DESIGN about TOWN

Communication and Color Strategy

2009-01-15T11:21:00.000-08:00

The main goal in difficult economic times such as these is to take the opportunity to build a stronger entity; one that will enjoy significant success as the market turns positive. Communication with your stakeholders is a key component of this building.

I have learned from a failed start-up that the lack of good timing on communication can, in hindsight, be problematic when market forces change. I have also learned that a solid, well-defined, well thought out and well-executed corporate identity carried through all communication materials instills the confidence in potential partners and customers that we understood our own business and would deliver as promised.

This communication must be done both visually and verbally and it needs to be carried through all initiatives. Here are three strategies that you can help you accomplish this:

1. Create and maintain an updated corporate identity and web presence
The look and feel of a web site tells a lot about a company. Does it communicate trust? Does it show that you take pride in your messaging and have invested in it? If you have made the investment, it demonstrates confidence that these tough times will pass and that you will be stronger for it as a company. If you have not made the investment, it has the exact opposite effect; it communicates a lack of conviction and focus.

2. Connect this corporate identity to your verbal communications
The choice of color, texture, imagery and messaging all come together to form your corporate identity. The benefits of a confident verbal message and consistent communication with stakeholders can be lost if the website looks outdated and if the logo appears to have been designed a decade ago. Be sure that your stakeholders hear, see and feel the confidence.

3. Make effective use of graphic elements
Graphic elements are key in communicating your message to your audience. They speak by themselves about your company, vision and goals.

White space: Play it smooth. Know when to cover it with information and when to leave it blank. Your audience will only want to hear so much at any given time.

Contrast: Play it strong. Use it to organize and lead your readers through the page. Make the reading process smooth so your audience does not have to spend any additional visual effort, particularly when reading on-line.

Color: Play it smart. This is your most powerful tool. Colors have direct associations and each color communicates something different. It's not just about what color you like, but about the color that represents your product or service best, and communicates with your audience most effectively.

I can tell you from day-to-day experience in multiple roles in multiple companies, that those businesses that understand their markets deeply and who are able to communicate effectively on a budget -both visually and verbally- are putting themselves in a strong position now for the coming economic turn-around.

Green For All in the New Yorker

2009-01-14T19:23:00.000-08:00

"Green For All is a national organization dedicated to building an inclusive green economy strong enough to lift people out of poverty."

DESIGN about TOWN honored to have worked with Green for All in the development of their logo and identity in Fall 2007. Little did we know at the time that Van Jones and Green For All would be making waves on the world stage. And we have a feeling that 2009 is going to be a banner year for Green For All!

The latest big press is a New Yorker article called "Greening the Ghetto: Can a remedy serve for both global warming and poverty?" by Elizabeth Kolbert on January 12, 2009.

One particular point of pride for DESIGN about TOWN is that the author used the logo that we developed (along with Van and the staff at Green For All and The Ella Baker Center for Human Rights) to describe the purpose and mission of Green For All. It is always our goal to be descriptive when working on a brand and/or graphic identity project. We are glad that the purpose was served in this instance.

Great job Van Jones and Green For All. Keep it up!

DESIGN about TOWN at the Crunchies

2009-01-11T19:41:00.000-08:00

The Crunchies are a tech and start-up awards ceremony presented by TechCrunch, VentureBeat, and GigaOm.

DESIGN about TOWN was there in full force and had a great time at the ceremony and especially at the MySpace Music afterparty. Check out the photos below.

There is a good play-by-play post over at ZDNet.
See the pro-photos over at picapp.com, seach "Crunchies."

Part of the DESIGN about TOWN team and Brian Compton with MC Hammer.

Ad and Marketing Spend to Grow in 2009?

2008-11-11T14:48:00.000-08:00

A survey of the 1,200 attendees at the annual Masters of Marketing Conference put on in October by the Association of National Advertisers 2008 showed some interesting, perhaps even contrarian, trends. A partial list of the questions asked and their resposnes is show below.

In short Marketers expect to spend the same or more on marketing and media in 2009 as they did in 2008. Their favorite media for this spend (in order) are: Social Media, grassroots, 30 second spots and web advertising. This definitely shows a continuing trend away from newspapers, magazines and tv toward the web, however, there are varying opinions as to where in Social Media to invest. While YouTube and Facebook were the favorite destinations among the attendees, "None" was the overall winner when they were asked "What is your preferred social media site for driving brand growth?"

This is definitely a positive sign for the market and one that highlights the strategy we discussed in a previous post where we argues that now was an excellent time to communicate with our customers and constituents and really make inroads vis-a-vis our competitors.

Survey results below:

How will you adjust your current marketing and media plans to account for the recent downturn in the financial markets?

Spending will be constant / marketing mix will be reallocated (33%)
Surprisingly, we will spend more (27%)
Spending will be reduced (33%)
No changes, we will keep everything status quo (8%)

As you look toward 2009, how much do you plan to spend on marketing vs. 2008?

Increase spending more than 10% (26%)
Increase spending less than 10% (13%)
Hold stable (28%)
Decrease spending less than 10% (14%)
Decrease spending more than 10% (19%)

Which discipline will offer your brand the largest opportunity for growth?

Traditional 30-second spots (17%)
One page advertisements in a newspaper/magazine (7%)
Web advertising (16%)
Social media integration (28%)
Direct Marketing (7%)
Grassroots, viral public relations (19%)
Radio (5%)

What is your preferred social media site for driving brand growth?

None (32%)
YouTube (20%)
facebook (18%)
All (12%)
LinkedIn (10%)
MySpace (6%)
Twitter (3%)

The Next Women

2008-11-07T13:02:00.000-08:00

Suw Charman-Anderson has a blog post up today about women in tech.

She mentions all the women speakers at Web 2.0 Expo in Berlin including our own Solana.

Have a read.

Now is The Time to Make Time

2008-11-06T12:26:00.000-08:00

About 15 years ago I took a road trip with my brothers and as we made our way up the highway, making good time but trying not to speed too much, we passed a Highway Patrol who had someone pulled over on the side of the road. I looked over to my brothers as I stepped on the gas and said "now is the time to make time". We all understood that the road ahead would be clear of speed traps and patrols for a good while.

I think that that is a perfect analogy for where we are right now in the current US economy. If your company has a good cash position then now is definitely the time to make time. Now is the moment to double down on opportunities. The talent pool is suddenly flush meaning that the cost of talent will decrease. Competition that is leveraged may not survive, opening up sales opportunities. Customers are looking to their providers to be sure that they will be around and continue to be their partner.

So, what exactly can be done? We Believe that Communication and Marketing are key factors of success during these interesting times.

1. Invest in your corporate communications, marketing and sales. While customers will take longer to buy and may buy less in the short term, I believe that many of them are looking for strategic relationships that will help them not only survive this downturn but to come out healthy, strong and ahead of the pack.

2. Communicate with your customers. Let them know that you will be around. Let them know that you are not only thinking about your own business but theirs as well. Rework contracts if necessary to the mutual benefit of both.

3. Work with your customers on their communication plan with their customers. Help them instill confidence in their customers the same way you are working with them.

4. Be visible. Build your image. Make sure that your are known to your audience. This is both visual and visceral. A company that retreats into its shell during these times will likely see its market position erode. This can be done cost effectively and creatively.

5. Consider scaling back the size of service providers, rather than the scope of your marketing and sales efforts. There are plenty of small and medium sized ad agencies, PR firms, marketing firms and Design houses that provide excellent product at competitive price points.

There is a lot more to be done on the cost side of the equation and operations in order to build a strong operation over the next 18 months. I have outlined some marketing and communications options that I believe to be valuable to the enterprise that wants to come out of these interesting times ahead of its competition.

New BART Website

2008-10-31T13:01:00.001-07:00

Click here to visit the BART (Bay Area Rapid Transit) Website

I ride it everyday, so I keep in touch with their interactive presence. Also, being a design firm, we appreciate their new look and feel.

I like the new design, UI and functionality. The brown is a great addition to the brand color palette. The angled edges are an unexpected but smooth twist to the Web 2.0 rounded corners that everyone loves. The photos have a candid and real feeling to them too. They rotate every day or so.

The local culture or event feature is a good motivator. The BartTV is well produced and organized. They have a nice newsletter called myBART, that I imagine will become a full social networking where they can provide data based on your frequent searches and other activity. RSS feeds, email alerts, widgets...all of the Web 2.0 staples.

Great job BART!

I found another blog review of this site here.
...and another here.
....eccolo qua.

The iPhone app is top notch too. The design is not that great, but the functionality and the usability is great.

Solana Crawford at SNAP Summit 3

2008-10-29T12:05:00.000-07:00

User Action! Leading Users to Action Through Design

Solana Crawford, Founder and Chief Design Officer at DESIGN about TOWN, presented yesterday at SNAP Summit 3. Let us know what you think! The presentation can be found on slideshare as well.

Solana Speaking to the SNAP Summit3 Conference

2008-10-28T15:00:00.000-07:00

User action: the click moment - iPhone photo by Sean Crawford

See you at Snap Summit3!

2008-10-27T16:42:00.000-07:00

SNAP Summit 3 takes place on October 28th, 2008 at the Parc55 Hotel.

Solana Crawford will be speaking at this conference about usability and user action....the click moment!

SNAP Summit 3 is San Francisco's leading conference on user experience and engagement.

Register for SNAP Summit 3 in order to:
* Meet key players and executives from top social sites and applications.
* Learn why leading social sites attract and retain more users.
* Discover new ways to make your site more viral, social, and addictive.

Solana Crawford's Presentation for Web 2.0 Berlin: User: Action! Leading Users to Action Through Design

2008-10-23T06:18:00.000-07:00

Solana Crawford, founder and chief design officer at DESIGN about TOWN, just finished presenting at O'Reilly Media's Web 2.0 Berlin. Let us know if you saw the presentation, and what you thought!

The presentation abstract and slide deck are below. For more presentations from Web 2.0 Berlin, click HERE.

Solana will also be speaking at SNAP Summit3, which takes place on October 28th, 2008 at the Parc55 Hotel in San Francsico. Drop us a line if you will be attending that event, we'd love to meet you.

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User: Action! Leading Users to Action Through Design: a presentation by Solana Crawford at O\'Reilly Media Web 2.0 Conference ,Berlin 2008

View SlideShare presentation or Upload your own. (tags: 2.0 web)

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User: Action! Leading Users to Action Through Design

Solana Crawford (DESIGN about TOWN)
14:35 Thursday, 23-10-2008
Location: A3-4

There’s something that takes that extra step, that goes beyond user interface (form) and user experience (function)... And it is that moment that each company with online presence wants its target user to reach: the click-moment. Whether it is to donate, buy, sign up or send, it is that decision-making-second, right before the user takes action, that will change their state of mind, their mood, they way they feel based on the action that was just taken.

Design elements are key in accomplishing this. The right color choice will get you a new customer, and the wrong one can make you lose a potential investor. You need to show you know not just your product or service, but also your audience. Making them feel good about taking action takes you and your company a long ways.

What will be covered:
- Today’s design trends.
- Which design elements entice users to take action: Shapes, colors, images…
- Use of color to prompt users to take action.
- How simple or sophisticated to design your site so users take action.

A Design review with TechCrunch50 Winner "Yammer"

2008-10-21T15:35:00.000-07:00

Congratulations Yammer on the TechCrunch50 recognition.

Yammer is a tool for making companies and organizations more productive through the exchange of short frequent answers to one simple question: "What are you working on?"

They won the big prize at the 2008 TechCrunch50 event, and as a high profile Social Networking tool, our very own Solana Crawford has provided a design review.

Nice logo, warm and friendly, web 2.0 design style. It's not surprising to see that a social networking site uses predominantly blue for its color (ex: Facebook, Myspace, LinkedIn, etc...) Some of blue's strongest connotations are friendship, trustworthiness and technology.

It's very clear what the user is supposed to do once he or she gets there, but Yammer fails in explaining in detail what it is that THEY do. Yammer is not obvious until the user reaches the demo video at the bottom of the landing page. Once the user signs up, everything is pretty clear, well organized and easy to navigate.

The user forum does another good job with a logo application, but landing on that page gives you a feeling of chaos until you get organized again.

Overall, Yammer's site, though dated, makes for a good experience....It's in the details. Just a few key design and UI considerations can lead Yammer's interface to 2009.

Below is the Yammer presentation from TechCrunch50. Notice the opening title screen with the TechCrunch50.

Solana Crawford, founder of DESIGN about TOWN speaking at Web 2.0 Berlin

2008-10-08T13:59:00.001-07:00

Our very own Solana Crawford, the Founder and Chief Design Officer of DESIGN about TOWN, will be speaking at O'Reilly Media's Web 2.0 Conference in Berlin, Germany on Thursday, 10/23/08 at 2:30pm.

She will be speaking at the Design and User Experience Track and her topic will be User: Action! Leading users to action through design.

If you are going to be at the conference, sign up for Solana's session. Also, let us know if you are going to be there and would like to meet up. See you there!

DESIGN about TOWN Portfolio Slideshow ::: Fall 2008

2008-10-07T14:06:00.001-07:00

We decided to put a slideshow of some of our most recent design projects online. Click here for a high resolution version, or see the YouTube version below. If you see something you like and need to know more. Call me (Brian) at 415-290-2256.

DESIGN about TOWN photos from TechCrunch50

2008-09-26T13:49:00.000-07:00

Click below to view our photos from the TechCrunch 50 event. Take special note of the photo of Demi Moore and Solana Crawford, Founder and Chief Design Officer of DESIGN about TOWN.

TechCrunch50

DESIGN about TOWN's Solana Crawford on Beet.tv: Apple.com-style Websites are the Face of Web 2.0, Website Designer Says.

2008-09-23T10:05:00.000-07:00

Thanks to those over at Beet.tv for the interview with DESIGN about TOWN's founder Solana Crawford at TechCrunch50. Solana talks a bit about design trends and then about DESIGN about TOWN

"Reflections, rounded corners, and color schemes of white and chrome have become very popular--and overdone--styles for technology websites over the last few years, DESIGN About TOWN CEO Solana Crawford says. She discusses other trends that have also emerged in website design.

Design About Town designed the signage and programs for TechCrunch50.

--Kelsey Blodget, Associate Producer"

TechCrunch 50 DemoPit Highlights

2008-09-22T12:15:00.000-07:00

Here is a nice video highlighting some of the DemoPit companies at TechCrunch50. While DESIGN about TOWN is not featured in this video, you can see a sliver of our work on the signs for each of the companies. We designed the graphic system for TC50 that was seen on banners, signs, powerpoint slides, and the program.

If you have an event based graphic design and branding, give us a call.

DESIGN about TOWN at TC50

2008-09-10T14:33:00.000-07:00

We were excited to see that Andrew Mager from ZDNet included us in his review of Day 1 at TechCrunch 50. You can see us at the 4.32 mark of the post. He loved our pencil. Thanks Andrew!

DESIGN about TOWN to Design Event Signage and Programs for TechCrunch50

2008-08-26T11:19:00.000-07:00

DESIGN about TOWN has been chosen to design the event graphics for TechCrunch50. We have been working hard to devise logistical and design solutions for the signage that will adorn the San Francisco Design Center Concourse during the says of September 8th through September 10th. We are also working on the 32 page program that will guide attendees through the event.

TechCrunch50 has a simple goal, to find the best start-ups and launch them in front of our industry’s most influential VCs, corporations, fellow entrepreneurs and press. TechCrunch created a platform where early-stage, and frequently unfunded, companies could take center stage based purely on merit, without regard to their own financial resources.

We are very excited about this event. It will be a great chance to see the latest in internet technology and meet the people who make it happen.

If you are attending, come find our booth. Call Brian @ 415.290.2256 or email at brian@designabouttown.com.

Vote!

2008-07-11T11:40:00.001-07:00

Mercados Suvianda TV Spot

2008-05-15T18:57:00.001-07:00

Conceptualized and created by DESIGN about TOWN and Artemis Film.

San Francisco Heat Wave

2008-05-15T18:47:00.000-07:00

It’s not often that we get to wear shorts and sandals here in San Francisco. If this continues, we will need to call our longtime clients over at Weather Underground to see if they have the inside scoop. Nonetheless, we will enjoy it while it lasts!

DaT @ Chamber of Commerce Expo

2008-05-15T18:46:00.000-07:00

DESIGN about TOWN was fortunate enough to get a booth at the bi-annual San Francisco Chamber of Commerce Business After Hours Expo. Special thanks to Katie Kenning for getting us in at the last minute.

We shook a lot of hands and met some great companies, many of whom are potential partners. WIth our (fairly) new offices in North Beach, we are looking forward to attending more downtown events like this. We don’t call ourselves DESIGN about TOWN for nothing!

What is rad?

2007-10-22T15:02:00.001-07:00

the fact that this blog is up and running, that's what!

Thomas Friedman covers Green For All

2007-10-17T14:17:00.000-07:00

We are honored to work with people who make a difference in the world. One such group is found in Oakland at Green For All.

Green For All's founder, Van Jones was interviewed for Thomas Friedman's Op-ed in the today's New York Times. This recognition is due and is just a sliver of the light that needs to be shed upon this worthy cause.

We are proud to have worked on the Green For All website.
Follow the link below to read the full article.

The Green-Collar Solution
By THOMAS L. FRIEDMAN
Van Jones has been on a crusade to help disadvantaged
communities understand why they would be the biggest
beneficiaries of a greener America.

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/17/opinion/17friedman.html?th&emc=th

Buying Deisgn

2007-10-12T12:03:00.000-07:00

Many first time entrepreneurs, marketing or product professionals are unsure as to how to buy design services. There is a reason for this; it can be a complicated process full of exceptions. As with any purchase the more you know going in to the negotiation, the more comfortable you are with the outcome. In our experience, there are 5 factors to bear in mind when discussing pricing with a design agency.

First, hourly cost versus project cost. This is likely the most common questions designers and agencies face. It is a variation of "what can you do in 5 hours?" or "what is your hourly rate?". The truth is that anyone can work within a fixed budget or fixed constraint of time. However, if this is a first time project, a re-branding campaign or a large web project, the best bet is to solicit an overall proposal of work and budget and measure that against the expected returns and determine whether or not it makes financial sense. Once the overall design look and feel is established, supporting or satellite projects are better negotiated at some sort of constrained rate (hourly, monthly).

The second most important point to take into consideration when purchasing design is your time to market. If it is late in the game and you need to catch up, that means the design firm needs to constrain its schedule and the client needs to provide feedback timely. This is when rush fees get incurred. Rush fees can range anywhere from 50% to 100% of the previously negotiated cost so it is important to negotiate these fees and their triggers up-front so there are no surprises on the invoice.

Third, photography, illustrations and touch-up work are always billed separately. Photography, whether it be an original shoot or stock, will be billed at cost plus a mark up to cover the administrative costs of handling the task and the risk of making those decisions on behalf of the client. A client can provide his own artwork but in both cases, any touch-up work is billed out an hourly rate. That hourly rate should be agreed to ahead of time and noted in the contract.

Similar to photography is printing. Printing costs are always covered by the client and often billed directly to the client. The agency will bill an administrative fee on top of the cost for the time it takes to manage the process as well as the risk being incurred in making final decisions on behalf of the client with regard to printing. For example, during a press-check of a corporate brochure a representative of the design firm will provide feedback to the printer on the colors and placement of the artwork. Once it is corrected to her satisfaction she will give the go-ahead to run the job. The mark up on the print job covers this work. Again, this percentage should be agreed to up front and noted in the contract.

The fifth and final pricing issue covered in this note is copyright. It is standard industry practice for the design agency to retain copyright ownership over the artwork or design being contracted. This is similar to a recording artist retaining copyright even though he sells an album. The reason for this is not so the agency can re-sell it, license it or otherwise profit from original work provide to a client. Rather, it is because the agency is producing the design for a specific use, not a general use. For example, a movie poster created for next week's box office release, can not be re-used as a web banner for the movie a month later. The poster was designed and produced and licensed to the buyer for its use as a poster. If, however, the movie house purchased the copyright to the poster, they are free to use it as they wish. Industry standard pricing is 75% to 100% over the agreed to fee.

Too often these topics can be sticking points between clients and agencies when in reality if discussed upfront and clearly delineated in the contract, they do note need to get in the way of the fun part, the design. So, now that we know all of the pricing questions to ask, call us with your project and lets get started.

By: SWC