A little more than a week ago, The Baltimore Sun launched a “reinvention” of their newspaper which included among other things a fresh new look.  I’ve been meaning to comment on this but to be honest I truly hadn’t physically held the print version of the paper until just this past weekend, so I didn’t feel qualified to critique it. (Perhaps this lack of interest in the print version by many readers had something to do with the “reinvention?”)

One of the most notable changes for anyone that has read previous iterations of the print publication is the masthead design.  Whereas the old masthead was more traditional, the new one is more dynamic and colorful - perhaps even a little curvy.  I was also glad to see that they started calling it “The Baltimore Sun” in the masthead, rather than “The Sun” as it was previously.  The Baltimore Sun is, and will always be a Baltimore paper - why the city’s name was downplayed in the past doesn’t make much sense to me. 

Throughout the paper you’ll notice that color, graphics and images play a much bigger role in the paper’s design. Many folks claim that it’s at the detriment of content.  But as their editor Tim Franklin claims their goal was “a more visual newspaper for a more visual age.” They certainly achieved this. I think I’d be ok with the oversize graphics and floods of color alone, but when paired with what are clearly more opportunities for ad space, I begin to lose some faith in the new design.  

Here is the old design (left) next to the new design (right):

Overall, the paper is a quicker read than it used to be. In the image above you can see how low on the first page you have to scan before any content is present (nearly 1/3 of the way down).  They’re clearly trying to reach out to folks on-the-go, but I’m wondering if this strategy makes sense, particularly since in this market there are already a few dailies out there that cater to this audience - one of which is actually put out by The Baltimore Sun (b and The Examiner to name a couple)!  

I did a quick scan of blogs and articles that have been written to date and the reaction seems to be mixed so far.  Advertisers love it.  Many readers dislike it or can’t make a connection. Members of my generation are largely apathetic because they get their news from other sources (hello Twitter). Whether or not it’s the solution for the woes at the paper remains to be seen, but it seems to be a step in the right direction.  I invite you to check it out for yourself and let me know what you think.  Simply click HERE or pick one up at your local newsstand.

Garret Ohm
http://www.orange-element.com

Have you heard that a group of former Google employees just launched a new ‘revolutionary’ search engine that they claim is better, deeper and more effective than Google? Gutsy, for sure. It’s true, and you can read about it HERE. It’s called Cuil.com (Pronounced “cool”) and the Internet is abuzz with chatter about the product.

I was excited to check it out this morning and have to say I am not sure if I dig it. The initial aesthetics of the site are pleasing - similar to Google, except a full-black background. The design itself probably much more sophisticated than Google (not that Google strives for sophisticated design) but the results of the search were a little difficult for me to digest. It could be that I’m so accustomed to seeing the results in the format that Google spits back at me, but I just wasn’t feeling the multi-column results.

That said the article discusses the benefits of this system over Google - mainly that it searches a database of as many as three times the amount of Web pages that Google does! If that’s factual, it’s pretty impressive. Could it be that this product is actually better than the Google search engine?

I’m not sure, but as I mentioned, the design ruins it a bit for me. The way it reports results is a bit overwhelming and I’m not sure I know what to make of them. It also seemed, initially, that it brought up many more irrelevant results for a couple of searches I did.

What do you think?

Garret Ohm
http://www.orange-element.com

And for the second T-shirt-related post of the day….Thanks to our good friend Melissa Franko from The Brick Companies for passing along this story that I somehow missed. It’s an article from Brandweek that discusses a new product from Coke. They, like many of the companies in the drink category that bottle their beverages with plastic, have been getting beaten up by environmental groups for clogging the nation’s landfills.

Their solution to this problem is a new line of apparel that is made of recycled plastic bottles. While this doesn’t conjure up pictures of comfort, I imagine with technological refinements available they’ll end up being silky smooth. I hadn’t heard of this approach before, but it makes a lot of sense. The oddest material I had heard of for T-shirt production to this point was bamboo. Bamboo shirts, like from companies like http://www.bamboosa.com/, are apparently silky smooth in texture (who would have guessed) and since bamboo replenishes itself insanely fast, are also a sustainable choice.

Now, the question is, can we buy blank Coke bottle shirts in bulk and silkscreen our own designs on them? I’d be glad to co-brand the shirts Orange Element and Coke??

Remember how Starbucks’ top brass had come to the conclusion that in the process of expanding from one store to over 15,000 stores, they had drifted astray from the characteristics that made their brand so near and dear to the hearts of so many people? If not, HERE’S a refresher.

Well, they’re taking active steps to make a triumphant return to those glory days by introducing Pike Place Roast, complete with a design that mirrors the original Starbucks Identity. And you know how much I love it when successful brands of the past or elements of those brands are brought back to life….

You can read all about Pike Place HERE. I think it’s really smart–and they even use language like “going back to where it all started.” Perhaps they’re trying to strike a chord with all those people that remember the brand 10 or more years ago, back when a barista was a barista and it actually smelled like coffee in the stores.

Here’s a side by side design comparison of the current Starbucks identity and the one they’re using on all Pike Place promotional materials:

Remember my post a week or two ago about Modernista’s new site that integrates Web 2.0 technologies to create a minimalistic site? If not, check it out.

Well, it seems like the folks at Wikipedia have become wise to their site and put an embarrassing disclaimer at the top of the Wikipedia posting for Modernista! Ouch.

I guess they were not too thrilled with participating in a new breed of Web site designs!?!?

Garret Ohm
www.orange-element.com

We think product packaging design is a CRUCIAL element in any product’s marketing plan. Why? Well, these days retail outlets are often forced to overload their store shelves with a plethora of products, each competing to grab the attention of the unsuspecting consumer walking down the aisle. The choices are overwhelming, and research has shown that consumers (often subconsciously) gravitate toward the products that have high brand awareness (comfort) and superior product packaging design (appeal).

The problem with trying to build high brand awareness is that in an overcommunicated society, this can take lots and lots of time and particularly money–something that many relatively new products don’t have. So what does a marketing department do to jumpstart consumer sales? We recommend placing a good deal of emphasis on the design of the product packaging to make sure the product affects consumer behavior as they attempt to decide on a purchase.

As I speak to this, I wanted to pass along a NY Times article I read a couple of days ago about an inspiring case study in the power of product packaging design. It’s about a shaving cream that’s about to hit the market called NXT (pronounced “next”). This product is going to hit the market and compete with the likes of Gillette and Barbasol without spending a single dollar on advertising to the public.

The makers of the product are doing so by saving tons of money by only investing in product packaging. Their aim is to create a product that truly stands out on the store shelves, and they’re using LED lights implanted in the actual package to do so. These LED lights actually light up the clear bottle that the shaving cream resides in, creating a spectacular light show on the shelves. HERE is the article. Enjoy!

Note also how they have adjusted the copy on the package to refer to “sensitive” skin as “lite.” Something a bit less wimpy!

Thanks for reading!

Garret Ohm
www.orange-element.com