Archives for the month of: November, 2013

Sorry to bring religion into this all of a sudden. But if there was a bible for my future professional life. This would be the Alpha, Omega and everything in between. “Hey Whipple, Squeeze This was written by Luke Sullivan, a veteran to the sport of advertising. I was first introduced to this book in one of my advertising classes during the Spring 2012 semester. Since then, it has been mentioned three different times by different professors. It’s safe to say its reputation speaks for itself.

The best part of this book is its personal touch. There’s life in it. And thank ya lord there is. Because nothing is more boring than a textbook. Which this book, is not. Its filled with insight and personal testimonies. Sullivan openly admits to all his wrong doings! The personal touch makes the reading much more engaging. I honestly model my blog writing after Sullivan’s writing. Another great part about this book is the great choice of examples he gives. Sullivan hand picks great ad’s so he can lead by example. He also throws in some personal work of his such as sketches. By adding sketches, you get a behind the scenes look at stuff, and the creative process.

But of course Sullivan being of age, new age data and advertising isn’t his expertise. One of the lacking parts of this book is the experience in digital and social media advertising. I get it, he’s old school. This digital age is new. He does a great job explaining strategies and angles, but there are some solid books out there that are better suited for the digital age. In my personal opinion, he should create a separate book on digital advertising alongside a digital advertiser specialist.

This is a fantastic book all advertising creatives should have. It has great insight and valuable information. It’s priceless information at a reasonable price!

Hey, Humans! I was a guest blogger at hyperfunction!

If you never heard of hyperfunction, here’s a great place to start. Hyperfunction is a blog focused on interactive web. They try to bring the fun and exciting side of interactive web design. They show more than just the pixel pushing and more of the entertaining and enjoyable side of things. I wrote a post about interactive advertising and how it has improved the results of ad’s. It shows the pin point accuracy of today’s data analytic’s. Check it out here and I hope you enjoy the read!

I bet you’re all wondering “Out of all the topics and blogs to create, why this one?” Well let me take you a little into the past.

My father and his father were both fine artist in the Philippines. My grandfather, a sculpture of usually religious entities. My dad, a painter and a all around artist. When my father moved here, he had to prioritize and give up his passion for his job to support his family. And of course from his passion for art, my parents threw me into art pre-k art school at the age of four. I fell in love with fine arts. I focused on it from elementary school until I graduated high school where I focused on Commercial Art.

But how did I end up in Advertising and Graphic Design? When I got accepted to City Tech, it was originally for Architecture. I was sitting in the Advisory Offices Summer 2009 waiting to register for my first semester. Back then they had bins on the wall filled with all City Tech’s majors in alphabetical order. Within the bins were packets of information on the major. Such as the basic overall view of the major, what job opportunities there are, and what required classes there were. I sat there and read this sad overview of architecture. I’m not knocking anyone who is choosing to do architecture for their career, it’s just not for me. So many math classes accompanied by science classes. That was like hell on wheels for me. I get called up to register with doubt in my mind. I sit down, and my adviser says she’ll be right back to handle paper work. I end up staring at the wall with the bins and see the major for Communication Design. I get up for curiosity because my High School Diploma says ‘Communication Design’, so maybe this could be of interest. I grab a packet and start reading. My brain goes crazy because it realizes how stupid I’ve been not thinking to make this my life. Advertising and Graphic Design sounded so fun. All these art classes, learning adobe, becoming a strategist. I wanted in. My adviser came back, and before she sat down I asked her “Is it possible to switch into Communications Design major?”

Now you know how I got here, but why am I so passionate to help the students like me in here? In my time of choosing a college, I sent applications to all the major art schools in New York. I wanted to keep it local. I sent an application to Pratt, School of Visual Art, and Fashion Institute of Technology. I got accepted to Pratt and FIT along with City Tech. I saw the tuition and was very, very, very reluctant to go. Even after financial aid, and small scholarships, I would still have to pay a hefty price out of pocket. I made the economic decision to go with City Tech. In reality us City Tech art students have a disadvantage in the job search world. Employers jump to any student with a huge credible degree from an SVA caliber school. But us City Tech students kind of get shoved along. But there’s one thing that levels the playing field. Our portfolios. I want the students here, or anywhere, be able to compete with people with big money. I want them to be exposed to the same privileges just because they didn’t want to go to an expensive school. I want to create a nexus for all students who need help, to get help. Where we all can make each other better and network with others.

This is my drive to make this site succeed. This school has given me everything, and I promise to give it all back. One way or another.

College Tuition Comparisons

City Tech Students Place First, Second and Third in The One Club Competition

This is Part three of a three part series. See all other post here

Running an In-Class Creative Team Introduction

Part I – Meeting Your New Team

Part II – Becoming the Leader

If there’s one thing you have to leave here with learning, its that DUE DATES ARE GOLDEN.

Due dates are more than just a marking on a calendar. Its a promise to a client (or a professor) that the work will be done. No matter how many hiccups, errors, and accidentally deleted files there are, no one cares about the excuses. All that matters is that its finished with and ready to go.

But we all know nothing ever goes smooth. That’s what makes all this so entertaining. Some loss of sleep is definitely required to get your projects completed. Well, more like a lot of not sleeping goes on around here. So here are some tips in order to reach that golden date…hopefully successfully.

Plan Ahead

Make sure you try to set a schedule up to the due date. See how much time you have from now and until then. Allow time for research, sketching, development, and some time to critic and edit. Try to finish a few days before just to give you extra breathing room. But in all honestly, chances are your going to drift away from you plans but its always nice to know what and when you need to do things.

Glitter from Gold

If you see yourself trying to BS your way through your project, don’t. Its clear as day who really put in the effort and who didn’t. People like to protect themselves with fancy images and pretty presentations, but anyone who can break down ads and see its potential can definitely tell when you just did work to get it over with. Don’t be that person. There’s no excuse as a student to create work just because you’re a student! Work you’re proud of is easier to present and to show enthusiasm for. Show up to swing the hammer hard. Bring your best on presentation day ready to destroy everyone else’s stuff.

Learn to Settle

I’m going to keep this short and too the point. Prioritize what you need to do. Focus on the big picture. If you’re running out of time know what needs to be done as opposed to what should be done.

This was my final installment for Running an In-Class Creative Team. I hope you all left with some useful information and tips. Just know this a difficult road we all chose.

And like one of my great mentors, Professor Davis once said “Those who sacrifice unlike others, receive rewards unlike others.”

 

As this generation begin to learn about healthy food choices, food industries are changing their marketing tactics in order for the consumers to continue buying their product.  By adding claims that are beneficial to one’s health, consumers are unknowingly buying a product that is far from the spectrum of aiding in one’s health.  In my blog, I have already covered some of the deceptive claims of the food labels, so, in this post I will like to focus on the false advertisement of the fast food companies, such as McDonald’s, Burger King, and Taco Bell.

Law1

Used by Alphaila

Law2

Used by Alphaila

When you go and order a McDonald’s cheeseburger you are expecting a big juicy burger, well prepared, nice sliced onions, and the oozing of the cheese off the burger.  You are expecting everything you’ve seen on the pictures and commercials to be what you purchase to eat but that is not the case.  When you open your prospective big mac or triple pounder hamburger, you find that the size of the meat patty is smaller than what the advertisement was showing.  The burger does not look appealing, the bread is mushed, and the food looks overall sloppy.

Law5

Although Wendy’s say that their salad is a healthy option, the nutritional content tells otherwise. The apple pecan chicken has 570 calories, 27 grams of fat, 37 grams of sugar, and 1350 mg of sodium.
Used by HealthyLiving Blog

Some fast food giants have tried to market healthy varieties on their menus.  However, the food that they are claiming as healthy is really not. The healthy choices can still have a lot of added fat, sugar, or salt, which can add up to stored fat in the body.  Although, there are many articles showing options to healthy choices in fast food, the question still remains on how was the food made? Where did the ingredients come from? What are the ingredients that are added to make the food?, And what is the nutritional facts about the food?

And, yes I do know that every fast food chain states the nutritional facts on each item that is purchased by the consumer but It would be best to do research before deciding if the food that the fast food company is advertising is healthy.

Stephanie

This is Part three of a three part series. See all other post here

Running an In-Class Creative Team Introduction

Part I – Meeting Your New Team

Part III – Due Dates are Golden

In all groups, someone has to be the leader. Keep everything organized and on schedule. As well as making sure everything is up to par design wise. Of course not everyone reading this is interested in bearing the groups weight, but if you are keep on reading.

Some times becoming the leader is forced upon you. Maybe your group is filled with some slackers, and you don’t feel like sinking to such level. Some times you may already have a positive reputation, and it’s assumed that you will be the leader. Either way, welcome to the front lines. Here are some tips I have from experience.

Be Brutal

We’re not in elementary school. Who cares about feelings. Make sure everything is done correctly. If it doesn’t work, make sure somebody makes it work.

Keep the Pressure On

Constantly keep in contact with everyone. Make sure you’re keeping everyone in the loop. Nothing worst than somebody creating a website layout for an idea we scrapped 3 days ago. Ask for updates constantly.

Stay Composed

No one respects a shaky leader. When crap hits the fan, keep calm and learn how to solve issues easily and quickly. This is especially important near deadlines.

Not everyone is made to be the leader. Sometimes you will be, sometimes you won’t. Just remember that responsibility is a honor to have.

This is Part one of a three part series. See all other post here

Running an In-Class Creative Team Introduction

Part II – Becoming the Leader

Part III – Due Dates are Golden

 

At some point of your college career, you will be thrown into random groups for either one project or a whole semester. Chances are YOU WILL KNOW NOTHING ABOUT THE INDIVIDUALS OF YOUR GROUP! But that’s the beauty of all this. Just random students trying not to fail.

First, learn about these folks. Start off with names and if your school has multiple modules, find out which modules you all stand in. Hopefully you find out that your team is diverse in skill sets. For example one person can be a designer, copywriter, web designer, and a photographer. In the likely event your group isn’t so obviously diverse, ask and learn about each persons strengths and weaknesses. Play to their strengths. The easier it is for them, the smoother things will go.

Ask them for their experience. Experience in the field and in school. Some students have taken more advanced classes than others. Try to gauge each others levels of skills.

Make sure you all keep in contact. Luckily for us, we live in an era of convenient technology. Swap ALL contact information with each other. I mean everything…, but your social security numbers of course. Create an online server that holds all of your work so you all can conveniently exchange files, such as Google Drive and DropBox. Add one another on social media sites, especially Facebook. Create a private group page for only your group and yourself to see and post. In my opinion, the Facebook page is the most useful tool. Not only can you post unlimited amount of things, you can quickly share information, view it, and respond from a mobile device.

You may all be in it together for the long haul. Build great relationships with one another. Put all personal disputes aside. If you find yourself or others bickering on a personal level, remember you all share one common goal.

Do Not fail.

You’re here because you have an interest in Advertising and Graphic Design like I do. In the creative world, we work in teams. Every member of the team has a responsibility. Everyone has to hold their own weight to hold for the success of the team. If you’re majoring in anything creative, you are inevitability going to be thrown into a group filled with strangers.

In the series ‘Running an In Class Creative Team’, I discuss the methods of running a creative team in class. I will give you tips and strategies in order to succeed. Topics that will be discussed are Meeting Your New Team, Becoming the Leader, and Due Dates are Golden.

Make sure you stay in touch as this series unfolds.

Part I – Meeting Your New Team

Part II – Becoming the Leader

Part III Due Dates are Golden

 

This blog topic was inspired by Chris Brogran‘s post 100 Blog Topics I Hope You Wite.

Let’s face it, if it’s free I’m taking it. I’m pretty sure a lot of people would agree with me. Nothing more intriguing than the word ‘free‘. But when is having something for free better, when is it not?

As a student in the creative field-free is my worst nightmare. Countless times, some random person who is my friend on Facebook but not in real life gets in contact with me. They always start off with a simple greeting, trying to ease in. “Hey how’ve been? its been forever!”. I obviously respond politely, but already know it’s coming. “So you do graphic design right? I was wondering if you can make me a business card for free?”

No.

Why would I take my abilities that I’ve paid in dollars, blood, sweat, tears, and lack of sleep – and just hand it to you for free?

Even if I do decide to do some charity work for people, the performance and overall work would be lacking. It’s very difficult to work for free. Without incentive. Without compensation. Creatives spend hours trying to perfect their craft, and to be used without charge is simply robbery.

If a project is truly important to you, invest the time and money into a designer who will get the job done, and get it done correctly. It’s well worth the investment to pay for great work. Weigh your options of how much you’re willing to pay in comparison to how important this project means to you.

Nothing good comes free. Not even designers.

Mission

The strategic mission of ADeral is to create a community for current students and recent graduates of the creative field, especially those involved in Advertising and Graphic Design.

This blog was created to give guidance and inspiration to the 18-25 year old student and recent graduate. This is a tool set for these young creative’s to help them through their journey as they break through into the design field. The blog will project a personal feel to it, from one student to another. From the writer (myself) and the viewers can both take the journey into success together.

The blog name ADeral is a play on the word Adderall, a medication that helps one focus to increase brain function and activity. The blog name is in reference to the AD’s that would be the main focus of this blog.