Blog Issue 01.18.12
“We need a logo to be timeless rather than trendy,” says Jaye Neil
member of the Mint Hill Arts Center.
The Mint Hill Arts Center has a very nice art gallery in the town of Mint Hill (located southeast of Charlotte, NC) with art exhibits, monthly guest lecturers, workshops and classes. Artists can also sell their artwork or fine crafts in the boutique section of our gallery. This video shows early sketches of our concepts, refinements, client feedback and the final presentation.
We definitely have books on the brain this month. So we thought we would call attention to some great children’s book apps. Fire up your iPhone, iPad or iPod touch, find a few kids, and dive into some animated storytelling.
#1 The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore
The award-winning short film is now an interactive narrative experience. With a variety of techniques (miniatures, computer animation, 2D animation) that harkens back to silent films and M-G-M Technicolor musicals. “Morris Lessmore” manages to be both old fashioned and cutting edge at the same time. And quite simply amazing.
#2 Alice for the iPad
This is Alice in Wonderland digitally remastered for the iPad. Play with the White Rabbit’s pocket watch — it realistically swings and bounces. Readers can tilt the iPad to make Alice grow and shrink; shake it to watch the Mad Hatter’s head bobble; and so on. There’s a free Lite version you can try before splurging on the $8.99 full version.
#3 The Wrong Side of the Bed in 3D
Children’s book author-illustrator Wallace E. Keller has turned his own out-of-print book into an app, and gave it a 3D makeover. You will need 3D glasses, which you can order from the publisher for $1, though traditional red/cyan 3D glasses will do. And the App can also be viewed in 2D.
#4 The Heart and the Bottle
Narrated by the wonderful Helena Bonham Carter, this app brings Oliver Jeffers’ bestselling picture book to life. Narration, animation, and illustration are combined in a way that never overpowers but only enhances this sweet story about a curious young girl finding her way and marveling at the world around her.
#5 The Boy Giant
With illustrations taken directly from the book, The Boy Giant is a touching and funny story about a little boy called Hujo who is born big and keeps getting bigger, and bigger, and BIGGER! The Lite version has the first half of the book so you can preview it before you buy.
According to Amazon and Book Scan, today our upcoming book, Visual Marketing (Wiley) is listed at #159,378, and #82,085 in the Kindle Store (it changes everyday.) It is exciting to be on the lists at Amazon! We are also in Google books.
We’ll let you know how the sales do once Visual Marketing is available to purchase at the end of the month. This reminds me of the story of the local band, John Cafferty and the Beaver Brown Band.
This was the number one local bar band in Rhode Island when I was growing up. My siblings, Paul and Debi were big fans. Beaver Brown got a big break when they recorded the music for a movie called “Eddie and the Cruisers.” They left the local Rhode Island music scene and began a national tour with high expectations. But the movie performed poorly at the box office, so they returned to RI and resumed playing the local circuit.
About a year later, someone said, “I heard your song on the radio.” They celebrated that it had entered the bottom of the Billboard 500. Little did they know that “Eddie and the Cruisers” would become one of the first movies to become a bona fide hit on video. Next thing you know, John Cafferty and the Beaver Brown band’s soundtrack album reached the top 10 on the Billboard 200 chart and produced a #7 hit single (“On the Dark Side”) on the Billboard Hot 100. “On the Dark Side” also held #1 on the Mainstream Rock Tracks chart for five weeks.
So you never know how or when the numbering will change…but we’re looking forward to the journey!
Your logo should be supporting the mission and goals of your organization. But many logos are on life support. They survive only because they’ve always been there. (Like celebrities who are famous for being famous.) If your logo is suffering from these maladies, then it’s time to stop apologizing for your logo. Your logo should be working for you – not the other way around.
Here is our public service announcement of the signs that your logo is not working for you:
1. You always have to explain what it is
2. It refers to a business or service that you no longer offer
3. You can’t tell what it is when it’s small
4. Nobody really likes it but it’s been around so long that nobody wants to change it
5. There is no digital version
It’s not as outrageous as reality television, but seeing how logos change in a “before and after” state is certainly fun. Here’s a selection from the Langton Cherubino Group files of clients who have transformed their brands.
Langton Cherubino Group won two 2011 Communicator Awards for Right as Rain. We won the Gold Award of Excellence in Corporate Identity and the Silver Award of Distinction for the logo design. Right as Rain is a charitable organization that raises funds for people who face unexpected crises.
The Communicator Awards is the largest and most competitive awards program honoring the creative excellence for communications professionals. The awards are judged and overseen by the International Academy of the Visual Arts (IAVA), a 550+ member organization of leading professionals from various disciplines of the visual arts dedicated to embracing progress and the evolving nature of traditional and interactive media.
Is your website working for you — or is it already in vacation mode? Review this simple checklist to see if your website is earning its keep.
1. How much money are you losing because your website doesn’t capture leads?
o I have an email sign-up system in place
o I can track who visits my website and I can see where they land and how long they stay
o I have blog with a comments function that encourages conversations
o I have a Facebook Pages link and a Facebook LIKE button
2. How up-to-date is your website?
o I add new content more than once a month
o I have an easy-to-use Content Management System (CMS) that allows me to update my own content
o My online events calendar is up-to-date
3. Is it easy to find you on the Web?
o If you Google my company it comes up on the first page.
o I have a Facebook link and a Facebook page for my company
o I use the “Like” feature on my website
o I have a LinkedIn profile for my company
o I have a YouTube Channel with videos about my company
o I have a Twitter handle
4. Can mobile smart phone users see your website?
o My website has a mobile view that’s legible
o I avoid a lot of video and flash on my home page
o My website is easy to navigate with your finger on a touch-screen
5. Does your website reflect the real you…and tell users who you are?
o I have my contact info on the footer in an easy-to-find place
o I have a brief description of my company and what it offers on the Home Page
o I use large images and distinctive graphics to highlight the services and offerings of my company
Make sure your website is working for you, so you may go on a worry-free vacation. Contact us for a free assessment.
We are pleased to announce that Jim Hohl, president of CPS Creative and an expert in Website & Technology services, has joined us at the Langton Cherubino Group offices.
Jim has managed and developed websites and web applications since 1995, when he began his career by personally designing and developing the United Nations’ online education website, the CyberSchoolBus. While CTO of National Media Technologies, Jim managed the team that developed Cushman & Wakefield’s Investment Services Group online offering management system. Jim is the vice president of education for Pride Toastmasters and also studies improv. Jim has been working with Langton Cherubino Group for the past 3 years and handled the website deployment for many projects including www.IPRO.org. We are thrilled to have the opportunities to expand our work with Jim and are proud to add another Jim (Along with Jim Keller our Design Director) to the team.
For the nonprofit, Right as Rain, Langton Cherubino Group’s logo development was improved by Sarah Dale’s insights. Listening to the client’s responses is critical to getting the logo just right. After an initial presentation where we presented a wide range of logo possibilities, Sarah and her husband Gavino narrowed the choices down to three key directions. They provided feedback that inspired and informed the design process. The final logo by Jim Keller featured his watercolor interpretation that captured the spirit of the organization in an ode to Singin’ in The Rain. Click to visit the Right As Rain web site. You may also check out our previous installment of the Right as Rain logo development. View Part One and Part Two.
The cover for the new book is ready. Visual Marketing, 99 Ways for Small Businesses to Market with Images and Design by David Langton and Anita Campbell is coming from Wiley Publishers in September. Wiley’s inhouse designer C. Wallace used a cover image by Penfold/iStockphoto to create the cover which is based on an abstract “eye.”
The inside pages, designed by David Langton, will feature a large image from each case study and smaller secondary images. Co-author Anita Campbell has been analyzing each case study to come up with just the right “take-away” tip that encapsulates the main marketing angle for each project.
Visual marketing is coming in the fall of 2011. You can pre-order the book online at Amazon or Barnes & Noble or Borders.