With the recent spate of Verizon ads that have been attacking AT&T’s 3G network, and by extension the iPhone, I began wondering what life for iPhone users would be like on Verizon. Even among the iPhone faithful, there is a fairly decent amount of disdain for AT&T. Among the digerati, many of whom live in the San Francisco area & New York City, it is even greater. But such is the love for the iPhone, they put up with the sketchy service (Most of which is due to the dense concentration of iPhone users in these areas).

As of Q1 of ‘09, Verizon had about 86.5 million subscribers leaping ahead of AT&T’s 78.2 million as of the same period (Let it be noted that Verizon achieved this with the acquisition of Alltel which brought with it 13.2 million subscribers). Also as of Q1 of ‘09, AT&T had activated about 8 million iPhones since 2007 (I haven’t found a hard number on how many iPhones are currently in use).

What is for certain is that no one uses wireless bandwidth like iPhone users. In creating mobile Safari, Apple made a mobile browser people actually want to use, not to mention the apps. My theory is that even with a wider 3G coverage map, iPhone users on Verizon’s network would face the congestion problems seen on AT&T. Like it or not, going with AT&T was the right thing for Apple to do. It allowed them to make one phone with a GSM radio that could be widely used around the world and therefore gain greater adoption. Now that they have a strong foothold, they can branch out to other carriers (once exclusivity ends). I’m just not so sure I’d abandon ship so fast.

written by JM \\ tags: iPhone

In social media circles and particularly stories written about social media, one of the favorite topics is customer service. There are some good examples of companies that exercise great customer service. There are many more who do not. The fact we will more quickly share a bad experience over a good one should make that no surprise.

Probably the most recent, bad example of note is that of musician Dave Carroll and the experience he had with United Airlines after his guitar was damaged by baggage handlers (YouTube video here). The YouTube video helped turn his bad experience into a better one. I could go on with more examples but the tone of indifference he and others experience in their customer service experiences seem to be the rule rather than the exception.

In the way of positive customer service, there is Frank Eliason who is @comcastcares on Twitter. Frank basically took it upon himself to use Twitter as a tool to reach out and help customers who were having problems or negative service experiences. Particularly those that were voicing their problems on Twitter. It is now his primary duty along with a growing team of people helping with the load.

While there are more stories like these on both sides, the point is sites like Twitter or Facebook are being used as tools/weapons to get results. In one sense I’m glad that consumers have a recourse to combat service problems. On the other hand, it’s sad that we have to resort to threats to achieve a positive outcome. Customer service is a war and social media has become the battlefield. Victories are won when companies are shamed into doing what they should have done in the first place.

The other piece to all of this is the praise that is heaped upon companies who “get it.” I love it that companies are out there using social media to communicate with their customers. However, I’m not so sure we should be throwing parades in their honor just because somebody had the common sense to see Twitter as an effective communication tool. For the big boys especially it’s simple, talk to your customers and you’ll likely keep them as customers.

A little effort can go a long way.

written by JM \\ tags: customer service, social media

I was just in the bookstore looking at the magazine rack and I again made notice of a sad trend. Magazines are looking downright thin these days. Being a designer, I naturally gravitate to the design related section of the newsstand and that is where I have seen it. In recent months,  my favorite design mags have dwindled in size while at the same time, increasing their prices.

The most desired issues of these magazines, for me, has always been their design annuals and I’m not the only one. For that reason, these have historically been more expensive than the average issue. One of the recent HOW magazine design annuals I picked up seemed thinner than an average issue would have been a few years ago. That even included a couple of advertisements for paper companies which always add a little girth to the book. They are typically printed on the heavier stock being advertised. Just holding it in your hand, you can’t help but realize the problem. Ads. While I have only the data gathered by my eyes and the feel of the book in my hand, undoubtedly ad revenues are down in a big way.

Another example was my latest trip to the newsstand. The Print Regional Design Annual is now on sale and it can be safely said that it is half the size it used to be and substantially more expensive at $39. As much as I value these particular issues that showcase the work of fellow designers, I find it hard to justify paying those prices.

Besides the economy, we’ve all heard about the dire straits of print journalism in the media in recent years. Falling circulations and ad sales have delivered a crushing blow that most can’t recover from. With the fast pace of the internet and the hunger for up-to-the-minute news, print publications can’t compete.

I hate to see this happen to such a great medium. I don’t know where magazines fit into the equation, where design is such a crucial component of what they are. Like books, the experience doesn’t translate anywhere near the same when looking at a screen. I do hope they can survive, one way or another.

written by JM

Wow, what a day in technology. Apple launches a slew of new items and the rumored eBook reader from Barnes & Noble is now a reality. The nook (note the “cool” use of all lowercase letters) is a $259 one-of-a-kind E Ink® based reader that also incorporates a touch sensitive color display strip along the bottom of the device. Like my other posts regarding the Kindle, I won’t regurgitate specs here but instead offer a bit of comparison.

I already like the nook better than the Kindle. Granted I haven’t held one, (I have now tried both models of the Kindle) but unlike the Kindle, I’ll be able to go into a Barnes & Noble store to have a hands on test. This is potentially a HUGE benefit for the nook.

Among its other superlatives, it’s less expensive and includes wi-fi which the Kindle does not. It will use the less regarded AT&T network for its 3G connection for the ability to buy books almost anywhere. Frankly I don’t care which network it runs on, it’ll be good enough. I say make it even less expensive and cut out the subsidized wireless service and just leave the wi-fi. Finding wi-fi is easy lest you find yourself out and in need of making a book purchase.

The color touch panel along the bottom serves as the navigation for moving around the menus of the nook. It’s also where you view your library and make purchases. Another nice feature is the option to lend books to your friends, again something the Kindle doesn’t do.

All-in-all, it seems like B&N has at least one upped Amazon with the nook. Like the Kindle, the nook has shortcomings that I have addressed before. Although I don’t know for certain, there are still likely the same design limitations inherent in the format and therefore not a substitute for good graphic design. For voracious readers, it’s a good investment. For those still unsure, this could very well lead you to take the plunge. The nook certainly has me a step closer to justifying buying an eBook reader.

written by JM \\ tags: Books, eBooks

Today Defy Creative launched a new service aimed at offering companies and organizations the ability to get their design work done at an affordable rate. Maybe a company has never had an in-house designer or maybe they’ve been forced to downsize. Whatever the reason, I saw an opportunity to supply companies with quality design work at a fraction of the cost of a traditional employee.

The Personal Designer Subscription Service is a subscription that, with a 6-month or 12-month commitment, allows for the design of certain projects that otherwise would cost hundreds more individually. At $299.99/month for 6 months or at $249.99/month for 12 months, organizations can get custom designed projects that will give consistent branding across their marketing efforts.

Available services are: (1 per month)

• 4-page 8.5×11 newsletter design
• Postcard design
• Banner design (ex. up to 40″ x 80″)
• Advertisement design
• Flier design
• 8.5×11 brochure design
• Poster design
• Website header graphic

If a project falls outside the scope of these services, a request for quote can be made under a more traditional arrangement.

I believe this is a great opportunity for businesses to get design work done where it often goes undone. Head on over to the Personal Designer Subscription Service section of the site and sign up!

written by JM \\ tags: graphic design

The latest release in the DesignerPacks Series is DesignerPack 2. DesignerPacks are collections of themed graphics for use in your own designs.

The DesignerPack 2 collection features three 9 x 11.5 layered Photoshop documents (.PSD) that can be used as letterhead, newsletter design, or as a flier, all including a bleed area. Also included is a 9 x 6  layered Photoshop document (.PSD) with a bleed area. Additionally the package has TIFF files that can be directly incorporated into your page layout application of choice such as Quark XPress, Adobe InDesign and Microsoft Word among others. Each file is in CMYK and fully editable. Additionally, the graphic files can be used in your Keynote, PowerPoint or your presentation software of choice. DesignerPack 2 is available now for $24.99.

NOTE: Adobe Photoshop is required to edit .PSD files and produce CMYK files suitable for printing. Other image editors such as Pixelmator or Acorn will produce RGB files suitable for online or on screen viewing.

written by JM \\ tags: graphic design, templates

NOTE: I am aware that some of the images below are not showing up for PC users running Internet Explorer. Tests in Firefox have shown that the images appear in that browser and may provide a better alternative.

For a great deal of the summer, my time had been consumed with the design of two books whose planning began over a year ago. I was fortunate enough to have been involved in the development phase of the project and luckily the pieces fell into place that allowed me the opportunity to execute the design. These new books will published by Providence House Publishers under the series name Historic Hospitality. The first two titles, Meet Me at The Belle Meade Plantation and Meet Me at The Hermitage Hotel will make their debut at the National Preservation Conference in Nashville in October.

The goal of the series is to couple historic imagery and narrative along with recipes that compliment the locale. These books will be a keepsake for visitors to the properties showcased in each title.

Personally, I can’t get enough of working with old images. There is a character in old photos that can’t be compared to contemporary images. The Belle Meade Plantation and The Hermitage Hotel didn’t disappoint with great photography.

The Belle Meade Plantation

One distinction between these two properties is that the plantation’s heyday, and thus most of its best images, come from the 1800s. Its history is rich with visits from heads of state to the breeding of thoroughbreds. From the publisher’s introduction,

We are proud to include the Belle Meade Plantation, located in Nashville,Tennessee, as one of our featured Historic Hospitality sites. Once rated among the most famous thoroughbred breeding farms in the world, it is still widely known as “The Queen of Tennessee Plantations, “ and still providing memorable glimpses of life as it was in the Old South. It is our pleasure to share her story here with you.

The Hermitage Hotel

By contrast, the Hermitage Hotel has had its ups and downs and been at the center of Nashville life since its construction in 1910 up to this day. Written about the hotel at its opening,

The Hotel Hermitage is one of the South’s leading hotels, in fact one of America’s noted hostelries. There is no hotel in the country more magnificently fitted, appointed, and furnished.

Since then it has seen success, been condemned and is now restored to its original grandeur. In 2010, the hotel will celebrate its 100th anniversary.

Design

The design of these books presented a unique challenge to that of a typical history. The inclusion of recipes and the editorial considerations gave an added wrinkle of complexity to the project. There were several rounds of revisions on each title, moving pictures or removing them altogether until it resembled a game of musical chairs. With so many moving parts, it’s very much like assembling a puzzle. As I said, having been in on the planning stages of this project, it was very gratifying to see it come to fruition. Be on the lookout for these and future titles. I will update here when they are available.

written by JM \\ tags: Books, graphic design, history

Defy Creative's DesignerPacks Photoshop Templates

Defy Creative introduces DesignerPacks. DesignerPacks are collections of themed graphics for use in your own designs and are available now in the Defy Creative Store. The debut collection, DesignerPack 1,  features a 9 x 11.5 layered Photoshop document (.PSD) as well as two 9 x 6  layered Photoshop documents (.PSD) both including a bleed area. Also included are TIFF files that can be directly incorporated into your page layout application of choice such as Quark XPress, Adobe InDesign and Microsoft Word among others. Each file is in CMYK and fully editable. Additionally, the files can be used in your Keynote, PowerPoint or your presentation software of choice. NOTE: Adobe Photoshop is required to edit .PSD files and produce CMYK files suitable for printing. Other image editors such as Pixelmator or Acorn will produce RGB files suitable for online or on screen viewing.

written by JM \\ tags: graphic design, templates

One of the biggest challenges a graphic designer can face is getting others to appreciate the value of good design. Perhaps the first problem is there are those, who when you tell them what it is you do, don’t really know what graphic design is. Even when they know, the complexities of arriving at the right solution to a problem are lost on them.

When developing a brand identity, a company’s logo is the forefront of communication. When it comes to prices, logos can be priced from a hundred dollars to tens of thousands. With the latter, market research is done, focus groups formed. Microscopic scrutiny of every detail; colors, application and sizes among others.

At its essence it is art and likewise, for the most part, viewed subjectively. A logo’s value is based on what it does for its owner. For instance, in the rebranding of Fed Ex, there were over 200 designs for the now ubiquitous mark. The sheer amount of work that went into it no doubt cost tens of thousands if not more. No one would question that it was worth it.

Not every logo will garner the attention nor command a fee like that of Fed Ex or needs to. The important thing to remember is that a designer puts their effort into creating a mark in which you can take pride. Don’t sell yourself short by compromising what is an integral part of your image.

written by JM \\ tags: graphic, logo

I’ve added some items to the portfolio here. One is a logo I did some time ago that you can read about here. The others include a logo for the Children’s Ministry Forum which is an event sponsored by the General Board of Discipleship of the United Methodist Church and a cover for a book that chronicles historic properties of Maury County, Tennessee.

UPDATE: I’ve added a two more images to the mix. A spread from the book Til We Meet Again and the cover for a book entitled A Disciple’s Journal.

written by JM \\ tags: book, graphic design, logo