Brand Design Blog, News and Ideas

Smashing magazine have released another great article regarding color in corporate branding and design.

They point out the significance of colour in web design especially, where the feeling your site portrays in the first 3 seconds effect the visitors experience of your brand.

They also explore the differences large corporate companies are using on their websites in relation to their traditional corporate colours.

You’ll notice that when many of the companies explored are using non traditional colour schemes.

Are they testing the market or are they using colour to appeal to you on a different emotional level?

You’ll have to read to find out. You can read the full article here at colors in corporate branding and design.

Have a read and then let me know your thoughts by leaving a comment under this post.

The use of texture can be a great way to enhance a rather simple layout and take it to a whole new level.

The team over at 6 revisions has created a great list of 30 Beautifully Textured Web Designs.

Make sure you check it out and pay particular attention to the small details.

Colour is a very important element in the overall personality of your company.

It plays a major part in brand recognition it can influence new customers and it can even have an impact on the mindset of our employees.

I’ve written a short article for you on the power of colour and it’s place in our perception of the world.

Click here to read …Is colour important to your business and brand?

Fell free to leave a comment and let me know how colour has effected your business.

Following some criticism regarding the ‘Fat Nano’, released last year - Apple has made a return to form with the new Nano for 2008.

While the ‘Fat Nano’s’ exterior was a departer from apples classic streamlined look, it does have some amazing features which have been included in the newer version.

One such feature is the two inch liquid crystal video display which can now be watched in landscape or portrait formats.

The addition of apple’s accelerometer technology, now making it all possible.

The Nano now has more colour options, which is nice, as is the even slimmer form factor.

It will be interesting to see how the new curved screen effects sun glare, but reports so far have sai that the viewing experience hasn’t been damaged by this introduction.

All in all, the new Nano design is a return to what makes the ipod great.

It’s unfortunate that this new version of the device wasn’t last years release, as many people who bought the 2007 Nano won’t upgrade simply due to the exterior design change.

What do you think?

As the post on toxel.com shows - logo design does not need to be complicated to be effective.

You can see all the logos here.

In fact I would suggest that if you look at the majority of high profile brands their logos are actually quite simple.

That doesn’t mean that no effort needs to be applied to the design. In fact, it often takes more effort to remove the unnecessary elements of a design to find the core design that will be the most effective option.

Simplicity, also allows a logo to be positioned easily on promotions and printed cost effectively.

Check out the full range of high profile logos here.

Business cards are a great way for clients and customers to receive your contact details, as they usually accompany a face to face meeting.

Unfortunately, because everybody has a business card, it can be hard to stand out in the crowd.

So having a business card that grabs people’s attention and makes an impact is one of the most useful marketing tools you can have at your disposal.

Check out this list of creative and inspirational business cards over at Toxel.com.

How does your business card stand up against the competition?

Smashing Magazine have released another great online article presenting some of the most original and beautiful new product designs.

If you are currently in the process of designing a new product or thinking about creating the new big thing – this article is definitely worth a read.

Check out the article here.

Crimson Fox has been working with Ausway on a new cover design for Sydney’s most detailed Street Directory – Sydway.

The new design combines white space with a new colour scheme to allow for more brand recognition and a cleaner look.

To find out more about Sydway and the Ausway brands you can visit their website at:  www.ausway.com.au

If you have a comment or thought about the new cover design you would like to share, please leave a comment below.

The web is quickly becoming the art gallery of the future as you will see by some of the stunning font treatments here.

Many people don’t put the time into the typographic area of design.

Which is unfortunate, as it can be one of the greatest ways to attach emotion to your message.

Budget of course also plays a part here.

It takes time to create these typographic works of art.

Time, which most clients either can’t afford or don’t see the value in.

Hopefully you’ll find many of these typographic creations as inspiring as I have.

Make sure to scroll down the page or you may miss some. 

A number of blogs have touched on this post by logoorange.com regarding logo design trends for 2008.

If makes some good points about style directions that we’ve noticed moving from late 2007 through to 2008.

A number of the styles, including organic 3D and transparency, take advantage of the electronic presentation of their brand.

While they do look nice, these logos will run into trouble with many ‘real world’ applications, such as embroidery and screen printing.

Pretty isn’t always functional. But functional doesn’t need to be ugly.

The ability to take purpose and function into account when designing is key to creating successful design solutions.

Check out the full article here.