Archive for the ‘Marketing & Strategy’ Category

Heart and Sol: Our Head to Toe Branding of Bistro Del Sol

Thursday, July 15th, 2010

The other day, my co-worker Julie ran across a commercial promoting Roy Barnes for Governor. In the video, Roy was standing before Bistro Del Sol in the atrium of the Hartsfield-Jackson airport. We were both tickled by the sighting, as Sellier Design worked closely with our client HBF (Hojeij Branded Foods) to design the branding for Bistro Del Sol.

We did so first by studying restaurant concepts as well as unique materials in order to come up with a fresh and appealing overall look for the restaurant. Next we specified tile and paint colors. From there we designed the logo, packaging labels, wall art, and applied vinyl graphics throughout the space. We created all of the marketing materials including posters, brochures, PPT, and business cards. And finally, we worked with the architect to design the digital menu board. When I say we did everything, I mean we did everything! We even designed crew uniforms.

Since then, my team and I have worked with HBF on another concept with Abica Coffee in 2002 and have also enjoyed working with them in the retail space. Through our blood, sweat and tears we have created results of which we are very proud. 

So the next time you have your TV on, if you happen to see Roy Barnes standing in the airport, take a closer look. From the logo to the wall colors and even the digital menu board, our passion lies in the details.

How to Select Keywords for Your Website

Thursday, June 17th, 2010

scrabble lettersThere are two ingredients to a successful website: a cleverly crafted website design and a strong SEO strategy. While an attractive and intuitive site will help to keep customers and prospects on your site, search engine optimization is the tool that will draw these consumers to your page.

Keywords are a critical component of SEO because they are the words that define you. In order to assure that your company is visible to prospects and customers, it’s important to utilize all of the possible words and phrases that consumers  might use for Google searches. Unsure of what keywords might work best for you? Here are a few tools to get you started:

  • Google Adwords Keyword Tool – Simply type in the subject you’re researching and Google’s keyword tool will suggest keywords and the monthly and annual search volumes for those terms. If you’re running a Pay Per Click campaign, this tool can also provide you with the cost per click.
  • Overture (Yahoo!) Keyword Tool – Yahoo’s keyword tool will also help you to predict the amount of traffic certain keywords will bring and lists monthly regional search volumes for the most popular search engines based on Overture search counts for different geographic markets. It also provides links to price estimate tools for Google Adwords.
  • Google Rankings Tool – If you’re curious about the strategy of your competitors, use the Google Rankings Tool to check how they rank with certain keywords. You can also use this tool to check your own SEO efforts.

One thing to keep in mind is that the Google algorithm is always changing. While metadata and pagerank might be important one day, both will be irrelevant the next. The one thing that Google will always value is helpful and well written content. Choose your keywords wisely, work on solid inbound and outbound links, and focus on quality content.

Any questions?

7 Unusual Logos and Why We Love Them

Thursday, May 20th, 2010

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: one of the biggest factors for branding success is authenticity.

It’s no surprise, then, that unexpected logo design are often times much more eye catching than some of the more traditional images. Who cares about a globe when every other company in the world prominently displays one on their website’s front page? And what is your company saying about itself with the ever-so-cliche image of a handshake? Maybe that you can’t think of anything original about yourself?

That’s not to say you should fall into the other extreme and create a logo based solely upon shock value either. The following are 7 logo designs that artfully balance unique and professional.

Lad-yy

Bison

Bison

Upside Down Productions

Upside Down Productions

Logo Motives

Logo Motives

Schizophrenic

Schizophrenic

Modern

Modern

Friedman Psychology Group

Friedman Psychology Group

In sum, these logos teach us that creativity and originality go a long way in logo design. When crafting your brand’s identity, take the time to find your voice and represent yourself from an interesting and inspiring angle.

View more weird logos>>