Aradia Massage

If you are ever in the St. Petersburg, Florida area, be sure to look up Aradia. Who's Aradia? She's not only one of our clients, she's also one of the most skilled massage therapists you'll ever have the pleasure of knowing.

We launched her new website this week. You can see it here.

The site is pretty basic right now and will be a nice staging point for all the other work we have planned for it in the coming months including an online booking system and storefront.

If you want to read more about it in the news, click here.

©2009 \\ COSMIC \\

Cosmic's experiment with product design

We were just got hired to design a series of very fun Christmas tree ornaments plus the packaging. This is beginning to become a commonplace occurrence for Cosmic: packaging and product design, which is funny because it isn't what we've studied. That's not to say we aren't experienced with it.

There's a shift in the marketplace for businesses. Those that start have the tools available to them to create advertising and design work for themselves. We don't recommend this route and yet, it is something we are seeing a lot of.

The other side of it is we are seeing a shift in what clients are requesting. We just finished project work on the design of a software interface for a custom website application. It was a combination between web design and product design and proved to be a very interesting and rewarding learning experience.

For the future, Cosmic is looking towards new aspects of design beyond print collateral and website design to accommodate our customer's needs.

What new unexpected shifts have you seen in your industry?

©2009 \\ COSMIC \\

Boom Business Expo

If you are looking for ideas on how to spruce up your website or where to start one from scratch, you may sit in on the web design roundtable discussions at the Boom Business Expo on Monday, April 27th at the Quorum Hotel in Tampa, FL.

I will be facilitating the discussion with topics that may include How to Build a Great Looking Website, Branding Yourself Online, How to Build Effective Email Marketing Campaigns, Social Media, Website Navigation and the Importance of Visuals on a Website to name a few.

To learn more about the Web Design Roundtable discussions go here.

To purchase tickets to the business conference go here.

©2009 David Scott | Cosmic: Corporate Graphic Design

Sales and design

I haven't met many graphic designers that are really good salespeople. In fact, most are downright horrible at sales. That's why many of the big agencies are run by experienced sales people, not creatives.

If you do find a designer that has solid sales experience, hang on to them.

Understanding the sales process is essential to the design process. Graphic designers create the tools needed in the sales process to make an effective presentation for their client's company.

Whether an annual report, business card or website, the effective sales person uses each of these tools to grow their company. If the designer does not have a clear understanding of how the sales process works, how will their ideas help you?

©2009 David Scott | Cosmic: Advertising & Design

What is your question about advertising and design?

If you are having a marketing challenge in your business, i.e. little to no customers, awareness, generating leads, etc., chances are pretty good that it may be solved with a proper application of a solid graphic design solution.

We've discovered that many of our own clients have tons of questions when it comes to marketing:

• How should I use my website in conjunction with another marketing campaign?
• Why don't my newspaper advertisements work?
• Should I publish pricing on my website?
• Does my logo suck?
• How do I incorporate social media applications into my internet marketing.
• What colors best represent my business and why?
• How do I get more customers?

So, what's YOUR challenge?

We are looking for topics and discussions to publish that are valuable to not only our clients but other business owners and marketing executives as well. We would love to answer your questions either here on this blog, on Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook or send us an email through our website if you prefer.

So ask away and put our expertise to good use. We've been doing this for over 16 years and would love to help. It starts with your question, though. So, ask.

©2009 David Scott | Cosmic: Advertising & Design

Beware of Credentials

A client recently asked me to collaborate with an associate of his on the design of a website for his company. The associate was a web site programmer and Search Engine Optimization expert. As the designer for the project, the partnership seemed like it would be a good fit.

Upon introducing myself and how I would be involved in the project, I received the following response:

I have built thousands of websites and have a degree in MIS from USF and am certified by Microsoft in Analyzing Requirements and Definiting Solutions Architecture. With over 13 years of professional experience I don't need any help.

This was enough to allow me to step away from the project. Why?

First, I have a design process that works and it requires me to be involved at all stages of development.

Second, her claim of credentials was an attempt to possibly scare me off because she felt I might be taking over the project or something like that. I wasn't scared by her training. Instead, I became concerned for the client. Personally, I could care less how much training you have. Show me your commitment to the client and I'll want to work with you.

When someone blasts their credentials at you, it should send signals. BIG ONES. Dig a little deeper and you might discover they are hiding something from you. No matter how impressive their credentials are, it could be a way to distract you from something they are not telling you.

When your design and marketing partnerships are based on commitment and promises, that is when the magic happens.

By the way, if you are someone who is a website programmer and is committed to your clients, I want to talk to you. Contact me through my website (http://www.cosmic-studio.com).

©2009 David Scott | Cosmic: Advertising & Design

Webcasts for the grieving

Many businesses don't think they need design and technology to help them grow their business or expand into new arenas.

Take funeral homes for example. Most wouldn't think they really need to market themselves. However, Wakeman Funeral Home has employed using live webcasts for individuals who can't attend a funeral.

How ingenious is that? It is great to see a company harnessing the possibilities of web design and technology to bring people together during a time that matters.

If you don't think your business could benefit from new communication tools for your customers, think again.

©2009 David Scott | Cosmic: Advertising & Design

Happy birthday Facebook

Facebook celebrates its 5 year anniversary as the largest online social networking tool. Read more here.

©2009 David Scott | Cosmic: Advertising & Design

Emails

Lately, I've been looking at the emails I get from people and studying what works about them and what doesn't. I have come up with a list of nine critical items an email can have to be an effective marketing tool.

Notice, I didn't say "HTML emails". These items can apply to any email you send whether it has graphics in it or not. Even a simple note to your mom has a visual impact.

1. Enter and set a full name in your email preferences. This isn't your email address. It is your actual name or company name. It tells others the name of the person sending the email.

2. Make is scannable. Computers users generally don't read. They scan. If you are typing a text only email, format it so information is delivered in small chunks. Use short sentences and space between paragraphs.

3. If you don't know how to format an HTML email, don't try it. Stick with text only.

4. If you really really want to send an HTML email, hire a professional.

5. Make the subject specific to your email. Don't write a teaser. "Workshop information" is much more informative versus "Hey you…".

6. Never leave the subject line blank.

7. Give your recipients an option to respond via email somewhere.

8. Always use a signature that contains your phone number and a link to your website. If you don't have a website, call me.

9. If you are sending emails for your business, plunk down the $10 per month and get a hosted email account with your business domain. It's professional. If you don't have a hosting account click here and get one.

©2009 David Scott | Cosmic: Advertising & Design

Selling on websites

A potential client told me they took down their website because they couldn't spend the time to manage all the products they had to sell online. Now he has a website listed on his business card and no site.

With an increasing number of people seeking out companies on the internet, this is not always a good approach to brand development.

You don't always have to sell products on your website for it to be a useful marketing tool. Here are some ideas to consider that require little to no maintenance on your part.

• Even if it one page with your phone number, put something up. You can still optimize a single page site for the web so that people find you online.

• Create a scheduling application that allows users to set service appointments through your website.

• Use a third party site like Infusion to manage your leads and marketing for you.

• Automate everything. From quotes to contact. The more business systems and processes you can integrate into the technology behind the web, the less time you will spend working on it and answering questions.

• Make sure your site is chock full of useful information from the start. A site that is highly informative may require less revisions as time goes on.

• If you need to sell product, sell products that have longevity such as books or a registration to a workshop.

• Create a site that educates instead of advertises. Educating your customer can go a long way to create brand loyalty for your product or service.

• Your design team is a good resource to assist you with any with maintenance issues. They can objectively look at your situation and create a solution that works to save you time.

Possibilities for how to use your website are endless and the solution to your online marketing needs won't always look like you think it has to look.


©2008 David Scott | Cosmic: Advertising & Design

Web Design: Gulfcoast Cancer Institute

We launched the website for Gulfcoast Cancer Institute today.

“This marks an exciting day in the evolution of Gulfcoast Cancer Institute," said Tim McMahon, Chief Operating Officer for Gulfcoast Cancer Institute. “We appreciate all of the hard work Cosmic has done to let the Tampa Bay communities and the entire world know that Gulfcoast Cancer Institute is the place for high quality, compassionate radiation treatment and advanced imaging services in Pinellas County."

The website can be viewed at www.gcitampabay.com.


©2008 David Scott | Cosmic: Graphic Design & Branding

Osama loves design

Banner ads, videos, sequels? Is it me or does Al-Qaida seem to be going a bit hollywood? I don't think I ever really paid much attention to how these guys get their message out and when I saw this banner ad featuring Osama Bin Laden's announcement of a new video, I was somewhat intrigued about the design. It seems to me that for a terrorist organization, this ad's design isn't half bad.





If you study it, one can see there's a certain sense of alignment and formatting to this ad and the typography might even be considered beautiful. It occurs to me that someone with a background in design would have had to have designed it. I wouldn't call it award winning work or anything, but I've seen much worse.

It struck me as curious. Are terrorists hiring graphic designers? If so, it makes me wonder whether organizations like Osama's see the value in graphic design and what role design plays to combat his and other's propaganda.

©2007 David Scott | Cosmic

Congratulations to Me

I was accepted today as a partner on Microsoft's Advisory Panel for web development. This is funny to me since I don't actually use any Microsoft products. Not even Microsoft Word.

I remember that in the application I explained the challenges I have with their software products including consistent computer crashes. My opinion of Microsoft wasn't exactly positive. The fact that they approved my application might mean that the company is actually willing to form a community with even those that oppose their products and business practices in an effort to improve.

While, I'm not planning on switching from Adobe to Microsoft anytime soon, I am curious to see what the company has in store for the design community.

©2007 David Scott | Cosmic

Will It Blend?

Entertaining, funny and amazing, Will It Blend is a site devoted to demonstrating the power of the Blendtec Blender. What an incredible marketing tool. Not only did I spend an hour watching these videos, but now I know who makes the best blender on the planet. Talk about viral.

©2007 David Scott | Cosmic

Typetester

Typetester is a handy online web development tool that allow users to compare various type treatments for their website copy. The site features three columns you can use to compare different CSS applications to the same body of text to see which would be the right treatment for your company's website. Column settings allow users to switch fonts, colors, line spacing and other features. The really cool thing is that if you like a particular style you've created, the site will generate the CSS code for you and you just plug it into your site. How easy is that?

©2007 David Scott | Cosmic

Creating Websites for Scanners

The Information Age is in full swing. For some it is a welcome change and they have embraced it with vitality. For others, old habits die hard. For example, website development is still a fairly young design application and many are still trying to figure out how it fits in with their marketing objectives.

Most companies treat their websites like old ways of promotion. They are insistent on sharing lengthy tomes about their business because that's just how they are used to doing it. In reality, this doesn't work. When was the last time you read more than a paragraph of information on the web? Be honest.

Let's face it. When it comes to the web, most of us are scanners. We quickly glance over the information looking for those juicy bits of informmation we came for. Can you see how lengthy content can be a waste in this case? In his article Links Are the Grammar of the Web, Gerry McGovern shares how a simple linking strategy can turn your webpage from boring reading into an effective resource by rewriting your sentences into lean and direct links.

Building your website through the use of links creates an opportunity for more interaction with your company. The user will stick around longer to learn about your product or service. Thus, creating a higher possibility for a sale.

©2007 David Scott | Cosmic