WUMPWORLD

Design Your Impact

One of the main problems we have as designers in a time of climate change and over-consumption is how to avoid adding to the problem. After all, our profession promotes branding, advertising, and marketing to companies that make stuff. We design the packaging, paper products, ads, reports, websites, and any other communication device that connect our clients to their audiences. We get paid to communicate every need and desire to consumers whether they need it or not. When we are successful it leads to more services and products being consumed. This leads to our clients growth in wealth and resources and the ability to make more stuff. They become thrilled by our work and hire us to do more. As a designer conscious of the problems we face for our future humanity, how do you balance economic success for yourself and the impact it has on the planet?

The first thing for graphic designers to do is rethink how the product or service we are promoting is communicated. How do you optimize a product or service touchpoint? If that product is a sneaker sitting on a self-serve shelf, how is the item packaged, displayed and transported? What materials are used to accomplish this? What are the upstream and downstream effects of producing these materials? What can be done to lessen the impact of that packaging? If you are designing communications for the services of a Massage Therapist you would have a different set of questions. What media or device has the best reach for their specific market? Are you designing a website, flyer, postcard, brochure, gift box, trade show booth or a combination of any of these? Is it necessary to use any of these communication devices to reach the goals of the project? How do you maximize ROI (return on investment) with the least environmental impact? Once you have a good understanding of what the project consists of, then you can design it to your specific goals. Can it be lighter, smaller, minimize waste, use less materials, reuseable or multi-functional? Can you use recycled, reclaimed materials and renewable resources to make it? Can you avoid toxic materials? Is it sourced from local, socially and environmentally responsible companies? These are design problems that weigh the economic, environmental, social impact versus the communication needs that meet the end goal for the project. What do you hope to accomplish with the project and what are the externalities resulting from it?

I have developed my own project report card for weighing these options and helping guide Riverbed Design through the process. You can find it here. Here are a few of the many resources that I would recommend for framing sustainable communication design methods; AIGA’s Living Principles, renourish and the book Green Graphic Design by Brian Dougherty. All of these have similar approaches and philosophies that will greatly help any designer. These resources cover the many aspects of sustainable design practices. They speak of the physical standpoint of environmental impact and the other two areas of the triple bottom line, economic and social impact. When I started my own company I had a vision of a truly sustainable design practice that has a positive impact on the world. I wanted to be able to wake up every morning and be excited and happy about the work I would do. I did not want to worry about what my work was actually achieving and who it was ultimately benefitting.  To accomplish this, I knew my company had to involve all three parts of the triple bottom line. Who I work for is just as important as the work I do and who benefits from it.

Everyone has their own idea of what “positive impact” means. You can make the case that working for Walmart will have a positive impact. They have a massive amount of influence on their corporate partners (wholesalers and manufacturers) with their purchasing power. This gives Walmart a great deal of leverage. Currently, they are using that influence to change the packaging for the products they sell. This is their sustainability mission that is reducing carbon in millions of metric tons and at the same time saving them a great deal of money. Personally, I would not work for them because of the negative economic impacts they make on local economies and how poorly they treat employees. This is based on my own value system.

Every designer or design firm has to answer this question for themselves: Who do I want to work for and why? It is important to have a value system in place that you can refer to as a guiding light. When times get murky and it becomes hard to trust your own instincts a value system can tip the decision matrix to making the right choices for yourself. It is paramount to do good research and make sure you will feel positive about the work you will produce for your client. There are plenty of companies that say they are doing the right things, but as soon as you scratch the surface things falls apart. Weigh the cost of the job, the type of work, the opportunities it provides, and what you will be paid against your value system. Interview your potential clients to make sure you understand them as well as provide yourself the ability to inform them on your particular approach. Do not lose the chance to show your strengths and knowledge. Building trust with a client will allow you to advise them on anything they consider you as an expert. On a small scale, this could mean the difference in whether they will explore recycled papers for a project, or on a larger scale, auditing their communication channels for a “green” friendly way. This can give you the best foundation to make the greatest impact. An important lesson I have learned is there is an abundance of companies wanting to do the right thing and they are waiting for someone to show them how. Sometimes you can make a more substantial impact by working for the company that wants to be green versus the one that already is. As a designer working in a the age of climate change and over-consumption, this is your chance to make a difference and feel good about the work you do.

Visual Development of a Logo

Last month I had the pleasure of teaching a one day class on logo design for the LINK program. For those of you unfamiliar (which a majority are), this is a program aimed at High School students with interests in Art and Design. It is affiliated with the local Seattle AIGA chapter, where I am on the board.

“The AIGA Link Program connects Seattle area high school students with creative professionals through nine monthly workshops. Every third Saturday of the month, students complete artwork that demonstrates an understanding of the medium presented by a guest artist. Seniors participate in a portfolio-building workshop to create a professional presentation of their work. Finally, the AIGA Link Program awards scholarship opportunities for qualified graduating seniors.”

I really enjoyed the session and was amazed by the talent of the students. In my preparation for the class, I put together a presentation that talks about logo design and branding. With this, I ended up creating a visual case study of my work on the Seafair logo to get the students primed for the same process they would go through. It was fun to put together and I thought I would share it here. If you want to see some of the particular ideas and concepts for how this process works, you can check out this previous post “Paint a Picture with Your Brand”.

This was the original logo we redesigned for Seafair. After going through a strategic branding process with Seafair, we developed key messaging, values and these six attributes.

The first step in logo design is pick up a pencil. Here is where the key ideas develop and sparks fly.

These are the first design concepts presented to Seafair. Things were off to a good start, but we needed to push it farther.

This was the second phase of the designs. Ideas were starting to coalesce but it they were not perfect yet.

This is the final logo. It has the right tone and combination of elements we were working for. The mark matched up with the attributes and represented the main aspects of a Seattle summer; sun and water. We also started developing ideas on how to incorporate the logo with the other 9+ logos in the event family matrix.

The final Seafair logo and brand family logo system

Internal Dynamic Communications

When two different pair of eyes view the same object, how can they see it or comprehend it differently? Because of the experience they bring with them. If you give a paddle to someone who has never been exposed to boats they will not know what a paddle is intended for. So how do you see things for what they truly are or meant to be? Or the question for any company; how do you tell your company’s unique story in a way that everyone comprehends it? You have to account for the context. Claude Levi-Strauss argued “it is only the way in which different elements of the content (form and context) are combined together which gives meaning.” You need to have context in order to have meaning. The solution is to create context within the form. This system gives structure to the form and therefore the context to explain the concept to new eyes experienced or not with the system. Put the uninitiated paddleman in a non-motorized boat on the water and give them a paddle. They will instinctively know the paddle is a tool to be used for this situation. They might not know exactly how to use it, but they will figure it out eventually.

Everything that evolves or is created within the form has a reference point. If this element changes within the form it delivers a new experience. Now give the newly experienced paddleman a new tool that looks like a paddle, but has an added feature like being lighter weight or an adjustable shaft for different sized people. The context you have created allows their comprehension to grow. This is called internal dynamics. You are not relying on general education of the masses to provide shared context to give meaning.

In communication or experience design you rely on shared context and internal dynamics. A web site is a perfect example. The usability of a web site is based on the instinctual nature it contains; how easy it is to navigate, to find information quickly and to understand how to use it. The level of someone’s experience in surfing the web is part of this, and other factors like how a culture reads, understanding of visual space, and readability of a typeface. Designers want to use these external elements that are part of our shared context to make communication happen faster and get straight to the center of meaning. What they do not want to do, is use external context to play a major role in the communication of a unique message. You need a good portion of internal dynamics to create the story.

If someone comes to a web site and easily gets the structure, that is good. But if they too easily perceive the content, that can be bad. That visitor will lose interest because they feel like they have seen it before and there is nothing new to experience. Seen that, done that. What keeps people intrigued is a new experience and delivering that consistently. This requires a system that relies on internal dynamics to drive the engine. A good blog site will often refer back to previous articles. This sets the tone and understanding for the current article or leads someone to learn more. Design uses this also. An often used example is Apple. You can take the Apple logo off of any of their ads and you will still know who the ad is for. Apple’s success means their style and approach will be copied. Again, when a design, thought or message is copied what benefit does it bring? In the short term it plays well and can give a quick boost. As time changes and trends fade the imitator will continually have to look for the newest fad to copy. Trend followers rely on external context to survive and thus are left to the whims of the trend setters. They are reactionary. Companies or organizations that rely on internal dynamics naturally evolve without the same struggles. These companies are proactive and do not use external forces to position themselves. They continue to push themselves by building upon their foundation of context. Each new idea carries with it a part of the original DNA. Because of this, internal dynamic companies do not have to explain themselves over and over again. Instead, these companies can concentrate on deepening their content and pushing innovation. They can afford to try new things because they have a structure to support them.

At Riverbed, we make our client’s communications successful through internal dynamics. We are lucky enough to work with clients that are innovative and full of rich experiences and services. We want to keep it that way. By concentrating on demonstrating their unique qualities and values, and developing an internal context for that experience, our clients can continue pushing the boundaries of their great work.

Branding 101 with Toys

When I was a kid my favorite toys were G.I.Joe and Transformers. These toys did not need to be explained or taught. They were a rich detailed world of imagination and creativity. I could pick one of these toys up and immediately dive in. My brother and I could create our own scenarios and stories to entertain ourselves for hours. Each of us would gravitate towards specific characters that we liked. Sometimes these characters were the same, but most of the time they were different. Our choices tended to follow our personalities. My brother preferred the outwardly brash characters that were at the center of the action. I preferred the secondary characters that were heroic but understated. You did not have to see a cartoon or comic book to start categorizing these characters and fitting them into certain slots like the strongest, fastest, or smartest. As the world of these toys expanded I could put new characters within certain gaps that might have been missing. For toys, these characteristics were stereotypes that enriched the story telling. The packaging and toys themselves communicated all of this.

How does this work even at a young age? Why is it so much fun and mesmerizing for kids? It is part discovery, part creativity and part making sense of the world. This process did two things for me as a kid. One, it made the characters easily understandable. Two, because I was involved in the process, I became personally connected to them through my understanding and imagination. I began to identity with the characters and anticipate how they might think or act. Later when I watched the cartoon, the storytelling matched up to my viewpoints and gave me more story to learn and explore. This all came from my need as a child to understand the world around me. These toys and characters are a language of archetypes that teaches universal ideas. When I came across similar stories, I applied these universal ideas to comprehend the new stories more quickly and completely. It allowed me to dig deeper into understanding the world. As the characters developed I started to attach more meaning to them and they became more complex.

These characters are symbols to an intricate web of ideas and concepts. When the characters interact with each other the complexity quantifies and patterns start to emerge. These patterns are similar to archetypes and symbols you can find in mythology, literature, fine art, music and other communications involving storytelling. Another communication method that works this way are brands. Brands, toy characters, music, stories, fine art are all communication devices that represent an abstract concept, idea, thought or a system of concepts, ideas and thoughts. Some are easier than others to translate. I’m sure the people that designed G.I.Joe and Transformers purposely made them outwardly simple and left room for the toys to grow with imagination and understanding. They used universal symbols with the toys in order to get the messages across easliy and therefore catch on quickly. The marketplace for toys is aggressive and demanding. New ideas like brands or stories depend on universal symbols, but they also need to be delivered in different combinations to fine tune that particular message. This is why it is important for companies to distill their brand down as far as it will go. Once the first message is delivered and understood, brands can start adding more complex ideas to build a true connection to a single individual. Brands must answer our needs for matching to universal symbols and work dynamically to differentiate internal characteristics and quality of that given product or service.

Man Made Image

“We can recognize random logos of corporations but cannot identify a tree in our front yard.” I was inspired by this from the documentary “11th Hour” by Leonardo DiCaprio. It reinforces the idea that nature is not relevant to our daily lives. If it is not a part of our culture and daily interactions, then how do we expect to understand the magnitude of what we have done to the planet. In “Blessed Unrest” Paul Hawken describes how much we miss if we are not looking for it. Right now we are looking for corporate logos because we feel they have more relevance in our lives than the tree you stare at everyday outside your window. It makes sense because we have been trained to think and look at things this way. The abstract symbolism of a corporation we buy products from becomes ingrained in how we look at ourselves. Thanks to designers and brand strategists like myself, the force of brands connecting to individuals is powerful.

The tree outside, while it lives in our physical environment it does not actively try to interact with us. It does not send you emails or connect to you on Facebook. It does not know about the latest trends or best buys. What that tree does is far greater. It takes the carbon dioxide we produce and turns it into oxygen that we breath. It prevents the foundation of your residence from being flooded. It traps moisture in our environment to help support a water rich ecosystem. We do not see these things happening. These processes are not as eye catching as the latest Hollywood blockbuster or beer commercial. This tree does not effect our conversation we have with our friends, family or co-workers. The tree is not relevant. We need to change that. I’m not saying world peace will happen if everyone can identity 30 trees. What I am saying, is we need to take a deeper look at what we consider important in our lives. We need to change our perspective. If we as individuals knew as much about what was happening in our environment, that truly effects us, we could accomplish amazing things.

We need to create new images that represent more than one organization’s success. If Coca Cola’s brand is worth billions of dollars, what could we make the ocean’s brand be worth? What is it worth today? I think we could all survive in a world without Coca Cola (at least the majority of us), but could we survive without a healthy ocean? These issues are not only about the environment or nature. Everything is dependent upon each other.Humans are part of nature whether we like it or not. In many ways we have thought and acted as if we are separate from nature. Now is our wake up call to reassess that idea. How does poverty affect toxic levels of mercury? Overcrowded prisons affect air pollution? I’m not a scientist so I could not tell you, but I do know that all things are interconnected. The cause and affect might have dozens of steps in these examples or seem unrelated altogether, but at some point they connect. By changing how we perceive and approach these issues we can change our understanding and how we see ourselves in relation to the world. We can turn selfish consumption and our instinctual need for production towards bigger tasks that ultimately save the human race. Humans possess a great gifts in innovation and creation. We just have been using them to gain independent wealth. Fathom what it might be like to live in a world where we work in harmony with the planet. Our skills at creation and innovation could spur a better world for us and the trees.

Buy What Matters

Do you consider yourself as part of the masses? Then why do you act like it? We have more freedom now than anytime in human history to buy the things that express ourselves and meet our needs. Why do we continue to follow companies that do not represent our interests?

It’s in our DNA. We learn at an early age to follow the path of least resistance. Our brains program connection points and map out our understanding with each new experience. When we do things a second time we expect it to be similar to the first time. If it is not, we feel it is different or not right. Ever drive somewhere a second time and feel like it took less time, but in reality it did not? That is because you are not paying attention to every detail like the first time. It is easier and less work because you know what to expect. That is the power of the big brands. They create an environment of consistency. We can expect the same product or service for the same cost over and over again anywhere in the world. This creates trust to the consumer because they reinforce our expectations. Whether you like it or not you know what you are going to get. The choice to go with these brands becomes the path of least resistance. You do not have to think about it. Even if you do not get exactly what you want you get something you kind of like for a cost that feels right. Who knows what the true cost of that product or service is to the planet or human society. “The grass is always greener” cuts both ways. Most of us desire something different, but rarely do we choose to change unless we are forced to.

We have a chance now to break from this structure, if we can get out of our habits. The opportunities to show people the “grass is greener” is right in front of us. The big brands today must work harder to keep our attention because the internet and social media provide a forum for people to share an opinion about anything. New companies can reach directly to a consumer without building a brick and mortar presence or advertise in traditional media. Not only can they talk about themselves, but so can consumers passionate about their new product or service. That is the power of blogs, twitter, facebook and the many other social media outlets. It is still an exposure game but the diverse number of people’s interests create a more specific communication outlet that can drive to a specific niche. If companies can find those “influencers” they have a chance to make an impact overnight.

Follow the brands that represent your interests and make sure you let people know about it. You have the chance to change the way we do business and give a good company a chance to compete with the big brands. We should not accept mediocrity or morally questionable products because it is easy. There is plenty to go around when people follow what they like versus what has been presented to them at the “global” neighborhood store. Use your buying power to voice the products and services that mean more to you and create a diverse marketplace.

Paint a Picture with Your Brand

How do you translate your brand into the right image for your company?

As a business you have answered the basic questions for your company in establishing your brand:
What business you are in
Who your customers are
What products you are selling
What differentiates you in your marketplace
What value you bring
Why someone should care

Community Skate & Snow design program

You might have taken the big step and created your brand promise or brand positioning statement. Now what do you do with it? You have to start communicating it. You need to put together the materials that will represent your business. Part of this is taking that brand concept and communicating it through imagery. This begins with your logo and is followed by photography or illustration, graphical elements (lines, shapes, patterns, etc…), colors and fonts. All of these elements will be used to translate your brand into marketing communications like websites and business collateral. Hopefully, you are hiring a graphic designer that has the right experience and skill to develop your company’s visual brand.

The graphic designer’s job is to communicate answers to questions like: who made this? Who owns this? What is it? What makes it special? They also have to communicate the emotional aspects of your brand. On top of this, the designer must make your brand appealing to your business’ target audience. After all, if your potential customer does not like your image, then how far will you get? That is a tall order for a logo that might not appear bigger than one inch square on a business card or website. Here is some information that you can provide the designer to lead to a successful end result.

Attributes – describe your brand with personality traits. If you saw your brand walking down the street what would it look like? Is it classic or contemporary? Flashy or cool?

Associations – play the association game. What people, places, things, metaphors or symbols come to your mind when you think about your brand? Is your brand Teddy Roosevelt or Bono? Zeus or King Kong?

Values – the rules that guide your company. How do you go about your business? Are you loyal, ethical, a team player or only in it for the money?

Tone – the approach you take in the professional world. How do you communicate with your clients? Are you serious, edgy or funny? Are you laid back or a social butterfly?

Create a list of each of these categories. Brainstorm and look at every possible angle. Then pull five descriptions out of each category. Put all of these elements together and you begin to paint a picture of your brand. Here is an example:

Kaleidoscope Office Galleries
Attributes – stylish, connecting, knowledgeable, hip, global
Associations – Miles Davis, harlequin, kaleidoscope, collage, Paris
Values – creativity, inspirational, egalitarian, collaborative, community
Tone – respectful, flexible, approachable, personable, meaningful

Once you have compiled these descriptions together you will need to take it one step farther and analyze it. What do you think of this picture? What would your target audience think? Your competition? Does this make you stand out? If you like the answers to these questions then you are ready to create the imagery for your brand. If your answers start to look confusing and contradictory you will need to change your approach. For instance, if you are a web developer and your tone is elementary. That might not be the right approach. Analyze your list and cross off the descriptions that might be industry standard like professional or quality. Take a look at the competition and see where elements on your list separate you from them. Look for descriptions that make you unique. Be sure you can back-up anything you say. Do not promote your brand with something unrealistic or impractical. That might get you noticed, but will backfire as soon as people experience your brand.

Now you have a refined description of your brand. This description combined with your business strategy will give the designer the whole picture. This picture is what your designer will work to create into graphics and imagery. The clearer the vision for your company is, the more potent your brand’s imagery can be. There are people and businesses out there looking for your company. The problem is they will not know it till they see it. Make sure you paint the right picture for them to see.

Compostmodern

GREEN SALON #3 / COMPOSTMODERN

Last month I went down to San Francisco to go to AIGA’s Compostmodern event. It was an enriching trip. I heard some great talks from amazing speakers like Saul Griffith, Ph.D., Allan Chochinov, Emily Pilloton, and Dawn Danby and even got to speak with some of them one on one. On April 8th I have been collaborating with others in the AIGA to put together our third Green Salon where we will be showing via webcasts these speakers once again. Not only that but we got a tremendous opportunity to have Algalita Marine Research speak at the event. Have you ever heard of the Island of Trash? Check out this video.

Eating our trash?

Please come to the event next week if are intrigued. It will be interesting, informative and entertaining. Click here to register. I would love to see you there.

Pepsi

You have probably seen this document before, but I find it fascinating. There was a supposed leak of Pepsi’s ideation document supporting their new logo. Pepsi spent millions of dollars on their re-brand and it looks like the Arnell Group spent a huge sum of it to come up with this document. Attached is the document.

pepsi_gravitational_field

At first I thought it was a joke. As I read the document, I realized it was not a hoax, but completely misdirected. It is amazing the amount of time and energy that went into this document to sell the idea of Pepsi’s new logo. The Arnell Group used this to deliver an ego boost to the Pepsi executives so they could be justified on the money they spent for the logo. The general public was never meant to see this document and it is a shame that it has.

While I’m not much of a soda drinker, I was beginning to think that Pepsi did a good job with the re-brand. I did not think (like most) that the logo was designed to mimic Obama’s logo. The similarities are few and far between. I’m also not sure it is better than their former logo. What I did think they did a good job with was the packaging. It is simple and clean, causing it to stand out in the visual chaos of the soda pop aisle. For once, I thought Pepsi was not following in the tracks of Coca-Cola.

Now all I can think about is how egocentric and out of left field this logo is. Maybe Pepsi can do something to change my mind in the future. It is going to take a great deal to overcome my feelings about them, because as it goes in branding:

Perception > Behavior > Reality.

The Long Tail Brand

There is a lot we can learn from the success of internet based companies. One concept in particular, applies well to creating a strong brand, the Long Tail. The Long Tail is a phrase coined by Chris Anderson in October 2004 in Wired magazine (http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/12.10/tail.html). It is created by a market of unique products. These products do not appeal to masses but instead to distinct tastes. What makes them distinct also makes them different. Differentiation is pivotal to creating successful brands. By creating companies and products in the Long Tail you have already solved one of the challenges of creating a strong brand. Here is some background information on the Long Tail from wikipedia:

The Long Tail

“The concept of a frequency distribution with a long tail — the concept at the root of Anderson’s coinage — has been studied by statisticians since at least 1946.^[2] The distribution and inventory costs of these businesses allow them to realize significant profit out of selling small volumes of hard-to-find items to many customers, instead of only selling large volumes of a reduced number of popular items. The group that purchases a large number of “non-hit” items is the demographic called the Long Tail.” To read more go here http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Long_Tail

As individuals in society we are looking to find networks where people have the similar tastes, values and shared experiences. We want to to be a part of a community united by common thoughts where we feel ourselves, and have the freedom to be ourselves. As these unique ideas, thoughts and tastes become popular they pull away from the Long Tail and land themselves in the masses. Individuals following these ideas, thoughts and tastes become lost and no longer feel unique and part of their own community.

This is where the great long lasting brands step in. Brands like Apple manage to straddle the Long Tail and the masses very well. Apple appeals to individuals that have tastes similar to Apple’s brand and business approach, like the design industry (the Long Tail and long term buyer). Apple also uses product innovation like the iPod, to appeal to a mass audience (one hit wonder).  At the same time, they have not alienated or lost either market. Quality, innovation and design becomes the great equalizer. Brands that actively and visibly communicate their desired qualities have a much better chance of succeeding no matter where they start on the tail.

“As they wander further from the beaten path they discover their taste is not as mainstream as they thought, or as they had been lead to believe by marketing, a lack of alternatives, and a hit-driven culture” Chris Anderson

Our networks that are gathering are creating their own markets that do not pertain to the mainstream. As companies realize the can make money on these smaller markets they will increase spending in the Long Tail. In the physical retail space people want one-stop shopping Wal-Mart style. It is lower value and they can live without the perfect fit for the sake of convenience. The opposite is true of the internet world. It is already seen as convenient and more personal. You can always find what you want. This combined with our economic climate and the sustainability movement will cause the physical retail world to react. Will we see the Wal-Marts disappear? Doubtful, rural areas have become dependent on them like the general stores of old. But we could see urban areas revitalize the butcher, baker and candlestick maker in a similar vein. In our information age, local companies and products can begin to tailor to the Long Tail interests. If they are communicating their brand well, they can build success on the local level but also interest on a global scale. There are some great opportunities for companies that appeal to a smaller niche that have never existed before.