Dec 6, 2008

GREAT ADS n IMAGES

Stalin in a Coca-Coba's ad campaign!
("Coba" was his revolutionary nickname)


Political Commentary: "Flags of Our Fathers" -

Playstation


(image credit: Herman Churba)


Stop Smoking poster

London-based photographer Mark Obstfeld shares with us his experience of taking James Bond's latest supercar for a spin.


(images credit: creamstudios)


(images credit: creamstudios)


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(image credit: adsoftheworld)
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Dec 5, 2008

Links

Usability

A List Apart - Usability Articles

Usability.gov - Great resources and research-based design guidelines from the National Cancer Institute

UsabilityNet - A resource collection, with emphasis on methods, making the case for usability and business issues

Usable Web - an indexed collection maintained by Keith Instone

Web Style Guide - Practical guide to usability implementation

Usability News.com - news and articles from the British HCI group

WebWord - articles and commentary

UseIt - Jakob Nielsen's site with articles and commentary

Information Design - compilations of good articles in the field, by date and category.

GUUUI - The Interactions Designers Coffee Break with daily postings and quarterly articles

Web Design References - University of Minnesota Duluth's reference portal

Oxford Internet Institute

Journal of Interactive Advertising

Website Optimizer (beta) - AdWords - Google
Website Optimizer, Google's free multivariate testing application, helps online marketers increase visitor conversion rates and overall visitor satisfaction ...


Blogs

Boxes and Arrows

Happy Cog

Web Designer Wall

Smashing Magazine

Think Vitamin

The FWA


MEDIA AND WEB-SEARCH
blogdex
CJR Daily
The Daily Planet
Daypop Top 40
DC Media Girl
Digg
The Digital Journalist
Editor & Publisher
frontline
Google Zeitgeist
I Want Media
Keith J. Kelly
Howard Kurtz
Mediabistro
The Media Drop
Off the Record
On the Media
PressThink
reddit
Romenesko
Snap
Sphere
Technorati News Talk
TV Newser
Yahoo! (Media Issues)




Branding

superbrands


Strategy & Planning

living brands, blog


Marketing & PR Top

scheichenost


Ad Awards

The Art Directors Club



Ad News

Fipp



Diversions

Scarlatti Sonatas
Bad Writing Contest
Blackjack
Daily Crossword
Darwin Awards
Dilbert
Leno, Letterman jokes
The Onion
Poetry Daily
Postmodern Generator
Smoke-Free Carmen
Wine Lovers’ Page


Classics

Francis Fukuyama on the End of History

Amartya Sen on Democracy

Robert Kagan on
Power and Weakness

New York Review of Books, vol. 1 no. 1

The Russian Empire, 1910, in full color

Elizabeth Loftus on False Memories

Andrew Delbanco on the Death of Lit Crit

Keep computers out of classrooms

Newsweek on Threats of Global Cooling

Julian Simon, Doomslayer

Martha Nussbaum on Judith Butler

George Orwell: the English language

World’s Worst Editing Guide

The Fable of the Keys

The Snuff Film: an Urban Legend



Weblogs


Armavirumque
Larry Arnhart
Atrios
Adam Baer
Graham Beattie
Becker and Posner
Two Blowhards
David Bordwell
Britannica
Crooked Timber
Lawrence Solum
Chicago Boyz
The Corner
Andrew Coyne
Culture Wars
Richard Dawkins
Brad DeLong
A.C. Douglas
Epicurean Dealmaker
Amitai Etzioni
Stephen Franks
Instapundit
Marginal Revolution
Norman Geras
Lester Hunt
IWF Inkwell
Irascible Professor
Steven Johnson
Brothers Judd
Daily Kos
Brian Leiter
Little Green Footballs
Derek Lowe
Grant McCracken
Steve McIntyre
Warren Meyer
John Naughton
Gloria Origgi
Overcoming Bias
PejmanPundit
Michael Phillips
Political Animal
The Revealer
Alex Ross
Lib Samizdata
Russell Seitz
Peter Stothard
David Sucher
Talking Points Memo
Three Quarks Daily
The Valve
Volokh Conspiracy
Nigel Warburton
Will Wilkinson
James Wolcott
Wonkette
Wright & Kaus TV





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Logo Design Is Important

A professional brand identity communicates your company's purpose and promises, increases your memorability and drives sales.

The Importance of a Logo and Marketing Materials

About half of all businesses fail within their first few years. One source of failure that is commonly cited by experts is sloppy or ineffective marketing. If your marketing materials do not stand out from those of your competitors, your sales will suffer.

When you start a business, you need to create the quickest possible route to business success. A logo helps to create this by contributing to your business's visibility, credibility, and memorability -- three factors that will help your business to grow and achieve success. So, while putting off your logo development may seem like a prudent idea from a cash-flow point of view, it could result in your business never getting off the ground. It can also lead to your business folding when it would otherwise succeed.

If you think that you can't afford to design a logo when starting your business, consider the outcomes -- how can you afford not to?

Your business will not look stable. It will appear to be more likely to fold or to fail. Clients will not have confidence in doing business with you. Would you do business with someone who seems to be on unstable footing and who might not be in business by the end of your project or after you have purchased an item?

You will look like a very small business. Large, successful businesses would never consider doing business without professional, originally designed marketing materials. Using materials that are not professionally designed (i.e., Microsoft or Vistaprint templates) makes your business appear even smaller and can possibly indicate that you cannot perform to or meet the standards required. Read more on Why Your Company Needs a Brand.

You will look unpolished and rough. Not having a professional "look and feel" can make it appear as though your business does not matter to you. Customers may get the impression that you do not care about the way your business presents itself, which might indicate that you would not care about the quality of your work or the way that your work reflects upon their business.

You will look unfocused. Unprofessional, uncoordinated marketing materials can make your business look "jumbled" or confused. If you have a business card with one look and feel and a Web site with another, this creates a confused -- and confusing -- look and feel for your business. This can also cause an identity crisis for a small business. When looking at your differently designed materials, potential clients may be fooled into thinking that they are looking at materials that represent different companies.

The initial lack of customers and cash flow often causes new small business owners to put off designing a logo and marketing materials professionally "until they get a few clients" or "until they get started." Unfortunately, designing their own marketing materials when they launch their businesses instead of having them professionally created will make getting those initial clients more difficult and may result in a business that will not succeed.

Many entrepreneurs choose to design their own marketing materials when they launch their businesses, especially by creating their first business card. Or sometimes they will have an amateur designer, friend, or relative create the design. There are several reasons why this is not the best idea. How Much Does a Brand Cost? An amateur logo design and business card can make your business more likely to fail for a number of reasons.

A small business should look at 4 things: Who You Are, What You Do, What Makes You Different, and Who You Can Best Help.

But, how do you define your brand? And then design eye-catching materials that will make you stand out?

I'll get you on the path to creating a brand that will help you figure out what you want your business's brand to say to your target audience, so that you can stand out.

Branding Basics 5 steps:

1. Define Who You Are, What You Do, What Makes You Different, Your Target Audience and Your Business's Personality
2. Design Your Logo and Brand Identity To Communicate Your Brand Definition
3. Develop Your Website and Marketing Communications Collateral
4. Distinguish Your Business from the Crowd
5. Direct Your New Brand So That it Can Reach Its Fullest Potential

If you address all 5 of these steps when you create your Brand Identity and marketing designs, you'll create a professional brand for your business that will make it easy for you to build credibility for your small business. A professional brand identity communicates your company's purpose and promises, increases your memorability and drives sales.

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