Once upon a time, I heard a story that went something like this (it's a rough retelling):

Two people are sitting at a bar, one is an artist. The artist doodles on a napkin, finishes and puts his pen down. The guy next to him leans over, takes a peek and says, "Hey, that's a really nice drawing. And it only took you thirty seconds!" The artist responds, "Actually, it's taken me thirty years."

This past weekend, Matchstic was privileged to be one of three design firms to host a group of design students visiting from the University of Tennessee (of which Blake, Nick and Justin are alumni). We spent a Saturday morning touring and hanging around at the house, chatting, eating and answering questions. One student asked, "What did you learn that you feel was useful, and what was not?" This brings us back to our dear artist from the bar.

The short answer to the question of what's important to learn is, well, everything. As the years go by, I've found myself to be constantly changing — flip-flopping even — in the ways I see, approach and practice design. I've found that my work is influenced by everything from my hobbies, music I listen to, discussions and debates, reading and traveling. Classes that I disliked when in school or things I disagreed with also find a way to influence my thinking, whether it be a later-found appreciation or affirmation of how not to do things or repeat mistakes. Lots of practice and real-world experience has played a huge part in constantly evolving my thought process.

One of the most difficult tasks in our industry is valuating the work; design, say a typical logo, can sometimes look deceptively simple and not very labor intensive. But, as our bar-doodler implied, every small stroke, choice of color or typography is the result of intuition, education and experience. A designer's decision on form, order and proportion are influenced by everything he has soaked in, everything he has learned or unlearned throughout his lifetime. In the hands of a good designer, these are the things that come together to create great piece of design. And it's these things that transcend the all-too-common bad design informed by shallow trends, poorly-devised "market research" and reliance on flashy gimmicks and fluff.

Illustration, Michael Buchino

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This past Saturday, students from the graphic design program at The University of Tennessee (Justin, Nick, and myself's alma mater) stopped by the Matchstic house to take a tour and have a conversation over pizza about the design industry and our story. After our conversation we handed out matchstic shirts to all, with only one catch, you had to answer the question "What makes you standout?". Below are the vast array of responses…

What makes you standout? from matchstic on Vimeo.

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I'll be the first in line to talk about how much I love Apple and everything they do from their website, to their stores, to customer service, and their products. But lately they are starting to get on my nerves.

Over the past year I have purchased 4 iPod Touches on my Apple account, 1 for me and 3 as gifts, and along with the 4 purchases I have received 11 different emails/sale offers from Apple trying to entice me to buy an iPod Touch, this isn't to mention the 6 other emails specifically targeted for the iPod Nano. And all this since October. You would think that with all of their records and purchase history they would already see that I have purchased 4 in the last year and I'm probably not too interested in another one.

It's a small complaint and hasn't effected my loyalty / love for Apple yet, but I'm not sure how many more times I can be offered a product that I've already purchased multiple ones of and still have that warm fuzzy feeling about Apple.

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On The House is fully launched, and internally we are discussing the process of how we are going to select that deserving Atlanta based non-profit who will get all the On The House partners have to offer.  As we work through this selection process, I am reminded of the very tedious selection process that I went through to get the job that I have today. I am sharing this to not only show you the thought process that will go into On The House, but also just to show you just how seriously we take our team, house, and clients.

I found out about the job through my wife's high school friend, Josh Hausen, who works at the A Bryan Photo studio.  This personal connection was key to getting a solid introduction to the Matchstic team.

After the initial emailing of introductions, they connected me with Jim Doggett of Avalaunch Consulting.  The first thing Jim had me do was take 4 tests: 3 personality (Kolbe, Myers-Briggs, & Strenghts Finder) and an IQ Test.  This initial testing is to determine whether or not I had the natural make-up to fit the position they were looking to fill.  Upon "passing" I met with Jim, who is one of my favorite people in the world, to talk about whether or not my "horses would run" in this new position. Keep in mind that at this point I had still yet to meet a single Matchstic employee, owner, or client in person.

After passing the Doggett test, I drove to Matchstic to meet my potential employers and colleagues. While having lunch with Craig and Blake (and my wife who was with me) we talked about the position, the duties, and whether or not I could handle them. This was my favorite part of the process. (Side note, if you can ever have you wife at a job interview, take the opportunity – it is like having your biggest fan tell all of your best qualities without having to brag about yourself)

After this I had a training session with Dustin and a group interview with the rest of the guys.  Then Craig called 3 different references (former boss, former roommate, & former co-worker) and spent hour on the phone with each of them, listening for anything that could throw the process off track, but I thankfully passed that test as well.  After that I just had to wait a couple of days to wait to see what they all thought.

I was please to have a package arrive at the door with notes from everyone with personal messages asking me to join the team. Most of these notes fell into one of two categories; either a joke about my nickname "Yetty" or a joke about how I look like the late Heath Ledger. Also in the package was a tshirt, and the details of my job offer. I immediately put on the shirt, took a picture with two thumbs up (posted above), and sent it to Craig. He very quickly called me to confirm, since a thumbs up isn't quite formal enough of a job acceptance.

Looking back on it, I really love that they can't tell me too many of the things on my resume besides where I went to school, but they knew that I could do this job because of the investment that they put into me before I even got started.  Without getting too cheesy, it is an amazing blessing to have a place where they care about you as much as they care about their company.

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Matchstic's On The House- Part 1 from matchstic on Vimeo.

Acouple of other notes:

1. Deadline for applications is March 23rd

2. Only registered non-profits in the Atlanta area are applicable

3. If you have any questions at all about applying email onthehouse@matchstic.com

4. Stay tuned on the matchstic blog for weekly updates!

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We have a regular matchstic book club several times a year. The latest – The Designful Company: How to Build a Culture of Nonstop Innovation, by Marty Neumeier. We just started it, so I don't have a full handle on the book yet, but Marty's books are always a good read.

While reading the intro this week, I came across a quote early on that grabbed me:

"A former editor of WINDOWS magazine, Mike Elgan, illustrated the difference between ordinary brands and charasmatic brands in two succinct sentences: ‘Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer is famous for a crazy video in which he yells, I-LOVE-THIS-COMPANY. With Apple, its the customers who shout that.'"

We all know Apple is a master of innovation – starting with a problem and then finding the path that leads more toward the customer and user experience than technology for its own sake.

All this led me to a thought that's been gnawing at me lately…is Apple starting to oversell itself? I go to BestBuy, and there are now Apple computers for sale there; I go to Walmart and can buy an iPhone. And the way I feel when I see an iPhone at Walmart vs when I see one in the Apple Store or even on Apple's website is a totally different vibe. Is Apple in danger of becoming Starbucks by starting to sell their products in places that don't embody the same customer experience? Are they ultimately devalueing their brand by making this move? I still love Apple…I'm saying it just doesn't seem as sexy as it was even a year ago to own an Apple product.

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The iPhone craze is officially still in effect. For proof, Meninos has just released a set of "iPhone Coasters". For only $60 or roughly 1/3 the price of a real iPhone you can turn your coffee table into an iPhone and protect it from condensation.

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"With 37 years of experience, Starbucks is going back to where it all started. Roasted fresh, ground fresh and brewed fresh. Introducing Pike Place Roast. It's a pretty simple concept really. We believe that a perfect cup of coffee should be a fresh cup of coffee. We brew the beans every 30 minutes, making sure you're getting the best, most fresh cup of our newest, daily brew."
– Starbucks, 2008

"We have worked nearly 20 years to develop an intant coffee that offers customers the quality and taste they expect from fresh-brewed Starbucks coffee, and a unique and convenient way for them to enjoy it. [This is] an opportunity to reinvent a category, create new rituals and grow our customer base."
– Starbucks, 2009

Less than a year ago, after sharply declining sales and pending the closing of over 600 stores [NY Times], Starbucks announced a "return to form," with the celebratory launch of the Pike Place Roast and temporary vintage-logoed cups. They were supposed to streamline the business, slow the reckless expansion and go back to the basics of their mission — "It has always been, and will always be, about quality. We’re passionate about ethically sourcing the finest coffee beans, roasting them with great care, and improving the lives of people who grow them. We care deeply about all of this; our work is never done."

Oh, how times have changed. This month, Starbucks launches Via Ready Brew, their first instant, powdered coffee. This decision seems like a frantic, hail-mary throw along the same lines as their other ventures into deli-style foods and music. Adapting to economic hard-times is one thing, but what's confusing is Howard Shultz's proud statement that, "It just happens to fortuitously coincide with the downturn in the economy. It wasn’t planned that way."

In my opinion, it's a move in the wrong direction. I think they had it right last summer when the started paving the path of fewer stores and higher quality. Starbucks found early success by convincing people that coffee could be a luxury product; the coffee shop could be a luxury experience. What eventually led to their hard fall was over-expansion and unfocused ventures. Luxury products in general have taken a hit recently, but Starbucks' problems started much earlier.

While this off-brand move may provide an immediate sales boost as people rough out the economic situation, in the long run it will serve to further dilute whatever mental real estate Starbucks still had with customers. It's somewhat true that desparate times call for desparate measures, but I think they had bigger problems to worry about before bringing out the shotgun.

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Last week Marvel Entertainment announced that they will begin selling digital "In Motion" comic books through iTunes. These comics will feautre animated panels and voice over actors for spoken dialogue to make these new motion comics. Marvel stated that there is a need for a new digital model of storytelling to satisfy the changing scope of media to new technologies. This is refreshing to see a business evolving and changing with times instead of sitting back with the theory of its always worked doing it this way so we aren't going to change. More than a few failing print publications could take a lesson from Marvel.

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Matchstic is proud to announce our inaugural "On The House” campaign, providing one deserving non-profit in Atlanta with an entire brand makeover.

Last year, we helped provide City Church Eastside with a Brand Identity, Website, and Print Collateral pieces as they launched their new church.

This year, we wanted to see how we could provide an even greater impact, so we talked with some friends of ours and were blown away at everyone's commitment to the cause.  We are so blessed to be joined by some of the best in the business. Here is a breakdown of our partners and the services they are donating.

Your very own Matchstic team will be donating a Brand Identity makeover, including logo developement, website design, and print design, valued at $30,000.

Ries & Ries:  Al Ries & Laura Ries are normally consulting for companies like Microsoft, Ford, and Disney.  We are privileged to have them donate a 1/2 day brand strategy session, valued at $15,000.

Visual23:  This interactive development studio is donating their award winning web development services, valued at $10,000.

Standard Press: Our favorite printers in the world will be providing printing services, valued at $10,000.

SeeSparkGo: This Public Relations firm will be providing Public Relations coaching and copywriting, valued at $10,000.

A Bryan Photo: This photography studio will be donating a photoshoot, valued at $5,000.

Carlton Fields: Michael C. Fletcher, from the law firm of Carlton Fields, will be providing Trademark Counseling, valued at $3,500.

The grand total of all of these services is $83,500!!!

We couldn't be more excited about this opportunity and hope that you will help us spread the word to those organizations that are doing great things in Atlanta and could really use a break like this.

Send them to www.matchstic.com/onthehouse to learn more and Apply Online.

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