Wednesday, July 30, 2008
Thursday, July 24, 2008
Newport Firefighters Local 45 Logo Unveiling
EMG recently selected winners for this year's Operation Outreach. Each of us at EMG were designated a non-profit account -- all of which we are exceptionally pleased to work with and represent. I was assigned the Newport Firefighters Local 45, IAFF, to help them gain exposure and to fulfill design work.
I created a new logo and stationery, assisted with event flyers, and helped to publicize their organization. The new logo will be unveiled at 1:30 p.m. on Monday, August 4th at the Peace Bell in Newport. EMG president Rodger Roeser, APR, will discuss the work and why the change, along with Newport Firefighter Mike Volz, who will share the meaning behind the new design, what it means to the firefighters and the residents of Newport, and additional programs the firefighters will be part of throughout the year.
About Newport Firefighters Local 45
Newport Firefighters Local 45, affiliated with International Association of Firefighters (I.A.F.F.), is primarily a Labor Organization representing the members of the Newport Fire/EMS Department in Newport, Kentucky. Established in 1918 Local 45 was one of the first sixty-six locals of the now more than 3100 I.A.F.F. affiliates across the U.S. and Canada. Today, in addition to business of being a labor organization, Local 45 continues to sponsor programs such as College Scholarship Awards, Youth Sporting Events, Holiday Family Assistance Program and Smoke Detector Installation/Maintenance Program. Many of these programs were developed and financed by Local 45 members who were inspired to give back to the community after interactions during emergency responses.
Spacial Design
Recently, I had to coordinate a wedding, and now I'm in the process of redecorating my new home. How is this relevant to design? In a lot of ways. Who knew it would be difficult to decide what I wanted and how it would look all together?
Designing and coordinating in your head and shopping for pieces separately is so much different than designing, say, a pocket folder. In photoshop, I can just select 'undo' if I don't like something, and I can instantly see what I'm doing. Just because I can make a pretty layout on a computer, doesn't mean interior decorating comes easy. I started realizing what I was doing wrong and why it wasn't turning out the way I wanted it to. And it's especially hard because I like so many different styles, and when it's something of my own to create -- the possibilities are limitless, so it's hard to pick a direction and go with it. The more options -- the more confusion!
It's important to compliment the colors and elements you choose. It doesn't have to be matchy-matchy, but it should certainly have consistency.
I'd like to share 3 simple tips on finding direction. I am by no means a wedding planner or interior designer, but I've learned through my own recent experiences and it's all starting to make sense!
1. Color temperature
Be sure to keep all of your colors at the same room temperature. If you have blues and greens, you're working with cool colors, so this will factor in to selecting a cool tone wall paint. If you are using beiges, oranges or reds, you're in the warm color family. This should make it easier to decide what colors to work with.
2. Elements
What elements are you working with? Are they consistent? There are many to choose from - glass, wrought iron, wicker, brushed nickel, dark and light woods, etc. If you're designing a simplistic contemporary room, glass and nickel may work better for you than antique or rustic furniture. Also keep this in mind with accessories and fabrics. Pick a few elements that work well together and keep them consistent and complimentary.
3. Style
Opt for one particular style and stick with it. Your room can be contemporary, retro, traditional or country. Just remember, if you have a traditional style in a room, a modern abstract piece may not work as well as an antique or neutral accessory. Consistency! This should eliminate confusion.
Designing and coordinating in your head and shopping for pieces separately is so much different than designing, say, a pocket folder. In photoshop, I can just select 'undo' if I don't like something, and I can instantly see what I'm doing. Just because I can make a pretty layout on a computer, doesn't mean interior decorating comes easy. I started realizing what I was doing wrong and why it wasn't turning out the way I wanted it to. And it's especially hard because I like so many different styles, and when it's something of my own to create -- the possibilities are limitless, so it's hard to pick a direction and go with it. The more options -- the more confusion!
It's important to compliment the colors and elements you choose. It doesn't have to be matchy-matchy, but it should certainly have consistency.
I'd like to share 3 simple tips on finding direction. I am by no means a wedding planner or interior designer, but I've learned through my own recent experiences and it's all starting to make sense!
1. Color temperature
Be sure to keep all of your colors at the same room temperature. If you have blues and greens, you're working with cool colors, so this will factor in to selecting a cool tone wall paint. If you are using beiges, oranges or reds, you're in the warm color family. This should make it easier to decide what colors to work with.
2. Elements
What elements are you working with? Are they consistent? There are many to choose from - glass, wrought iron, wicker, brushed nickel, dark and light woods, etc. If you're designing a simplistic contemporary room, glass and nickel may work better for you than antique or rustic furniture. Also keep this in mind with accessories and fabrics. Pick a few elements that work well together and keep them consistent and complimentary.
3. Style
Opt for one particular style and stick with it. Your room can be contemporary, retro, traditional or country. Just remember, if you have a traditional style in a room, a modern abstract piece may not work as well as an antique or neutral accessory. Consistency! This should eliminate confusion.
Monday, July 21, 2008
Cool Resources for Designers
Below I've listed a few great resources for designers. These sites and tools have been very valuable to me along the way :)
1 - vector4free.com/
Free vector art packages with lots of themes and styles
2 - www.good-tutorials.com
This is a wonderful resource for Photoshop nerds! You can figure out just about anything, and the tutorials can certainly help newbies get familiar with PS tools and tricks! Also has tutorials for Illustrator, CSS, Flash and HTML!
3 - www.shabbyprincess.com
This is a cute site for digital scrapbooking. You can use a lot of the elements in various projects to add texture and a 3-dimensional feel.
4 - www.dynamicdrive.com/
Scripts for website development. I always encourage to try something new with each site you build.
5 - www.brandsoftheworld.com
Here you can find vector versions of well-known brands. You can also find fonts, photos and other cool resources.
6 - simplythebest.net/scripts
Another great coding resource with step-by-step instructions on implementation.
That's it for now! There's a ton more but it's been a busy day ;) Enjoy!
1 - vector4free.com/
Free vector art packages with lots of themes and styles
2 - www.good-tutorials.com
This is a wonderful resource for Photoshop nerds! You can figure out just about anything, and the tutorials can certainly help newbies get familiar with PS tools and tricks! Also has tutorials for Illustrator, CSS, Flash and HTML!
3 - www.shabbyprincess.com
This is a cute site for digital scrapbooking. You can use a lot of the elements in various projects to add texture and a 3-dimensional feel.
4 - www.dynamicdrive.com/
Scripts for website development. I always encourage to try something new with each site you build.
5 - www.brandsoftheworld.com
Here you can find vector versions of well-known brands. You can also find fonts, photos and other cool resources.
6 - simplythebest.net/scripts
Another great coding resource with step-by-step instructions on implementation.
That's it for now! There's a ton more but it's been a busy day ;) Enjoy!
Friday, July 18, 2008
Pixel Puzzles
If you enjoy puzzles, you'll love this new pixel puzzle book available through BigFlyGames.com, titled Prisma Pixels. It's the first pixel puzzle book of it's kind -- it's in color!
By the end of June, they had sold over 500 copies of the book across the country (including more than 10 internationally). To show their appreciation, Big Fly Games is giving away a FREE set of 24 Sargent Art colored pencils to the person who purchases book number 1000 from the website -- http://www.bigflygames.com. Check out the site, play games online, learn more about Big Fly Publishing, and purchase the book online!
By the end of June, they had sold over 500 copies of the book across the country (including more than 10 internationally). To show their appreciation, Big Fly Games is giving away a FREE set of 24 Sargent Art colored pencils to the person who purchases book number 1000 from the website -- http://www.bigflygames.com. Check out the site, play games online, learn more about Big Fly Publishing, and purchase the book online!
Thursday, July 17, 2008
Failure to Perform
So what do you do when a trusted service provider fails? This is something that really burned me up today. It's not just about what happened, but it was a failure to correct the problem on their end or do something to compensate for it.
A service we used for an online store changed their control panel and some of their settings. Our client called us frantically -- you couldn't actually purchase anything in the store! Nothing was working. Of course, this came as a shock, and come to find out, a lot of other things went wrong! Things were named wrong, some products were missing altogether, etc. etc. I called tech support and they simply tell me I have to go back in and enable doo-dads and make these changes to each individual product. Ex-squeeze me? All 50? And who gets billed for that??? But I'm told they can't do it, or they'd have to charge. So we're all losing money on their mistake. Tragic.
Ok, mistakes happen, especially with technical jargon, I understand that. But customer service is key. I had really expected them to say "oh, we'll take care of it, sorry about the inconvenience" or "we'll be sure to waive this month's bill, we're very sorry." The guy on the phone was very nice, but I guess I just expected the cost to be eaten by them somehow. After all, we're running a business here.
Let's say I buy a set of dishes -- I get home, open the box and find a chipped bowl. They wouldn't tell me "use superglue!" Likely they'd exchange it, right? Or order you a new set, waive the shipping. Anywho, I could care less if something awry happened -- but I'd never shop there again if they told me to use the superglue. I'd remain loyal customer no matter what if they went out of their way to resolve the inconvenience. Don't ever think that goes out of style... it goes a long way.
UPDATE:
A co-worker of mine had blogged about the same incident recently, noting the company name. Her blog entry (not our letter to customer service) caught the attention of a representative and he has since been in touch with us to help resolve the situation. Now that's what I'm talking about!
A service we used for an online store changed their control panel and some of their settings. Our client called us frantically -- you couldn't actually purchase anything in the store! Nothing was working. Of course, this came as a shock, and come to find out, a lot of other things went wrong! Things were named wrong, some products were missing altogether, etc. etc. I called tech support and they simply tell me I have to go back in and enable doo-dads and make these changes to each individual product. Ex-squeeze me? All 50? And who gets billed for that??? But I'm told they can't do it, or they'd have to charge. So we're all losing money on their mistake. Tragic.
Ok, mistakes happen, especially with technical jargon, I understand that. But customer service is key. I had really expected them to say "oh, we'll take care of it, sorry about the inconvenience" or "we'll be sure to waive this month's bill, we're very sorry." The guy on the phone was very nice, but I guess I just expected the cost to be eaten by them somehow. After all, we're running a business here.
Let's say I buy a set of dishes -- I get home, open the box and find a chipped bowl. They wouldn't tell me "use superglue!" Likely they'd exchange it, right? Or order you a new set, waive the shipping. Anywho, I could care less if something awry happened -- but I'd never shop there again if they told me to use the superglue. I'd remain loyal customer no matter what if they went out of their way to resolve the inconvenience. Don't ever think that goes out of style... it goes a long way.
UPDATE:
A co-worker of mine had blogged about the same incident recently, noting the company name. Her blog entry (not our letter to customer service) caught the attention of a representative and he has since been in touch with us to help resolve the situation. Now that's what I'm talking about!
Wednesday, July 9, 2008
10 SEO Tips
Here are a few basic tips on implementing SEO tactics:
1. Keep it Simple
You do not need to use multiple versions of every keyword all in the 1st page of your website. Do not stuff meaningless words or spend too much time on metatags. SEO pros agree that these tags are not as important as they once were. Just use a few obvious key words or phrases and concentrate more on your page titles, and No. 2 below.
2. Name your images, and use Alt Tags effectively.
By simply adding alt tags to your images and naming them strategically, the search engines will index them accordingly. For example, instead of naming an image "bluelogo.jpg", name it "YourCompany_Logo.jpg" and attach an Alt tag such as your company name or key word.
3. Keep your site fresh.
Update your site as frequently as possible. Each time you update your site, the search engine spiders will crawl back to it. This will also give incentive to visitors to keep checking back, giving you more traffic and bumping you up in search engine rankings.
4. Site Map
Large sites should always include a site map, which should be accessible from every page. This will help the search engine robots find every page within two clicks.
5. Blogs, Press Releases, Newsletters
Drive traffic to your site through multiple outlets. Anything that has your URL available will increase the amount of clicks you will receive and how often you appear in search results.
6. Avoid Flash-Overload
These days, some search engines are able to pick up Flash code, but it is highly recommended to stick with traditional HTML or similar code for search engine readability. A flash site or intro page could get in the way of a robot search.
7. Submit to Search Engines Yourself
You don't need to pay a service for submission. Likely, you could end up spending a lot of money just to be penalized or banned. Choose a few of the most popular sites to submit to and only do so once.
8. Crosslink
Use keywords as anchor text to link to other pages within your site. This is useful for sites that contain many pages. The more keywords that link to a specific page the better.
9. Validate your code
Ensure that you do not have broken links or images by using a tool, such as the WC3 Validator. It is also recommended to use a program, such as Jayde, to check relevant keywords. These programs will show you how search engine spiders may see the website.
10. Relevant and Multiple Domain Names
Make sure that your domain name properly stands for who you are. It is best to have a domain specific to your company or what you do. When search engine visitors search for "consultants" and you're a consulting firm, it should be part of your URL. For example, if your company name is ABC Consultants, but your domain name is abandc.com, when a user types "consultants" you likely won't pop up. The more domain names you have, and the more specific they are, the better chance you'll be within the first few pages of a search.
1. Keep it Simple
You do not need to use multiple versions of every keyword all in the 1st page of your website. Do not stuff meaningless words or spend too much time on metatags. SEO pros agree that these tags are not as important as they once were. Just use a few obvious key words or phrases and concentrate more on your page titles, and No. 2 below.
2. Name your images, and use Alt Tags effectively.
By simply adding alt tags to your images and naming them strategically, the search engines will index them accordingly. For example, instead of naming an image "bluelogo.jpg", name it "YourCompany_Logo.jpg" and attach an Alt tag such as your company name or key word.
3. Keep your site fresh.
Update your site as frequently as possible. Each time you update your site, the search engine spiders will crawl back to it. This will also give incentive to visitors to keep checking back, giving you more traffic and bumping you up in search engine rankings.
4. Site Map
Large sites should always include a site map, which should be accessible from every page. This will help the search engine robots find every page within two clicks.
5. Blogs, Press Releases, Newsletters
Drive traffic to your site through multiple outlets. Anything that has your URL available will increase the amount of clicks you will receive and how often you appear in search results.
6. Avoid Flash-Overload
These days, some search engines are able to pick up Flash code, but it is highly recommended to stick with traditional HTML or similar code for search engine readability. A flash site or intro page could get in the way of a robot search.
7. Submit to Search Engines Yourself
You don't need to pay a service for submission. Likely, you could end up spending a lot of money just to be penalized or banned. Choose a few of the most popular sites to submit to and only do so once.
8. Crosslink
Use keywords as anchor text to link to other pages within your site. This is useful for sites that contain many pages. The more keywords that link to a specific page the better.
9. Validate your code
Ensure that you do not have broken links or images by using a tool, such as the WC3 Validator. It is also recommended to use a program, such as Jayde, to check relevant keywords. These programs will show you how search engine spiders may see the website.
10. Relevant and Multiple Domain Names
Make sure that your domain name properly stands for who you are. It is best to have a domain specific to your company or what you do. When search engine visitors search for "consultants" and you're a consulting firm, it should be part of your URL. For example, if your company name is ABC Consultants, but your domain name is abandc.com, when a user types "consultants" you likely won't pop up. The more domain names you have, and the more specific they are, the better chance you'll be within the first few pages of a search.
It's about time...
I've finally decided to start a blog! In my 10 years in the advertising/PR industry, I've learned a lot. Still, everyday I learn something new (goes the old adage) and so I've got a lot to share, question, and rant about.
First, I'll start with a little bit about myself. I'm 28 years old, recently married, and reside in Cincinnati, OH. I'm the VP of Creative/Web at Eisen Management Group. Outside of work, I'm a busy-body -- keeping up with family, friends and the married life. My mother would say "you don't let grass grow under your feet!" I guess that means it will give me a lot to write about :)
I started this blog to share some insights and best practices in design. I didn't say I was a great writer, otherwise I'd be blogging about best practices in writing! Design is what I love, it's a hobby as much as it is a career. And it's more than just making something "pretty." Here, I'll post tips and ramblings on whatever crosses my path!
Enjoy~
First, I'll start with a little bit about myself. I'm 28 years old, recently married, and reside in Cincinnati, OH. I'm the VP of Creative/Web at Eisen Management Group. Outside of work, I'm a busy-body -- keeping up with family, friends and the married life. My mother would say "you don't let grass grow under your feet!" I guess that means it will give me a lot to write about :)
I started this blog to share some insights and best practices in design. I didn't say I was a great writer, otherwise I'd be blogging about best practices in writing! Design is what I love, it's a hobby as much as it is a career. And it's more than just making something "pretty." Here, I'll post tips and ramblings on whatever crosses my path!
Enjoy~
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