Nanochromatic

The new iPod nano was launched last week and the advertising campaign focuses on the new colour range and not so much on the features. As ever you can expect Apple to have delivered on the design font, with the new nano's once again a product that people will want to have (even if they already have an old nano!)



The advert in my opinion is brilliantly simple and just focuses on the range available. I think the flowing paint at the end shows the brightness of the colour range and also the diversity. The natural flow of paint is very powerful and can create some brilliant visual images. This use of paint also reminds me of an Orange mobile advert that was aired a year or two ago (below).

Coke Zero Bond Advert

Here is a new advert for Coke Zero playing into the new James Bond movie Quantum of Solice theme. I'm not too sure whether i like it if I'm honest. I guess they have tried to make the advert like bond opening credits but not sure whether the brands fit together...I mean I can't imagine Bond going into a bar, forgetting his Martini and instead ordering a Vodka and Coke Zero...

On my scouring of YouTube I found another attempt to link the two brands, all the way back in 1987.

Drench - Iconic Branding

This advert has been mentioned before by others but the power of it's influence struck me today at work. Working at a radio station we have the radio on constantly and today, approx. 10 minutes ago in fact, Rhythm is a Dancer came on and my first reaction was Drench Water. Not only that as the song ended I went straight to YouTube and found the advert to have another look. The power of branding hey. Not too dissimilar to Cadbury but I kind of like the fact that it is, for the moment at least, a one off advert.

I even found this video of how they made the advert which is a pretty interesting watch as well.

Issuu.com

http://issuu.com

Issuu.com is a really useful tool for designers to use to show off some of their work. The website allows you to upload PDFs to create an online book that can be embedded and sent to others. It can even be uploaded to Facebook and other networking websites to show off your work. Well worth bookmarking for the future.

Here is an example of a project I'm working on at the moment to help promote a new book called BookDiary. By utilising the Issuu website I ave been able to create a preview of the book for web users to take a look at online.

Get your own - Open publication

Hovis Advert

This is the new advert for Hovis. I saw it the other day and felt compelled to go and find it online. It's a beautifully shot advert that takes the journey home from the bakers and turns it into a trip through the decades. Considering I hadn't even lived through the majority of the decades in the advert I was able to recognise the symbolism and events depicted and I found it an ad that you could really engage with.

RocknRolla

As mentioned last night I went to see Guy Richie's gangster offering RocknRolla. A fantastic film in my opinion and one I'd recommend you see. It's a typical Richie offering off the back of Lock Stock and Snatch and revolves around a similar concept of many people who all become involved with each others business, coming together at the end with a fitting twist.

The film is cast as a British gangster film should be, full of cockney hard men and with one man in control but Richie has managed to write a script that is serious but has the odd line of comic genius. A real must see for all Lock Stock fans out there.

Here's the trailer for a sneak peak of what to expect. (Note the similarity in graphic approach to the opening credits)

RocknRolla Opening Credits

Last night I went to see Guy Richie's new offering RocknRolla. I was blown away by the opening credits which I thought were brilliantly done. A really strong graphic style that runs through the trailer, credits and the movie merchandise (posters etc).

Bobby's Burger Palace

Now excuse me for being critical but Pentagram, one of the world's greatest companies, designed this...I couldn't believe it! First impressions were not good. To me it looked as if it had been knocked together in Word, and to be fair it could have been, there's not much to it. However I became slightly more relieved when I saw it on packaging, menus and other media.

I'll let them off...don't judge a book by it's cover...

Mixa-It

Design studio magneticNorth had resurrected the mix tape with MIXA.

Essentially it’s a 1gB memory stick (for photos, text and anything else you want) in the shape of a tape and comes with a set of stickers for customisation. The customisation goes on and you can upload your designs online and see what others have been doing with their mix tapes.

OK just a novelty USB really. But fun none the less.

The Chase Calendar

This is a self promotional calendar from the agency The Chase, utilising the hanging string to create a visual illusion relative to every month of the year.

Very simple and very clever.

Cannes Lions 2008 Website

The awards may be over but having had a look at the website again I am really impressed by the overall look of it all. Think it's a very bold site with a really good choice of colours and typeface. My only concern is the use of larger bold copy in the main news window.

http://www.canneslions.com/

Alphabunnies Typeface

This is a typeface designed by Airside called Alphabunnies.

An interesting typeface, don't think it would be a very useful typeface in fairness but some interesting thinking behind some of the characters.

Cadbury Remixes

Interesting that Fallon have released new remixes of the Gorilla and Airport adverts in the past week...it is just me or are they just pushing these a tad too far. Should they not develop more of a campaign rather than two adverts redone? It's hard to stay. In fairness the Airport version with Bon Jovi I think works better than the original. The Gorilla though was best left as it was in my opinion.

Clerical Medical Identity

This is the new identity for pensions and investments company Clerical Medical, created by Rufus Leonard.

The digital and branding consultancy has worked with Clerical Medical to develop an identity and logo to support the company’s vision of ‘being easy to do business with’.

Rufus Leonard has devised new print and digital graphics, a revamped website home page and brochure design.

James Ramsden, creative director at Rufus Leonard, says the brief was to deliver consistent branding while supporting Clerical Medical’s quest to place stronger emphasis on service.

Jonathan Bradley, head of brand for Clerical Medical, adds that the renewed focus on design is ‘about a change in the way we do business, in the way we go about things and what we deliver’.

I personally think it is a bold piece of branding for a company whose service has stereotypically old connotations. The idea of pensions is something that has not been really considered by the younger generation but the reality is that if things continue the vast majority of us will not be in pension plans. Clerical Medical is moving with the times, using a very positive and forward moving ident and trying to break into this market. It could be a very significant and successful move for them.

Research questions website design and usability

Interesting article this about the lack of quality in the user friendliness of websites. It poses the question of whether it is the aesthetic beauty of a website that is important or the usablility. Perhaps at the moment people are too focused on the former and not focusing enough on the latter.

It could even be a case of designer and web designer not working together hand in hand. If a designer looks at creating a fantastic look for a site perhaps they don't consider how the web designer is going to code it and make it work in a user friendly way.

Digital consultancy Rawnet’s Online Conversion Report, which questioned almost 2000 adults, looks at the way in which Web design influences purchasing decisions and affects brand perception.

The report highlights the challenge of creating an eye-catching, well-designed site that is still user-friendly – while 31 per cent of British consumers believe it is rare to find a well-designed site, 20 per cent think that spectacular, creative sites can be difficult to use.

Meanwhile, 14 per cent of those questioned claim websites that are really easy to use are often lacking in creativity and the ‘wow’ factor.

The issue of usability is of particular concern, with almost three-quarters of respondents saying they would be more likely to deal with a company that showed all the relevant information they were looking for on a single page.

A huge 50 per cent of consumers say they are only occasionally presented with the information they have been searching for.

Adam Smith, managing director of Rawnet, says there is a real gap between the creative and technical capabilities of most Web design projects.

He says that companies are losing out on potential business because their current Web design consultancy has either focused too much on what looks great, or too much on non-essential technical features and failed to actually produce a website that works for the business.

In general, those questioned believe travel companies and supermarkets boast the best websites. Charity websites were rated last.

The Rawnet 2008 Online Conversion Report polled the views of 1962 UK adults on company website design and functionality.

http://www.designweek.co.uk/Articles/139565/Research+questions+website+design+and+usability.html