Recent graphic design project

A local actor recently hired me

to create an online portfolio and some promotional materials for him. Here’s the post card I came up with:

The front features our home city of Pittsburgh in a washed out photo as the background. It also emphasizes his build and history as a boxer.

The back uses a plain white, non-distracting background for sort of a minimalist effect. It also shows a few different look variations with the small images as well. I’m sure he won’t mind the contact info being out there, after all, that’s the whole point of promotion isn’t it?

I made sure to use a fairly interesting font but also tried to keep it simple enough to be easily readable.

Here’s the online portfolio I built on his behalf:

Guest blogging/posting

For those of us who consider ourselves creative people and also try to get the word out there about our creative ambitions, guest posting or guest blogging can be a good opportunity.

With that being said, I’m looking to both guest post for other blogs as well as feature other people’s posts on mine. If you own or run a blog and are interested in in either of these possibilities, please let me know either in the comments section or via e-mail at trcapromo@gmail.com .

What I’ll accept for this blog:

Anything arts related in any way. It must be original work and at least 250 words (unless it’s poetry or a visual submission like photography or a drawing). I’ll provide one backlink per poem or visual submission and up to two per written other form of written post.

What I can provide:

Having worked in journalism as well as the arts, I am up for providing mostly anything. However, if possible I’d like to keep the topics related to:

Poetry and writing

Photography and the visual arts

Movies and video

Music and the performing arts

Goth, emo or punk subcultures

Body modification

Graphic design

Maybe we can make this work out well for everyone!

 

Why You Should Consider Making a Flyer For Your Next Event

Guest Post by Mike Turner

Flyers can be great promotional tools for any event. They are extremely affordable and easy to produce. They can be distributed almost anywhere. It’s a great way to put onto paper your upcoming event in a way that’s eye catching and easy for potential guests to hang onto. Using flyers is one of the best ways to advertise your event while working to a budget. If you want a lot of guests, make sure that you print out a large number for distribution. The more you get out, the more potential guests you will be able to reach.

Promotional flyers can be placed or distributed almost anywhere. Consider going to a store that sells the same interest as your event. For example, if you are promoting a concert go to a music supply store or record shop. You can place materials under the windshield wipers of cars in the parking lot, and many stores will let you place a stack of on their counter for customers to pick up if you ask them. This is a great way to reach a targeted audience that you already know shares a common interest in the event you are promoting. It also allows you to reach people you wouldn’t ordinarily have been able to.

If you’ve got some time on your hands, you can also stand on the sidewalk in front the store and hand them out to passers-by. Try not to be too pushy, and think of something clever to say when you do this. If you just shove a paper in their face, most people will just walk away without ever taking it your hand. If you take a minute to think of something funny or memorable to say as you are handing them out, they will be more likely to both take it and actually read it. Adding personality is always a good thing when you are promoting!

Another option is stapling your flyer to telephone poles, if your city allows this. Start in the area where your event will be held and then work your way out. Your event is more likely to appeal to local people who happen to see your signs and notice that it takes place close to their home. Consider dotting the neighbourhood with your flyers, and you will maximize the number of people who see them. The more people that see them, the more likely your guest list will increase.

Never place them on walls without written permission from the local authorities! This can be illegal. Just make your sure they are catchy to look at, clear and concise in what they are advertising, with a clearly written brief description of the event, time, date and location. Keep these points in mind and have the follow through to distribute them accordingly, and your flyers can be one of the best and most affordable promotional tools you’ve ever used!

About the author:

This post was written by Mike Turner, a design, home and technology enthusiast, who is currently doing online research on behalf of Vistaprint, Flyers specialists.

A few keys to creating top-notch business cards

You’re about to get your own business up and running. You’ve worked out all the basic details and have dotted all your I’s and crossed all your T’s on the necessary paperwork. You’ve handled all the setup for your office or storefront. Now you just have to finish one more simple little thing, your business card.

Although it may sound simple, like most things involved in creative graphic services, there are good ways and bad ways to design your business cards. And sometimes, even the smallest things can make all the difference.

WHAT TO DO

Use readable fonts for your text, If the font is also somewhat attractive looking, that is good as well. But readability comes first.

Simplistic in design and color is a good thing. It helps to avoid distraction from your message.

Make the text read in a logical, predicable order. The reader should be able to flow naturally from one part of the card to another.

WHAT TO AVOID

Fonts that may look interesting but can be difficult to read can be a major turnoff to potential clients/customers.

Avoid overwhelming your potential client/customer with sensory overload. The point of your message can get lost that way.

Do not make your reader’s eyes have to dart all over the place in find what they need. A more natural, left to right, top to bottom flow works best.

Branding mistakes

Today we live in a world which is full of madcap advertising and uncontrolled consumerism. For companies to stay ahead of the game it important that they must constantly change their branding and advertising. Everyday people’s attention span is gradually growing shorter. We can attribute this to the constant barrage of bill boards, television commercials and popup ads from websites to name a few channels. It is because of the race to stay ahead of the competitions, companies hugely underestimate what audiences really want to see, and it is at this point when they get it wrong big time.

One such company that made a branding mistake was Coca Cola. As one of the most successful brands in America, Coke is a symbol of true American values. In 1985 amidst huge hype, the company behind Coca cola released a new version of the classic soft drink.  The new version was a more ‘smoother, rounder yet bolder’. however, Americans saw this as interference rather than improvement – would you improve the American flag?, Would you edit the Bible? Answer was No? Americans then asked Why change Coca-Cola?

As consumers had already bought into the Coca-Cola brand any change was met with anger form the customers. New Coke failed to impress loyal fans and sales were poor. Cases of the ‘real thing’ were being sold on the black market for huge amounts of money. It was only a matter of months before Coca-Cola realised their mistake and reverted back to producing the original ‘real thing’.

 

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

“Jask Group are a British creative agency, specialising in Graphic Design, Web Design and Tablet Publishing for midlands-based businesses in Birmingham, Coventry & Solihull.”

 

One cool graphic design trick

As you have probably noticed time and time again, those who provide creative graphic services often work with hidden images within pictorial logos.

Well along the same lines but quite a different skill altogether, one really cool option is to create text within the context of am image.

It could be a word or phrase hidden in a tree, a name appearing in a cloud or just about anything else you might imagine.

Perfect this skill and you’ll have another weapon in your graphic skills arsenal.