalgic visual of a Hipstamaticapp iPhone app image seems to be speaking to us more than an ‘every grain of sand must be pin sharp’ look of the most precise digital camera. The desire for texture, for awakening our senses, for the scrumptious tactile feeling of fine paper under our fingertips. There is truly a visual feast found in artisan craftsmanship.

As designers, increasingly more of our work has become digitized, so every trip to the printer fills me with a strange joy. I’ve missed the unmistakable scent of printers ink. The perfection in the imperfection of beautifully handset type, and the almost musical sound of an old foot operated letterpress. Knowing that someone has put care, thought and creativity into their craft, results in pure treasure. It’s the human connection one feels in such objects; not just to the craftspeople who forge these things, but to the generations to come; that these ideas and objects will also come to touch. And with this renewed desire for human connection, there has been a resurgence of the tangible.

Independent bookshops are miraculously popping back up. Communities such as Briar Press have sprouted from a common dedication to the preservation of the art of letterpress. Seattle’s new floating farmer’s market FarmBoat utilizes stunning historic wooden vessels, to transport and sell locally produced goods. This plastic free market (only wooden crates and fabric tents are used) echoes the rich maritime tradition from a century ago. Handcrafted and individually packaged food items, such as the delectable chocolates by Brooklyn’s Mast Brothers Chocolate (cacao nibs are even transported by sailboat!) are more cherished than commercially mass produced brands. People have no problem standing in long lines to obtain the artisan cured meats at Seattle’s Salumi and small craft breweries such as Silver City Brewery, Hale’s Ales and the newly formed Sound Brewery have loyal imbibers that savor the lovingly brewed liquid gold. In a time when communication has been reduced to ‘twitter’ and feels more like chatter, the deep desire for the human connection has once again blossomed.

For further reading about the fine craftsmanship mentioned in this article, please reference the following links:

briarpress.org
farmboat.org
halesalehouse.com
hipstamaticapp.com
mastbrotherschocolate.com
salumicuredmeats.com
silvercitybrewery.com
soundbrewery.com

We welcome and value comments from our readers. Please let us know what makes you feel connected and inspired.

How to know which licensing model is right for your campaign

With all of the different image licensing models available today, it can be a bit confusing to know which one is right for your campaign. The biggest question to consider when choosing a licensing model, is how unique you need the image to be to your project. Microstock may seem enticing, with it’s extremely low price point and huge variety to choose from. However; the imagery won’t be the slightest bit unique to your campaign. Microstock is very commonly used, so it can show up anywhere: from an ad for your local dry cleaner to a car wash flyer or even be used by your direct competitor. Although the Royalty-Free licensing model also can’t ensure the same image won’t be used by your direct competitor, the production value is generally of a higher quality. The higher quality RF imagery justifies a slightly steeper price point than microstock, and the mass usage will be greatly reduced. If you need to ensure that the image selected for your campaign is not currently being used by a direct competitor or won’t show up on a flyer stuck under your windshield, Rights- Managed licensing would be the best option. Although the price point is the highest of all of the licensing models, the usage is controlled and the quality will be top notch. The image will become more associated specifically with your campaign, rather than commonly appearing all over town. When selecting your imagery, be sure to think about how you want your campaign to be perceived and then choose the image licensing model appropriate for your project’s needs.

Is it enough that something looks good?

Any discussion about graphic design or marketing these days often centers around some seriously pragmatic concepts; e.g. process, demographics, psycho-graphics, testing groups, eye-movement-tracking, data-mining, and the list goes on and on… We become so wrapped up in the mechanics, that we sometimes completely lose the plot. I’m not suggesting that these processes & methodologies aren’t useful. If nothing else, they give us a place to start, as well as inform our creative decisions. For most creatives, that can be half the battle. However; the best graphic designers have always kept a dark, dirty little secret… which is that we believe (or half believe, did I mention secretly?) that graphic design is art. That a beautifully crafted environment or filmed advertisement; whatever the medium; can in
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How to use keywords to find the image you are seeking

Finding the appropriate stock image for your campaign can be a challenge. Even with the plethora of imagery that is available online, the perfect shot can be elusive. If your search return doesn’t bring up the image that you have in mind, it doesn’t necessarily mean the image doesn’t exist. Searching with different sets of keywords will bring up different search returns. For example, if you are searching for ‘homebrewing beer’ and your search return comes up zero, try a different set of keywords. Using the keywords ‘homemade beer’ instead of ‘homebrewing beer’ may return the image you are seeking. Most stock agencies have a set list of keywords they utilize and may not use the term you are searching with. If the search term you initially use Continue Reading

What you should know before pressing that ‘send’ button

Right this very minute you probably have at least a few newsletter campaigns in your inbox that are both helpful, and entertaining. And a few that are utterly annoying and with any luck have already been filtered over to your ‘junk-mail’ box!

In this article I will help you understand the complexities of email marketing, and how to keep on the good side of your subscribers, out of the junk mail filters, and most importantly, how to convert subscribers into clients.

Be Sure that You Have an Excellent Privacy Policy

Most people are incredibly concerned about the amount of spam they receive. Do not buy or sell email lists. Do not send emails to people who didn’t give you permission to send to them. Even if you get peoples emails addresses at trade shows, etc., make sure that they have
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