Recently I've seen the power of video storytelling first hand for the Atlanta chapter of Creative Mornings. Our video sponsor Ron Dawson of Dare Dreamer Video has generously produced some amazing pieces that have elevated the perception of our chapter to new heights. Creative Mornings is great, but not everyone in Atlanta knows that. Atlanta is great but not everyone in the international Creative Mornings communities (20 chapters world-wide) knows that. Through Ron's work they now know more of the story and our results have been fabulous. Our last event of 200 people "sold out" in less than 4 minutes and our videos have had a ton of national attention (with over 26K views).

Enjoy a few of his works:

Interview with founder of Creative Mornings Tina Roth Eisenberg (aka Swiss Miss).

Promo for the Atlanta Chapter

There's nothing new to the power of video. Commercials have been around since the dawn of time (atleast it seems like). What is new, however, is the accessibility to quality professional equipment or affordable professionals. The walls have been broken down and no longer should prevent any brand from leveraging such a powerful medium. That is why we launched Matchstic Stories. We couldn't always tell the full story of the value we present to clients through our case studies, so we wanted our clients to tell the full stories for us and they've been wonderfully successful.

Hopefully your brand has an interesting story to tell. If it does, find a way to capture it and leverage such a powerful storytelling platform.

PS- Be sure to make our February's Creative Mornings here in ATL with photographer Zack Arias:

If you haven't seen or haven't heard of Red you should. It's a brilliant play by John Logan moving around theaters and currently showing in Atlanta at the Theatrical Outfit. Red is an insightful play about the agony and ecstasy of an artist and his work. It's told through the eyes of artist Mark Rothko who's at the peak of his career working on paintings for an upscale restaurant in downtown New York. He and his assistant dialog about the tension between art and commerce, philosophy, psychology, religion, significance and legacy.

Here's a short excerpt that I loved. It's Rothko speaking to his assistant after asking him whether he liked his painting or not.

ROTHKO: But do you like it?

KEN: Mmm.

ROTHKO: Speak up.

KEN: Yes.

ROTHKO: Of course you like it – how can you not like it?! Everyone likes everything nowadays. They like the television and the phonograph and the soda pop and the shampoo and the Cracker Jack. Everything becomes everything else and it's all nice and pretty and likable. Everything is fun in the sun! Where's the discernment? Where's the arbitration that separates what I like from what I respect, what I deem worthy, what has… listen to me now… significance.

I found this so refreshing. I think this kind of perspective and dialog is vital to anything you want to make better. Whether you are painting, writing, cooking, managing, strategizing or designing. Nothing get's any better if everybody "likes it". Do you respect it? Is it significant? These are the real questions. Agreed? Go see Red. I really hope you don't like it.

The National Tooling and Machining Association, founded in 1943, is the premier center of knowledge for precision custom manufacturing in the United States. The storied organization stands to empower our nation’s manufacturers by providing resources and expertise in business development, education, government advocacy, and workplace development.

NTMA faced a perception challenge. While much of the economy has been in decline, manufacturing still produced gains and has hired more than most industries. The organization needed to tell its story accurately, increase awareness, and inspire in an economy full of doubt.

We developed an evolutionary mark that reflected experience and precision while elevating the brand. An identity system that was flexible enough for growth, yet provided consistency and organization for internal communication. Marketing and collateral highlighted the heart of the industry – its workers – and changed the conversation from dimness to hope. The future of manufacturing is bright indeed.

See the full case study.

Before

New Brand Mark

Brand Architecture Lock-Ups

Collateral Package

Publication Application

Website

Video Application produced in partnership with Green Tricycle

Image by Stephen Hunton

Two weeks ago I got married (whew-who!), and like most newly weds my beautiful bride and I took off for our honeymoon destination in paradise. Logistically we had a smooth run until our return trip home. Standing back in the Atlanta airport at the number 2 international baggage carousel watching bag after bag come out reality eventually set in that mine was not coming. Just for the record Delta is 50% on losing my bags on international flights in the last two years, so I know this feeling all to well. Frustrated, I expressed myself with this tweet…

The response to my complaint was almost instantaneous. I was astonished and while still frustrated I indulged curiously with @DeltaAssist to see if they could really help. After sending my info over the angel-in-twitter-disguise found my bag and informed me it was mistakenly in the over sized bag area. Here was the full DM conversation…

This experienced helped me see more so than ever the evolving value of social media for brands. Not only can you interact, market, and talk to you customers directly but you can instantly solve their problems by tracking the ongoing conversations. Like Judo, a martial arts technique that leverages an opponents momentum against them, Social Media is one way you can turn a bad customer experience into a great one (like @DeltaAssist did for me). Social Media gives you direct access to the most precious of all brand assets, its customers and their feelings (love or hate).

Seems pretty simple but I've found that when designing, zooming in and zooming out are crucial. I have to see the design through a microscope and a telescope as it were. From one angle I can see the small details and ensure that they're perfect. From the other, I can see whether the perfect details are coming together as one.

The other day I was working on a brand mark that was shaping up to be my favorite choice for the client. Having "zoomed in" for quite a while and figuring it was gold, I tabled it to work on the others. Later, I "zoomed out" and met with the rest of the team to discuss. They're honesty and sensibility helped me see that what I thought was perfect still needed work. I was blind too see what they saw so easily. I was too zoomed in, too attached.

I've found that perfect pieces don't always make a perfect whole. Nor does a perfect whole assume perfect pieces. The goal for me is a right relationship or balance. If I only design zoomed in the result will most likely be detailed but lack overall form. If I only design zoomed out the result will be nicely composed but shallow.

Whaam! by Roy Lichtenstein

It seems as if “design” has replaced “branding” as the most co-opted word in business. Because of this, innovation has become synonymous with the more pragmatic sides of our work – strategy, “design thinking,” buzz words. We’ve stripped the meaning of true innovation, the engine of humanity that has always been driven by art, design and science.

Today’s designers are notorious for trying to avoid accusations of “just making things pretty.” We are taught this throughout design school and on into the professional world, suggesting that form is unimportant, playing co-pilot to all-important strategy and research.

This thinking is shortsighted. It downplays the rich history of design and visual culture. Look all around you, are the buildings and high-rises in your city merely attractive? Is your Macbook or Kitchen Aid mixer or Aeron chair just for looks?

I think we’re back to realizing the importance of aesthetic value, not simply as a visual tool, but as an important driver of business goals. Over the past few years, the general consumer has become more aware of design and thus it’s impact. This is the type innovation that inspires change, the innovation that integrates all facets of forward thinking, by combining art, science, intuition, emotion, and engineering, all the things that make us human.

By doing so, we can find a way to mix thinking with making, so that right-brained creativity and left-brained ingenuity can affect real innovation and propel our economy and culture into the best future.

As Dori Tunstall, design teacher and anthropologist, says: “There is an inherent intelligence to beauty, which is about the depth and passion we feel for the world.”

I suppose you might think so if you've never seen it in person. But for those who have, you know there's just something transcendent about it. Staring at the ceiling, imagining Michelangelo himself painting it. The mastery, detail and dedication it took to do. The story each panel tells makes the experience even better. Then there's the chapel itself, so rich in history. All together, the history, context and purpose make it so much more than a painting. Yeah, you can see it in a picture. But you really haven't seen it until you've walked beneath it. You can't understand it's purpose outside of it's painter. You can't grasp it's significance until you know it's story. It's the relationship of them all together that make it The Sistine Chapel.

We are in the age of rebranding. With talk of design and “the brand” being so in vogue, it seems like everyone is racing to update their look. There are many reasons why a company would want to change their identity: to signal a new direction, update an aging mark, attempts at relevancy. What’s not talked about as often is the brand that doesn’t change.

If you’ve been paying attention to the American auto industry in the last few years, you probably recognize that Ford is absolutely crushing it. While the other two automakers were stumbling through bankruptcies and bailouts, Ford raised money the old-fashioned way and posted profit. They reduced costs and increased efficiency, culling a 97 model lineup to 20. For the first time in decades, they’re building beautiful cars.

The latest handsome sculpture arrives in the form of the 2013 Ford Fusion, revealed at the 2012 Detroit International Auto Show. Admiring the new Aston Martin-inspired fascia, I noticed the juxtaposition of a very contemporary shape with the classic script logo. Strange for a second, but somehow a good match.

The original script was drawn in 1909 by Ford engineer and designer Childe Harold Wills. It’s received some soft updates since, but has remained largely the same. In the midst of the constant change of today, there’s something nice about witnessing a truly timeless mark.

Who are you and what do you do?
My name is Jonathan Lawrence and I’m a graphic designer.
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Where are you from?
Born and raised in Jacksonville, Florida.
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What led you into your role?
When I was a kid, I would make up sports teams and draw their logos and uniforms with magic markers. It was graphic design, I just didn't know it. Once I discovered their was a job for what I loved to do, there was no other option.
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First month impressions?
Excited to be a part of this super-talented team.
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What do you bring to the table that’s unique?
A passion for simplicity, thoughtfulness and cohesiveness.
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What are you currently reading or watching?
The Catcher in the Rye – J.D. Salinger, Design Form and Chaos – Paul Rand, and Designing Brand Identity – Alina Wheeler
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What inspires you?
Typography, old signage, cleverness, being outdoors, music.
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Something you are obsessed with at the moment.
Finding a place to live in Atlanta.
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Where is your favorite meal in Atlanta?
Fellini’s Pizza.
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Drink of choice?
Sweet tea.
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As shown in the gif above, Jonny Law is unstoppable.

Street fashion photographer, Bill Cunningham has been capturing New York's "runways" for nearly 50 years. He has a column in the New York Times called On the Street with Bill Cunningham. I highly recommend watching this recent documentary about his life. I was moved at how his love for fashion seems to have enabled him to look beyond social status and cachet. Whether on the cheap streets or at extravagant New York dinner parties, he's not interested in acclaim. With integrity, humility and humor he captures and elevates anyone with a sense of style. He's a true curator of beauty.