WATCH: Jonathan Ive talks about Mac design

In this clip from Gary Hustwit's docufilm "Objectified" we want to share with you one of our favorite clips, which features Apple's creative genius Jonathan Ive discussing the industrial design approach to creating the MacBookPro and iMac products. This is a great look inside the world of Apple's design 'process' and how that translates into the ideas which make up the Apple philosophy. Learn from this short clip just what makes Apple such a beloved brand and a great product.

Check out Gary Hustwit's other docufilm "Helvetica" which I'm sure all you graphic designers have seen. We're looking forward  to the 3rd installment of the design trilogy, "Urbanized".

RMS Titanic: Explore the fallen ship at the depths of the ocean

Viewers will get a closer peek into the history and wreckage of the Titanic on August 22nd, when RMS Titanic Inc., partnering with with Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution and the Waitt Institute, will launch Expedition Titanic. The dive aims to help further preservation of the ship, which sits 2.5 miles below sea level, and to give the public an intimate view of its history.

The site itself transports viewers 2.5 miles below sea level and includes a 3D virtual tour of the wreckage, all of which is embedded with historical information. The agency is also launching social media initiatives to drive viewers to the site, which include video interviews of the crew seeded on YouTube and Facebook. Come August 22nd, the audience can get real time updates on developments on Twitter, YouTube and Facebook.

Modern Software Ads - Mad Men

Somtime in 1951, between the advent of the color television and the ending of World War 2, advertising took on a new role in mass media. Businesses teamed up with ad agencies to convince the masses on products and services that they wanted to sell. Content was key, and copywriters were kings. They weren't as creative, or extreme from what our eyes are used to nowadays, but it was groundbreaking content nonetheless. 

Engadget had a few modern day companies, Youtube and Skype (credit to the artist), with a 1950s style and content. They are spot on, and actually pretty funny! Imagine what 1950s advertisements would look like for modern day companies.

Enjoy Your Weekend!

A designers most difficult task and least fun, seems to be choosing the right typeface. Let alone a good one. A typeface must, make sense with your design, be true to brand standards and most of all... it must be legible enough to communicate your messaging.

Worry no more, now with this helpful flowchart (infographic) designed by the clever Julian Hansen you will never go wrong. And if you do, your client will ask you to change it anyway. [Thanks to Ben in NYC and Gizmodo for this lead.]

Download the full chart here.

Not so fast...look before you throw that penny away!

Have you noticed? Check that shiny little bronze coin next you get it, look closely... notice something different? Rather generic? Yes well unfortunately the US Mint has decided to redesign the Lincoln one cent coin. Let's be honest: American money isn't pretty. Our bills and coins are jumbles of incomprehensible symbols--every spot of ink has meaning, down to the number of spikes around the treasury seal, but it'd be a stretch to say they all cohere into a worthy whole. Well-respected graphic designer, Michael Bierut calls our currency "a cake that has been decorated to within an inch of its life." What it lacks in aesthetics, though, U.S. currency makes up for in quirk. It feels old, authentic, a little mysterious, and therefore valuable. It's money, after all.

Abe falls victim to a series of bizarre redesigns.

In honor of Lincoln's 200th birthday, the penny fell victim to an image series of four cartoony tableaus of Lincoln's life: his famously non-descript log cabin; a hilariously buff, superhero Lincoln reading on a log; a disproportionately statuesque Lincoln standing in front of the Illinois Capitol Building (which everyone will mistake as the U.S. Capitol); and finally the U.S. Capitol Building itself, bizarrely under construction. As a set, the coins look nothing like each other--"United States of America" appears in different type sizes; "One Cent" in different sizes and arrangements--and individually, they make no sense as a timeline of Lincoln's life.

It gets worse. Last week, the mint unveiled 2010's penny--Lincoln on the front, as usual, and a simple shield on the back. Gone is the Lincoln Memorial, maybe the most emotionally and socially charged building in the country. Gone is the wonderful level of detail (remember when you first discovered the tiny Lincoln statue in between the columns?). Compare it to 27-year-old Matthew Dent's redesign of Britain's coins--the best use of a shield on currency I've seen. Dent's redesign is contemporary but still complex; the coins work alone and as a set. Ours is simplistic and fake-looking. The penny is valueless enough as it is, and a one-dimensional design like this only makes matters worse.

The 8 Success Criteria For Facebook Page Marketing

Social media marketing has become a hot topic amongst brand marketers and businesses, now more than ever looking to establish themselves within a social network. As a means to advertise/promote their products and services at low cost, the biggest being, Facebook. But it's knowing how to use it and what to do with it, that counts. The proper use of Facebook goes beyond 'setting up an account' as the focus becomes more strategic in being 'interactive' with your audience by taking the right steps to increase engagement and promote word of mouth through advocacy and peer-to-peer interactions, or solicit business call to actions that result in transactions. Simply stated, if a brand makes their community happy by generating a vibrant place, then then have the option to start generating business impacts (revenue).

The Altimeter Group compiled data by analyzing companies posts, comments, 'likes' on Facebook and found a clear pattern. There was a consistent set of criteria they heard from the industries experts, and they found the following 8 criteria:

1. Set Community Expectations
2. Provide Cohesive Branding
3. Be Up To Date
4. Live Authenticity
5. Participate in Dialog
6. Enable Peer-To-Peer Interactions
7. Foster Advocacy
8. Solicit A Call To Action

Okay great, now you know the 'key points' to creating a social media presence on Facebook, but how is your business going to execute a plan that meets this criteria to capture an audience and build your business through the social media platform? Look no further, STARMEN Design Group can take your brand from Content To Commerce by using a unique approach that bridges "people stories" to "product stories" through social media and branded content. Get in touch with us and get current, we are social media experts, and are here to to help you achieve true consumer engagement.

One of the most challenging parts of any brand design process is getting design approved via "client sign off". It can prove time consuming, demoralizing and if you are not careful can lead to a dissatisfied client. What is more you can end up with a design that you are ashamed to include in your portfolio.

How then can you ensure that the design you produce is the one that gets built? How can you get the client to sign off on your design? Below are 10 tips learnt from years of experience, we call them the "growing pain" years.

1. Write the creative brief

Many of the clients you work with will not have been involved in a web or design project before. Even if they have they may have worked in a very different way to what you would expect. Take the time at the beginning of the project to compose a 'creative brief' explain their role in the design of the site. The best approach is to emphasis that their job is to focus on the needs of their users and business. They should concentrate on the broad issues, while you worry about the details of layout, typography and color scheme.

By clarifying what you expect from the client, you help them to provide the right kind of input throughout the process. The creative brief is also a useful tool that you can use throughout your design process, kind of like a roadmap for the foundation from which you 'brand' your client. Get it approved and you'll have something to fall back on if any disagreements come back to haunt you later on.

2. Understand the business

Before you open up Photoshop or put pen to paper, take the time to make sure you properly understand not only the brief but the organization behind the site. By understanding their business objectives, organizational structure and marketing strategy your design decisions will be better informed.

You cannot rely upon the brief to provide all of the information you need. It is important to dig deeper and get as good an understanding of their business as possible, do some audits, external research, go out and study their competitors. This information will prove invaluable when justifying your design decisions.

3. Understand the users

We all like to think of ourselves as user centric designers, but exactly how much effort do you put into knowing your users before beginning the design process?

Take the time to really understand them the best you can. Try to meet with some real prospective users and get to know their needs. Failing that work with the client to produce user personas to help picture exactly what kind of people they are.

Understanding your users not only improves the quality of your work, but also helps move the discussion away from the personal preferences of the client, to the people who’s opinion really matters. Some client's themselves, do not properly "know" or "understand" their audience until you put it in front of them. Be bold, be creative!

4. Avoid multiple concepts, Avoid multiple concepts...

Many clients like the idea of having the option to choose between multiple design concepts. However, although on the surface this might appear to be a good idea it can ultimately be counterproductive for design sign off.

In a world of limited budgets it is unwise to waste money on producing designs that are ultimately going to be thrown away. The resources would be better spent refining a single design through multiple iterations.

What is more, multiple concepts often cause confusion rather than clarity. It is common for a client to request one element from one design and another from the second. As any designer knows this seldom works. This is one of the primary reasons that legendary graphic designer Paul Rand avoided showing more than one concept to his clients. in fact, his iconic UPS logo was chosen after only seeing ONE comp.

5. Use mood boards

Clients are often better at expressing what they don’t like than what they do. This is one of the reasons why they favour producing multiple design concepts. An alternative less costly approach is to create a series of mood boards. These boards contain a collection of colours, typography and imagery which represent different “moods” or directions, which the design could take.

Mood boards are quick and easy to produce allowing you to try out various design approaches with the client without investing the time needed to produce complete design concepts. This means that by the time you develop a concept the client and designer have already established an understanding about the direction of the design.

6. Say what you like, challenge convention

It is not uncommon for a client during let's say, a web project to ask for a design that looks similar to another site they like. The problem is that it can often be hard to establish exactly what it is about the site that attracts them. Also in many cases the sites they like are not something you are keen to emulate!

A better approach that was suggested by most web professionals is to show them sites that you think the design should emulate. Keep a collection of screen captures from well designed sites and pick out a few that are relevant to that particular client. Explain why you feel these designs might suit their project and ask for their feedback. If they don’t like your choices then expose them to more of your collection and see what they pick out.

7. Wireframe the homepage

Often clients find it hard to distinguish between design and content and so sometimes reject a design on the basis that the content is not right. This is particularly true when signing off the homepage.

You may therefore find it useful to establish the homepage content before producing the design. That way once they see the design they will not be distracted by the content. One of the best ways to do this is by producing a basic wireframe consisting of a series of content boxes. Once this has been approved you will find the sign off of design much easier.

8. Present your designs in person

Although it is true that a good design should speak for itself it still needs presenting to the client. The client needs to understand why you have made the design decisions you have, otherwise they will judge the design purely on personal preference.

Talk them through the design explaining how it meets the needs of their users and business objectives. Refer to the mood boards and preferred sites the client approved and explain how the design is a continuation of those. Never simply email the design through and hope the client interprets your work correctly! It's just impersonal.

9. Provide written supporting material

Unfortunately, no matter how well you justify the design to the client he is almost certain to want to show it to others. He may need his bosses approval or require internal buy in. At the very least he is going to want to get a second opinion from a friend or colleague.

The problem with this is that you are not going to be there to present to these people in the same way you did for the client. You cannot expect the client to present your ideas as well as you did. The reality is that you have lost control of how the design is perceived.

One way to minimize this problem is to provide written documentation supporting the design. This can be a summary of the presentation you gave to the client and allows him to distribute this along with the design. By putting a written explanation with the design you ensure that everybody who sees it gets the same message.

10. Control the feedback

My final piece of advice for managing design sign off is to control the way you receive feedback. A clients natural inclination will be to give you his personal opinion on the design. This is reinforced because you ask them what they think of the design. Instead ask them what their users will think of the design. Encourage them to think from the users perspective. Tell them to do some 'polling' with people unassociated with their inner circle to avoid bias at all costs.

Also encourage them to keep that overarching focus I talked about in my first tip. Their tendency will be to try to improve the design, however that should be your problem not theirs. The role of a client should be to defend the needs of their users and business not do the design. Encourage the client to make comments such as “I am not sure that my female users will like the masculine colours” rather than “can we make the whole design pink.” It is down to them to identify the problems and for you as the designer to find the most appropriate solution. Lastly, please when you're requesting feedback make sure you ask for ONE consolidated and FINAL document of revisions, this way you won't have to sort through 23 emails, as the client changes their mind every other hour.

So there you have it. Our 10 tips to improve design sign off. Will this ensure design approval every time? Unfortunately not. However it should certainly help smooth the way. Now you also know a little bit on how we work, for those potential clients out there... let's talk!

When the official logo of the 2012 London Olympics was released three years ago, the odd puzzle-piece design was the object of so much scorn that organizers were desperate to avoid similar criticism when they unveiled the mascots for the Games on Wednesday. With the introduction of Wenlock and Mandeville (above), London 2012 organizers realized their goal. The criticism of the mascots won't be similar to the complaints about the logo. No, they'll be much, much worse. London went for a complicated design that seems a bit uninspired and fails to identify itself to the global community with its host city, culture, history and people. See if makes sense to you...

Check out the short film which details the weird origins of Wenlock and Mandeville:

Wenlock is named after Much Wenlock, a village in Shropshire which held an event in the 19th century which inspired the modern Games. Mandeville is named after the hospital at which the Paralympic Games were founded. Though both sound like Tolkein characters, the names are quite good and are the only thing that makes the mascots distinctly British.

Google and Typekit both spilled some much-anticipated beans last week. First off, Google announced they are releasing high quality open source fonts in the Google Font Directory. Users will be able to download these open source fonts from http://code.google.com/p/googlefontdirectory/.  They also went so far as to release Google Font API, which is an HTML based tool that enables you to implement any of these fonts into your site with a level of ease that we’ve been accustomed to from Google.

Wait. It gets better. Typekit and Google announced the release of a Web Font Loader to smooth out any issues when putting their web fonts to use.

The WebFont Loader puts the developer in control of how web fonts are handled by various browsers. The API fires JavaScript events at certain points, for example when the web font completes downloading. With these events, developers can control how web fonts behave on a site so that they download consistently across all browsers. In addition, developers can set the fallback font's size to more closely match the web font, so content doesn't reflow after loading. Furthermore, the WebFont Loader is designed to make it easy to switch between different providers of web fonts, including Google, Typekit, and others. The code is modular, and we expect to add modules for other major web font providers in coming weeks.

To see an example of Google’s web fonts in the flesh visit Smashing Magazine.

Newly revamped flash-based HBO.com features enhanced interactive and video features, personal dashboard

Our good friends over at HBO have relaunched their website HBO.com, adding interactive features and enhanced video support. The HBO Go web site itself is visually stunning, with lots of full-screen visuals for each of the featured TV shows, movies, and other bits of programming that scroll past once a user is logged in. Browsing through the different featured sections — Movies, Series, Comedy, Sports, Documentaries, and Late Night — is quick and painless, with each offering up an easy-to-navigate interface for choosing between titles. Users can customize the viewing experience by choosing between cover, grid, and list modes of viewing available content.

We wanted to create a rich, interactive online destination worthy of the HBO brand," said Alison Moore, vice president, Brand Strategy and Digital Platforms.

Here's a quick list of the site's key expanded features:

Streaming Video – high quality videos of HBO shows in full screen resolution, regardless of monitor size, that provide users with more of a TV-watching experience than a PC-viewing experience.

Enhanced schedule – easy to use and accessible from every page on the site.

Community –upload your photo, create a personal identity and establish a unique voice by posting comments and stories throughout the site.

Shareability – share content with friends in and outside of the HBO community, with a robust set of share tools that includes email, video embed and post functionality.

Personal dashboard – create a dashboard of favorites, plus bookmark discussions, clips, and even get recommendations for new content based on favored programs.

Overall, we think this is a prime example of how entertainment companies can expand their online presence in today's digital age. HBO.com uses the best in web design techniques in conjuction with the latest technology to accomplish an optimal viewing and user experience for its users. I feel the HBO approach can set a standard of design for companies who stream video content online, i.e. hulu, youtube, vimeo, etc.

Explore: HBO.com

UPDATE: Gizmodo Editor Jason Chen Arrested, Home Searched And Computers Seized. The lost iPhone investigation begins...

UPDATE: Yes, it has been confirmed by numerous sources in news and media including online that Apple lost the next iPhone, in a bar.

Is this real? Could it be, that one of Steve Jobs secret service agents was sleeping in Cupertino? How did this slip through the cracks? Easy. Disguise it with a Belkin 3GS case. Though it's unofficially unconfirmed, there's a strong chance this is the next iPhone. Gizmodo, a high-reputable online source and popular blog for all things technology, recently posted this discovery.

You have to see to believe! www.gizmodo.com

UPDATE: Preview the latest features in Adobe Creative Suite 5 Design Premium. What is Design Premium?

We've been invited to attend the online global launch event taking place right now. Check back with us a little later has we'll have all the latest, up-to-date inside features and news regarding your favorite Adobe programs... for now here's a sneak peek.

As part of a major re-branding effort, Hertz Corp. wants to woo cash-strapped consumers by urging them to "journey on" in a new campaign. For the first time in two decades, the company is updating its logo, uniforms, ads and 2,100 rental locations, as well as adding snazzy sports cars to its fleet. Omnicom Group's DDB is creating the campaign, which includes TV spots, print ads and online elements. Hertz also worked with Landor Associates to modernize the yellow and black Hertz logo.

Our goal in the logo redesign was to create a more contemporary corporate image that reflects our strong brand recognition, and is in touch with the mindset of current and future customers who appreciate superior service, personalized choices and value," commented Mike Senackerib, Hertz Chief Marketing Officer.

The new identity remains recognizeable by the strong use of its iconic yellow corporate color, but loses its familiar 'drop shadow' an element which made it look very dated. The new logo itself has been successfully updated to today's contemporary, friendly, and less-corporate consumer, but its going to take a lot more than aesthetic changes to re-energize the consumer and their views toward the Hertz brand.

The recent debut of Apple's latest creation, the iPad had people running to their nearest Apple store (myself included) to check it out. In fact early sales numbers show that it did quite well, between 600,000 and 700,000 iPads (pre-orders included) according to Piper Jaffray analyst Gene Munster. Unlike the iPhone, the iPad is an entirely new category of device leaving many of its potential owners and consumers with questions. Questions not so much regarding the technology of the device itself rather, how will I use this device? More importantly, do I even need this?

These consumer questions are the least of Apple's worries. HP's much anticipated "Slate" is set to be released in the not so distant future, with capabilities that could potentially make it an "iPad killer" or simply 'a better product'. Take a look at HP's latest 30-second teaser that makes a point of showing off all the features on the Slate that are missing on the iPad, such as a built-in camera, a USB port (a real one, not an adapter), and an SD card slot. Now we at STARMEN are Apple loyalists, our office (and industry) has been made possible by all of Apple's sophisticated tools that make our working environment lots of fun and much easier such as our iMac's, MacBook Pro's, iPod's and iPhone's. After reviewing the spec sheet and looking further into the features of the iPad vs. Slate, I have to give a strong second thought to purchasing an iPad. I think HP might have the upper hand in this battle..

Contrary to the iPhone the iPad won't be as easy this time around because at that time, the room for Apple's iPhone competition was slim. Largely due to the fact that the Apple's first attempt at a mobile device was such a rapidly surprising success which had support elements such as its App's Store, usuability, and attractiveness that rivaled virtually everyone. Here the race as tighten considerably, the Slate has more functions (including Flash support), is just as sexy and can be much more of an asset to its owner.

The iPad, for now, is a hit (an impluse buy), a novelty if anything. But when HP's Slate debuts, its sure to shake things up a bit. Stay tuned...

For those of you who listen to radio or stream online broadcasts, have you ever wondered what makes your experience so enjoyable? Well take ESPN's online web interface as a premiere example. I happen to be a fan and daily listener of ESPN Radio live morning radio shows, before our afternoon meetings. Recently I discovered that ESPN had upgraded the design of their interactive display allowing ESPN to enhance their users listening and now viewing experience. An impressive and improved upgrade made possible by the team at StreamTheWorld, an integrated streaming solution for Radio and TV broadcasters.

Launch it live on your browser, and experience the design for yourself!

Microsoft debuts MSN's new logo and site design

During the late 90s internet boom MSN rose to the top, to become a popular and admired resource for finding information and news online. They seemed to have it all right, a brand identity that was familiar with its parent company, (Microsoft) an appealing television ad campaign and a whole lot of money to support their place in the online community. Fast forward 10 years lately, and the site, logo, marketing, consumer connection, virtually everything about the brand had evaporated. MSN quickly fell behind the emerging internet giants Google and Yahoo! and never seemed to catch up. It wasn't money or colors, the MSN brand simply lost its connection with its audience, which seemed to be outgrowing the company. The explosion of social media is where MSN failed to connect its audience with their new favorite networking tools. So with a new logo, added features, being too little too late for MSN remains to be seen. If it's similar to what AOL did last year, it might just be. AOL if you haven't noticed (recently gave themselves a much needed and highly criticized brand identity refresh.)

Will the new MSN re-energize today's online users back to its brand?

Microsoft lags behind Google Inc. and Yahoo Inc. in search share despite efforts to turn the money-losing online business around. The software maker is saying goodbye to MSN.com's blue background and its blocks of text links. Instead, giving the site more white space, fewer categories and more organized navigation. Hoping to bring back MSN.com to what it once was (way back in 1997), a leading online search engine and news source. Microsoft Corp. hopes to get more Web surfers using its Bing search engine. Microsoft says Bing searches from MSN jumped during tests of the new design.

One highlight we can point out is the new MSN has a top news section that features photos more prominently. The addition of the Bing 'branded' search box stands out more, and people can scan lists of hot discussion topics and local posts on Twitter. What we did not like was that this facelift seemed to be just a new facade for its homepage. We discovered some of the interior pages still look cluttered and resemble too closely to the old version, leading us to believe this was done fairly quickly. We also noticed the MSN logo takes a backseat on the 'sports' page where, "FOX SPORTS" seems to dominate the page. This seems to be the case with most of its pages beign external link, making it confusing for some users who may think they've left the site.

Final Thoughts...

MSN is definitely taking a step in the right direction, unfortunately we think it's too late in this rapidly evolving technology market. They just seem to be pressing the emergency button on their re-branding efforts rather than taking a strategic approach, especially coming off the heels of competitors AOL's new launch and Yahoo's new "My Yahoo" updates. Still MSN has a lot of work to do before they can successfully recapture their audience. They need to assess what the brand stands for and how they are different and how to they can effectively communicate it.

Overall we think the site has been greatly simplified but still needs work, and we wish they would have been more creative with the logo! The site doesn't seem finished or complete and lacks in areas where others are stronger. The logo looks as if it has taken taken a step back, with the butterfly closely resembling a more generic icon which doesn't have the right balance or proportions of colors and shape it predecessor so recognizeably had. Regarding the type treatment, underconsideration.com said it best...

The new one suffers from Bing syndrome: It wants to be cool and modern but it suffers from complete lack of typographic decency. In this case, the whole is not so bad, but the parts are."

Tell us what you think? About the web site? The logo?

"Helvetica Always Works" is a theme in a book I've been reading called, "Never Use White Type on a Black Background" (great read) and Gary Hustwit's recent film Helvetica offered a look into the typography, graphic design and global visual culture surrounding the famous typeface.

UK's Hicksdesign latest creation called Helvetireader, is a stylesheet userscript theme for all you Google Reader users out there that adds a clean and minimal look to your visual interface. I highly reccomend checking this out especially if you're bored with Google's default UI that is crowded with colors, lines and buttons, much like I am with gmail. So why Helvetica you ask, well probably because it is just that, simple, clean and effective.

Helvetica is all around us. You've probably seen it several times today." - Gary Hustwit (1964)

If you don't have Google Reader, get it here! You can visit all your favorite web sites, blogs and social networks all in one place.

We've always been a fan of this friendly and easy open source web browser since it's release in 2004. The latest version of Firefox introduces cutting-edge features, support for a wide variety of Web standards, and access to more than 6,000 free add-ons that allow users to customize their browser to their liking.

The World's Best Browser Just Got Better!

Firefox 3.6 is more than 20 percent faster than Firefox 3.5 and includes extensive under the hood work to improve performance for everyday Web tasks such as email, uploading photos, social networking, and more. It also delivers new features like customizable browser themes called Personas, a ground-breaking Plugin updater, improved JavaScript performance, and enhancements to familiar favorites like the Awesome Bar for a better, more personal Web experience.

Upgrade to the latest Firefox here.

This week we are so excited to share with you this excellent example of a successful web site re-design for the city of Philadelphia. Philly's very own Happy Cog Studios were commissioned by the Greater Philadelphia Tourism Marketing Corporation about refreshing the outdated site, located at gophila.com (now available as an archive). The original site launched back in 1997, and over a decade it had become one of the organization’s most important marketing vehicles.

VisitPhilly.com

With the newly designed UI, the creatives at Happy Cog have really set the bar for how a city looking to establish a web prescense for itself with the online community, especially among users in this social media and technology influenced generation. What once was a large, confusing, outdated site, turned into a beautiful, accessible, functional and inviting user experience that conveys the enjoyment behind visiting the great city of Philadelphia. We won't go into lenghty breakdown of this site, since our buddy Walter over at webdesignerdepot.com already posted a great detailed critique on his site. But we will go ahead and single out a few good points, in what makes this an exlempary model of cutting-edge web design.

• Great expression of design
• Using identity elements that define the city of Philadelphia (history)
• Simplification of navigation and eye direction (compared to gophila.com)
• High-resolution scenic images, capturing the audience
• Excellent use of white space, not crowding the page
• Content organization, and page structure
• Eloquent and effective typography
• Fresh color choices
• Improved use of technology such as Java, Ajax, truly compatible cross platform site (non-flash)
• Adding Social Meida tools, that initiate social networking
• Overall, the site successfully generates excitement and buzz towards the benefits of travelling to Philadelphia.

What do you think? We want to hear your comments...

Having a hard time paying off those credit card bills? Well the design of the credit card contracts, make it harder for you to get rid of your debt. If Alan Siegel had his way, more of us would think twice to use plastic to pay for that expensive dinner. It's all in the visual communication.

Alan Siegel, is a brand expert and one of the leading authorities on business communication. He recently gave a great talk at the TED conference in Long Beach. He's man who preaches simplification and specifically regarding legal documents for government and business.

PepsiCo's first big company meeting since 2006, CEO Indra Nooyi admitted the company learned it's lessons from some of the recent controversies regarding the sudden design overhaul of it's key brands.  She stated, "2009 was not a good year for North American beverages. We didn't like the North American beverage results" Really? You didn't, oh we're glad because we thought it was just us. I mean who really liked the so called, "refresh everything" campaign? I found myself asking, why fix a problem that wasn't broken? Was this iconic brand really in need of such a drastic change, but I'll save the design critique for another time, but the fact that Ms. Nooyi has acknowledge that the company made a mistake and quite frankly realized it's too late to "sweat the details" thus moving forward, is an even bigger letdown than it is "refreshing."

What's the rush?

Ms. Nooyi said the first lesson learned from the beverage portfolio overhaul is that the organization has to buy into the program. Realizing that it couldn't overhaul only two brands or drag out the revamp for several years, the company made a lot of changes in a short period of time. A task that was too big for itself... let's look at the key failures.

Remember Tropicana

Arnell Group's dramatic Tropicana rebrand at the beginning of 2009 was immediately scrutinized by consumers, media and the advertising industry, resulting in a replacement of the old product packaging and positioning. The "squeeze" campaign all together was a failure, including Arnell's advertising campaign which was missing essential clarity. But how cute was that squeeze cap at the top.

What's G?

Most Gatorade loyals only drink the popular 3 or 4 flavors that Gatorade has been known for. For years they've remained the No. 1 brand in their category of sport beverages, but recently they embarked on a massive rebrand during the economic recession of 09. The rebrand included redesign of more than a thousand packages, national advertising campaign and an increase in product line. As a result, Gatorade saw a decline in shares and criticism among media and analysts who have decried the brand's decline. Just ask yourself, how many flavors can you name? They've become overcomplicated and over saturated, forgetting their "core values" and simplicity that made them a success.

Everyweek, STARMEN will share with our readers, our favorite website picks from around the web. We look for first and foremost, overall design visibility, technology, navigation, and how they all apply to effective web design. These picks are meant to inform, excite and inspire you to see how we as internet users are affected by web design everyday. Feel free to submit your favorite sites to us, we'll consider adding it!

Hawaiianair.com

Forgive us, we've been on the topic of Travel & Tourism lately, because the STARMEN team has been recently working on a huge identity and design project for a very popular airline carrier (Shhh... details coming soon!). Through our findings and research, one of our delights with approach to online identity and web design is www.hawaiianair.com We don't know too much about the brand itself, but what we found from visiting their site is a refreshing and appealing treatment of simplistic navigation (making the user experience very easy and organized). Using a stimulating background image of Hawaii's rich landscape provides powerful design layout that differs from most travel sites. See our post on the new Southwest.com. The result is a colorful, memorable and simple site which features easy navigation for its users, supporting the ideas of the brand itself. Much like one of our other favorites: Virgin America.

What do you think? We want to hear your comments...

One of our favorite Airline companies and admired travel brands is Southwest Airlines. We also have been fans of their web site and apparently you are too (in 2009, Nielsen/Netratings reported that southwest.com was the largest airline site in terms of unique visitors). Not only do they run an efficient, affordable business, but their online desitination is friendly, and very easy to use.

We recently booked a business trip to Las Vegas, and while visiting southwest.com we immediately recognized they had done another upgrade to their user interface.We weren't sure how we felt about it at first, but then after comparing it to the old site we realized that Southwest just made a good thing, even better! Allow us to point out some of the new features, in case your wondering what's so great about it.

1. Most popular booking features are right there on the home page.
2. Use of more elegant black, shying from the corporate "orange" (We liked the orange?)
   
3. "What's New" page, for latest Southwest news and info.
4. Revamped the menus at the top of the home page (We prefer this easy-to-find).

Unlike most redesigns, Southwest was smart about their updates. They didn't do a 360! Causing unfamiliarity with a dramatic design overhaul or cause chaos to their loyal followers by adding on too many features, instead they did a moderate "improvement". Keeping the same popular features, just making them better by improving the user experience.

Take a look for yourselves, we'd love to hear what you think?

As an award-winning creative agency specializing brand design, we are proud to announce the redesign of the STARMEN web site. But "redesign" doesn't really cover it. This more than a aesthetic adjustment or surface-level change. This is more of a "refresh" both internally and externally. The new starmenusa.com reflects our new ideas, new thinking, and new outlook for our clients, and their brands. For those of you familiar with us, you'll find a lot of new and exciting information, about us, the services we offer and see new design work!

Our LA headquarters is buzzing with excitement! This site has been a labor of love, created with synchronized hard work, absolute enthusiasm, and meticulous attention to how effective design can be. The new STARMEN believes happy users means happy business. One goal of ours that hasn't changed is this: We are here to produce solid, valuable results for you! Now, we just look even better!

Visit our new virtual home and experience the new STARMEN!

While the internet travels and the industry evolves, so do we. STARMEN designers and tech enthusiasts have been very pumped to launch our mobile iPhone site!  We’ve always been believers in simplicity, and this optimized format reflects just that.  Even on your iPhone, we’re here to make your brand work!

Explore our new platform!  Read about our agency, map our location, or just shoot us an e-mail. We are at your virtual disposal!

Before Angels became synonymous with lingerie, Hollywood’s elite wore Juel Park Lingerie. Started in the Roaring Twenties, Juel Park designed lingerie for women like Elizabeth Taylor, Marilyn Monroe, Ava Gardner and Katherine Hepburn.  Over the years, the Juel Park has passed down through the ranks of talented women; and now, the youngest partner is ready to make a comeback.

STARMEN found their history very engaging and applicable in our day and age – all can be revived!  We’re excited to help Juel Park sponsor their new launch and showcase the growth of their company! To honor the many proud survivors and to remember the family and friends lost to breast cancer, proceeds from this event will benefit the Susan G. Komen for the Cure Foundation.

For event details, please visit: http://www.juelpark.com/launchevent/