Thursday, May 15, 2008

an update!?!?!

OK, so I need to get the hang of this blogging thing and just do it.

So, I'm going for my Associates in Graphic design.

I have a new Graphic Design portfolio site up.

And I'm heading to the HOW Conference in Boston next week.

Maybe there will be some new music soon. I've been throwing together a Nine Inch Nails/Tears For Fears mash-up...

v

Thursday, March 29, 2007

bad marketing, pt. 1

i must be cursed.

i can't hear a jingle on the radio without thinking about how the ad could have been so much more effective if only . . . npr sponsorships for thrivent financial for lutherans - so the small percentage of lutherans who may be listening to npr know where to invest their money (maybe it's a form of evangelism).

and now it's beginning for design. maybe it's part of that proverbial "fire within."

anyway, i took the following experience and turned it into a little design and markup workshop for myself. and i'm using it to step on my soapbox and kvetch about how in the world a company could press the "go" button on a project like this without thinking everything through.

yesterday, i was driving on eastbound i-94 and saw a billboard. the first thing i saw were the first four words - "does your website suck?" i looked, and looked, and looked and could not make out anything else. if there was anything i was supposed to read that would make me want to go to a website and hire the design/development company, it was not designed in a way that a driver going the speed limit could retain. i seriously doubt how legible it would be even in standstill traffic.

here is my approximation of their billboard. click here, observe, explore, and come back.

i'm not kidding - that is what the billboard looked like. it was that hard to read. small, dark text that went nearly across the entire billboard. couldn't read a company name (if there was one), a website (if there was one), a phone number (are you seeing a pattern). the only other thing i saw was a logo that meant absolutely nothing to me because they have little/no brand identity.

and why in the world would a company want to hire a design firm to fix their website when said design firm can't get their own billboard right?

now, if i go back passed the billboard and notice that it says something like "if your website is as bad as this billboard, you need our help" i'll come back and eat crow - at least some.

i'm happy to note that my web version of their billboard is standards compliant, fully validated xhtml and css, but i'm a geek. more on that later.

v

Friday, December 22, 2006

pre-christmas updates

ho, ho, ho!

just got two exciting words this week.

the halogen ep is now available for sale @ iTunes in addition to physical copies being available through cd baby.

also, carey jarvis at the dance chapel popped "nee" on his december chart, debuting @ #14. thanks carey!

merry christmas to all, and to all a good night.

v

Thursday, December 07, 2006

welcome

welcome to the new hyp0static blog.

kind of has that "new-car-smell" to it (or maybe it's just me).

this is where you will find news as it's available, updates as they are made, and thoughts as i have them (as if).

peace,
v