McCann
I really enjoyed this visit to McCann. Although I was sporting a stuffy nose and sore throat that day, I thought Grant’s presentation was fun and lively and I was engaged the entire time.
McCann is a very professional agency. From the moment we walked in, I knew we were taken care of. The environment was inviting and everyone seemed happy to be there which is a great impression to leave with a client. This was very similar to Rogers & Cowan, an agency I worked at for a short period of time in Los Angeles.
I particularly liked how Grant showed us the satire video of the most impossible clients. As exaggerated as the video was, I know it rings true in showing the hoops agencies have to jump through when dealing with a client. I also liked the talk on Truth Central and even started following them on twitter to keep up with their posts.
While I enjoyed the tour of this agency, I honestly cannot see myself working there. I appreciated how the lady from HR was honest about the job process and the type of projects you would start off doing. She also mentioned how it isn’t for everyone…and I feel like I fall under that small group. I appreciate agencies for what they are and I know there are pros and cons to the job. I feel that agencies are not for me and for the time being, I see myself in a more corporate setting.
The scope of their work is also impressive and I liked how we all recognized their diverse roster of big name clients: CocaCola, Mastercard, Nature Valley etc.
The Target is You: IBM Smarter Planet Update
IBM has recently been posting on their Facebook page about their People for Smarter Cities campaign. “Calling all doers, thinkers, problem solvers, creators and dreamers. Your city is on a mission to get smarter. Help it.” They posted twice on their facebook yesterday as you can see here:
Their call to action is asking followers to get involved in any way they can. I always admired their advertisements but was not aware that they had a website where people can get involved, post their ideas, and share videos. They also have a twitter feed on the right and an editor’s pick section. The design interface is very clean and nice. I think this campaign is a very effective and smart idea because it gets people involved and feel like they have a say.
The interface on their website looks like this:
Current Event
I follow the news source Fast Company on twitter,
specifically their Co Design section. I found an interesting piece titled “How Google Taught Itself Good Design” which discusses how Google redesigned
themselves. Google transformed itself from a search firm noted for middling user interfaces into the buzzworthy producer of some of the cleanest, most striking designs.
Google is now instilling everything it does with the sort of effortless flair that the tech world once associated only with Apple.
We first saw this with the failure of Apple’s map app last
year. No one was surprised by the accuracy or comprehensiveness of Google’s app
and the instant visual appeal. Google Maps’ universally beloved interface was
Apple’s worst nightmare.
The article goes into more depth on every design aspect and
the evolution of Google before and now. It puts a face to specific designers
and how they worked together to create what Google is today. I am a design and
typography junkie and can read these type of articles all day! I definitely
recommend reading the whole article it if you’re interested.
Google was extremely smart to do this design campaign. They
examined its culture, found that it was weak in design and set out to solve the
problem as a team. They have shown that they can adapt to a changing
environment and now have become more fearsome than ever. They not only have
utility but also beauty.
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