»  North Carolina Advertising Agencies

From the blog at birdsong gregory, a Charlotte, NC shopper marketing and advertising agency.

• If 10 million iPads ship this year, users will still represent less than 3% of the population.
• While sales of organic foods are rising, they only represents 3.7% of all food sales.
• While there are more than 100 million registered Twitter accounts, 40% of them have never sent a single tweet.

For all you faithful readers and blog enthusiasts, you'll remember (or can refer back to) my series called "The Designer's Classroom". Back in July, I introduced  you to one of my favorite Designer / Illustrators, Luke Bolt, and I cannot wait to continue the series with my next subject. Consider this post "Chapter Two", and get excited about Brent Couchman! Brent has been on my list of favorites for a while. His fun, vintage style is right up my alley. Most of you know of his work, even if you aren't a huge design geek like me. He's the man responsible for much of the gorgeous collateral and identity work we've come to expect from Fossil. He certainly has a way with clean and colorful design. His knack for typography and charming illustrations make it easy to see why I'm so fond of his work. He uses subtle textures brilliantly and has a smart and whimsical design sense. Check out more work from Brent Couchman on his flickr page, and prepare yourself for more to come in this series! Until next time, tell us about some of your favorite designers, illustrators, and typographers! We always love to hear from you. 

We don't like to brag, but we're pretty awesome too!! So check out our Charlotte Advertising Agency at birdsonggregory.com!

As the official type nerd of the office, I'm always excited to learn about new typefaces; and I'm happy to report the new one from Hoefler & Frere-Jones. The name is Forza. It's a san serif face based on the rounded rectangle, and is described by H&FJ as "caught in between typefaces that speak in a singular, powerful voice, and versatile ones capable of expressing many different moods". It was commissioned by Wired magazine to work as their editorial workhorse, and the result is engaging and distinguished. With its many different weights, Forza offers a "range of voices" for designers to choose from. It's definitely an updated interpretation of a font style (the study of the rounded rectangle) that has lasted over two hundred years. Well done! I can't wait to explore its possibilities. birdsong gregory grants the seal of approval! 

To learn more about our Charlotte Advertising Agency, visit us at birdsonggregory.com! We're excited to work with you.

Most designers will agree that creating a logo for a client is one of our most exciting tasks. Being able to visually represent a company is a great challenge. There are so many articles for designers and clients about the importance of this piece of design, and all that goes into creating it, but I was intrigued by this article from LogoLounge.com. It's all about the trends in logo designs of 2010. The examples above are only a few of the group they discuss, but lets take a look through them.

1. PARTS:

This trend is all about iconic pieces (or "parts") that come together to create the silhouette of the whole. From a distance it's one thing, and closer up it reveals more information. This particular example's objective is to visually represent the statement "We the people form this nation". It's a smart visual solve of a more organic concept.

2. GHOST:

This trend is all about engaging the viewer. Gaining the viewers attention in a visual world is such huge challenge for a designer, so this trend forces the viewer to engage with the logo if for no other reason than to confirm what they're seeing. It's soft and subtle, but in a way that demands attention. Interesting concept, huh?

3. CUBIST:

The inspiration for this trend comes from a place that shouldn't be surprising. Fine art has always been an influencing factor to designers, and I believe that the best design comes from a knowledge and background in fine art. There's a certain visual pleasure in reducing images down to their essence, thus the appeal of cubism.

4. BOX-UP

The terminology is pretty obvious, as is the reason this trend is so popular. It can be difficult for a designer to balance the importance of typography and symbol for a company's logo. Enlarging the pair to be sure the type is legible can throw the symbol into the dominant role, and reducing the size to make sure the symbol isn't too loud can make the type too small to read. Using a literal box insures that it's all together in a package. 

5. STAINS:

This trend is another example that calls for the attention of the viewer, often times in a second look. The blurred edge creates motion. The immediacy of these marks creates an impression of authenticity and humanity. It looks hand crafted, not computer or machine crafted.

6. DUST:

This trend understands the importance of subtlety. The stippled effect creates almost a whisper that can produce different tonal levels with its density. There's kind of a sparkle about this kind of technique. It creates the illusion of motion with hard edges. The most obvious connection for inspiration is that of an airbrush.

7. FESTOON:

Another trend that's about creating motion, the festoon trend accomplishes this by using streamer like elements (almost as if they are blowing in a breeze).The key to this graphic solution is that the elements have a diminishing point. They also often use overlapping and transparency to accomplish the goal and push the mark a little further. This trend evokes a free spirit and lack of control that's visually interesting. It's lighthearted and festive.

8. PIXEL:

This trend is inspired by the digital building block, the pixel. Small elements come together to create a larger result. The same idea is executed in pointillism. Dots of color create the whole picture. The challenge for designers with this one, is making it new. I found this example particularly interesting because of the warped perspective of the pixels, which ads another layer with dimension. It's an interest and different way to do pixels. 

While doing research for a project for one of our new clients here at birdsong gregory, I came across a designer's dream resource. The Library of Congress has dedicated a section of its online space to house a beautiful collection of WPA (Works Progress Administration) posters. 926 of them to be exact. The LOC has not only provided relevant archival information for each poster, but has also included hi-res TIFF files that can be downloaded free of charge! Some of the most beautiful typography and illustration you've ever seen is all in one place! This collection can bless any designer with much needed inspiration and visual reference. Thank you LOC for this addition! 

I was cruising The Dieline and came across this beautiful student package design for Ilford 120 film. Ilford is one of the only film companies today that still manufactures 120 film but the rise of the consumer 135mm film and more recently and powerfully, digital photography, has diminished the popularity of 120 film. Student designer Linna Xu says "the design of this package reintroduces and encourages the use of analog film technologies. The reusable packaging of the film functions as a pinhole camera, which provides individuals with a way of exploring analog photography without the cost of having to buy an old medium format camera. It also re-introduces a mindset and manner of working that is completely different from that which comes with fast-paced digital imaging technologies." Not only is this piece innovative and fun, but it's very well thought out. This is a package I wouldn't want to throw away. Good job Linna!

Stay tuned for more of the latest in packaging design from Charlotte Advertising agency birdsong gregory at birdsonggregory.com!

If you work in an image saturated field like graphic design or advertising, then you understand the need for a more user-friendly and hierarchical way to search online for stock photography. So we were excited to see Google recently roll out their smooth flash-based image search tool: Google Image Swirl.

When you click a stack of images, Image Swirl displays a fluid matrix of photos based on a quasi relational basis, i.e., search for dogs and you get several thick stacks of dog shots, which you can then rifle through. But bugs in the search logic remain. A search for dogs also turns up a shot of machine parts. And a search for ambition returns a shot of two young japanese guys staring blankly into the camera. 

It's still a fun way to hunt for that perfect visual metaphor, though. Plus the resulting patterns that develop are a loose art form unto themselves.

Go search for something yourself at image-swirl.googlelabs.com.

Advertisers watch out ... at least if your products are sold in San Francisco. A recent story from the Examiner details how San Francisco City Attorney Dennis Herrera sent a scathing letter to Kellogg Co. for claiming that Cocoa Krispies and other of its “sugar-laden” breakfast cereals will help boost children’s immunity to illnesses.

In the letter sent to the company’s president and CEO, Herrera expressed “serious concerns” about the large font printed on the Cocoa Krispies cereal box that reads, “Now Helps Support Your Child’s Immunity.”

The city attorney says that is likely false advertising, a potential violation of California’s Unfair Competition Law. He has asked Kellogg’s to prove its child immunity claims within 30 days. If the company fails to respond within that time, the City Attorney will “seek an immediate termination or modification of the advertising claim,” the letter said.
 
The claim is also printed on the Rice Krispies, Frosted Krispies and Jumbo Krispies cereal boxes. The products began appearing on shelves in San Francisco stores in recent months, Herrera noted.

I'm not sure how many parents are scooping up Cocoa Krispies for their health benefits, but this case does highlight the scrutiny that all advertising agencies and their clients can expect when making controversial claims for their products.

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