Kseniya Simonova – Sand Animation (Ukraine’s Got Talent)

This has to be the coolest thing every. This is one talented sand animation artist!

CreativePublic Members Area Updated

Hey folks, the CreativePublic.com members area has been updated. Log into the members area and checkout what’s new:

- New Screencasts (last 5 screencasts are new)
- New Interviews (last 4 interviews are new)
- New Case Studies (6 case studies available)

Log into the members area:
http://www.creativepublic.com/members/index.php

Thanks,
Jason V.

The Trend is Your Friend

An important part of any business is understanding and anticipating trends. What will be the next big digital trend? What are some of the latest design trends that can give you competitive advantage. Read the article to find out more and check out some resources you can you in your trend research.

“The Trend is Your Friend” is originally a phrase from the financial markets where you can SEE in graph form which way certain markets are trending. It makes trends very evident.

And a large part of any business (including design) is being aware of and anticipating trends in your particular marketplace.

Being aware of trends can really give your business competitive advantage by positioning your company (and yourself) in line with the trend and not against it.

As in the financial markets, the most important thing is not really to get in on the very beginning of trends (as that is just sheer timing) but to capture the “meat” of a market trending upwards.

For example, if you notice in your trend research that web designers are using Adobe Flex to develop and build apps it might be a good idea to schedule time to research and possibly implement it in your design business.

Here are a few resources that can help you in your trend research:

Trendwatching - http://www.trendwatching.com/

Colorlovers - http://www.colourlovers.com/trends

Springwise - http://www.springwise.com/

The Hottest Marketing Trends for 2008 - http://tinyurl.com/3rolj2

Trendspotting - http://www.trendsspotting.com/blog/

Any books/products by Harry Dent - http://www.hsdent.com/

Any books/products by Faith Popcorn - http://www.faithpopcorn.com/

Happy trending!

How Many Eureka Moments Did You Miss Today?

Million dollar ideas come to a lot of people — so why not YOU. The trick is, you need some type of system to capture these elusive “slippery fish.”

There was an article in Wired magazine titled, “Eureka.” It profiled a number of prominent people and where and when they received their breakthrough inspiration.

For example, J.K. Rowling received the idea for Harry Potter almost immediately on a stalled train on route from Manchester to London.

Authur Fry received the idea for sticky notes while singing in a church choir. And Reed Hastings came upon the idea for Netflix while upset over a late fee in his local video store.

The lesson here? You never know when inspiration might strike — so you need to be prepared to catch these often elusive and fleeting ideas.

One of my favorite (and I guess old fashioned) ways is to record notes in one of those moleskin notebooks. I like the fact they are fairly small, hard-bound and portable. I take it everywhere.

Other folks prefer to use a voice recorder which can capture your ideas quicker than writing.

Keep in mind, ideas do not often come fully formed. They often arrive in bits and fragments — so be sure to record them anyway. A key in this process is not to be too judgmental about your ideas. If you have one worth noting just write it down and forget about it.

Note: for those just starting: it’s a good idea to try to make notes at least 3-4 x per day. Even if you have nothing *seeemingly* noteworthy to jot down just put something down anyway.

The important thing is that it “programs” you into the HABIT of physically accessing your notebook and writing (or recording).

Who knows, your million dollar idea could happen TODAY while picking up the newspaper or a quick walk around the block.

How to create your own “Super Bowl-like” event for your graphic design business

So why not create a “Super Bowl-like” event for yourself or your firm?

Now an event can mean many things, like: a gathering, a parade, a book signing, a contest, a conference, a seminar, an awards presentation, or an online event among others.

For example, not long ago I held an Arbor Day event. I ordered a few hundred “trees in a tube” and gave them out on Arbor Day. it was a smashing success with nice publicity to boot.

There are a number of odd and unique holiday calendars

on that you can revolve an event around.

What about an event for “Thomas Crapper Day” or “Squirrel Awareness Month” or “Elvis Week” – the possibilities are endless.

Get more ideas at this (rather hokey) site below:

http://www.brownielocks.com/month2.html

Most importantly, these “events” do not just happen but take a good deal of planning so take the time to plan them correctly and put them on the calendar.

Suggestion:
Plan to do a number of these for your design firm. Perhaps try to do 1 per quarter.

These “events” can pack an amazing punch. Not only do you get new customers, new friends, publicity, good-will in your community, camaraderie with your design team, you will also have a boatload of fun.