ARE Creative

Help.......I'm a qr code novice

noreply@blogger.com (Rachel) — Wed, 28 Mar 2012 19:04:00 +0000

Hats off to freeqrcodetracker.com, a Bournemouth and Poole based company for a fantastic service and informative site. We started using them for qr code generating recently and are very impressed with the service, especially the hand delivered promo gift and goodies for me, the personal touch is always great.

If you are confused about qr codes and how they work, or would like inspiration on how to make yours more 'unique' then please check out their blog for ideas or general information on how qr codes can enhance your business and direct your followers and potential clients exactly where you want them to go.

ARE Creative QR Code Design

noreply@blogger.com (Rachel) — Tue, 13 Mar 2012 12:45:00 +0000

A QR code (quick response) is one of the latest tools to connect offline people with an online service or information not ordinarily available to them at that time. A QR code is generated through any one of many sites available online, and can be directed to any of the following:

Website - for a competition, free tools, further information on a service or product

Text information - a pdf which provides product support

Video - direct link straight to a promotional or informative video

Directions - google maps

ME card - enables the receiver to scan and have a contact's details sent directly to an android phone

Print media and direct mail - to direct to another site such as a company or individual's social media sites

That's the background, but worthy of a mention is the possibility of customising a QR code to make it fit with a corporate colour, further promote a business and make it more of a visual tool rather than a functional one.

This is our ME card which we think looks much better than the stark black and white traditional QR Codes. Using photoshop to edit the original QR code means it is possible to add an image to the code without compromising the structure of the code itself.

As well as adding an image to the centre of the qr code and a different background .........

.........it is possible to add a png logo or even change the qr code colour completely

Facebook Timeline for Business

noreply@blogger.com (Rachel) — Wed, 07 Mar 2012 11:43:00 +0000

New Video from Mashable explaining how to use Facebook timelines for your business marketing
(after the advert of course)

Is Social Media Making You Feel Disconnected.....

noreply@blogger.com (Rachel) — Fri, 02 Mar 2012 09:52:00 +0000

I love social media, I use it for work and personal friendships and it was instrumental in a successful rebrand of my business a few years ago. For most of us with small businesses, social media has been invalueable for putting our message out there, raising our business or personal profile and giving us a platform to speak on whichever issue we want to discuss. Social media gurus tell us that it is the way forward for business owners, we grapple with tweets and struggle to keep up with facebook and all the social media sites.

It is much easier and less time consuming, that is agreed, we can project whichever personna and emotion we wish, but what price do we pay for our fascination with 'techno-talking'? I agree that it is easier to fire off a few tweets and facebook 'likes' in order to keep in touch with others but I'm still a firm believer in real brewed coffee in a fantastic Dorset cafe with good company, a few business magazines and a 'realtime' conversation.

Google Defends The New Privacy Terms

noreply@blogger.com (Rachel) — Thu, 01 Mar 2012 08:56:00 +0000

On March 1st, 2012 Google unveils it's new Privacy Policy and Terms for Service, which will see them combining over 70 different policies from various google products. From today, all your information available to google will be stored in 1 location and shared between all the google platforms.

Is it a smart move? That remains to be seen, certainly many web and news sites today are already reporting that this represents an infringement of our private information, and may be in breach of several civil laws regarding privacy.

To find out what information of yours google has access to visit your google dashboard here and scroll down. It is possible to pause and clear your web history and youtube searches so reducing the amount of stored information google has. It remains to be seen how far the various watchdog groups will pursue Google for a change in their policy, and even whether Google will amend their Terms in light of fierce opposition. For now the smart option seems to be to watch and wait, and make sure your google dashboard only reveals the information you are willing to share.

Follow Google Blog here
What steps can you take to ensure your private data remains just that? Read here

Navigating Without A Map?

noreply@blogger.com (Rachel) — Wed, 29 Feb 2012 22:12:00 +0000

When you own or manage a small business, it isn't about location but direction,direction, direction. One of the most common reasons for a business to fail is the lack of it, no purpose, game plan or agenda. It takes a strong business owner to step back from how 'things have always been done' and look at new ways to achieve strong business relationships and generate profit. Clinging to past history is a natural reaction, but can spell suicide in our present economy. How often do you question the relevance of your branding, analyse changes in market trends or explore new opportunities for business development. When did you last send a survey or talk to your customers about their perceptions of your business?

Recently I received a call from a friend with a fantastic business in Australia who was considering rebranding it - after much discussion it turned out that was the only option he thought he had left. He had burned out and so had his business but it wasn't due to the branding itself, rather the lessening direction he, as a business owner, was sharing with his employees. They all felt that by changing name and logo, not to be considered lightly, that would give them a 'kickstart' into the coming year......

He hadn't talked to his very loyal customers to see how they viewed the service his company was providing, he had not looked at how he could diversify his business to absorb new trends in the marketplace, he had chosen to cling to the past ways of trading and expect that a fresh brand would allow him to continue as he had always done.

Do you have a plan for the next 10 months that will see your business thrive and grow?

Where will your next business venture materialise from?

Using Hard Light and Overlay in Photoshop - Great Graphic Design in 2 Minutes

noreply@blogger.com (Rachel) — Sat, 11 Feb 2012 11:22:00 +0000

The potential for creating unique designs in photoshop is unlimited. Previously we used the soft light and gaussian blur options, but this is what can be done with hard light and overlay. When we combined the 3 images below

and added a swirl, this was the fantastic result.

Get Back in the Saddle Again

noreply@blogger.com (Rachel) — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 15:07:00 +0000

This week's Worthy of a Read comes from one of my favourite bloggers Catarina Alexon who has a business blog that we read as often as possible.

In our unsecure economy how we view our business will have a fundamental role on how successful it will be and how much business we can retain and generate.

"you can have a fresh start any moment you choose, for this thing we call 'failure' is not the falling down, but the staying down................."
read the full article here

Is Rebranding Your Business The Way Forward?

noreply@blogger.com (Rachel) — Sat, 14 Jan 2012 11:20:00 +0000

A brand is anything that identifies a product, service or business. It can be a strapline (slogan), logo or symbol, jingle or most commonly a name. Branding is how this is seen in the marketplace. The long term aim of a successful branding exercise is to raise brand awareness. This refers to the buyer's abillity to recognize the brand, logo, strapline, jingle etc and identify with the product.

The key to successful branding is to create a certain expectation associated with the brand, that it is unique, with certain characteristics that will be remembered, making a product relevant to it's target audience. Working on the principle that buyer's don't purchase because they view it to be better, but more familiar to them, creating brand awareness and recognition is the key to any new advertising or marketing campaign.

Branding also has an impact on how staff members view the company product and also their ability to promote and sell it within the business and private community. Failure to believe in your branding will show through any sales pitch you make, compromising your business and on the contrary a branding refresh can generate new enthusiasm for your company product.

Is your business branding due an overhaul?

Worth a read...
ARE rebrand to ARE Creative
What is your branding strategy
Does your logo work?

Coles Miller Equine Advert

noreply@blogger.com (Rachel) — Mon, 25 Jul 2011 11:21:00 +0000

Parkour Motion Reel

noreply@blogger.com (Rachel) — Sun, 24 Jul 2011 11:10:00 +0000

parkour motion reel from saggyarmpit on Vimeo.

This is so fantastic, frame by frame and obviously represents hours of time spent putting the reel together. A pleasure to watch.

Getting 'Volcanic' in Poole

noreply@blogger.com (Rachel) — Fri, 08 Jul 2011 13:47:00 +0000

BRIEF:

Re-design and print business cards and compliment slips for Volcano Jewelry, Poole High Street. A simple, arty logo for a great jewelry business in Poole.

Pixels or Pixelated?

noreply@blogger.com (Rachel) — Mon, 13 Jun 2011 00:00:00 +0000

In Graphic Design, pixels are the backbone to a great finished product. Using images that are too small and then increasing their size will ruin any designers best work.

Pixels are small dots that are the basis for any image. A pixel is split into sub-pixels of red, blue and green. Pixels add together to make a bitmap image, a grid that resembles a mosaic of dots. The size and proximity of pixels will determine the quality of image, smaller and closer together will give a higher quality image. As any image is magnified, the size and proximity of the pixels increases so producing a distorted image with blurred integrity that produces inferior graphic results. You can test this by zooming in on a picure and the pixels or building blocks will become apparent. Take a look at media images of celebrities children and see how the faces are blurred out; a great example of pixelation.

Worth a read....
Pixels, resolution and vector images
CMYK and RGB Colour

Face Silhouette in Adobe Photoshop CS4

noreply@blogger.com (Rachel) — Sun, 05 Jun 2011 20:18:00 +0000

We wanted to use the face only from this photo and used photoshop's linear dodge tool and a large pixel eraser to remove the rest of the image we didn't want. Great results for messing around with photos.

Palmer and Co Post Budget Newsletter

noreply@blogger.com (Rachel) — Wed, 20 Apr 2011 12:15:00 +0000

Even though many companies prefer e-newsletters as a way of communicating with their clients, there is still a place for hard copy newsletters. Palmer and Co use theirs as a library of information for all new clients and are given out in A4 folders together with general information about services.

Whatify - Read of the Week

noreply@blogger.com (Rachel) — Thu, 14 Apr 2011 14:59:00 +0000

From time to time, something great lands in the mailbox for ARE Creative. This week's great read is Whatify, an e-mag covering local government and education but very well written and with fantastic designs, we were kept interested until the last page.

Go here for more information from Whatify

Andy Rapkins Photography Branding

noreply@blogger.com (Rachel) — Mon, 14 Mar 2011 16:29:00 +0000

This was a project we thoroughly enjoyed. Andy is a Dorset based photographer with a very clear vision for his business and branding his company was not difficult. As always any branding takes place by considering how fonts and colours represent the business ethos and how they will work across all media. With a seasonal variation in photography, it was important to also consider a variety of colours for different seasons of the year.

Please click Andy's logo to connect with his great new website.

Aspen Design Stationary Print

noreply@blogger.com (Rachel) — Thu, 10 Mar 2011 16:30:00 +0000

Having good quality stationary printed is essential in portraying your business in a sharp and professional manner. Don't be tempted to opt for a cheap option when it comes to printing your letterheads, a digital printer will burn the logo onto paper and if your office printer works at a higher temperature, it will pull the logo off.

Always choose lithographic printing for your stationary.

Marketing Your Business @ ARE Creative

noreply@blogger.com (Rachel) — Sun, 13 Feb 2011 19:08:00 +0000

...because people will only see what they are looking for.

Whatever the type of campaign or the medium, we can help you to maximise the effectiveness of your marketing budget. Most great marketing ideas are inexpensive and easy to implement, marketing often just takes commitment.

At ARE Creative we don't just want to achieve maximum exposure for your business, but to target those most likely to respond. We are experienced at devising simple and effective strategies to harness your talent, the unique qualities of your business and convert that to an increase in sales.

For more information on your marketing needs contact us here.

Cute Inset Typography in Photoshop CS4

noreply@blogger.com (Rachel) — Sun, 06 Feb 2011 11:16:00 +0000

Inset typography is a fantastic way of making graphics look as though they are 3D and implanted within the background. This technique uses the gradient overlay, inner shadow and drop shadow blending options in varying degrees to achieve a great effect. Perfect for web work.

Did You Just Lose a Sale?

noreply@blogger.com (Rachel) — Sat, 04 Dec 2010 14:52:00 +0000

The answer is yes if........

You don't thank a customer for his business
Every penny you put into advertising does not tell you whether your ads are working
You don't have email addresses or contact telephone numbers for your existing clients, to get repeat business
Everyone who contacts you by telephone or email is not converted into a customer
Every letter you write, invoice you send or payment you make does not open an opportunity for a sale
A person visits your website and you don't hear from them again
4 months go by and your existing clients haven't heard your latest news and offers
Potential clients who make enquiries by phone, email or website leave having no clear idea how you and your company can benefit them

Pantone Heaven

noreply@blogger.com (Rachel) — Sun, 21 Nov 2010 11:37:00 +0000

A pantone is the description given to a particular shade of a colour used in design and printing.

Pantone is an American company that founded the Pantone Colour Matching System in the 1960's. The idea was to create a uniform colour measurement grid that would allow designers to successfully match and replicate individual colours in the production stage of any design, no matter what equipment and programme they were using. It is now recognised world wide as the standard colour system for design and print.

Pantone hold the intellectual property to their colour numbers, pigment values and system usage and it is generally not available to most 'over the counter' design packages. It is possible to obtain a pantone palette from most printers and restrictions on use will vary.

For more information go here

WORTH A READ - GIF VERSUS PNG, WHAT IS A JPEG

Graphic Designs @ ARE Creative

noreply@blogger.com (Rachel) — Tue, 09 Nov 2010 21:47:00 +0000

Design is the face of your business and says a lot about what you do. It can show professionalism, quality and motivation or unfortunately the opposite. Your business attributes should be reflected in all design work produced for your company.

At ARE Creative we are experienced in producing Graphic Design work for small to large businesses. We work in Adobe Indesign, Photoshop, Illustrator and Quarkxpress, in PC or Mac format to provide high quality design relevant to your business needs.

So whether it's a simple advert for a local Bournemouth or Poole magazine, logo, company brochure, our concise and impactful designs will speak for your business.

For more information on our Graphic Design service please contact us here

How Good is Your Networking?

noreply@blogger.com (Rachel) — Fri, 05 Nov 2010 01:22:00 +0000

Would you walk up to a stranger at an event and demand something from him? And if you did, what would the result be? Yes, most likely failure. So why do so many people think they can do that online where chances of succeeding are even slimmer?

Click here to read a great article on social and internet networking from Catarina Alexon

Firefox Gets a Double Toolbar for Bookmarking Your Sites

noreply@blogger.com (Rachel) — Mon, 01 Nov 2010 01:39:00 +0000

If you are anything like us, you will have hundreds of bookmarked pages and a toolbar groaning with the weight of the tools you use most frequently. We tend to have all our clients' blogs, Indesign, Photoshop and Illustrator all open together with social media platforms like TweetDeck and those web tools suck as bit.ly that are invaluable.

For our PC work we use Firefox, this is a great add-on, a double bookmark toolbar making life just that bit less complicated.

Go to Firefox add-ons page here to find out more and download

Worth a read...

Firefox and bit.ly team up for easy social bookmarking