When The East Tennessee Historical Society (ETHS) came to Media South with a complex branding problem, our immediate reaction was “Russian nesting dolls!” (That’s what is so cool about solving visual identity puzzles. Solutions rarely require reinventing the wheel, but typically they involve looking at the wheel, or in this case, the dolls, in a whole new way).
Here’s the story. Basically, ETHS was trying to figure out how to add a complementary brand for the East Tennessee History Center–with which they were affiliated–without losing their own identity in the process. Our creative solution was to develop a set of brand and style guidelines positioning ETHC as the marketing "container," or big Babushka doll, for the entities “nesting” within (the East Tennessee Historical Society, The Museum of East Tennessee History, the Calvin M. McClung Historical Collection, and the Knox County Archives).
OK, so the result doesn’t looking anything like a set of Russian nesting dolls, but the theory is the same. The new ETHC logo (based on the Historical Society logo) frames the Center as the visual container housing this little family of related historical organizations.
We’re always up for a good brand and visual identity challenge, and love a chance to dive into the toy box for inspiration. So when you’re ready to get noticed, give us a call. In the meantime, check out our big Babushka solution for ETHS at www.EastTNHistory.org.
Monday, October 27, 2008
Monday, October 20, 2008
Pump Up Your Public Speaking
Take a guess about what American adults fear the most. Job loss? Hair loss? Weight gain? Nope, nope, and nope. According to the latest Gallup poll on the subject, we are most afraid of snakes, however, public speaking finishes a close second.
No matter what business you’re in, speaking in public probably comes with the territory—at least on occasion. If the thought of making a presentation in front of a live audience gets your sweat glands working overtime, check out the latest issue of Executive Highlights, a business magazine for C-suite execs designed, edited, and produced by Media South.
In “Pump Up Your Public Speaking”, Denise Graveline, president of Don’t Get Caught, a Washington, D.C.-based consulting firm, offers three easy ways for you to pump up your next presentation or speech. For more ideas on how to improve your communications skills, visit www.dontgetcaught.biz.
No matter what business you’re in, speaking in public probably comes with the territory—at least on occasion. If the thought of making a presentation in front of a live audience gets your sweat glands working overtime, check out the latest issue of Executive Highlights, a business magazine for C-suite execs designed, edited, and produced by Media South.
In “Pump Up Your Public Speaking”, Denise Graveline, president of Don’t Get Caught, a Washington, D.C.-based consulting firm, offers three easy ways for you to pump up your next presentation or speech. For more ideas on how to improve your communications skills, visit www.dontgetcaught.biz.
Monday, October 13, 2008
Our National Pool
If you’ve partnered with Media South, you know that we run a lean and mean operation. OK, more lean, than mean, but you get the idea. We’re actually pretty friendly, but we do keep fulltime staff and overhead to a bare minimum to offer the highest-quality corporate communications services at the lowest possible price.
The key to this strategy is having a national pool of experienced, talented freelance writers, editors, designers, and web and video specialists who enjoy working with Media South. Whatever your project or communications challenge, we have a team of experts on call who have what it takes to get your job done—on target, on time, and on budget.
A veteran member of our freelance pool, Maryellen Kennedy Duckett, is a featured contributor in this month’s issue of National Geographic Traveler magazine. Before you head out on your next business or pleasure trip, check out her Ultimate Guide to Sustainable Travel to discover 50 real ways to journey responsibly—and still have fun.
The key to this strategy is having a national pool of experienced, talented freelance writers, editors, designers, and web and video specialists who enjoy working with Media South. Whatever your project or communications challenge, we have a team of experts on call who have what it takes to get your job done—on target, on time, and on budget.
A veteran member of our freelance pool, Maryellen Kennedy Duckett, is a featured contributor in this month’s issue of National Geographic Traveler magazine. Before you head out on your next business or pleasure trip, check out her Ultimate Guide to Sustainable Travel to discover 50 real ways to journey responsibly—and still have fun.
Tuesday, October 7, 2008
Live Clutter-Free!
We’ve been breaking out the sweaters around the office this week, because fall temperatures have officially arrived in East Tennessee (and we’re trying to save energy by keeping the thermostat set at 68-degrees!). Besides making us all look really spiffy in our L.L. Bean best, the cooler weather makes this the perfect time to dig into the piles of paper covering our desks and finally get organized. If you’re like us, and have been putting off an office overhaul for months because it was too hot, it’s time to come up with a better excuse or to start cleaning.
To help you get started, check out the latest issue of Business Review, a magazine for small business owners produced by Media South for First Tennessee. In the article “Stamp Out Stress: By Becoming Clutter-free and Organized,” certified professional organizer Mary Pankiewicz offers practical tips on how to conquer office clutter, and a quiz to help you see if the mess on your desk is causing you stress.
For more “Clutter Free and Organized Tips,” visit Pankiewicz’s website.
To help you get started, check out the latest issue of Business Review, a magazine for small business owners produced by Media South for First Tennessee. In the article “Stamp Out Stress: By Becoming Clutter-free and Organized,” certified professional organizer Mary Pankiewicz offers practical tips on how to conquer office clutter, and a quiz to help you see if the mess on your desk is causing you stress.
For more “Clutter Free and Organized Tips,” visit Pankiewicz’s website.
Monday, September 29, 2008
Techie Tips For You
Occasionally, we stumble across a techie tip that is too wonderful not to pass along. What better place to put it than on our blog? Here are a couple we've discovered lately.
Do you have a folder on your computer that holds your entire life? For example, designers or writers often have a large folder of their best work for easy access. Well, apparently everything on your desktop is stored in RAM. So that big folder of all your work is tying up all of your computer's RAM, which is slowing everything down. Instead of keeping these large folders on the desktop, try dropping them in the "Documents" folder. You can even create aliases to these files on your desktop that don't take up space. Your computer will run faster and probably last longer, and you will be hitting your head with the table less as you're waiting for things to load!
And when you name a file, it's important to create a consistent system of naming so that you can find the file months later. With the number of icons available on your keyboard, it's really tempting to use them all, however, by using some of these characters you could be dooming the file to corruption. Windows is especially notorious for corrupting files with special characters, and transferring anything from a Mac to a PC can be dangerous. Avoid the following characters when naming files:
" * : < > ? \ / | ' & ; #
Taking a few minutes to clean off your desktop and clean up your file names will save you time—and potential headaches—in the long run.
Do you have a folder on your computer that holds your entire life? For example, designers or writers often have a large folder of their best work for easy access. Well, apparently everything on your desktop is stored in RAM. So that big folder of all your work is tying up all of your computer's RAM, which is slowing everything down. Instead of keeping these large folders on the desktop, try dropping them in the "Documents" folder. You can even create aliases to these files on your desktop that don't take up space. Your computer will run faster and probably last longer, and you will be hitting your head with the table less as you're waiting for things to load!
And when you name a file, it's important to create a consistent system of naming so that you can find the file months later. With the number of icons available on your keyboard, it's really tempting to use them all, however, by using some of these characters you could be dooming the file to corruption. Windows is especially notorious for corrupting files with special characters, and transferring anything from a Mac to a PC can be dangerous. Avoid the following characters when naming files:
" * : < > ? \ / | ' & ; #
Taking a few minutes to clean off your desktop and clean up your file names will save you time—and potential headaches—in the long run.
Thursday, September 18, 2008
Our Last Travel Destination - Omaha, Nebraska!
We're going out with a bang on our final summer journey to... Omaha, Nebraska! Let's talk about the trip with our Art Director, Lindsay Miller...
Where did you go? Shifting gears to the mainland, I had the privilege of visiting the fine city of Omaha, Nebraska for an AIGA leadership retreat. We stayed in the Old Market area – a perfect destination for a large group of designers.
How long did it take to get there and were there any travel problems? We flew from Knoxville to Dallas and back up to Omaha – any other connection configuration would have cost an extra $1,000.
What was the biggest difference you found between your vacation spot and Knoxville, TN? Old Market has a similar vibe to Knoxville's Market Square and Old City areas, but bigger. Interesting boutique shopping and restaurants. I was pleasantly surprised.
What was the most beautiful (or most eccentric) place you went to on your vacation? The most beautiful place was in front of the omelet chef at 8:00 a.m. Pre-game nutrition for a long day of activities. Actually, I think we brought the eccentricity to town dressed in head to toe Dolly attire. East Tennessee was well represented!
What was the favorite (or most expensive, odd, creative) item you purchased while there? I purchased a t-shirt from an AIGA Jacksonville event called re:Charge. It has a fun pink and white design silk-screened on a dark gray t-shirt. (You can never have too many fun t-shirts.)
Click on the photo montage for a larger view!
Where did you go? Shifting gears to the mainland, I had the privilege of visiting the fine city of Omaha, Nebraska for an AIGA leadership retreat. We stayed in the Old Market area – a perfect destination for a large group of designers.How long did it take to get there and were there any travel problems? We flew from Knoxville to Dallas and back up to Omaha – any other connection configuration would have cost an extra $1,000.
What was the biggest difference you found between your vacation spot and Knoxville, TN? Old Market has a similar vibe to Knoxville's Market Square and Old City areas, but bigger. Interesting boutique shopping and restaurants. I was pleasantly surprised.
What was the most beautiful (or most eccentric) place you went to on your vacation? The most beautiful place was in front of the omelet chef at 8:00 a.m. Pre-game nutrition for a long day of activities. Actually, I think we brought the eccentricity to town dressed in head to toe Dolly attire. East Tennessee was well represented!
What was the favorite (or most expensive, odd, creative) item you purchased while there? I purchased a t-shirt from an AIGA Jacksonville event called re:Charge. It has a fun pink and white design silk-screened on a dark gray t-shirt. (You can never have too many fun t-shirts.)
Click on the photo montage for a larger view!
Wednesday, September 10, 2008
Travel Destination - Alaska
Our travels continue with a foray into Alaska with graphic designer Anne Brogdon...
Where did you go? On a whirlwind road trip from Anchorage, Alaska, up to Denali National Park and Preserve, a quick pass by Fairbanks, down to Valdez, and then back to Anchorage for the flight home.
How long did it take to get there and were there any travel problems? We spent most of the trip either in the air or in a car, so there were naturally a few bumps along the way. But the largest slip up was on the nighttime drive from Valdez to Anchorage to meet our flight home at 6AM. Little did we know that they completely closed the highway between Midnight and 5AM for construction! This being Alaska, there aren’t side roads or residential areas to cut through to get around the blockade. We would have had to go eight hours out of our way and miss the flight. Luckily, a gas station cashier alerted us to the closing just in time, and by breaking the speed barrier, we made the highway cutoff with five minutes to spare.
What was the biggest difference you found between your vacation spot and Knoxville, TN? Most notably at first was the temperature. A perfect 65 degrees during the day, followed by freezing temperatures that night, and snow the next morning! But also the distance between gas stations (the price of gas was $5.54 up there!), wearing a bear bell, and the scenic overlooks every three miles—which you had to stop at.
What was the most beautiful (or most eccentric) place you went to on your vacation? It is hard to find a part of Alaska that is not picturesque. Jaw-dropping vistas with glaciers and snow-capped mountains everywhere you look. As far as eccentric goes, there’s a little town called North Pole, Alaska right outside of Fairbanks. All of the telephone poles are candy canes – including the poles holding the ever-present McDonalds and Wendy’s signs! My favorite sightings in the town were of a sign for Universal Welding complete with candy cane poles, and the Elf’s Den Bar.
What was the favorite (or most expensive, odd, creative) item you purchased while there? Salmon jerky. Stay away from the Salmon jerky. You’ll never have fresh breath again!
Click on the photo montage for a larger view!
Where did you go? On a whirlwind road trip from Anchorage, Alaska, up to Denali National Park and Preserve, a quick pass by Fairbanks, down to Valdez, and then back to Anchorage for the flight home.How long did it take to get there and were there any travel problems? We spent most of the trip either in the air or in a car, so there were naturally a few bumps along the way. But the largest slip up was on the nighttime drive from Valdez to Anchorage to meet our flight home at 6AM. Little did we know that they completely closed the highway between Midnight and 5AM for construction! This being Alaska, there aren’t side roads or residential areas to cut through to get around the blockade. We would have had to go eight hours out of our way and miss the flight. Luckily, a gas station cashier alerted us to the closing just in time, and by breaking the speed barrier, we made the highway cutoff with five minutes to spare.
What was the biggest difference you found between your vacation spot and Knoxville, TN? Most notably at first was the temperature. A perfect 65 degrees during the day, followed by freezing temperatures that night, and snow the next morning! But also the distance between gas stations (the price of gas was $5.54 up there!), wearing a bear bell, and the scenic overlooks every three miles—which you had to stop at.
What was the most beautiful (or most eccentric) place you went to on your vacation? It is hard to find a part of Alaska that is not picturesque. Jaw-dropping vistas with glaciers and snow-capped mountains everywhere you look. As far as eccentric goes, there’s a little town called North Pole, Alaska right outside of Fairbanks. All of the telephone poles are candy canes – including the poles holding the ever-present McDonalds and Wendy’s signs! My favorite sightings in the town were of a sign for Universal Welding complete with candy cane poles, and the Elf’s Den Bar.
What was the favorite (or most expensive, odd, creative) item you purchased while there? Salmon jerky. Stay away from the Salmon jerky. You’ll never have fresh breath again!
Click on the photo montage for a larger view!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)