New Literacies Logo

I have had a ‘real’ design problem this week. I wanted to have a logo for the research centre I belong to. We have just changed the name and I think we need to try and develop a brand image if we want to look slick! (ha ha) I spent ages messing around with several completely different ideas but ended up returning to one of the early ones. I realised I needed to test out the logos on letter heads and on Powerpoint slides to see that it fitted with all formats.  I think also it needs to fit a bit with the University of Sheffield logo as sometimes I will need to use them together. I also ended up realising you cannot stretch a jpg file forever without it ruining the quality – it ends up too pixelated and the colours go ‘thin’. So I made several versions of each design in the end. Ideas included just using letters – I do like the simple OCA logo – but I think that you can only use the acronym if people know what it stands for. But then when I added the full name it looked daft imo. So I ditched that. Then I decided I liked block shapes and went for coloursrs that were intense like iPod nanos. But the text was not clear enough. So in the end I think I am going for this, but will have to see what my colleagues think I guess!!

Letter head version

Postcard size so it can be used bigger on documents.

Then this is the Powerpoint size: I then decided to do a piece without the centre name on it … took me a while to realise I could not create a ‘twirl’ without adding a block of white at the side of the image. Trial and error – many errors, many trials. I think I must have at least 50 attempts in my folders.

I have learned a lot from doing all this.

I also realised that when you do this kind of thing you need to keep careful notes of filters, colours, fonts etc so that you can replicate everything for a different size.

Working to a Brief

Moving into the second part: Problem solving and the first exercise on working to a brief. I have annotated the pages of the file – I quite like having a folder of materials to hold.

Brief 1

This is about designing a new Quaker Oat packaging format. Important points of the brief include:

1. Target is young women
2. Needs to be healthy and tasty
3. Naturalness key – but not bland
4. Needs to be quick and easy to make – idea of juggling priorities.
5. It is clear to me that the purpose is to increase sales – especially to this group of people who they may think will be particularly lucrative OR who are currently not buying this stuff.

I would want to ask:

1. Are there limitations on colour?
2. Does it have to be a cereal box – similar to others for stacking purposes in the supermarket etc
3. Does it have to have the logo of Quaker and stick to that house-style?

I would like this brief the best! It is probably the most restrictive but this means that I can have more chance of coming up with an idea they think is OK.  I also understand the target market quite well – I am not young – but am subject to the lifestyle preferences they detail.

I would want to have the Quaker oat packets in portion sizes; calorie counted; in packets like envelopes and seeing girls popping these in their little handbag to take to work and have as a ‘convenient snack’ as well as a good start to the day. Perhaps the size and shape should be the familiar cup a soup format – small envelopes in boxes. Using a familiar format is good as people will recognise it .

Packets would have retro design work on them – conjuring the idea of – like grandma used to make . So the design would be foksy, gingham probably, and neutral colours.

Brief 2

This is about promoting the use of trains – and there is a theme of connections to follow.  I think this tries to encapsulate the excitement of travel in a new way.  I would not like this brief because

1. The target group is unclear
2. The creative idea is re-decided – and is poetic/thematic in a way I don’t like much.
3. It is not clear how success would be defined…
4. where would the ads go – poster? Tv? on the train?

If I were to set up this campaign I would base it around being environmentally aware – I think this would be better and I would find it hard to forget the importance of this.

I would want to show people taking their bikes on the train on the morning commute and putting forward the idea that trains can be part of the everyday commute. Maybe laughing together as they have a great time meeting the same people regularly as they travel and relax. Bikes could be the retro sort – this kind of thing is popular at the moment – but maybe better to have foldies so that people see the whole convenience thing in action.

Brief 3

This is about raising awareness of the dangers of drinking alcohol and so is targetted at the young – via responsible adults who care for them.

The campaign asserts that:

1. Children need care
2. Adults should care for them
3. Alcohol is bad and unhelathy
4. The state is in loco parentis
5. Children need protecting
6. But that although the state is in control … individuals need to feel empowered to say no to booze!
7. The idea of health is closely bound to happiness – – ah what a shame for those who are unwell and happy.

Ideas about the campaign:

1. Strip cartoon/photo-story format
2. Showing kids having a great time
3. Being tempted by alcohol
4. Saying No
5. Having a great time anyhow

I would set this in a trendy location and maybe try and use celebrities as part of this whole thing. Perhaps super uber healthy people like olympic champions would be in my ad. To counter the idea of bodily perfection and happiness I would use para olympic stars.