Wednesday, August 29, 2012
It occurred to me (Morgan) this
morning, that our last few posts have had a consistent theme of messaging with
a heavy focus on the point-of-purchase (POP) arm of marketing. When most
people think of POP, they generally tend to focus on displays and signs...this
line of thought made me think: What are the components of a well designed sign? The reverse question also occurred to me: What
constitutes a 'bad' sign design?
A well designed POP sign should communicate its core message
in one glance.
People new to marketing and sign
design often try to cram in too much information. Just think what the
state of traffic would be, if the street signs contained too many details?
Drivers would be too distracted deciphering street signs to avoid car
crashes! When on the highway, how do you know where the fast food
chains are for each exit? Their logos, distance, and two words:
"Next Exit" make it clear, in one glance, where you can get burgers
versus tacos.
Examine the poster below. Is
it clear what type of story you would get if you bought Ms. Marvelle's book?
<Steamy!>
 |
In store sign at Jan's Paperbacks. See last Wednesday's
Field Report for details.
|
For this week's field trip, we would
like for you to take extra note of the signs you encounter in your everyday
life.
·
Which ones are easy to
comprehend / digest in one glance?
·
For the signs that
contain more detailed information, which ones actually make you stop to read
them? Which ones do you just pass by without reading? Why?
·
How
can you apply what you learned to your POP signs?
Put your POP signs to work. Communicate in one glance.
Wednesday, September 12, 2012
This week, I would like for you to take a moment to think about three popular brands:
What thoughts and images
immediately come to mind? Maybe your mind jumped to the toner or ink you
need for your printer, plain tiled floors and fully stocked shelves, or helpful
staff.
Take a look at their
websites via the links provided. Pretty standard stuff, here.
Exactly what you would expect from an office supply website: extensive
navigation bars, a large promo ad of some sort, and sales or discounts
highlighted.
Poppin. also sells
office supplies, but what's different?
They took a fresh perspective on how to design and market their office supplies!
They took a fresh perspective on how to design and market their office supplies!
I just love to be
surprised and refreshed. And how refreshing it is to find a company that
has taken something so mundane as 'office supply shopping' and raised it to a
new level.
Did you notice that you can shop for goods based
on color?
<for some reason this fact makes me giggle like a school girl.>
<for some reason this fact makes me giggle like a school girl.>
Note: Businesses have
brands and cultures. Nonfiction authors, nonprofit organizations, and
politicians have platforms. Fiction authors have genres and PERSONAS.
Keeping this in mind, note how Poppin.'s "work happy" culture
is present in all corners of their web presence. (Check out their 'Meet
Poppin', 'We Give Back', and 'Fun Stuff' links at the bottom of their web
page.)
Your assignment for this week:
Your assignment for this week:
·
Take a look at your
website with a fresh perspective
·
How can you incorporate
your PERSONA into all corners of your marketing?
·
Through your writing,
are you taking a fresh perspective on an established genre? Is this new
spin adequately represented on your website and in your promotional materials?
Don't be afraid to try something new and let your PERSONA
shine through.
Wednesday, September 5, 2012
I challenge you to try to think of ways to
integrate the information below into your PERSONA & POP designs.
Hopefully, you can now understand why I love,
love, love marketing!
It's so fascinating!
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