#and my designs are essentially randomizing a palette I like so my brand has no cohesion

[boneless-mika]

I finally got Fashion Dreamer!! I always thought the facial hair looked a little weird and when I was making my first muse I realized that’s because the facial hair is painted on while the hair is sculpted so there’s a sort of dissonance there. Still had to give him an iconic villain mustache (for some reason my go-to when I make me in games, I can’t actually grow facial hair lol)

[likesunsetorange]

okay so similar to the mikasa ones, here are all the ones for eren and my thought processes behind them!

i think men’s fashion tends to be a little less versatile than women’s fashion by a long shot, so i think there’s definitely a lot less diversity and variation between my eren’s compared to my mikasa’s! i think each of my mikasa’s have a specific “aesthetic” whereas my eren’s more so have more of a color palette/vibe to their style because i think there’s only so much you can do with men’s clothing tbh unless you’re aiming for a super curated aesthetic (e.g. cowboy eren)! so i think they’ll have a lot of overlap tbh, but this is kind of how i envision them all! and again i’ll include the moodboards i’ve made previously!

— 𝐝𝐨𝐥 𝐞𝐫𝐞𝐧

i think dol eren and mikasa both have this very “boy next door” and girl vibe to them, like i don’t wanna call them “basic” per se, but it’s a very sort of typical and like almost expected vibe you’d expect of average 24 year olds. for eren, since he works a more physically demanding job, i imagine him being a very casual person. i also just see most guys being casual in general, so wearing a lot of like solid/vintage graphic tees and then whatever random bottoms on a day to day basis if he’s not doing anything special! i imagine the only time he dresses up is when he goes out with mikasa, because she’s the only person who he cares to really impress (hence the chapter about their date), so he’d have some nicer clothes for when he has nice things to attend, but they’re only reserved for things like that!

i see him wearing the most of: t-shirts, hoodies/sweatshirts, the occasional nice button up. idk dol eren would be uniqlo if he were a brand. he is a GOOD QUALITY, LOYAL, and DEPENDABLE! when has uniqlo EVER done you wrong??? like it’s simple but it’s tried and true man, for good reason!!!

— 𝐛𝐨𝐝𝐲𝐠𝐮𝐚𝐫𝐝 𝐞𝐫𝐞𝐧

bodyguard eren is a casual guy but he’s like the emo version in my head lol. like bodyguard mikasa’s colors in my head are red/pink/white, and bodyguard eren’s are black/green/grey—he wears a lot of darker colors essentially! mikasa obviously is the more fashion forward one in this relationship, and eren is def more casual lol, he basically just wears all black or some variation of a neutral outfit bc he’s a very simple and apathetic man lol, he doesn’t really care. but similar to how eren inspires mikasa to dress more casual, mikasa would def play ken doll with eren and buy him clothes lol, so i think he’d dress up a bit more too! but i don’t think she’d ever force him to wear anything he didn’t like, i just think eren dresses casually bc it’s simple and easy, and he’s just a laxxed man.

he would be converse bc i see him begrudgingly taking his shoes off when mikasa pisses him off and he’s struggling to get them off in ample time bc they’re high tops lol

(also there’s a cardigan bc mikasa would so put him in a cardigan lol)

— 𝐞𝐱𝐞𝐬 𝐭𝐨 𝐥𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐞𝐫𝐞𝐧

okay after model eren, i think e2l eren is the second best dressed, and this is solely because him and mikasa were together for so long LOL, she played build a boyfriend! like his style comes from her! but eventually after being together so long he does sort of develop his own sense of style but like the foundation of his style IS mikasa. so i think his style kinda emulates the same kind of vibe as hers, idk how that translates in male description. he would dress up a little more than some of the other eren’s and probably wear a bit more color too! def has that vacation-y vibe too. also e2l eren is a graphic designer, so he has that artsy boy vibe to him a bit too!

he’d be zara bc mikasa definitely introduced him to zara while they were dating lol

— 𝐜𝐨𝐰𝐛𝐨𝐲 𝐞𝐫𝐞𝐧

i feel like this one doesn’t need much explanation, we all know cowboy eren is just a hot, sexy cowboy. he’s a working man and he has to dress accordingly!!!! (and for whatever reason we’re all very oddly attracted to it) (it’s bc it’s eren) but i think for mikasa’s fancier events he would dress up, and occasionally omit the cowboy hat if need be lol

he is boot barn lol. and maybe levi’s.

— 𝐦𝐨𝐝𝐞𝐥 𝐞𝐫𝐞𝐧

model eren to me is obviously the BEST DRESSED out of all the eren’s, like this is an obvious given. he’s a model! of course he’s gonna be the most fashionable! to me, he screams pretty boy lol, so he’s going to dress and act accordingly lol. it’s one of the main things that mikasa also makes fun of him for too. so i think of his style as very tailored, very classic, but also some fun and a bit more stylized pieces! i think he would wear a little bit of everything, so he would dress super fancy some days, but then have some more casual pieces too! but then once he kind of stays in montana with his family, he’ll def kind of his model mikasa moment and have the little bit of cowboy flare to his style a bit too!

he would be all saints! or some niche expensive brand im probably too poor to afford

— 𝐚𝐜𝐚𝐝𝐞𝐦𝐢𝐜 𝐫𝐢𝐯𝐚𝐥𝐬 𝐞𝐫𝐞𝐧

academic rivals eren is kinda my favorite to talk about bc he’s kinda funny LOL he’s basically frat boy adjacent and it makes me giggle. he’s literally what you’d think of when you’d think of an obnoxious little frat boy in the most stereotypical way (not in the board shorts and polos way tho omg), although he isn’t technically one! his style is definitely pretty casual, so he’d definitely wear a lot of t-shirts and flannels, but since he’s a bit well off, i think he’d wear a lot of stuff like golf wang and more expensive sneakers! i see eren as kinda basic tbh lol he’s a simple man but i think he’d have his occasional indulgences lol (and golf wang stuff is SO comfy). he’s just your tried and true college boy in my opinion!

he would be golf wang & converse (but not for the reasons stated above).

i won’t lie i feel like this one gave me more grief than the one for mikasa did lol like i definitely had to think about it a bit more! men’s fashion is way harder to me so i had to be a lot more considerate about each eren and their vibes, but this was fun!

[johannaadriaansen-blog]

How to Strategically Use Instagram Highlights

Instagram highlights. Are they dead or are they thriving? Are they serving your account or are they a waste of time? Instagram highlights are kind of like

hashtags

in my opinion, they aren’t going to make your account blow up but they are part of Instagrams key features and should be used properly!

WHAT ARE INSTAGRAM HIGHLIGHTS?

Instagram highlights are a way to save Instagram stories passed. Users were getting frustrating that the valuable content they put on stories was getting deleted after a mere 24 hours. So Instagram created highlights. Highlights are the row of circles you may see below the bio on someone’s profile. They are essentially albums of Instagram stories sorted into specific categories of your choosing. I’m here to share with you today how you can use Instagram highlights effectively to convert profile views into follows and continue to drive traffic back to the content you’ve worked so hard to create. So how can we strategically and effectively use Instagram highlights?

KEEP YOUR HIGHLIGHT CATEGORIES ON BRAND

I did a little highlight audit recently and realized that some of my highlight topics, while fun, were not on brand. I had an entire Instagram highlight called ‘Eats’ which, to be honest, had a lot of great food tips and recipes in it but it doesn’t align with the content that I regularly post. So I had to kick it to the curb. It’s crucial that your highlight categories actually match with content you consistently share and ultimately drive more people into your business in some way. Maybe that means saving stories that have swipe ups to your blog. Maybe you have a behind the scenes highlight that shows your creative process as a maker and directs people to your etsy shop. Maybe you have a highlight featuring testimonials from past clients.

Speaking of, I’d LOVE to get a

follower testimonial

from you! Feel free to put me under lifestyle *wink wink, nudge nudge*. I had another highlight called travel, and while it was nostalgic for me to tap through and reminisce over past trips it wouldn’t be accurate for someone coming to my page to see, because a Travel highlight suggests I share travel content, which I do, but it’s not the type of content that drives my business forward. At the end of the day we want to make sure our Highlight titles are serving our audience and serving our business not serving US or our personal entertainment. Make sense?

MAKE AN INTRO OR WELCOME HIGHLIGHT

I don’t know about you but when I’m looking at a new profile I want to know WHO is behind it ASAP. Who is the person behind the pictures? What are they all about? The first thing I do is click their most Instagram recent story, hoping to find a clip of them talking so I can meet their personality. If they don’t have a story live I go to the highlights and click one that peaks my interest. If I can find video content of them talking there is a way better chance I’ll follow. So what Highlight topic can we have that promotes this connection? A couple of weeks ago I had this idea that it would be cool to have an ‘intro to me’ highlight where I quickly talked about who I am, what I’m up to and how I show up on the ‘gram. But, the only way to make this highlight is by of course physically posting it to Instagram stories which might feel a little random and awkward. I went on stories and prefaced it by explaining what I was going to do and then jumped into the intro. I created a new highlight called “Welcome” and then added the appropriate clips.

MAKE HIGHLIGHT COVERS

Highlight covers are a great way to bring a branded element to your page because you can create a color scheme. If you have a website that has specific colors you definitely want to use the same colors. This is to create cohesion in the experience as someone moves from your Instagram to your website. If you don’t have brand colors but your feed has a color-vibe this is a good place to start. You can actually use Canva’s color palette picker. Canva also provides for you the actual color codes which makes

making your highlight covers

way easier! To make your own highlight covers with solid colors, simple graphics or text head to

Canva.com

, make a free account, then create a new design with the dimensions 19020 x 1080. You can simply change the background color to one of your brand colors, export the files and air drop to your phone. Or get creative by adding elements or font to the cover. HOW TO ADD HIGHLIGHT COVERS WITHOUT POSTING TO INSTAGRAM STORIES Once you have your new highlight colors as jpeg. files you can add them to a pre-existing highlight WITHOUT having to upload them to your Instagram story. Remember back in the day when we had to tap through everyone’s highlight covers? No more! Just click a pre-existing highlight, select edit, edit cover, upload from camera roll! Pro Tip: You could also make solid color highlight covers by taking a photo within Instagram stories, selecting the paintbrush tool, choosing a color and pressing and holding for three seconds. Save this new solid color image to your camera roll and upload to a highlight as I explained above. Highlight covers make your page look clean and organized, don’t skip this step!

KEEP THE NUMBER OF INSTAGRAM HIGHLIGHTS TO A MINIMUM

Users are likely not going to scroll horizontally through your highlights. Ideally you want all of your topics visible from your profile view. And since highlights are organized by which was most recently updated they are always changing in order. If you don’t update your 9th highlight for months it will be stuck in the back and likely not seen! Ideally we prioritize and aim for a maximum of 5 highlight topics. IF you have more highlights, and maybe that makes sense for you, you CAN bring a highlight to the front of the list. You’ll have to go into your Instagram stories archive, chose a recent slide and add it to your highlight. It’s okay if it’s not an actual fit because you are simply going to remove it from the highlight right after. Save the highlight and then go back in and delete the slide you just added. Doing this will move this Instagram Highlight to the front of the row without affecting the contents of the high light!

USE HIGHLIGHTS TO REPURPOSE CONTENT AND CONTINUE TO DRIVE TRAFFIC

So once we post an Instagram to our feed it pretty much gets lost into the abyss within 48 hours. That caption you worked hard to write, and that image you spent time acquiring is basically a dead zone now. Not ideal! Just the same blog posts and podcasts can be promoted and SHOULD be promoted more than once! So we can use Highlights to bring a little extra life to these things. You could have a blog post Instagram highlight where you save stories in which you featured a blog, even better if you are over 10K and have the swipe up link. You could also save stories in which feature a podcast episode if podcasting is your thing, and of course you can create a highlight out of your Instagram posts if you post them to your story. So what we often see is users posting their new post to their story, with a huge sticker covering the images and a call to action that says tap here or new post. I would recommend taking it one step further and adding a bit of text that describes what they will get or read if they go to that post. Once you have this in place you can save this story to a highlight and then as someone is tapping through your highlight they can kind of navigate to the type of content they want to see. For example, I have different Instagram posts that I have posted on my story saved under highlights called ‘IG Tips’, ‘For Influencers’ or ‘Freelance’. So if someone looks at my feed they are going to choose a photo that catches their eye. BUT if they look at my highlights they can find content based on what they are interested in. And that is the entire goal!

THE BEST WAYS TO USE INSTAGRAM HIGHLIGHTS

To recap when it comes to strategically using Instagram highlights you are going to make sure that the highlight topic, title or theme is actually on brand for you and in alignment with your content. Your also going to make some pretty highlight covers through Canva.com or within Instagram stories itself and also make sure those are on brand and cohesive with your blog or website if you have one. Third you want to get a little uncomfortable, get on camera and make a Intro to you highlight! Please tag me if you do this because I’d love to see what you’re up to. You can even blame me in your disclaimer story and say “hey Johanna is making me do an Intro story so that I can save it as a highlight, here goes!”. And then you can do your intro and it will be amazing! Other things to keep in mind are that you want to keep the number of highlights you have to a minimum and lastly create highlights with the intention of repurposing content such as IG posts, blog post or podcast episodes. And while I’m thinking of it, if you have in your bio you could actually write a little call to action that directs people to your highlights maybe something like ‘check out my highlight for how to work with me’ or ‘check out my cooking highlight for easy breakfast recipes”. Whatever makes sense for you! Alright friend that’s all. for me. today.

[creative-juicebar]

Mastery Journal - Professional Practice Reflection (Media Design M.F.A. Review)

1. Discuss how each course in your degree program contributed to your personal and professional development as a media designer. 

1. Mastery: Personal Development and Leadership – Going back to school wasn’t an easy decision. I can honestly say, never in my life did I expect that one day I’d be earning a graduate degree; certainly not at 42 years old, while working full time, and taking care of a family. If you were to tell me before I enrolled that I’d be finishing my degree with a 4.0 GPA, I’d say you were insane, yet here we are. A lot of my perspective changed while taking the Mastery course. Researching about individuals who had attained mastery in their field was intriguing and inspiring. The question gradually changed from “Could I do it?” to “What’s stopping me from doing it?” Most significantly, it solidified why finding my life’s task was so important. Without that, the path towards becoming a media designer might have been a lot tougher.

2. Defining Client Needs – In the Defining Client Needs course, I begrudgingly gained appreciation for the importance of self-teaching and personal research.  We explored the benefits of using Mind Maps and how research data can be synthesized to explore and develop new and interesting ideas. Having to sketch a multitude of logo concepts for our first chosen city was ample proof that the best results often come only after an extensive iteration process has been completed.

3. Brand Development – The Brand Development course continued to reinforce the principles of effective logo design and introduced the powerful effect that colors and typography choices can have on a brand. Creating 3 unique Brand Toolboxes for our chosen city was the first step towards understanding how to develop a brand strategy and began the process of learning how to communicate a brand’s visual identity using logos, color palettes, fonts, images, and textures. This was the first time I had ever learned how to do anything with Adobe InDesign. As a media designer there will probably be many more opportunities to use InDesign in the future.

4. Effective Copy Writing – The Effective Copy Writing course served as a reminder that even though I thought I could write well, there is always going to be room for improvement. Creating testimonial ads for a non-profit organization provided valuable opportunities to practice identifying a design problem, conducting necessary research, and developing effective solutions based on that research. Developing target personas proved to be essential, as each of the revised ads was heavily influenced by the personal detailed backstories of the personas. I have always enjoyed writing and I have always been good at problem solving. For me, learning how to combine the two was truly a eureka moment.

5. Design Research – As exciting as it was to combine writing with problem solving in Effective Copy Writing, in Design Research it was equally as exciting to discover that developing a narrative and brand design also went hand-in-hand. The more I found out about the similarities between graphic design and storytelling, the more I became hooked. Establishing voice and tone for a brand is not that different from creating character profiles for a story. In both cases they define personality and are critical for maintaining consistency throughout their development. On the flipside of the coin though, I learned in this course that I would require much more practice and experience with grid layouts, text handling, and visual hierarchy before I would ever feel completely confident designing layouts.

6. Organizational Structures – Organizational Structures was a pivotal course for me. Ten years ago, I received my undergraduate degree in Media Arts & Animation from the Art Institute of Las Vegas. Since then I’ve developed quite a bit of experience working with motion graphics. This was the first course in the Media Design program where it became apparent that the world of graphic design and the world of animation were not mutually exclusive. This course required us to combine visuals, motion, and sound with our established city brand narrative and as a result, profoundly enhanced my professional presentation skills. It opened my eyes to all sorts of possibilities available to me as a media designer.

7. Design Strategies and Motivation - Sometimes in order to grow you need to be pushed outside of your comfort zone. For the last three years or so I’ve been working from home and most weeks have not required me to travel beyond driving to the kids’ schools or down the street to the grocery store. Most of my face-to-face communication has been limited to my wife, the kids, and a few of their friends. It’s not that I was enjoying being anti-social, but the introvert inside of me had gotten quite comfortable with the status quo. When we were told in Design Strategies and Motivation that we’d need to go out and interview five strangers, what could be described as a feeling of panic flooded every one of my senses. Nevertheless, I accepted the task at hand. After struggling to approach people at first, I eventually found a groove. The people that I interviewed ended up providing new insight and perspective about what was needed in the community. This stimulated new ideas that would help to elevate my brand. The experience taught me that there can be unexpected benefits when you push yourself to do things you otherwise wouldn’t do. I have always struggled with networking and striking up random conversations with strangers. However, now I can look back at my month 7 experience as a reminder that unless I push myself to engage, I’ll never know what kinds of opportunities I’m missing out on.

8. Design Integration – The Design Integration course provided the first opportunity to utilize many of the tools, principles, and techniques we had been acquiring thus far in a practical way that seemed applicable to solving a real-world problem. I felt articulating potential solutions played well to my strengths as a problem solver, developing the brand’s voice & tone was something I was relatively proficient at, and creating the dynamic vision board allowed me to tap into my motion graphics experience. Developing media plans and putting together design briefs seemed very complicated at first. However now, if I’m ever asked to develop a media plan or put together a design brief for a client, I’ll be better equipped to take those on.

9. Multi-Platform Delivery – There were actually a couple of important lessons that I learned in the Multi-Platform Delivery course. By the end of week one we needed to define a production timeline which would be used to complete each of the media assets for our city brand. Admittedly, I have never been one for a lot pre-planning, however, with the amount of work to be done in such a relatively short period of time, I learned to appreciate the value of sticking to a fixed production schedule. In this course I also needed to be painfully reminded that just because I may think a concept or design is perfect, doesn’t necessarily mean that others will appreciate it in the same way. In a lot of ways, this was one of the toughest months for me to get through, but the lessons it provided will continue to stick with me as I grow as a media designer.

10. Measuring Design Effectiveness – Measuring Design Effectiveness introduced me to the research advantages of sending out surveys to quickly collect qualitative and quantitative feedback. Having more than 100 strangers review my designs though, felt like I was Cersei from HBO’s Game of Thrones when she was stripped of all her dignity and forced to walk naked through a condemnatory crowd. Of course most of the responses that came back from my survey were positive and even the majority that weren’t, still provided some insight on how the designs could be improved. Overall though, I probably learned much more about what kinds of survey questions to ask next time, which will be especially handy if and when I need to do it again.

11. Presentation of Design Solution – The Presentation of Design Solution course provided an additional much-needed opportunity to work with layout design, text handling, and visual hierarchy. It also challenged me to develop logical and persuasive arguments for mastery across each DLO. Learning about the Wix.com website builder will likely help me in the future if I ever need to put together a quick website. It may prove to be a convenient way to construct a personal portfolio site. Understanding how to create clean and professional presentations will no doubt benefit me as I advance in my career as a media designer.

12. Professional Practice – The Professional Practice course capped off a year of learning with a thought-provoking examination of the ethical and moral challenges media designers must contend with. The course included a review of AIGA’s Design Business and Ethics document which stimulated worthwhile discussions about copyright issues, the social and environmental responsibilities of designers, and many helpful guidelines media designers can use in their personal and professional development (AIGA, 2009). We learned how to create an Experience Map which is one more tool designers can use to help companies identify ways to enhance the experience of their customers. We also researched various professional design organizations that designers can join to gain access to networking, professional development opportunities, industry resources, and in some cases even health insurance. We updated our resumes and practiced writing professional cover letters using the most up-to-date strategies.

Describe how the techniques in each course helped you complete your thesis project (do not include month 12: Professional Practice) and describe your most outstanding personal triumph in each course.

1. Mastery: Personal Development and Leadership – Mastery put me on the right track to succeed. It helped me reignite my ambitions and gave me the confidence to go forward and be creative in all of my future courses, which undoubtedly had a significant impact on my overall thesis project.

2. Defining Client Needs – The most significant technique that came out of this course was learning how to synthesize research. This course also introduced David Airey’s seven elements of iconic design and established that effective design is most often simple, relevant, distinct, memorable, adaptable, focused, and incorporates tradition (Airey, 2014, pg.39). These guidelines became central when creating virtually every project that went into the final thesis presentation. There was also a greater stress on learning how to use proper APA format in this course.

3. Brand Development – The most valuable concept learned in the Brand Development course was the importance of establishing and communicating a brand’s visual identity. Without that concept, most of the projects in my thesis presentation may have appeared far less cohesive.

4. Effective Copy Writing – The greatest takeaway from this course was learning that developing a design strategy is as important, if not more important, than the ability to write well. Understanding that concept had an immense impact on the rationales of my thesis project. Before any copy was written, a design strategy was established first. Also, the multiple approaches that led to the creation of my revised testimonial ads provided a persuasive and compelling demonstration of my ability to solve problems.

5. Design Research - The greatest personal triumph in Design Research happened when the narrative for the Kyoto city-branding project began to take shape. Once that narrative was established, every other design decision fell right into place. Defining the brand’s narrative made it much easier to develop the persuasive arguments necessary on the Connecting, Synthesizing, Transforming page of my thesis project. I could logically rationalize why various imagery was selected and explain how the fonts and color choices tied directly back to the theme and the personality of the brand.

6. Organizational Structures – The most outstanding personal triumph in the Organizational Structures course was the cinemagraph created in week 4. To me it symbolized the culmination of months of research and brand development. I appreciated how the subtle movement of the geisha was completely juxtaposed with the static imagery that surrounded her on the modern-day Kyoto train. It communicated the message of my brand in a way that was both elegant and poignant. Out of all the pieces in my thesis project, the Kyoto cinemagraph may have been the most successful at communicating its intended message.

7. Design Strategies and Motivation – If I hadn’t overcome my social insecurities during the interview assignment, my community rebranding project would have ended up looking much different and it probably would have been far less effective at addressing the needs of the Allen Park community. Conducting a SWOT analysis and creating an empathy map using all the information gathered from my research, helped me to define the real problem that needed to be solved.

8. Design Integration – I can point to the Design Integration course as the underlying reason my Allen Park rebranding project was used to demonstrate Innovative Thinking in my thesis project. I was proud of the final solution I came up with. While I hadn’t yet made a strong case as to how my solution was especially unique, the techniques developed in this course provided the building blocks that would eventually be used to claim innovation. Also, it is important to acknowledge just how much Professor Baldowski may have improved the strength of my writing. Looking back, he was by far the toughest grader of the entire program and because of that, really pushed me to go deeper into my research and get better at developing my ideas into solid rationales.

9. Multi-Platform Delivery - I don’t tend to look back on this course very fondly. I resented that we were unnecessarily covering the same exact logo design and brand development techniques from month 3. I was also greatly offended when the instructor disclosed that her colleagues had openly mocked my designs over her shoulder while she was grading them. I know I give a lot of credit to Design Integration as the course when all the tools, principles, and techniques started to finally come together, but in hindsight, if it wasn’t for that “unnecessary” review of effective logo design and brand development techniques, the Allen Park rebranding designs in my thesis project would have never been as successful as they were. Even though I defiantly pushed back against the instructor’s feedback in week 3, I am so very grateful that she challenged me to design something better. She was gracious enough to remind me that sometimes when we challenge our own ideas, it often results in new heights. That lesson was unquestionably, one of the most important things I’ll be taking with me from this entire program. She may never actually see this post, but if she does,… thank you again Professor Kratz.

10. Measuring Design Effectiveness – The Measuring Design Effectiveness course provided an opportunity to obtain feedback from a target audience as a way of determining how successful our brand designs might be. Watching the responses come in over a three-day period was an exceptionally gratifying and fascinating experience. The majority of responses that came back from the survey provided enough validation that the new Allen Park brand direction could be an effective way of bringing the community together. This reassurance allowed me to move forward with the designs and include them as part of my thesis project. Learning how easy it was to create and publish online surveys added an additional research technique to the growing list of competencies I could talk about in my presentation.

11. Presentation of Design Solution – In the first week of the Presentation of Design Solution course we developed thesis abstracts. These abstracts provided a written foundation that the entire thesis presentation could be built around. The process of sketching out different layout options for the presentation site was useful, but what was even more beneficial was being the only person to attend the live session in which the instructor reviewed everyone else’s layouts. This helped me gain a more in-depth and personalized understanding of why certain layout techniques were more effective than others. After reviewing the first draft of my website, the instructor’s feedback challenged me to establish stronger connections by using more cited references throughout the presentation, especially on my Connecting, Synthesizing, & Transforming page. On my Problem Solving page, I needed to do a more effective job at defining the problem. My Innovative Thinking page required a stronger argument for innovation by showing how my solution was unique compared to the competition. I’m especially proud of the revisions I made to my thesis presentation which addressed all of the above issues and included a complete overhaul of my layout design based on the techniques discussed in the sketch review session we had earlier in the month.

Final Experience Map

The final Experience Map attempted to represent my Full Sail journey in a way that was creative, fun, and reflective of my personality. As a pixelated character, I am shown traversing an old school video game level. The twelve coins spread out across the map represent each course in the program. The mountainous shapes in the background represent all of the emotional highs and lows I experienced throughout the year. Each of the items and bad guys I encounter along the way have very specific and symbolic meanings. The column on the right provides extra fun details about each one. The little backstory that I had a lot of fun inventing takes place in the hero’s homeland; the Nation of Determi. Everything is perfect there until one day, the evil Spiderlord Antithesis and his minions show up from the Nation of Procrasti.  Determi-Nation vs. Procrasti-Nation, Get it?  Ok, fine. I never promised that the reflection of my personality was ever going to be funny.

References

AIGA. (2009). Design business ethics. Retrieved from https://www.aiga.org/design-business-and-ethics

Airey, D. (2014). “Logo Design Love, Annotated and Expanded Edition, Second Edition” (2nd ed.). Retrieved from http://ce.safaribooksonline.com/book/branding/9780133812589

[alyharania]

okay because i was traumatized at dc pride by people using lash glue to affix craft glitter to their actual mouths, we’re going to have a sit down about the actual things that you need to put glitter upon your person and places you can get it. namely, a real glitter glue, an actual glitter meant for putting on your person, and a way to take it off.

welcome to glitter 101, a purchasing guide

first off: glitter glue. highly essential purchase, the first thing you are required to get before you embark on this journey. this is a nonnegotiable item. nyx’s glitter primer is like $6 and works fine, ben nye’s glitter glue is excellent and comes in a clear bottle so you know when it’s getting fucked up and needs to be replaced, mac’s mixing medium is a great workhorse product ( and you can use to make your loose glitter into glitter liner) and beauty bakerie’s sprinkles glue is $6, from an indie black-owned makeup brand, and fabulous (i don’t like their actual glitters, they don’t have sifters yet. get one of their metallic lips or their eyeshadow palettes if you want shine from them). those are my  personal favorites. in any case, buy yourself something that is marketed as a glitter glue for makeup purposes. this is very important. eyeshadow primers aren’t sticky enough, and actual glue is NOT FOR USING ON YOUR BODY STOP IT YOU’RE A FUCKING ADULT*

for face and eye glitter, we’re gonna split it up into a couple categories here.

drugstore:

the NYX liquid crystal eyeliner is a decent dupe for the urban decay glitter eyeliner; they have less exciting colors, which is a little annoying, but it’s also $4.50, so, you know, it’s not a bazillion dollars. and then there’s obviously Urban Decay and whatever but who the hell has $20 to spend on an eyeliner not fucking me that’s who. but if you do, their glitter eyeliner. i cry. for super portable and very cheap starter glitter, get yourself some wet and wild $0.99 glitter cream eyeshadows. they are like no work and excellent payoff and ninety nine fucking cents at target and cvs, go forth. also at the drugstore, nyx has face and body glitter as well as glitter liner (and roll on glitter in pastels, it’s fucking great). wait until there’s a buy one get one and have at it folks.

online:

hot damn, StarGazer glitter shakers are so fucking good and so fucking cheap, they come in a billion colors. they also have UV glitter. you’re welcome. eye kandy has the fucking rainbow in shades and is only $7.50 a pop, also fabulous--not unique and different colors, but if you need a specific color, they’re a good place to go. i personally really like the Makeup Geek sparklers--they’re ten dollars a pop, you get a decent amount of product, they’re a very fine glitter, and they have a unique color selection (and they finally have sifters jfc. buy extra sifters just in case you get old stock though they’re 75 cents extra you’ll thank me later).  colourpop has a lot of glitters in its eye collection, and they’re five bucks a pop and come with a base shadow mixed in, so they’re also great starter glitters. you can apply them with your finger and not give a fuck, it’s great. and of course, make up for ever glitters cannot be beat. they have all colors, textures, sizes, i love them to bits. i’m linking you to their website and not sephora because sephora doesn’t carry all the varieties and doesn’t care about your glitter-loving problems.

the best:

the absolute BEST glitter for the eyes, however, are the stila magnificent metals glitter and glow liquid eye shadows. i know they are $24 a pop. i understand this. they are worth it. they look so fucking amazing, they’re neat and portable come in fabulous colors and are easy to work in with base looks but can stand out on their own with just a little eye definition. if you can treat yourself to them, go for it. it’s fucking worth it.

glitter lips can be done with loose glitter and a base color--get yourself a youtube tutorial that’s not what i’m here for--but some specifically lip-safe glitters are from magnolia makeup (another black-owned beauty brand, new orleans based, absolutely fabulous all around, never got a bad product from them. watch their space for glitter/lip product sets, they’ve come out with limited edition sets before). some of the occ lip tars are glittery as well, and are high high high recommend (as are their regular glitters tbh). any lip-safe glitter can be used on the face, but be very careful with these glitters. remember: you’re going to end up eating some of it. it doesn’t matter how careful you are. be careful with the products you use here.

body glitter is harder to find nowadays, because it isn’t popular and people are really sad in their life choices, but Lush has some excellent glitter going on in their life in general, and their body tints are my favorite--it’s basically a solid lotion filled with glitter, but they have one for light skin and one for dark skin, so the dark-skinned babes out there don’t get ashy or frosty-looking when applying their glitter (because who the hell wants that?). i tend to bring one in a tin to share to concerts/marches/parades, if this is a thing you want to do. for powder body glitter, i like the urban decay naked illuminated shimmering powder for face and body. do not be fooled by the word “shimmer”--this is straight up glitter once you get it on your damn self. use a big fluffy brush and go to town. if you’re doing designs or something, just use a loose glitter, which we went over above, and one of your glitter glues or mixing mediums that you’ve already got, and have at it.

for glitter nail polish, babes, i’m sorry, but Butter London does it best. i know they are expensive, i know, i’m sorry, but there’s a reason i’m linking you to Ulta! Ulta does buy one get one free on Butter London all the time, or marks them half off, or some kind of random sale, so if you want good glitter nail polish in interesting colors, keep a watch out! go in-store if you can, too, it’s much easier to tell glitter shades in nail polish in person. all of my best glitters are from them, i promise it’s worth it.  Orly does some decent glitter polishes as well, generally for special collections.

for glitter removal: get yourself some painters tape. masking tape is also acceptable in a pinch. wrap it around your fingers or a makeup brush, sticky side out, and use it to pick up the glitter off your face BEFORE cleansing/makeup removal wipes/whatever your skincare routine is. i know your favorite drag queen removes hers with duct tape, but duct tape is too fucking sticky. painters tape is made to not damage things when it is removed, and is thus more gentle on the face. trust me on this.

and finally, and possibly most importantly: never, ever put craft glitter anywhere on your body, especially not on your face. craft glitter has sharp edges that can cut your skin or, even worse, slice into your eyeballs. this is not an attempt to scam you--this is because the shards of plastic (because that’s what glitter is like 99% of the time, actual shards of plastic or crystal) are cut differently and smaller for face- and eye-safe glitters than they are for fucking craft glitters. they use different colorants, different plastics, different machines, and have different sanitary requirements for craft glitter vs. cosmetic glitter. don’t do it. please. i gave you links to 99 cent glitter come on ya’ll you’re better than this.

AND THAT’S IT! go forth my pretties. sparkle to the heavens, slay the day, whatever the kids are saying these days. put some glitter on that shit. commit. no really it’s a fucking commitment the glitter will never leave you once it comes through your door.

*if you are a child and reading this how-to guide, please ignore the yelling. you don’t know any better, and this is not your fault.

[spicynbachili1]

Review: Killer7

Now you might be The Predominant Occasion!

Over the past decade, gaming auteur Suda51 has turn out to be a power to be reckoned with. His video games have subverted normal online game tropes and offered a few of the zaniest and most esoteric experiences round. Choose any random title from his catalog and you will be taking part in a recreation that’s distinctly Suda51.

Whereas his profession within the online game trade is for much longer than that, his first huge worldwide launch was the cult traditional Killer7. Initially deliberate as one of many “Capcom 5” for the GameCube, the sport noticed a launch on Sony’s PS2 alongside Nintendo’s ill-fated lunchbox and was met with some very combined reception. Individuals both cherished it or hated it, with no actual in between.

Having by no means performed the title earlier than, I used to be intrigued on the likelihood to see the place Suda51 lastly made his crossover from growing strictly Japanese video games. Whereas my opinion is a bit combined, I can positively say that this seems like one thing that solely Suda51 may create.

Killer 7 (Gamecube, PS2, PC [Reviewed]) Developer: Grasshopper Manufacture Inc. Writer: Capcom (GameCube, PS2), NIS America (PC) Launch Date: July 7, 2005 (GameCube, PS2), November 15, 2018 (PC) MSRP: $19.99 (PC)

Attempting to sum up the plot of Killer7 is a tall order. There are such a lot of twists, turns and fake-outs happening that offering a quick define may come off as deceptive. That being mentioned, the primary few missions give the impression you are happening a quest to avoid wasting Japan from some political turmoil. The sport takes place in an alternate historical past timeline the place world peace has been declared amongst each nation, although a rogue group inside Japan is making issues troublesome for the United Nations.

Enter the titular “Killer7,” a ragtag group of assassins who’re the one power that may cease the invading “Heaven’s Smiles.” As I mentioned, a common abstract would do a disservice to how subversive this recreation’s plot truly is, however simply know that you simply will not be stepping right into a generic story. As is the case with each Suda51 recreation that got here after, one thing deeper lurks inside Killer7 and discovering its secrets and techniques goes to take some severe dedication.

So far as the audio/visible presentation is worried, I do not assume Killer7 has aged a day. It could seem a bit simplistic, however all the pieces is extremely stylized and appears completely beautiful at greater resolutions. I’ve heard some dangerous issues in regards to the authentic PS2 port, however this new PC one is leaps and bounds past what the GameCube was able to. Possibly some individuals will not desire to have the cutscenes zoomed in, however a welcome four:three facet ratio choice gives you the unique presentation because it was meant to be performed.

Even with out that choice, Killer7 seems to be nice. The design of its aesthetic was forward of the curve again in 2005 and you can be forgiven for assuming this was a model new title from Suda51. The remaster is definitely surprisingly minimal, too, because it does not appear to have modified any of the belongings. That is an ultra-bloody cartoon with Suda’s signature neon-pastel coloration palette and no reasonable HD textures in sight.

There are some points I’ve with the PC port (like button prompts displaying controller instructions when utilizing a keyboard), however the low value and unimaginable efficiency make up for many of the drawbacks. Possibly it is not as straightforward as popping within the GameCube disc and simply taking part in, however Killer7 on PC is well the definitive model of this bizarre cult traditional.

I additionally want to present kudos to the voice appearing, which is great. That is one other robust go well with of Suda’s video games, however this wasn’t actually an anticipated factor in 2005. For those who evaluate Killer7 to different Japanese video games from the period like Resident Evil four, Dynasty Warriors 5, or Ninja Gaiden Black, the appearing is simply prime notch. It sounds just like the sort of correct dub that video games are solely simply now receiving, with loads of expert performances coming from the likes of Steve Blum, Jennifer Hale, Tara Sturdy, and Cam Clarke. I suppose that pedigree ought to communicate for itself, however every actor turns in a commendable efficiency that sucks you into the obtuse plot that Killer7 has.

I want I may sustain that reward for the gameplay, however that is the realm I really feel Killer7 misses the mark. To its credit score, the sport remains to be extremely distinctive and I am unable to declare I’ve performed something remotely comparable within the 13 years since its launch. Suda51 would flip his efforts into extra typical gameplay archetypes after Killer7, so what you get right here is one thing wildly off the wall and nearly indescribable.

Killer7 combines first-person gunplay with third-person on-rails exploration. Your character is restricted to shifting ahead by holding the A button and will be rotated with the B button to backtrack. You may mechanically flip in loads of areas, however others gives you a alternative of which path you may proceed. From there, you will then be tasked with determining the environmental puzzles to make progress to the subsequent part, which can require some backtracking or merchandise looking to attain.

Enemies shall be dotted alongside these paths that may require you to cease, scan, goal and shoot to defeat. For the reason that digital camera angles are mounted, enemies make a definite noise when they’re in your neighborhood to clue you into their presence. Generally they will be mere toes away, different occasions they are often throughout an enormous enviornment and slowly operating as much as you. The number of enemies is what drags this down since, regardless of their altering visible designs, they’re nearly all defeated by concentrating on a weak level.

To do battle with these enemies, you will have a number of seven characters at your disposal. Every character offers a definite play expertise, with completely different weapons and particular skills that may all get utilized sooner or later through the journey. Predominant man Garcian Smith, for example, won’t ever take care of boss battles however can revive your fallen allies should you occur to perish throughout a stage. Probably the most distinctive, KAEDE Smith, comes geared up with a scoped pistol and even cuts herself and bleeds in every single place to disclose hidden passageways within the surroundings.

There’s a gentle expertise system you will need to improve your characters, however there does not appear to be any actual profit to powering up your staff. Since mainly each enemy is defeated with a single shot to their weak spot, you simply must regular your goal a bit and pay extra consideration to your environment to do effectively. It additionally does not matter an excessive amount of as capturing makes up about 30% of the general expertise.

Boss fights do cap off every stage and they’re all completely different, however the fundamental format set forth within the first stage of Killer7 is how the whole recreation performs out. You go round trying to find a selected merchandise (sometimes “Soul Shells”), use one or two character particular powers, get launched to a brand new enemy sort after which battle the tip boss. Rinse and repeat for about 10 hours.

I used to be definitely gripped from the outset, however after round three missions, I sort of had my fill. The story is intriguing and the visible fashion has tailored effectively to trendy shows, however Killer7 is not essentially the most compelling title from a gameplay perspective. It appears Suda51 had one distinct fashion he needed to shoot for and all the pieces else did not matter.

The backdrops for every stage change and also you slowly be taught extra in regards to the Killer7 staff, however the common gameplay is simply the identical factor. Different boss battles do not change up what is actually an ultra-linear key hunt recreation. I do not also have a downside with linear video games, however when the problem is nearly non-existent, your paths are restricted to strolling forwards and backward and the one actual roadblock to creating progress is ready for characters to cease speaking, the sport begins to bathroom down earlier than the midway level.

I may have completed it quite a bit faster, however I obtained so bored at one level that I took a number of days off to refresh myself. I wasn’t even certain if I actually did need to attain the conclusion, although I’m joyful I did. There’s one mission in a while that’s really particular from its presentation and it seems like an nearly utterly completely different recreation.

Even with the shock of that stage, the finale is drawn out a bit and the twist could really feel prefer it comes out of left discipline for some. As with every Suda recreation, Killer7 requires some homework within the type of digging round FAQs and plot analyses to make heads or tails of its narrative. You may have to attract your individual conclusions from the knowledge given, although a few of that info appears intentionally imprecise to throw you for a loop.

It positively is completely different, although I am unsure I might name constructive factor. On the very least, even when I did not discover the sport notably enjoyable, it’s nonetheless effectively price experiencing as soon as simply to see the place Suda obtained his signature fashion from. Killer7 additionally does not have any sort of bugs or glitches and feels extremely polished. This can be a recreation created from a selected imaginative and prescient that does not kowtow to trade checklists. It actually does really feel like a relic from a special universe.

Even when I discover myself within the center with Killer7, I might nonetheless suggest everybody give this a go. It might not be a recreation you’ll want to end, essentially, however it’s totally distinctive and must be seen first hand. I do not assume Suda hit his stride till his subsequent title (No Extra Heroes), however you may see the seeds of greatness had been planted with Killer7.

[This review is based on a retail build of the game provided by the publisher.]

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      Killer7 reviewed by Peter Glagowski

5

MEDIOCRE

An train in apathy, neither stable nor liquid. Not precisely dangerous, however not excellent both. Only a bit “meh,” actually. How we rating:  The destructoid critiques information

        from SpicyNBAChili.com http://spicymoviechili.spicynbachili.com/review-killer7/

[kennethherrerablog]

Get Your New Small Business Noticed With These 13 Marketing Tips

So you’re in the early stages of launching a small business. You’ve got a great product or service and obtained funding to get the company off the ground, but what about marketing? Do people know your business will be opening soon?

Getting noticed is one of the biggest challenges facing new small business owners. There are many different ways to market your business, such as using internet ads, social media pages, content marketing, in-person networking and more.

Some methods may be more effective than others, depending on your industry. But two areas all businesses need to excel in are internet-based marketing and in-person networking.

We’ve compiled a list of small business marketing tips, strategies and ideas that will help get your business noticed before, during and after opening.

13 Small Business Marketing Tips, Ideas and Strategies

Below is a breakdown of different tips, strategies and approaches on small business marketing. These tips and ideas are ranked based on when you should consider implementing them during pre-launch or in the early days of your business.

1. Create a Marketing Budget

For small businesses operating on a shoestring budget, it can be tempting to save money by not setting aside funds for marketing. But if your marketing strategy is to rely on word of mouth to promote your business, you’re in for a rude awakening.

Josh Rubin, CEO of Post Modern Marketing, tells small business owners they have to create a marketing budget, and the value of that budget can’t be an amount that will break the company if it doesn’t produce immediate results.

In the early days, you’re going to be spending time determining your company’s identity and figuring out what messaging connects with new customers. Be prepared for a lot of trial and error. “So set a budget that you’re willing to lose,” Rubin says.

2. Secure Your Company Name

You have an idea of what to name your small business and think it will connect with your target audience, but is that name available online?

“I see a lot of business owners that think of the name of their company but then don’t think about reserving a URL with [that name],” says Sherry Bonelli, owner of Early Bird Digital Marketing. She is also a small business mentor with Score, a volunteer group supported by the U.S. Small Business Administration that connects business owners with mentors from similar fields.

Having a website address that matches your company name is important, as people are doing more business online. It might be difficult for potential customers to find your website if they don’t match.

Once you have a business name in mind, go to a domain registrar, such as GoDaddy or Google Domains, to see if the web address is available. Prices start at $12 per year to reserve a domain name using Google Domains.

3. Create a Logo and Brand

If you want to be taken seriously as a business, you’re going to need to look the part. It might be tempting to create a generic logo and use a website template or stock photos when launching, but that isn’t necessarily good in the long run.

“I think many small business owners skimp on this step, and that’s a big mistake because if you don’t look like a real company, customers and clients are not going to trust you,” Bonelli says. Freelance websites such as Fiverr, Upwork and 99designs connect business owners with graphic designers who can create a custom logo, color palette, business cards and overall design for your business. This can cost anywhere between $300 and $500.

4. Build a User-Friendly Website

Once you have your logo ready, it’s time to build your website.

The way people search online has created many changes to website design. Having a site that looks good on smartphones and tablets is more vital than ever.

Website builders like WordPress.com, Squarespace and Wix, come with mobile-friendly features. They offer multiple templates, customization options and support for a monthly fee. Think like a potential consumer when building your site and make sure it has all the features and information you’d want to see.

5. Make Your Website SEO Friendly

Now that you’ve built your website, you should make it as easy as possible for people to find it when searching the web. Search engine optimization, more commonly known as SEO, is the process of getting web traffic from search engine results. SEO plays a crucial role in helping local and small businesses get discovered online.

Several factors determine a website’s search engine ranking. These include posting well-written blog pages that establish your topic credibility on a regular basis and using correct keywords associated with your business. To learn more about best SEO practices, check out free resources on sites such as Moz, Search Engine Land and Search Engine Journal.

If you’re planning on opening a physical location such as a restaurant, store or office, don’t forget to create a business profile on Google My Business, a free business listing service, that provides your essential info,such as a street address, phone number, hours of operation and business description.

One of the primary benefits of Google My Business is that it drives the “Map Pack” on Google search results, which may increase your visibility, in-store visits or calls This service is only available for local businesses with a physical address, not internet-only companies.

6. Create Social Media Pages

Now it’s time to create social media pages on platforms your audience uses.  You can count on using the major platforms — Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and LinkedIn — to promote business news and engage with your customer base.

At all stages of your company’s life, you should also keep an eye on what your competitors are doing with their social media platforms. “If a competitor is using Pinterest and it seems like they’re gaining a lot of engagement, then Pinterest might be a place you want to go,” says Kim Randall, owner of KiMedia Strategies, a small business marketing firm.

7. Find Free or Low-Cost Business Services

Money is going to be tight in the early days of starting your small business, so it helps to use free or low-cost services to help your marketing. Below is a list of programs that can help you save money running your business.

Buffer is a social media tool that allows users to schedule posts in advance or post the same content to different platforms at once. It has free and paid versions, starting at $15 per month.

Google Alerts are free and will help you keep up with what people are saying online about your business or keep up with specific keywords.

KeywordTool.io is a free service that allows business owners to do keyword research for their website and ads.

Apps such as Grammarly and the Hemingway Editor can be useful when writing blogs or content on your website. These will help you write more succinctly and catch grammatical errors. Grammarly has a free version and a premium version that includes features such as a plagiarism detector, vocabulary enhancement and genre-specific writing-style suggestions. The premium versions costs $29.95 per month (or a discounted rate of $139.95 when paid annually).

8. Buy Online Ads

Once your business has opened, it’s time to start advertising. Google Ads, which appear when you search on Google, is an obvious place to start because of the search engine’s popularity. According to Google, businesses generally make an average of $2 in revenue for every $1 they spend on Google Ads.

Bonelli says the problem with Google Ads for new small-business owners is that it can be expensive. To make it effective, she says to include your ad the information that users seek when they search on Google.

For example, if someone is searching for “wedding gown alterations,” the web page your ad sends users to must emphasize that your business specializes in wedding gown alterations.

9. Set Up Email Marketing

People who sign up to your email marketing program tend to be the most engaged members of your audience. These members generally read more articles after opening the email and are more likely to buy your products or services. That’s why it’s important to provide content and information your audience cares about in every email blast you send.

“If you’re mailing out to a random [email subscription] list you didn’t build, that’s where you’re not going to be effective. But if you mail out information that people are interested in, that’s where it’s really effective,” Bonelli says.

Include a button on your website that allows people to sign up for your email campaigns. A free version of MailChimp can help build your email list — it allows you to send up to 12,000 emails a month to up to 2,000 subscribers. The paid version allows you to send an unlimited number of emails to an unlimited number of subscribers. The cost of the membership increases based on the number of subscribers.

10. Craft an Elevator Pitch

Before you start meeting potential customers and attending networking events, do you have your elevator pitch ready? An elevator pitch is a speech lasing 30 to 45 seconds that tells the listener who you are, what you do and how your business will be better than the competition. With some practice, it may lead to a potential customer. Learn more on how to develop a great elevator pitch.

11. Become a ‘Thought Leader” in Your Field

When your business is off the ground, think about establishing yourself as a thought leader. A “thought leader” is a marketing term for a recognized authority in a field who is sought after as an expert.

Every business owner is a thought leader without knowing it yet; there is a reason you started your business, so let people know what you know. For example, if you’re a photographer, write blogs offering tips and tricks on how to take better iPhone photos or suggest “three things to look for in a wedding photographer.”

Randall used this strategy in the early days of social media marketing. “When I gave my thoughts, tips and everything else away and became a thought leader within the social media space, I gained a lot more clients,” she says.

Early on when people are not yet visiting your site, consider becoming a guest contributor on another established website in your field so you can promote your knowledge on the subject and point people in the direction of your website to learn more.

Another way to become a recognized expert is by meeting your target audience. Meetup.com is a great way to find local groups who are interested in topics related to your business. For example, if you run a knitting or sewing store, you might look to see whether any knitting or sewing events are happening in your area and offer to give a free demonstration.

12. Get Involved With Your Chamber of Commerce

Not all marketing is done online. Getting involved with your local Chamber of Commerce will enable you to meet fellow business owners during in-person networking events and other chamber functions. Over time, you’ll expand your professional network and be able to utilize their resources.

Rubin says his Chamber helped his company get featured on a local news segment. Once you start to support other businesses, they’ll do the same when you have a big event or project.

“All it takes is your time and your energy,” he says.

13. Find a Business Mentor and Continue Learning

As a new small business owner or entrepreneur, it’s never a bad thing to seek guidance from people who have been in your shoes. There are both local and national nonprofits devoted to helping business owners.

Score offers their mentoring service free of charge. Rubin, a Score volunteer, says if you want to know more about marketing, Score can connect you with retired marketing executives or other knowledgeable people who can help you grow your business.

“I’ll scream their praises from every rooftop because everyone always thinks that you have to pay for this kind of business support, and it’s out there for free,” he says.

As you progress and figure out what marketing material connects with your audience, don’t stop learning new things. Small business marketing is a topic that is difficult to master because strategies that work now will change and marketing fads come and go.

Luckily, there are a lot of free blog posts, courses and resources out there to teach business owners about SEO, social media marketing, internet advertising and more.

You can sign up for a massive open online course (MOOCs), keep up with the SEO sites listed above or follow marketing professionals you admire on LinkedIn or other social media.

“There’s so much information out there now that if business owners spend an hour a night just searching the web and teaching themselves how to do small business marketing, they’ll be successful at it,” Bonelli says.

Matt Reinstetle is a staff writer at The Penny Hoarder.

This was originally published on The Penny Hoarder, which helps millions of readers worldwide earn and save money by sharing unique job opportunities, personal stories, freebies and more. The Inc. 5000 ranked The Penny Hoarder as the fastest-growing private media company in the U.S. in 2017.

Get Your New Small Business Noticed With These 13 Marketing Tips published first on https://justinbetreviews.tumblr.com/

[lauramarbm]

Fashion Communication and Promotion “ proposal”

Proposal  

What will your Press Pack consist of? What promotional tools and techniques will you use?

The initially perplexed idea of my press pack consists of a printed long sleeve  T-shirt. The promotional tools and techniques that I will be, screen printing, and laser cutting for accessories. These two items will be presented in a professional and promotional format. Such as branding boxes and branding tags that will indicate the theme I will be calling my collection or so called " brand".  I am aiming to expand my branding in various ways throughout my research essentially in garments and promotional strategy. Focalising a wider and stronger range to my strategic promotional plan.

What is the name of your collection?

Dandicycling is the name that I will be using for my collection. The initial idea and purpose was to use a concept that represented the new dandy in the 21st century. Recycling the 19th century dandies to what we are now. But my main reason to use this concept was because through out the research I came across with a large scale of insecure people of in and out of the fashion industry, feeling that they had to belong of an urban tribe to be respected or to feel identified . I thought society had become quite monochrome. As the next step I decided to do more research on iconic styles of different centuries where people felt secure and embraced their flaws. I felt very inspired by the 19th century dandie’s although at first all I could find was dandy men in tailored suits with the finest hats ever to be made. Such as Oscar Wilde, Bea Brummel, and many more... However exploring in depth their language, I came across one of the most famous authors in France in the 19th century , George Sand. She was a female that wrote poetry, wrote inspirational and feminine feelings on to people but also dressed like a man . She would walk through Paris or Mallorca while she was the lover of Chopin, in her tailored suits and velvet hats , which women with long dressed did not except, she was humiliated, insulted. But still, she didn’t let no one interfere with her inner language . That was her , and she embraced each part of herself into poetry and garments.  This is why Dandicycling has been created to inspire individuals that the beauty is within,  we don’t need to be apart of something in order to feel represented or socially accepted. Dandicycling is a brand made to inspire to portray the beauty of individuals no matter what they look like or what their backgrounds are. Giving it a nostalgic and emblematic feel to it , suiting my pen portrait and my strategic plan. I think it can be effective to not only suit my target market but also to keep inspiring and educating the eye. (As once one of the most iconic fashion editor said, “ The Eye Needs  To Travel” - Diana Vreeland. )

Briefly describe your target customer?

My target customer is young adults from 18 to 35

It will be directed towards people that are creatively innovative and unique. That listen to all types of music that have a soul to it. They like to go to exhibitions and frequent high fashion brands.

Describe the style of branding you have chosen? Why did you choose this style of the brand?Analyse how the branding fits with the target customer for your collection?

The style I have chosen is based on a book I red last summer. It is called a Winter in Mallorca and it's about George Sand and her romanticism with the compositor Chopin. George Sand used to wear male clothing in the 1920's which she had been criticized and judged by all the women and men. However, men would be firmly interested in her due to the knowledge and interesting mind. The reason I chose her as a reference is because her attitude of not giving a damn and her vibe towards life is very admirable. I wanted to reflect a kind of dandy woman and men breaking tabu. A woman and a man in a pink suit. Without being minoritized as a Gay man or a masculine woman. I think the beauty is inside of each human.

The branding that I will be choosing will be very minimal and artistic, choosing the color I have based all my collection, Pink. My initial idea is to create a logo for my brand and later on translate that on to my promotional strategies.  I will be elaborating product designs for Boxes, tissue paper, stickers and also tags. Keeping it very informative and clear of the brand and the concept. The reason I chose this style of a brand is because as a frequent client in brand shops one of the most important things besides the environment and the service is the packaging and the whole branding behind the items. The key items in for brands are the bags, the boxes, the tissue they use, the tags and the layout and if it works or not. It is important to clash a visual language between your customer's taste and the concept chosen for the brand. I think my fashion language that I will be using my promotional strategy will be very informative to the eye playing with prints and pink's color palette.

What marketing strategies do you hope to you to promote your collection?

My collection is ready to wear garments, I will be focalising my marketing strategy towards the unique pen portrait. Therefore I will have to use different unique forms to captivate my customer's eye. Such as, alternative magazines " fashion editorials", online platforms, a lookbook or perhaps a fashion film.

What season will the collection be for? How will you reflect the season in your Promotional branding?

The season I am focusing is for spring summer 2018. I will reflect that season throughout locations, layouts, props, models, perspective, makeup, textures, smells, graphics...

What will you use your sketchbook for? Analyze: Journey, layout and critical analysis.

The sketchbook that I will be elaborating will reflect a concept board, a color pallet, a theme, a season, fabrics I will be choosing, the shapes. Also including visuals determining my competitors, what promotional strategies they have used.Some fashion photography that would match my ideas for my branding ideas.

What intentions do you have for photography /photo shoots and or video image makings ideas?

The photographies will be displayed in a very dandy and minimal way. Perhaps further on to the project, I will include a short fashion film.

How will this target the customer? How will you ensure these methods and techniques match the style of branding you hope to achieve?

The techniques and methods that my photography and fashion film will demonstrate will be directed towards a unique target customer that enjoy cinema and short films, clients that appreciate young, random and uniqueness.

Evaluation & Progression-How will you continuously evaluate your progress throughout this project? Why is reflection important? How will you critic\ally evaluate?

This process will be evaluated and reflected throughout a blog, I will be including critical thoughts on controversial adverts, critical analysis on fashion campaigns, a proposal, a pen portrait reflecting my market target, a concept mood board with an analytical resume, brand analysis, competitor analysis and further research. It will all be recorded with a bibliography to prove the evidence and adding screenshots of developments within each stage of experimentation. The reason reflecting is important is due to its power of educating ourselves on the advantages and disadvantages of the process. Learning and increasing the promotional strategy due its strong reflecting analyze.  One of the most important benefits and "must haves" in the fashion industry is that as an individual we should all carry a strong critical point of view, being able to analyze and evaluate every perspective of the brand, thinking out the box and working on intuitions and independent taste. I will be evaluating it throughout the blog using graphic descriptions and writing my point of view, such as the advantages the disadvantages of the process and what, how can we improve it to be more successful and visually attractive to our customer base.