Tuesday 11 January 2011

Enterprise and Innovation - Task 5 - Position Statement

1. One of my life-long ambitions is to work in the industry abroad. Specifically New York, Canada, Paris or Los Angeles.
         2.     I would like to earn a comfortable and happy living doing something I love – Graphic Design. And I would like to do it well, with impact.

3.     I would like to work in different types of companies throughout my career. Trying working for a large agency, a small studio with collaborators and eventually doing freelance work.

4.     I am very much an image-based designer and enjoy producing beautiful work in a range of media.

5.     I always mix media for my work. Every piece involves aspects of both hand-rendered and computer generated imagery/typography.  My main interests lie in illustration and hand-rendered typography.

6.     This course has made me extremely ambitious, I want to make a difference in this industry, however small or large. I want to be remembered for my work.

7.     I am a creative. I enjoy making work look nice.

8.     I am very good at talking. It comes naturally to me. I seldom get nervous about talking to people, both in general and about my work.  This will help in interviews and presentations.

9.     I am full of ideas. Very much concept driven.  

10.  I am aiming at working in advertising or for the music industry. Two of the things that fascinate me the most, both things I could call passions of mine. 

Monday 10 January 2011

Enterprise and Innovation - Task 4 - Who else is out there? How good are they?

Who am I competing against?
What do they offer?
What makes me better?
What makes me different?

Ilovedust

Strengths 
The strengths are endless for this design company. From the website which is full of work, information and has a beautiful layout to some of the best graphic design work I have ever seen. 
A large portfolio with an entire range of disciplines. Nothing is too big for them. Strong work in illustration, graphic design, products, type and animation to name a few. 
Based in England - 2 studios,  one in the buzzing hub of Shoreditch and one in Hampshire. Easily accessible and the mix of the contrasting atmospheres (urban and rural) gives them a diverse and new form of inspiration.
Collaborate with creatives worldwide. Their work is shown worldwide. 
Large and impressive client list. 

Weaknesses
Very busy company. Always working on something. Will this inhibit them from accepting all the jobs they are given?
A large group of designers worldwide. Inpersonal? 
Very up-to-date work. Modern... will this make it look dated a lot quicker?

Opportunities
Large client base making advertising by word of mouth very easy. 
Work everywhere, again, advertising techniques. Getting their name out there. 
Diverse range of specialities and skills with their employers. Can accept many more jobs in a broad range of media. 
Globally represented. 
Returning of existing clients. 

Threats
Smaller, newer companies who offer a more one-on-one service. A lot more personal. 
Companies who specialise in certain areas of design i.e print, screen. More specialist rather than offering a broad range of services.

They are a threat to me as they are already very well-known as a company, whereas I will be starting from scratch. They have offer a much broader range of specialities than I can offer, I would need to collaborate with people who are good in different areas to really stand a hope to compete with this company, however, I can offer a much more personal service, with a lot more time for client communication input. 


Pierrick Jegou - A french Freelancer

Strengths
Very much print based. Very strong print work. 
Good website, with information and a fully annotated portfolio.
Range of specialisms and media used. Both hand crafted and computer driven. 
Photographic skills. 
Can offer a very personal service. 

Weaknesses
Just print based. Would need to bring in a screen based specialist for that kind of work. 
Freelancer, therefore could not accept every job on offer as he would not have the time/resources. 
A lot of his work just looks good, offers little meaning. 

Opportunities
He does a lot of work for exhibitions, getting his name out there for other similar events (people seeing his work and commissioning him for their own exhibitions)
Work seen all over France, posters for big events. 
Impressive client base. 

Threats
Other freelancers who offer more services to do with screen-based work. 
Small companies who do similar work but can offer more. 

He would be a threat to me as he focuses a lot on image and hand-rendered type, which is exactly my specialisms. He works in a very similar way to me, and is one of my biggest inspirations. However he is based solely in France, I could take over his market for England and further afield. 

Tom Lacey - Freelancer specialising in the music industry - UK

Strengths
Very strong illustrative work for albums/posters/merchandise for alternative music groups.
Large range of clients in this genre of music, has built up a very good name for himself. 
A singer in a band - gave him insight into the world of design around his specialism and got him networking with many possible clients who would want to commission him. 
Strong theme within his work - very identifiable. 
Very personal work. One to one with clients.

Weaknesses
Lack of a proper website. 
His band is over - he is now 30 - old for the scene of the kind of bands he was working with who are all a lot younger than him now. Less networking opportunities.
One man show, can only do so much at once. 
His work is very limited in its progression, very similar work... there is only so much you can do in that style.

Opportunities
Strong fan base - being the singer in a band helped him get followers who will spread his name to others who may commission him. 
His work is on T-shirts which sell out all over the country. Small fan base for that music, makes his work well known within that circle. 

Threats
Other graphic designers and illustrators - younger ones, in younger bands with a fresh new outlook on the scene. 
People with a broader range of specialisms and skills. 

He is an inspiration of mine and very much competition if I were to work in this area of design, designing for this part of the music industry. I bring a fresh eye, with less bias to other designers. I am younger. 




Saturday 8 January 2011

Enterprise and Innovation - Task 3 - How will I promote myself?!

What do ʻtheyʼ want to hear? 
What should I say to ʻthemʼ? 
How will I communicate with ʻthemʼ?


The main thing that 'they' want to hear is that I will be an asset to them, both through my way of working and my work. 'They' want something new and innovative, something that will separate me/the work I produce for them, from others. They want to know that I will be a worthwhile investment, worth the money and time they put into me and that I will produce work that will make them look good. 
This is all about ‘getting myself out there’ and there are so many ways of doing this. Bridget outlined in the lecture the six steps for this and this marketing communication mix outlines the areas that a young designer should work in to really get the best of getting themselves known in the industry.
You need to build up a good reputation, that you work hard and that your work is new and functional. I feel that entering as many design competitions as I can in my years at the college could really help get my name out there – if you do well, you get your name on the competition site’s website and books which is a fresh source for possible clients and employers.
Advertising is very high up there in the best way of really getting your name out there.  On blogs, websites, design magazines and ultimately; word of mouth. There is no end to the value of networking. I intend to build up an address book of e-mail addresses of already established designers who can help me in their own way, both with feedback on my work and getting my name out there to their clients and the ever enlarging net of contemporary graphic designers. 



Wednesday 5 January 2011

TAG advertising

Even just this website is impressive from a design point of view, everything is interactive and modern and it is clear that they move with the times (things in 3D, which you can order free glasses from them for).

WHO THEY ARE...











The work is so diverse.



































About the agency.

"Hi. We’re DLKW Lowe.

We’re a new agency that was formed when two top shops, DLKW and Lowe London, got together on July 14th 2010.

What we believe in, passionately, is populist creativity. 
Work made for the many, not for the few.

Work that cuts through, engages and is talked about, participated in and shared.

Or put another way, work that becomes part of popular culture.

Why is this our passion?

Because we believe that talking to the people in a way that they can get excited about is the best way to change their behaviour.
And if we’re changing their behaviour then we’re doing our job properly.

So for all our clients, we identify the consumer behaviour that we want to change and we apply populist creativity to do it, in whatever space is appropriate.

It can be TV, print, promotions, online or brand experience; all of them; whatever it takes.

Here at DLKW Lowe we work with many different clients across many different categories.

And, what's more, being part of the Lowe Worldwide network means that we can deliver our work to just about any market in the world."




The client list







Lowe Worldwide

Lowe and Partners is a network of over 70 agencies across the world – a community of modern, creatively driven, multi-disciplinary agencies in vital global centres.  This means that for our international clients DLKW Lowe can offer bespoke multi-cultural teams to develop and implement ideas across the world.
http://www.loweworldwide.com/

For all Lowe Worldwide PR enquiries please contact Jeani Rodgers:
+44 (0) 777 502 7033
jeani.rodgers@loweandpartners.com
Rabbit
DLKW Lowe works very closely with Rabbit on digital engagement / online PR / digital word of mouth.  The Rabbits build things for brands online and get those things, and brands, talked about.
http://therabbitagency.com

DLKW Lowe
Address
60 Sloane Avenue
London, SW3 3XB
Switchboard
+44 (0) 207 584 5033
info@dlkwlowe.com

This is the advertising agency that I have got a placement with. 
The client list is so impressive that I am nervous... this opportunity is brilliant. 
So my step-mother happens to have some contacts in the advertising industry who I have just talked to about possible industrial experience and just the phone call got me excited. 
Natalie is the creative services director at DLKW Lowe in London and she talked about the different things that I could get experience in, for the research week in February, for the Easter break and for the summer, doing all sorts of things in different agencies, working with different designers, who specialise in different things and work in different ways. 
She seemed to know so many interesting people, in all sorts of different areas of the design world and with just one conversation got me looking to the future and my career.