where do you work?
Where we do what we do is an awesome collection of workspaces. Wonderfully designed workspaces. Horribly messy workspaces. And everything in between.
You can submit shots of your own place, or just browse around other people's joints. Found at Coudal Partners.
Labels: architecture, creativeinspiration, interior design, workplace
posted by darryl ohrt @ 8:03 AM
0 comments
grocery shopping made awesome
Who says your building has to be ugly? Who says big boxes can't be stylish?
Austrian chain Mpreis has created the most spectacular buildings by hiring up and coming architects to design their stores. The results are stunning.
Labels: architecture, marketing, retail
posted by darryl ohrt @ 8:01 AM
1 comments
fun pirate products
Girls have been toting swap meet Louis Vuitton and Coach bags forever. And bootleg manufacturers have been crafting sophisticated knock offs that are many times difficult to differentiate from the genuine brands.
Well, here's something different: Pirate products that are almost like the original brands, yet far enough away that they're hilarious. Like Pmua sneakers. What any true pirate wears to dinner.
Labels: branding, fashion, productdesign
posted by darryl ohrt @ 7:49 AM
0 comments
london without people
Here's another fun activity to add to your Christmas tradition: photograph the city that you live in. That's what Ian did. Check out his amazing set of photos of an empty London.
There's only two days a year where this is possible - Christmas Day, and on the day of the zombie apocalypse. But shooting photography during a zombie apocalypse is terribly difficult, so we'd highly recommend the Christmas option.
From Coudal Partners.
Labels: architecture, holiday, outdoor, photography, zombies
posted by darryl ohrt @ 7:27 AM
0 comments
can't afford billboard space? not a problem.
Arby's put thought balloons on other brands' billboards. Isn't everyone thinking about a good roast beef sandwich?
Labels: ads, outdoor, yummyfood
posted by darryl ohrt @ 8:02 AM
4 comments
a photo tour of your mall
If you did any shopping over the holiday break, you undoubtedly experienced the same thing that Guy Kawasaki did. Only he documented his shopping trip with some photos. This is the ultimate picture tour and brand lesson all in one trip - just be sure to scroll all the way to the bottom...
Labels: branding, holiday, retail
posted by darryl ohrt @ 7:50 AM
0 comments
be ready to fail
Eric Karjaluoto from SmashLab, and creator of MakeFive, has some very realistic but depressing advice for you. If you're considering a startup this year, you should expect to fail.
Eric shares in Why your web startup will fail the things that you can expect to happen in a typical year of a startup. He details the stuff that the retired dude from the Small Business Administration might not be able to tell you over coffee at the community center. And he speaks from experience.
This is a great reality check for anyone planning a new startup this year. Do it because you love it. Because you believe in it. Not because you think you're going to get bought by Google and sit on the beach. Get ready to fail!
(Failed cake image from the yummiest fail blog in the land, Cake Wrecks.)
Labels: productivity, smallagency, web2.0, workplace
posted by darryl ohrt @ 7:45 AM
1 comments
your savings in vegas
What if investing in stocks was a little bit like going to Vegas? Oh....wait a minute....Well, Stereo Hell has taken that full tilt, and re-branded some popular financial services companies as Las Vegas entities. Yeah, baby!
Found on Urban Outfitters.
Labels: branding, design, identity, parody
posted by darryl ohrt @ 7:31 AM
0 comments
driving fast is super cool
You can send this site to the fast driver in your family. Cute campaign. (If you're allowed to use the word "cute" to describe something that kills people.)
posted by darryl ohrt @ 9:10 AM
0 comments
if people won't buy music, will they buy chocolate?
At least you can't download chocolate. Check out the behind the scenes look at the making of some new Grace Jones album art. Way to create some delicious buzz, delicious album art and delicious chocolate, all in one tasty move.
Labels: art, music, photography, yummyfood
posted by darryl ohrt @ 9:00 AM
0 comments
dreamy walk in closet
If you've logged hours on HGTV with your loved one like I have, then you've seen the countless shows of people shopping for houses. And you've seen shot after shot of a couple looking at a house, and the same exact joke, every single time they walk into the master bedroom closet:
Wife: Well, this is great, but where will you put your clothes? (gesturing to husband/boyfriend)
Cut to realtor, who chuckles.
This spot is devoted to every house hunting show, and to the men who are stuck watching these shows.
posted by darryl ohrt @ 8:49 AM
0 comments
our friends are really smart
If you ever see anyone from Plaid at a cocktail party, you're going to want to hang with us. Not because we're interesting on our own - but because we know how to find cool people. Want proof? Just check out what some of our smarter friends are writing about:
First, agency friend Ben Kunz writes a masterful piece in BusinessWeek about the growing pay-per-post scandal brewing in the blogosphere. Ben jokes that perhaps we should take it a step further, and sell our personal conversations, too.
Then Make the Logo Bigger Bill imagines what that may be like.
posted by darryl ohrt @ 8:28 AM
0 comments
everyone agrees. brandflakes is the best.
Scamp is tracking the most popular advertising blogs in the land, and charting them by their traffic according to Alexa. And BrandFlakes makes the top 25!
Now you can finally stop reading everything else on the internet, and trust your one and only healthy source for creative goodness. Tell your friends, your boss, your mom. BrandFlakes. Even better with bacon.
Labels: blogging, plaid, self promotion
posted by darryl ohrt @ 8:14 AM
0 comments
keep it sexy tonight
How would Karl Lagerfeld sell Dom Perignon? With beautious, sexy, exploitive photography. As If it's Hip it's Here points out, yes - these are sexist, yes - these are sexy, but you have to appreciate the awesome styling and photography that is totally Karl Lagerfeld.
Oh yeah. When I turn 112, I definitely want to look like Karl Lagerfeld. Totally has that senior citizen robot look going on. Stylish. Yet awesome. And totally kick ass.
Labels: beverage, fashion, photography
posted by darryl ohrt @ 9:12 AM
3 comments
add this graph to your presentation, and increase your social media budget by 20%
Tell your boss to put down the newspaper. The dudes at Herd find even more proof that this social media thing is really important.
Labels: social media, trends, youtube
posted by darryl ohrt @ 9:04 AM
1 comments
twitter: stops rust and improves gas mileage
Just in case your boss still believes Twitter is for twits, here's yet another great story on Twitter saving the day for an ad campaign.
From HughBriss (via Twitter, of course.)
Labels: adindustry, social media, twitter
posted by darryl ohrt @ 8:53 AM
0 comments
smoking hole
Here's a fun way to make the smokers in your workplace feel even worse about themselves.
Labels: ads, nonprofit, outdoor
posted by darryl ohrt @ 8:34 AM
0 comments
pass this to your friend who's in danger of losing her job
Church of the Customer has some outstanding advice on how to deal with a layoff: Start your prep well before the layoff ever happens.
They suggest taking three steps that will help position you better in the marketplace, should your job disappear:
1. Blog
2. Tweet
3. Join niche communities.
The coolest thing? Even if you're NOT losing your job, these actions can help you in your current position. Now's the time for making resolutions, right?
Labels: blogging, facebook, social media, twitter, workplace
posted by darryl ohrt @ 8:34 AM
0 comments
hurry up with that cigarette. you're going to miss the bus.
An excellent series of ads to promote the effects of second hand smoke on children.
posted by darryl ohrt @ 8:24 AM
0 comments
something fun for you to do today
Some pranksters in England put up signs around Nottingham, stating "Public urination permitted after 7:30pm." The campaign was actually put in place by activists trying to raise attention about the growing problem of urban crap that city dwellers have to deal with.
Still, it's hilarious. And why shouldn't you join in on the action? Think of the fun you could have in your own office, with similar prank signs. Here's a few ideas, to get you started:
+ Everything in the fridge is free for the taking, after 1pm.
+ This copy machine reserved for nude and artful copymaking only.
+ Please shout "howdy!" before entering, for your safety.
+ Conference room reserved for dance party, 3pm - 5pm.
Labels: creativeinspiration, outdoor, streetart
posted by darryl ohrt @ 8:29 AM
3 comments
all the top information on fundraising
Alltop, the ultimate aggregator of just about every website on just about every topic (created by legendary entrepreneur Guy Kawasaki) has now launched a guide for fund raising.
BrandFlakes is featured in a few Alltop categories, so it must be awesome. Seriously - resources for non-profits aren't always easy to come by, so send this to your friend who has to raise a trillion dollars in the tightest year ever.
posted by darryl ohrt @ 8:17 AM
0 comments
donuts are on twitter. are you?
Even now, after like six examples a day, you're still unsure of what your brand could be doing on Twitter?
Here's another great piece about how companies are using the tool to help their brands. This post talks to Dunkin' Dave (Dunkin Donuts), Scott Monty (Ford Motors), Tony Hsieh (Zappos) and other professional Tweeters to profile how they've used Twitter to help their brands. (In the land of the future, we'll be able to deliver donuts through tweets. Mmmmm.)
Labels: automotive, branding, social media, twitter, yummyfood
posted by darryl ohrt @ 8:05 AM
0 comments
what you can learn from a rented dvd
Chris Brogan writes about how he was inspired after watching the special features portion of the Iron Man DVD. He sums up how success can be reached by achieving three layers: vision, creation and execution.
He's onto something. Every successful director needs to communicate his vision to hundreds (if not thousands) of people involved in the production process. And if that process is going to work, then the creation and execution have to be aligned with his/her vision. Not an easy feat.
There's a great lesson here for any leader of any organization, team, or brand, large or small. Check out Chris' post, and the enlightening discussion in the comments over at his blog.
Labels: branding, creativeinspiration, film, inspiration, productivity, workplace
posted by darryl ohrt @ 7:34 AM
0 comments
poker: the ultimate business learning tool
Tony, the world-famous CEO to Zappos, has a wonderful post illustrating how everything that he knows about business, he learned from playing poker. He's actually working on a book with the same theme - so consider this your sneak peek!
Labels: creativeinspiration, productivity, workplace
posted by darryl ohrt @ 7:14 AM
1 comments
it's a beautiful day for cancer
Any day that you can laugh at cancer is a fantastic day.
That's what artist and producer Lyrics Born has helped to make a reality. Check out the awesome campaign that illustrates the value of keeping under cover while under the sun. (And just in time for the sun season, down under.)
posted by darryl ohrt @ 7:07 AM
0 comments
use a slow week to experiment
If you've promised yourself that you'll spend at least some of your holiday time digging into social media, here's a great place to get started: Mashable points to a kabillion and a half how-to's on everything from Facebook to Twitter to Google to everything else.
This is the perfect week to get your feet wet. Try something that you haven't had the time to do all year long, but have been meaning to. Or try something you've been hearing some buzz about.
Regardless of your social media expertise, there's definitely something that you haven't given as much attention (or experimentation) to, as you could have. Why work, when you can explore?
Labels: facebook, social media, twitter, web2.0
posted by darryl ohrt @ 6:58 AM
0 comments
seven things you didn't know about me.
Ryan Kuder just tagged me in a meme called Seven Things. You need to share 7 things about yourself, and then ask 7 people to do the same. So here goes:
1. I know how to shoot a gun. I grew up in Texas, and even shot an armadillo once (photo above, if you don't believe me.) Today I don't even eat beef, which I'm pretty sure my cattle ranching relatives might freak, if they knew.
2. My first job was delivering papers for the Chicago Tribune. I woke up at 4 in the morning, got on my ultra cool chopper bike, and pedaled newspapers through a subdivision in Bloomingdale, IL. Got pretty good at riding and throwing, although I once threw a paper through a customer's front window.
3. I rode in a rental car down that famous hairpin turn road in Monte Carlo, during an actual auto road race. It looked exactly like what I now know as the Monte Carlo Rally, and it did take place in January, so who knows. This wasn't a planned adventure - just a handful of dumb Americans who couldn't read the French road signs that probably said something like "Road closed for Monte Carlo Rally." We got some pretty funny looks at the finish line. To this day, I'm really not quite sure how the whole thing happened.
4. I'm accident prone. I've nearly lost a couple of fingers, an eye, and suffered a bunch of other hilarious injuries, mostly as the result of stupid activities. For this reason, I do not own a chain saw.
5. I've never been fired, arrested or beaten to a pulp. I've come very close on many occasions but somehow always draw the line in the nick of time. I should probably have at least one of these experiences sometime in the near future. (Taking risks is a requirement in our profession.)
5a. I once pissed on the Pentagon. Pretty sure you'd get killed for that today. This was during the height of the punk rock years. Beer was involved. (Figured this fact belongs as a sub-set to fact #5.)
6. I've lived in at least two haunted houses. One as a kid, and another just a few years ago.
7. The Elegant Universe is one of my favorite books. I have this thing for super string theory and theoretical physics. I'm not smart enough to actually understand the majority of it, but I'm blown away by the possibilities. Outside of business, internet, fashion or pop culture, that's my favorite content to read.
Ok, so now it's your turn. Here's who I choose to share 7 things next:
Ben Kunz
Bill Green
Brad J Ward
Charlie Wollborg
Dirk Singer
Garret Ohm
The Girl Riot
(I was also going to tag Todd Sanders, but Barbara Nixon beat me to it.)
Labels: plaid, self promotion
posted by darryl ohrt @ 5:01 PM
3 comments
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