In 1973 the Catholic Church decided to create a logo for its Archdiocesan Youth Commission. This is what they came up with:
Archive for April, 2009|Monthly archive page
Singapore Fire Drill
In Strange but true? on April 24, 2009 at 11:18 amI don’t know if this is true or not, but it’s funny/scary/evil all at the same time.
The Hat Story
In Amusing stories on April 23, 2009 at 5:08 pm
Sometimes, someone will just not have the right attitude to fit into an ad agency. I recall a young “Oxbridge” trainee account executive who joined the agency that I was working for in London.
Far from showing anyone respect, on day one he started with a seriously arrogant attitude, treating even senior creatives with disdain (perhaps thinking that no-one wearing jeans and a T shirt could be someone of any importance within the company). “Mr Oxbridge” might have been only 21 years old, but he dressed like the Managing Director. His suits, he proudly boasted, were from Saville Row, his trenchcoat from Burberry, his bowler hat from his hat maker – of course.
One lunchtime, he discovered something amiss with his hat. He placed it on his head, but it didn’t sit quite right. Frowning, he tugged at it with a troubled expression – it looked as though it was a touch too tight.
Later on, when leaving the office at the end of the day, he became even more concerned when he discovered that it felt slightly loose, sitting over his ears.
The next day, he mentioned the problem to his secretary, asking her if she thought it possible for someone’s head to vary in size during the course of the day. She sympathised and suggested that he try another hat.
Taking her advice, he began wearing another hat. But soon the same problem re-occurred, only to correct itself again after a short while. He began holding his head throughout the day, as if he might detect a change in circumference. His secretary noticed that he began talking to the hat and his previously assertive manner had been replaced by a slightly hesitant uncertainty.
Such was the change in his personality that nobody was surprised when announced that he was leaving the agency to join his father’s stockbroking firm.
The creative department, in particular, were almost disappointed – never did they expect so much entertainment from the purchase of two styles of hat in a variety of sizes, each with the hat size labels carefully removed.
Posted by Ian Minter
Your logo (through the eyes of a 2 year old).
In Opinion on April 15, 2009 at 4:28 pm
Recently, I took my two year old son out for a morning walk in his pram. As typically happens, we walked past a variety of cars parked by the side of the road.( He likes cars – or anything with an engine really, typical boy!)
My partner drives a white Subaru Outback. I drive a white Renault Megane. A close family friend, David, drives a silver VW Bora. My son refers to these cars, respectively, as “daddy car”, “mummy car” and “David car”.
The cars we passed on our walk were all manner of make, shape, colour and age. There were quite a number of Subarus, and VWs (no Renaults though – does everybody else know something I don’t?).
Without fail, every time we passed a Subaru, my son announced “look – a ‘daddy car’”. Every time we passed a VW it was “look, a ‘David car’”.
The thing that amazed me was the ease with which he identified these cars – it didn’t matter what colour, or shape, or age the car was – my son was recognising the logos.
The major test, as far as I was concerned, was the last car we saw. He wasn’t fooled by the fact that it was a white car very much like the size and shape of his father’s Suburu – “Look mummy, a ‘David car’”. Yes, it was a VW.
This made me think about the power of symbols in communication (as a graphic designer, it’s something close to my heart). It also made me think about brand loyalty and how early it begins.
But most of all it made me think about the importance of a logo in brand marketing.
So, when someone tells me they’ve purchased a generic logo from an internet logo website, I think:
a) They can’t be very proud of their company, and;
b) They underestimate the significance of what it says about them.
A logo isn’t just a shape or a name, it is literally the face of your business. It should be distinctive, memorable and unique. Something that makes a statement about who and what you are. A logo you will be proud of.
A logo so powerful, a two year old will instantly recognise it.
Posted by Jacqui Bundy
Twitter vs. Facebook – like oil and water?
In New Media, Opinion on April 8, 2009 at 4:02 pm
I recently added the ‘Twitter’application to my Facebook page. Within two hours, I realised the error of my ways and disabled it. In my opinion, the two don’t mix.
While some people might not agree with me (this may or may not include Linda Johannesson, my colleague, Facebook friend, Twitter friend and Social Media expert!) I realised that I like to live by the ‘Facebook for friends, Twitter for business’ethos. On Facebook, I’ve posted one update in the past 6 months. On Twitter, I attempt 2-6 posts a day (mostly weekdays).
So, imagine the surprise that my Facebook friends must have had when, after linking Twitter, their normally dormant friend suddenly made three posts in the course of an hour! Even worse, my Twitter posts were totally irrelevant to anyone on Facebook (they must have thought I’d lost it).
Of course, some Facebook sites are set up for business and it would therefore make sense to link the two. But I use them differently, and I have different philosophies for both:
1. I actually know everyone on my Facebook page. They are actually ‘friends’. I’ve had requests from people I’ve never met and ignored them.
2. Of my Twitter ‘friends’, I personally know 3 out of 100+. I may not know the majority of people I connect with, but I like their access to information and their willingness to share it with me.
3. I’m quiet on Facebook. I’m noisy on Twitter. It may be that I have a really boring life, or that I’m a bit shy, but I don’t want to recount every event of my day/week/life on the internet. (Fortunately, my Facebook friends don’t either, so it’s not a barage of trivia). With Twitter, I learn something, I want to share it. And I want to continue to learn from the people I am following (some days there is so much new information, I feel like my head is going to explode).
4. I have a different ‘tone of voice’on both sites. Twitter-critics say they don’t want to know what someone has had for lunch or what they thought of the latest episode of ’Idol’. Certainly, there are many people out there who use Twitter for inane chatter in 140 characters, but not one of the over 100 (and growing) people I follow do this. Twitter is a microcosm of the real world – if you don’t want to hang around with kids, stay away from the schoolyard. Twitter is business (with the odd light-hearted post). Facebook is really about connecting with friends.
5. I’m hooked on Twitter (and rarely use Facebook). But it’s not because I’m addicted to ‘byte-size’pieces of information. I love the information sharing – most posts come with a link that usually goes into great detail – the insights and the instant notifications that Twitter provides. I don’t follow any celebrity (OK, except for Stephen Fry). And while parody Twitter accounts can be very unfunny, I do follow a few – Fake Stephen Conroy (Australian Minister for the Internet) provides brilliant satire regarding a very serious issue (the real Stephen Conroy is looking at internet ‘censorship’, which irks me to no end), and Fake Penny Wong (Australian Minister for Climate Change) who can be extremely funny, especially when parodying Peter Garrett.
The lesson that I have learned from my Twitter on Facebook experiment is two-fold – stick to business on Twitter. And, I’ve been too quiet on Facebook – I need to get out more often.
Posted by Dana Minter
