reactions

MSLK works with our clients to build great experiences with every touch-point of their brand, from identity design through to websites, packaging, and promotions online and offline. Over the years we’ve found that the best promotions and websites are really only possible when there is a truly unique offering, the only limit is with the brands themselves. When we see a brand everything right, it’s exciting.

I came across such a brand during a search for eyeglasses. After numerous visits to online stores and brick & morters, I found the whole process to be draining: too many choices, and a nagging sense that things were more expensive than they should be. Then I remembered an article I had read some time ago about a startup making vintage-inspired frames with prescription lenses for only $95.00. I began my Google search using the keywords “New York Times vintage eyewear website” which lead me right to the article.

Now I’m the proud owner of a wonderful pair of stylish, vintage-inspired frames from Warby Parker. I only paid $95.00, and found the whole experience to be, well… fun, which is a far cry from my previous experiences. Here’s why:

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For many, the word audit isn’t connected to creativity or much less something that can be good for business or actually fun. However, a brand audit is a great way of reviewing your brand to get an overview of how your company communicates. This is necessary in order to understand what’s working, what’s not working as intended,  and to set a successful course for the road ahead. We recently completed a brand audit and thought we’d share what we’ve identified as some best practices.

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Hiring a graphic designer to create something isn’t an easy task. The best design is a custom-tailored solution that could only work for that specific brand. Therefore you can’t expect to go to the store and simply pick up a pre-made logo, package or website that “fits” your brand.

But if you aren’t buying something that already exists, how do you know what design team is right for you? How do you choose?

Over the years I’ve come to define a few telltale signs and measuring tactics. I  follow these principles when hiring a designer myself.
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A few years back we worked with high-profile photo illustrator, James Porto to revamp his brand identity. Since then, we’ve been working with him on occasional touch-ups to his marketing by helping to consult on new images to shoot for his promotional ads. Recently, we helped him solve a vexing problem: getting his work found on social media outlets. This was essential, as the new generation of art directors and art buyers are more likely to find about new work through blogs and image curating sites than the more traditional print channels. We determined that a personal blog would be the best way for James to achieve this goals. Read more to go behind the scenes of our process. Be sure to also check out the James Porto blog, as well.
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Everyone’s a critic. Over the years, graphic design has become more mainstream. And as more people have become more aware of design, more people have become quick to judge and criticize any change in a well known corporate brand. Because of this, it’s not unheard of for a brand to change their look and then have a public backlash force them to change it back and pretend nothing ever happened (Think Gap and Tropicana). Of course, it’s impossible to make everyone happy, but with so many people responding to rebrands, selling a new look to the public is starting to become a crucial part of the rebranding process.

Starbucks and Comedy Central were both given an overhaul recently and are very good examples of this. While they are two vastly different companies, what they do have in common is that both of the companies took the time to present these rebrands in a way that says, “Yes, we did change our look, and we are going to show you why this is a change in the right direction.”

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We’re asked all the time to create logos for organizations. A logo is the single defining image of an organization that you see on every piece of branded material. Think of Apple’s ubiquitous bitten apple (a symbol) or IBM’s striped blocky letters (a wordmark). More often that not, MSLK creates typographic wordmarks rather than symbols for our clients. This is not simply a matter of preference, but there are circumstances when it is better to use one kind versus the other. Read more to find out what is appropriate for your organization.
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Photos.com, a division of Getty Images, one of the world’s leading sources for stock imagery, has featured our website redesigns of James Porto and Cameron Socks on their Facebook Page. All of these case studies are contained within the “Makeovers” Tab. Users have the option to read the full case study and share each of them. Read more to find out about the two featured projects.

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Sheri L Koetting was interviewed by the Guardian Life Small Business Research Institute as a part of their research on small business and social media. Guardian Life investigated which groups of people are more likely to use social media platforms for their small business. In the video, Sheri discusses how we at MSLK use social media for our clients as well as for ourselves. Sheri also discusses what kinds of social media platforms MSLK recommends for our clients as well as why certain groups of people are more likely to use social media than others.

According to the research done by Guardian Life, the groups of business owners more likely to use social media are women, people under age 28, and people whose businesses have less than 10 employees. MSLK stands out from the norm according to this research. While we are a business with under 10 employees, social networks play a large role in our business as we work to integrate social media into our clients’ as well as our own marketing strategies. To read more about the research done by Guardian Life, check out the press release here.

-Cristina Gomez

Having a Facebook page for your business is one thing, but growing your fan base and keeping your fans engaged is another. An easy way to achieve these things is through the use of sweepstakes and contests. We at MSLK did just that and experienced very positive results.

From November 9th thru December 3rd we ran a sweepstakes giving away ten sets of our “Cheers!” Gift Tags. Participants simply had to become a fan of MSLK and provide their name and email address and they were done. Even with such a simple sweepstakes we saw a 13.2% increase in our fan base and nearly a 400% increase in our monthly active users. If MSLK was able to yield such results with a simple giveaway, just think what it could do for your own brand.

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There’s one trend in website design and development that we simply must call attention to. The curse of the “Coming Soon” page! In a world of up-datable content, blogs, and sites that change almost daily, a “coming soon” sign anywhere on a website pretty much guarantees that it’s a feature that is “never coming.”

How often do you get excited about a website, click over to the News section and see an exuberant “Coming Soon!” sign up there? Maybe there’s even an upbeat “Check Back Soon!” added for more dramatic flair.

It’s not your fault. It was probably your web designer’s idea, but it’s a bad one. If you are the web designer who suggested it — stop that!

Here’s our advice for what to do instead.

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