Category Archives: Design
The Middle Circle
I am a bit of an anomaly. I can give or take Pepsi or Coke. I’ll drink either one or be perfectly content to have a root beer or raspberry ice tea. So I don’t have affinity for either brand but … 
It’s the Little Things …
… that transform good marketing into great marketing. This morning, The Lion in Winter was on and I had to go to the endlessly-useful Internet Movie Database. (BTW – Wasn’t this one of the first viral sites that all of …
I Agree with Leo
I regard a great ad as the most beautiful thing in the world. – Leo Burnett I went to the University of Iowa Museum of Art last weekend and saw this statue – Bob’s Big Boy. I love it. I …
Redefining Breakfast
Last night I caught the founders of Cereality, David Roth and Rick Bacher, on The Big Idea with Donny Deutsch. Now this truly is a remarkable concept – a bar/cafe that serves cereal. Not high-end, gourmet cereal. Just plain ‘ol …
I’m Taking Pictures of My Trash Again
Again, you say? Yes. As some of you may remember I was similarly moved by some fast food packaging that I had to photograph and blog about pre-trash last year. Anyhow, I love this Pizza Hut box because they took …
A Revealing – CORRECTION – Unveiling Look at Branding
I let out an audible “Wow” at the grocery store this afternoon when I saw how closely my regional chain had mirrored the packaging of GE’s Reveal bulbs with its store brand. This couldn’t be a more timely discussion on …
On Presentations, Proposals, Reports, and the Like
Okay, so you have to turn in a big proposal or strategy document. You sit down and you labor for hours writing the thing. You condense your points, you support your thoughts with data and the whole piece comes together …
I AM a Designer (and You Should Be Too!)
Molli with an “i” is a high school junior who recently job shadowed me for a brief portion of her day. As I talked with her about the minutia of my job as a marketing professional, I mentioned that my …
Less Like Bill. More Like Steve.
“I wish the stage were as narrow as the wire of a tightrope dancer, so that no incompetent would dare step upon it.” – Johann Wolfgang von Goethe Bill Gates isobviously not up on his Goethe. This recent presentation, which …
The Complexity of "Easy to Use"
You’re sitting down to discuss your message strategy with your boss or client. He’s listing off the product or service’s core features and rounding out the list is its ease of use. Gulp! You’re really in trouble if the first …
