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10 Amazing & Fresh Brand Identities

March 9th, 2010 at 12:06 pm | Posted by Jordan

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We have the pleasure of working with an amazing brand communications company every now and again and some of our favourite websites we’ve produced are based on the branding that Projector create.

We thought it was about time we dedicated a blog post to the creative efforts of the guys over at Projector and highlight ten of their best identities they’ve produced.

We have the pleasure of working with an amazing brand communications company every now and again and some of our favourite websites we’ve produced are based on the branding that Projector create.

We thought it was about time we dedicated a blog post to the creative efforts of the guys over at Projector and highlight ten of their best identities they’ve produced.

1. National Apprenticeship Business

The arrow marque symbolises a fresh, more radiant change in direction, moving onwards and upwards from an older path. We’re excited by the flexibility that this graphic gives us and look forward to producing some strong graphical work for NAB in the very near future!

2. Business Impact

The new identity clearly defines what they are about and gives them a positive, approachable and professional look. By combining business like purple and grey colours with a vibrant pink we ensured the brand will appeal to everyone from Managing Directors to the ground floor staff. The three lines represent the three groups involved in the business 1: Business Impact 2: The Client and 3: The Trainees.

3. Skyrocket

A simple, unique logotype was developed to represent the unique nature of dealing with human resource issues and staff related training. The elongated descenders were created to symbolise the value of the business - demonstrating the effect Skyrocket has on their client’s bottom line.

4. Otter Recruitment

We created a logo marque that subtly reflects the ‘O’ of the company title and has a dynamic, corporate feel to it that looks fresh and positive. These elements are also reflected in the modern typeface which is classy yet friendly and has good legibility. A warm black used alongside secondary gold colouring completed it’s prestigious feel. We then went on to roll the brand out across the online and printed elements which included a full stationery set and Direct Mail campaign to help raise awareness.

5. Zenith People

Changing from Zenith Recruitment to Zenith People our first task was to re-energise the brand personality by adding more emotion and charm – without diluting the serious capabilities of Zenith. Building on this we created an integrated look and feel to bring the companies communications under one umbrella – using the 6-point star as the focal point for all client and candidate dealings, we created a set of 6-point processes for the business.

6. Access

Access are one of North East England’s most successful training providers and have been around for over 20 years. They have supported employers to develop their workforce and have helped over 4,000 young people into employment on their chosen career ladder through apprenticeships. We wanted the new logo to be representative of the support Access provides to all it’s stakeholders and created an abstract marque to demonstrate this.

7. havetolove

havetolove was an adaptation of an existing logotype already in existence for havetohold. We developed the logotype for the new business to include the heart and symbolise the values of the new boutique in a graphical treatment. It was a gift, sometimes these things are.

8. Mobilx

We created the Mobilx logo to symbolise their core area’s of trading: importing and exporting. Working with a business like colour palette we wanted to show the grown-up, confident side to this new business to help establish it within the US marketplace – and the silver was used to represent the technology sector they focused on.

9. Managed Lets

The Logo is based upon the passing of knowledge throughout the franchise of the Managed Lets brand. For example, the Managed Lets system is passed on to the property owner, who then passes on their knowledge of the area to the person renting the property. This is represented as a benevolent relationship between two people. The typeface chosen suits the logo and gives an overall feeling of friendliness.

10. Cathedral Lettings

We introduced a graphic finger print design within the shape of a house. This reflects the personal service that Cathedral has become known for and also clearly defines their offering as a business. A traditional, dark green colour used alongside a vibrant green kept the brand professional but with a modern freshness and a clean legible typeface completed the brand.

Head over to the Projector Website and take a look around.

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19 Delicious Food Websites To Sink Your Teeth Into

February 24th, 2010 at 4:10 pm | Posted by Jordan

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There aren’t many websites that have the kind of impact visually like one that’s trying to sell food. Whether it’s five-feet high burgers or 10,000 calorie bowls of ice cream, the imagery and approach is vital.

There aren’t many websites that have the kind of impact visually like one that’s trying to sell food. Whether it’s five-feet high burgers or 10,000 calorie bowls of ice cream, the imagery and approach is vital.

Lets take a look at some mouth-watering examples of food websites.

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The Union Room & Projector Photography Competition – January 2010

February 4th, 2010 at 4:37 pm | Posted by Jordan

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All good designers at some point in their careers get bitten by the photography bug and it’s well and truly working it’s way through the Union Room and Projector studio at the moment!

All good designers at some point in their careers get bitten by the photography bug and it’s well and truly working it’s way through the Union Room and Projector studio at the moment!

At the start of this month we decided that we needed a bit of motivation to use our cameras so we devised a monthly competition to help us improve our photography skills. January’s theme was ‘Winter’ (not the most original theme we’d admit but we thought it’d be a waste to ignore the amount of snow that had been falling around the time).

Only the four of us managed to brave the conditions to take some shots but the standard was still high.

1. Steven

2. Jordan

3. James

4. Paul

We had our own vote and the office selection this month was James’ photo, a pretty picture indeed!

We’d love to hear your feedback on which is good, bad or ugly.

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6 Photography Photoshop Tutorials

February 1st, 2010 at 12:37 pm | Posted by Jordan

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Photoshop can be used for a range of activities but it’s real strength lies in some absolutely stunning photography effects.

Photoshop can be used for a range of activities but it’s real strength lies in some absolutely stunning photography effects.

Lets take a look at the best available…

Comic Book effect

Age Progression

Changing Hair Colour

Tilt-shift Fakery

HDR Style Fakery

Apple Style Portrait

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Pick of the Links #4

January 29th, 2010 at 2:54 pm | Posted by Jordan

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Some really good articles coming out of the blogosphere this week including an interesting take on the new Apple iPad.

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10 of the Best Free WordPress Themes

January 21st, 2010 at 12:11 pm | Posted by Jordan

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There are an absolute ton of free WordPress themes out there for all kinds of bloggers, experienced and beginner. Lets take a look at some of the best free WordPress themes available.

There are an absolute ton of free WordPress themes out there for all kinds of bloggers, experienced and beginner. Lets take a look at some of the best free WordPress themes available.

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Pick of the Links #2

January 15th, 2010 at 12:52 pm | Posted by Jordan

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A great mix of links this week crossing graphic design, web design and development.

A great mix of links this week crossing graphic design, web design and development. Take a look below at some of our favourite links this week and as always, let us know if we’ve missed any great links by leaving us a comment!

53 Promotional Websites To Gain Traffic Quick And Easy

Top 33 Best Logo Design Processes of 2009

20 Super Clean Fonts Perfect for Minimal Style Design

Gorgeous Typography Examples in Advertising Design

225+ Free Adobe Illustrator Patterns

jQuery 1.4 Released: The 15 New Features you Must Know

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Approaches To Testimonials In Web Design

January 15th, 2010 at 11:58 am | Posted by Jordan

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Testimonials can reinforce customer trust, and according to an Intelliseek survey customers are becoming increasingly reliant on the ‘recommendations of other consumers’. Lets take a look at some of the different approaches to testimonials.

Testimonials can reinforce customer trust, and according to an Intelliseek survey customers are becoming increasingly reliant on the ‘recommendations of other consumers‘. Lets take a look at some of the different approaches to testimonials.

Speech marks

As well as drawing attention to quotes and testimonials quickly, quotation marks can give the designer an additional element on which to design upon.

Logos

Using logos within a testimonial can give the user an instant view of clients the company has worked with or received reviews from. 37Signals use this to good effect (below) with the Time and BusinessWeek logos featured on their homepage.

Video

Although not a massively new trend, video testimonials are becoming more and more prevalent in all types of website and according to Speak Out Media are a “very powerful tool to showcase customer confidence in your company to a prospective buyer“.

Other Uses

More Resources

How to Get (and Leverage) Glowing Testimonials

The importance of client testimonials

Testimonials: Friend or foe?

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5 New Web Icon Sets For 2010

January 5th, 2010 at 5:07 pm | Posted by Jordan

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A great web icon set can help inspire a tired designer, and help transform a good design into an exceptional one. We’ve already highlighted some amazing icon sets last year, so lets take a look at some of the best new web icon sets to take us into 2010.

A great web icon set can help inspire a tired designer, and help transform a good design into an exceptional one. We’ve already highlighted some amazing icon sets last year, so lets take a look at some of the best new web icon sets to take us into 2010.

1. Once

2. Admin Panel

3. Mini Icons

4. Little Box of Ideas Icons

5. 8 Icons

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Trends in Modern Web Design Portfolio Websites

January 4th, 2010 at 4:45 pm | Posted by Jordan

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Trends in web design are hard to get away from, one minute we’re all web 2.0, the next we’re scrolling jQuery galleries and textured backgrounds. Lets take a look at some great trends implemented by web design agencies and freelancers on the web today.

Trends in web design are hard to get away from, one minute we’re all web 2.0, the next we’re scrolling jQuery galleries and textured backgrounds. Lets take a look at some great trends implemented by web design agencies and freelancers on the web today.

Big text

I’ve always been a big fan of big text on websites, the bigger and bolder the better. With this in mind, it’s been great to see more and more websites using not just large titles but also large body text as well.

While the websites above showcase some nice big typography, it’s rare that you come across a website that has it pretty much bang on when it comes to typography. A great example of this is the personal portfolio of Kyle Steed…

I very love all aspects of a website, be it colours, type, content, layout, use of whitespace and so on, but I think Kyle Steed gets it all right. It’s also a very nice WordPress integration to boot.

Illustrations

While illustrations on the web aren’t particularly a new thing, they are becoming more prevalent in the actual designs of the sites themselves, rather than being used sparingly.

A great example of this fully blown approach is IndiFolio. The site uses gorgeous illustrations throughout and has some great multi-layered effects when navigating.

Some other websites use illustrations a little less in there designs but still use them to great effect.

Prevalent Blog Work

With blogging and social media in general becoming an important part of a web design agencies day to day activities, it’s no surprise to see agencies making blogs a more important part of their websites. Lets take a look at a few examples of web agencies putting their blogs front and centre.

We’ve also tried to make our web design blog more prevalent on our own site, putting the feed of our blog on our homepage. A lot of web design agencies are beginning to run a blog, even if it’s just information about what’s going on work-wise.

Individually designed pages / articles

This is a fairly new one, and a trend that’s causing a little bit of controversy in the community. Rather than having a set design and fitting the various content into that design, you design the page around the content.

The first real example I saw of this that I liked was Gregory Woods portfolio, using a new design and layout for each topic he chooses to speak about. Although this approach certainly isn’t for everyone, it’s a very refreshing approach to shaping design around content and will certainly have me checking back frequently for new updates.

Another website that uses this trend is Yaron Schoen:

Smashing Magazine also featured a blog post by Paddy Donnelly, which showcased the trend perfectly.

We haven’t covered every trend in here but hopefully we’ve gone some way to showcasing some trends in web design portfolios currently showing on the web. Think we’ve missed anything obvious? Let us know by commenting below…

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The Evolution of Nike Advertising

December 2nd, 2009 at 5:27 pm | Posted by Jordan

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There are few brands that really push the boundaries of advertising, creating something truly unique and memorable to push the awareness of their products and company. Here at Union Room we are always interested in what a few brands are up to, one of those brands is Nike.

There are few brands that really push the boundaries of advertising, creating something truly unique and memorable to push the awareness of their products and company. Here at Union Room we are always interested in what a few brands are up to, one of those brands is Nike.

Lets take a look at the evolution of their advertising since the company was founded in 1964.

Early advertising

One of Nikes earliest advertising campaigns was the ‘There is no finish line’ campaign, created by John Brown and Partners. The poster was an instant hit with consumers and has became legendary in the design industry for pretty much launching the advertising ethos of Nike itself.

there_is_no_finish_line_3

there_is_no_finish_line_2

there_is_no_finish_line

eagle

guide_to_running_shoes

sports_shoes_2

sports_shoes

extra_protection

forget

naked

Player Ads

After concentrating on the running and athletics industry for a number of years, Nike began branching out into other sports. The company began sponsoring track & field athletes like Carl Lewis and Sebastian Coe as well as famous players in other sports, this was eventually shown in their advertising for individual players:

gervin

gretzky

Perhaps the most important sponsorship signing in the history of Nike was the signing of basketball player Michael Jordan in 1984.

dunk

Nike Air Jordan

air

clouds

dunk_behind

welcome_to_portland

wings

air_jordan

art

jordan_lee

Modern Sponsorship

As well as Michael Jordan, Nike have sponsored some of the biggest names in basketball and world sport including LeBron James, Charles Barkley, Ken Griffey Jr, Roy Jones Jr, Lance Armstrong, Tom Brady, Tiger Woods, Roger Federer and Ronaldinho.

lebron_james

charles_barkley

tom_brady

ronaldinho

Controversy

Nike has been known to court a little bit of controversy at times, especially with it’s approach to advertising.

This image of Wayne Rooney with a crucifix-syle stance drew mixed reactions when launched, as did the similar image of boxer Manny Pacquiao.

wayne_rooney

pacquiao

Nike also stirred up some controversy in 2008 when the advertising for the new Nike Hyperdunk series was unveiled, many commenting on it’s “homophobic nature”.

that_aint_right

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