BlogmyQuery – BMQ

AIDA. Attention, interest, desire, action.

It’s the classic copywriting formula, studied and used by almost every copywriter on the planet.

Well, I’m not a fan.

Not because it isn’t accurate, and not because it doesn’t work. If your writing can get attention, grab interest, create desire and prompt action, then you’re doing a lot of things right.

If your writing isn’t doing these things, however, then I don’t think AIDA will help you very much, because it doesn’t do enough to explain how to do any of these things.

The best way to learn is by example, so let’s look at a promotional failure and see how it conforms to AIDA but still doesn’t work.

(Image source: alt1040)

Text-Message Loan Sharking?

I recently received a text message from a number I didn’t recognize. It read:

Coming up short between pay-days? You can solve the problem NOW with a $300–$1000 INSTANT–Advance! Respond YES if interested, NO–to–STOP

(Image: someToast)

Now, obviously, I didn’t text back the anonymous sender with a “Yes.� I didn’t text them back with a “No� either. I called the number to tell them that I don’t appreciate unsolicited spam marketing. But no one answered; the call went to a voicemail box that was full.

I was unimpressed before; this sealed the deal!

Let’s see how this piece of marketing stacks up on the AIDA scale:

• A for attention
  Sure, the text message got my attention. After all, text messaging is an interruptive medium; you’re bound to get attention that way.
• I for interest
  Okay, I’ll play along. Let’s say that I am, in fact, coming up short between pay days: the message would have my interest. So far, so good.
• D for desire
  Also good. If I’m broke and need cash, then I’d definitely want an advance.
• A for action
  Well, the message called for action (“Respond YES if interested�), but it didn’t lead to action. Fail.

What Was Missing? Why Didn’t It Work?

The missing element in this campaign was context: who are they, why are they contacting me, and why should I trust them?

Context is a critical component of effective messaging. Without it, action likely won’t result, even if you call for it.

The trouble with AIDA is that it implies that attention leads to interest, which then leads to desire, which in turn leads to action. But a piece of the puzzle is still missing: context.

AIDA doesn’t give you all of the ingredients that combine to result in action — which is what you ultimately want!

A Better Model: 6 + 1

This model is a little more complex, which is a good thing.

Complexity is important — critical, even. And in this case, it involves information that AIDA lacks but that is needed in order to write effective copy (unless you’re one of those people to whom it comes as naturally as speaking). Here, then, is the 6 + 1 model, with six steps plus one extra thing you’ve got to cover along the way.

Ready to dive in? Let’s get started with the first item.

Step 1: Context

The very first thing you need to do, before trying to get attention or anything else, is establish context. Answer the audience’s implicit question, “Who are you, and why are you talking to me?�

(Image: loop_oh)

Too many marketers compete for the attention of every single person, so establishing context is necessary to stand out from the crowd. Junk mail is a perfect illustration. The context of junk mail is, “You don’t know us, but we want to sell you something!� That’s why most junk mail ends up in the trash, unread.

A campaign that establishes context, on the other hand, might arrive in a personally addressed envelope and be written in the form of a letter. The context here is implied, and the proportion of people who open the envelope would be much higher. The first few sentences, naturally, would explain why the recipient is familiar with the sender and needs the product or service.

Just as the recipient’s question of “Who is this person talking to me?� is implicit, so too can be the answer. For example, if you’re reaching out to someone in response to a job offer that they’ve posted, you would send them a cover letter and CV. The combination of circumstances and the format of your letter make it clear why you’re reaching out to them.

That being said, you always want to create as strong a context as possible. So, you would start the cover letter by mentioning where you found the job posting and why you felt you should apply (you’ve always wanted to work for this company, you love the industry, etc.) This explicit context immediately puts you ahead of other applicants.

In the text-message example above, context could have been established with a link to a website where I could learn more about the company, or even an automated message at the end of the phone number, instead of a computer telling me that the voicemail box is full.

Better yet, the text message could have begun with a few words reminding me of previous interactions I might have had with the sender. For example, my wireless service provider occasionally sends me text messages about new offers and services, and they always begin with, “Dear Rogers customer…� This instantly lets me know that I am being contacted by someone I know for a specific reason. The sender is credible because it provides a service to me, so I am very likely to read its message. Of course, this works only when the sender has some sort of relationship with the recipient — but that makes for the best messaging in any case.

Context comes down to the reason why your audience is being exposed to your message. If they are subscribers to your blog, then that subscription serves as the context for any email you send them. If the content is found on your website, then the person’s search for information about your topic or service is the context. If you’re running an ad in a newspaper or magazine, then the theme of that publication is the context.

Step 2: Attention

Once context has been established, you can go ahead and grab the audience’s attention.

If you’re the writer, you’ll do so with the headline. And if you’re the designer, you will make sure that, at first glance, the presentation is eye-catching.

Plenty of resources out there will teach you how to do that, so I won’t go into detail in this article. Suffice it to say that you have to grab your audience’s attention and hold it until you can create…

Step 3: Desire

The reality of marketing in this day and age is that attention is short-lived. Where we once spoke of 15 minutes of fame, today it’s a lot closer to 15 seconds.

In the span of those 15 seconds, you have to make your audience want something, and want it badly enough to keep on reading.

If you’re writing a blog post, this would happen in your opening paragraphs, the section before the <more> tag. It’s the hook: you’ve grabbed their attention, and now you’ve got to reel them in by describing the symptoms that they’re experiencing, ideas that they may not have considered, or outcomes that they want for themselves. This will inspire them to continue reading, and then you can go into detail and describe…

Step 4: The Gap

You’ve got their attention, and created desire — at this point your prospect should be convinced that they need to take action of some kind.

Now you must drive home the idea by communicating the difference between what will happen if they do nothing and what will happen if they take advantage of your product or service. We call this establishing the gap.

You can do this by asking, “What if nothing changed? What would that mean?� Then spell it out for them.

The answer might be emotional; after all, you’re talking about the painful implications of their current situation — the prospect of the situation not changing is scary. This is an excellent time to use examples and case studies to highlight the consequences of inaction.

Step 5: Solution

You can’t leave the reader in this state; once you’ve established the gap, transition quickly into your solution. It’s important to say that you have a solution, and to tell them as much as they need to know in order to understand that it will work — but no more. Any extra detail is an opportunity to question or disagree with you, so keep information about how the solution works on a strictly need-to-know basis.

Of course, all of the usual best practices about speaking to emotional versus rational benefits, rather than features, and addressing your one ideal customer still apply. No need to rehash them here.

Step 6: Call to Action

Of course, you have to end with a call to action, which requires you to do two things:

1. Identify the single next step that you want your audience to take when they’re done reading. Not an array of options (“Call us on the phone or visit our website or follow us on Twitter or…�), just one next action.
2. Explicitly ask the audience to take that action. Don’t dance around the issue; if you want them to do something, say so.

Again, this is familiar territory, so I won’t go into any more detail here.

It’s tempting to think that we’re done with the model, but don’t forget the +1 part of the model. One important thing still needs to be covered.

Credibility: The Extra Step Along The Way

You can do all of the above and you’ll be well on your way to a sale, but you still won’t get it without one more ingredient, added along the way. That ingredient is credibility.

(Image: Denise Cross)

If the reader doesn’t believe what you say, or doesn’t believe that you’re in a position to say it, then they have no reason to follow through on anything you ask them to do, no matter how well you cover the other steps in your content.

To establish credibility, you have to start with understanding: showing the reader that you understand their reality intimately. After all, if you don’t really know their situation, then how would you know how to improve it?

Then show the reader why they can trust that you know what you’re talking about: appeal to their common sense (what you’re saying should make sense), demonstrate social proof (how many other people have already taken the action you want them to take?), demonstrate your expertise (your education and experience in the subject matter), and apply risk-reversal whenever possible (with guarantees and warranties).

This isn’t the sixth step, because you don’t do it all at once. Rather, you build a bit of credibility here and a bit more there, all the way through your messaging, so that by the end they believe you.

The 6 + 1 model succeeds where AIDA fails because it forces you to establish yourself as a source of authority in the reader’s eyes. While doing this through AIDA certainly is possible, the 6 + 1 formula impels you to account for the different responses that readers will have as they digest your copy. For a new copywriter, or a copywriter who is not achieving the amount of conversions that they think they should, these extra steps will be invaluable.

(al)

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© Danny Iny for Smashing Magazine, 2011.

In the world of design we all tend to have our processes and approaches that rule how we craft our work. This is essential for most of us in the field to have in place. Our own systems that we have spent years honing and developing down to less of an art, and more of a routine. We do this so that we have an order by which we can methodically craft our designs without letting any little things slip through those proverbial cracks. Our processes tend to be a series of steps that help us cover all of our bases. But this can also prove to have a negative impact on our work.

Over time, our design processes begin to take on somewhat of a puzzle feel. The routines dissect the design into different pieces, and each element gets handled on an individual basis by and large. This can leave the various elements feeling disconnected from each other rather than having that uniformity and complementary flow we tend to be going for. This is not to say that the designs will be ineffective or lack any sense of unity, just that there will be some element of clunkiness to it as the elements more fit together like pieces of puzzle than flow together.

But how do we find our way to those more organic designs that come together with this sense of complete unity? Hopefully this post can help. Below is a discussion of tips that one can follow which can lead our designs towards these paths of elevated potential.

The Flow

The main element to working organically when designing is the flow. Having the design come together in this fashion allows for this feel to transfer over into the piece itself. So we need to find this flow and tap into it for the benefit of our design. We need to go with it and not force it, or we risk compromising the free and completely connected organic structure that will make the design stand out and communicate more freely with the viewer. The more this flow is nurtured, the better it will serve the design. And there are a few ways that we can help foster this flow throughout the design process.

Ideally, our work should maintain a constant flow of communication and interaction with the users much like the uninterrupted movement of a stream always rushing towards its goal. Photo by Kevin Wasilin

The communication assist offered by this flow is really one the main benefits that cause designers to focus in on this more organic approach. Given that design is such a communicative artform, any aids we can equip the design with can make the piece that much more effective. With each element within the design having a more natural connection to each other, the entire piece is more likely to communicate the message easier to the viewer. Not to mention more completely. So the importance of this connection throughout the design that links all of the various elements should not be devalued. And the best way to instill it in the work is to let the design flow organically together, do not force any aspect of it.

The Doodle Way

Now many designers swear by the power of the pen and paper for getting the design process underway, but not many of them hype the help it offers in keeping the flow in your work. By starting off on paper, it allows us the overview where we see the design as a whole right from the beginning, instead of jumping onto the computer and taking the design piece by piece. And this powerful means for tapping into the flow and elevating your designs, starts by just sketching.

It is as simple as that. You just doodle your way to the design, so to speak. Let your mind run through the brief points provided by the client as you put pen to paper and let the ink flow freely. Whether it is specifically related to the project or not, just go with it. You might just find you are on the road to discovery.

Off-Topic Tours

Finding the flow is not always as easy as just putting the pen to the page and seeing what comes from it. There are times when we need that inspirational kickstart to get us flowing. Going off-topic can assist us in these efforts. By browsing through galleries of unrelated artistic mediums we can often find our way into that flow that we need. Even if it feels like a waste of time, we have to understand where it can lead us. We could be taking virtual tours of photography portfolios and find that the composition of a particular photo or its color scheme flip that proverbial switch in our minds giving us a rush of ideas for our own design.

Even in the simplest, most unrelated of photos we can stumble onto a trigger that will get the flow going once again. Like in the above photo where a site layout comes forward from the subtle trespasses onto the lightly textured white space of the sky by the trees. Photo by Becka Spence

This approach also gives us somewhat of a creative reset, taking our minds out of the boxes we can find ourselves in when we begin a new project. Our routines tend to keep our minds in a design holding pattern when we get started, and this can be hard for us to break out of. Allowing our creativity to flow freely without being hampered in any way by our usual processes. Unplugging from these routines and venturing off-topic might be the best way to allow our minds to organically find their way to the design we were looking for in the first place.

Sweat the Small Stuff

Sometimes the flow does not find you right away, and with the deadlines looming it may be important to go ahead and get started without exactly being tapped in. Again, forcing the work tends to be a bad idea, though there are times when we do not have a choice and we have to start showing some signs of progress. In these instances, the flow is not necessarily to be written off, but simply tapped into in a different manner. Start by sweating the small stuff. Work with the minor details, the little things that tend to not take much to sort out. As you begin to provide solutions for these more minor details, other larger solutions can begin to blossom and come into focus.

So if we have to force any aspect of the design to get things started in the beginning, then keep it small. As we provide these smaller solutions within the design they may lead us to or even mirror larger ones that we can implement. In this manner, the flow finds us, just not right away. This can be a scary start to the project, especially if we believe it to be indicative of the way the entire project will unfold. However, this is not always a recipe for truly organic work as there may be elements that were not as much inspired as they were demanded. Which actually takes us to our next friend of the flow, the evolution.

Allow the Evolution

It is easy when we are feeling the pressure, to create certain elements for the design and then set them aside as they are completed. And given that we can tend to let the pressure put us in a sort of ‘out of sight, out of mind’ mental state, once we have these elements handled, we effectively forget about them. Not saying that we forget they are finished and we end up repeating ourselves, but more that we get to a place where they are no longer up for consideration. We have those solutions in place, and we refuse to revisit them for fear of wasting time that we do not feel we have. This is a huge disservice to the design and to the flow.

We allow ourselves to get into that place where we never look back, or return to the elements we consider done. But as other elements are introduced and the piece evolves we must turn back and examine how this evolution impacts what came before it. Photo by Mykl Roventine

When we are attempting to work organically, we have to let the flow evolve the design in whatever ways it sees fit as the process is carried out. Even if the solutions have already been put into place, if we are working on another aspect of the design and suddenly feel like we need to revisit those that we deemed done, then we must. Especially if they were smaller elements and they were forced in order to get things flowing in the first place. But no matter the case, if the flow that you are feeling tempts you towards this evolution of any element you need to listen to it and allow it to happen. Otherwise you are risking the effectiveness of the flow, and the organic feel of your work.

Outside In or Inside Out

If we view the design during our process as more of a connect the dots and less of a puzzle that we must piece together, then we are more likely to connect with the organic nature of the work. And like with a connect the dots picture, the image is there we just have to connect all of the various elements together to really bring the piece into focus. Meanwhile if we are looking at it as a puzzle we begin to take it in pieces, rather than viewing the entire piece as a whole. We begin trying to identify smaller images and identifiable aspects that we can use to get everything placed. With a connect the dots image we tend to start at either end and work our way towards the other. And to get a more organic design, this is how we should approach our work.

Start at one end and let the image come into view as each connection is made, so to speak. To do this simply start working from the outside of the design to the inside, or even vice versa. Let the design naturally progress through the process smoothly, without jumping around from one area to the next. This is another instance where the pen and paper approach wins out. It gives us that ability to work on the design as a drawing, which can prove invaluable here. This will also tend to create those seemless connections between each of the elements that really brings the organic nature of the design home.

A Matter of Time

As we have already kind of touched on, one of the biggest barriers to being able to allow the designs to happen organically is time. In more ways than one, this enemy of organic designs can rob you of your flow and add stress enough to stifle your creativity. Forcing our hands, and unfortunately, all too often, our designs as well. So with this proverbial wild card hanging in the air over our heads, we have to find a way to keep time on our side throughout the design process for the sake of the project and our reputations. And there are a couple of ways in which we can do this.

Schedule With Care

First and foremost, when we can help it, we need to schedule with care. Now we do not always have the benefit of being able to set the deadlines for a project based on our own variables and preferences. Generally the client has a timetable of their own that they are dealing with as well which must be taken into account. So when it comes to the project deadlines there is often only so much we can do to ensure that we allow for ample time and room for the design to organically grow the way we would like. This is not to say that the timetables are totally out of our hands, as we can easily pass on a job if we feel the deadline is too constrictive; and some clients will grant us more time if we say it is needed.

If we get a bit over-eager with our scheduling, then we may find that we are juggling too many projects at once for the organic route to be taken on any one of them. Photo by liryon

One thing that we should never do is simply ignore the timetables the client introduces and decide that we are just going to get it done when it happens. Plan ahead and seriously consider how much time you feel the project will take to complete organically before you commit. One way to help gauge the necessary time you will need for a more organic design is to consider the amount of inspiration that you get when the project is presented. If you immediately feel a connection to the project and the ideas are sparking from the jump, then it might be a safe bet that the project will run smoothly and quickly. If you have no ideas or very little inspiration strike from the outset, then chances are you will need more time to connect and make the design happen in an organic fashion. So plan for it.

Another scheduling concern that can work against us in this organic arena is more the result of overextending or committing ourselves. Do not misunderstand, it is certainly a good idea and sound practice to have more than one iron in the fire, so to speak. This way we can bounce back and forth between designs when we are not necessarily feeling inspired towards a particular one. However, we need to be careful not to take on too much so that our schedule becomes overloaded and time is no longer on our side or working for us. Suddenly it is working against us and that is not good for the projects or anyone involved.

Keep Your Eyes Off the Clock

Another way that time can impact our ability to organically grow our designs is by effectively psyching us out. When punching a clock it is easy to get sidetracked by the clock on the wall if we are not completely inspired, or worse, phoning it in. But if we are wanting to create a more naturally flowing and communicative design, then we are going to have to keep our eyes far from the face of the clock. This is something a given. For if we are keeping one eye on the clock while we are designing, then it holds true that we cannot be fully focused on the task before us. This consistent time-check sidetrack completely breaks our concentration, even if it is for just a moment, and that is unacceptable for this organic approach. It is simply not conducive to the flow.

Time is never your friend in the organic design process when you are constantly keeping one eye on the clock, and dividing your focus from the project. Photo by Dave Stokes

If we need to be aware of the time while we are designing so that we do not miss a meeting or anything of that nature, we can easily set an alarm for ourselves and then go ahead and dive right on in to the project. We do not need to be so focused on the clock then as the alarm will alert us as to the event that begs our attention. Our minds can be completely given over to the project at hand, and the clock can essentially keep an eye out for us.

How to Keep it Organic After Feedback

Now it is one thing to be able to craft the design in a completely organic fashion, but if you are working for a client then keeping it that way is something else entirely. This is a sad fact of the design field, that clients tell us what to keep and what to cut (or even worse for the sake of the organic flow and nature of the design, what to add). And it is certainly within their right to do so. But in the interest of keeping that organic harmony within the design, the client’s wishes are not always going to work for us. So that raises a couple of questions. How do we ensure it stays organic after their demanded cuts? Or how can we implement what they said organically?

Duck and Cover

One way that designers have found to somewhat guarantee that the necessary elements and thereby communication of the piece remains intact after the cuts have been handed down, is to strategically employ ducks throughout. This simply means to add obvious purposeful elements or additions to the design that are intended to draw the client’s eyes for cuts, so that the organics pretty much stay in play.

This is not always looked on favorably, but if we are concerned that the client may cut some vital solution from the design thus compromising its effectiveness, and we feel they will not be swayed by our arguments then this may be the route to opt for. This way we can at least offer some coverage to those aspects of the design we feel it would not be the same without.

Look for Links

The often more difficult hurdle that the feedback stage can place in our paths, especially with regards to maintaining our organically designed structure, comes with the call for additions to be made. Given that so much effort was put in to having the piece come together as organically as possible, any additions that are asked for could potentially compromise the integrity of the organic flow of the piece.

So when implementing feedback, you may want to try and find links to other elements or aspects that are already present in the design that these additions can be tied to so you keep that organic feel. This way the additions are woven into the organic fabric, and they do not feel like they are out of place or merely afterthoughts. Or at least, that is the hope.

Fill the Gaps

Another problem that can be created by this stage in the process, are the gaping holes that could potentially be left behind in the wake of it. If any cuts are demanded that leave the design feeling somewhat disconnected in areas and not as organic as it was, this needs to be addressed. These gaps can effectively compromise the design’s ability to communicate as it was intended, and as such, they must be tackled. This can be difficult to do, but if the gaps cannot be patched together and still convey what the design must, then we owe it to the project to attempt to repair the breaches.

If we want to maintain that organic composition and flow of communication in the design then we have to find ways to bridge any of these gaps rather than leaving them as somewhat of an impasse in the design. Photo by Wouter

When it comes to these gaps left by the client’s cuts, we need to try and fill them as unobtrusively as possible so as to not draw attention to the ‘fillers’. Lest they end up on the chopping block as well once the client has a look at the revisions. So the more we can bring these gap repairs in under the radar the better. If we feel like masking them, we can opt to add a duck or two in the revision as well to more safeguard those additions we included for the sake of the design and its overall effectiveness.

In the End

Hopefully this post proved helpful in finding ways to grow more organic designs by approaching and viewing them as a whole right from the start. And for allowing the designs to happen with that flow of inspired effort, rather than forcing it via that stressed and breathless rush towards a deadline. In the end, there are other things that we can do to ensure more organic growth for our designs, it’s just that we tend to have to find ways that work for us on a more individual basis to get there. What ways have you found work for you to allow your designs to grow in a more organic manner? Let us know in the comments section below.

(rb)

Author’s Note: In all the articles I’ve written. In all the designer profiles I’ve written and will write, this article… this testament to Paul Rand is the most worthy. If I had to write one last piece before I died, none would be so fitting or so satisfying as a spotlight on Mr. Rand. He exemplifies the best any creative could ever be. He is a symbol of struggle and strength. He is creative play and joy and power with humility. Oh, if I could only be half the creative he was.

Paul Rand (August 15, 1914 – November 26, 1996) lived a lie when he was young. Born Peretz Rosenbaum, in Brooklyn, New York, he was Orthodox Jewish. As Orthodox law forbids the creation of graven images that can be worshiped as idols, he must have felt a yearning and creative turmoil that ate away at him… and strengthened his resolve and character.

Growing up in America at that time and with his strict upbringing, he hadn’t much of a chance to follow his creative urge. With virtually no avenues for him to follow, he found creative outlets where he could – painting signs for his father’s store and doing work for his schools special events. A career in art was certainly not viewed as one that could support a family and not one a Jewish family, especially an Orthodox one in post World War l America would encourage. Considering the rampant anti-Semitism of the time, such careers were unheard of.

Art School Lives Inside Us

Peretz attended a High School chosen by his father while taking night classes at the Pratt Institute, though neither of these schools offered him much stimulation. Despite studying at Pratt and other institutions in the New York area, including Parsons School of Design and the Art Students League, he was more or less self-taught as a designer, learning about the works of great European designers from magazines such as Gebrauchsgraphik.

It could not have been easy for Rand to afford those magazines, and they were, in all probability, not welcomed in his family home. One has the vision of young Rand hiding in the bathroom at night, pouring over the pages of the magazine and hiding it under his mattress during the day.

Creatives today come from all religious backgrounds. We have found more tolerance for each other yet we all share the same tortured youth of being creative. Our family and others around us still continue to make us question our inner dreams of making a living doing what we love and are driven to do. Imagining what Rand faced and overcame, many of us realize how easy we have it… only having the internet to skim for creative inspiration, in the darkened corners of our bedrooms while our parents sleep.

While in his studies, Rand worked a part-time position creating stock images for a syndicate that supplied graphics to various newspapers and magazines, which allowed him to amass a large portfolio, influenced by European designers and the German advertising style Sachplakat (ornamental poster) as well as the works of Gustav Jensen. To further his career he felt he had to the hide his Jewish identity, easily spotted by his name. Shortening his name to “Paul� and taking “Rand� from an uncle to form his new surname. Morris Wyszogrod, a friend and associate of Rand, noted that, “he figured that ‘Paul Rand,’ four letters here, four letters there, would create a nice symbol. So he became Paul Rand.�

Rand Creates His Brand

Peter Behrens notes the importance of the new title: “Rand’s new persona, which served as the brand name for his many accomplishments, was the first corporate identity he created, and it may also eventually prove to be the most enduring.�

In his early twenties he was producing work that began to garner international acclaim, notably his designs on the covers of Direction magazine, which Rand produced for no fee in exchange for full artistic freedom. Among the accolades Rand received were those of Moholy-Nagy:

“Among these young Americans it seems to be that Paul Rand is one of the best and most capable. […] He is an idealist and a realist, using the language of the poet and business man. He thinks in terms of need and function. He is able to analyze his problems but his fantasy is boundless.�

One has to wonder what would have been said of Peretz Rosenbaum — would talent overshadow the racism of that time? Perceptions of the person and not the work still, unfortunately, exist.

Making Opportunities

While all of us who write on the industry warn about shying away from doing free work, Rand found an avenue in his pro bono efforts. Perhaps it was just the time, but if one were to find such an avenue today, willing to give total creative freedom, there are many working professionals who would jump right in. Creative freedom is too rare these days to pass up. Not to mention that most pro bono work seems to be just as restrictive and subject to “design-by-committee� as does any paying assignment.

His work for Direction caught the right people’s eyes. Success led to other successes. After being hired to design the page layout for an Apparel Arts magazine anniversary issue, an offer to take over as art director for the Esquire-Coronet magazines came his way. Initially, Rand refused this offer, claiming that he was not yet at the level the job required, but a year later he decided to accept it, taking over responsibility for Esquire’s fashion pages at the young age of twenty-three.

Twenty-three! The time of the 1930s aside, in what universe would a twenty-three year-old be given such power for a publication that even back then had huge clout in the media? Rand was experimenting with the introduction of themes normally found in fine arts, into his graphic work, further advancing his career and forming new ways of looking at graphic design, more as art than just a way to fill a page. Layout, as it was termed, was becoming art.

Rand was probably best known, at least among designers, for his iconic logos (back to the breaking of his childhood upbringing of false idols) for IBM, Westinghouse, the American Broadcasting Company (ABC) and the United Parcel Service (UPS). Even children enjoyed his work and, as adults, who doesn’t feel fond memories for his fun Colorforms logo?

Rand not only changed how design was executed and respected – he also changed the way businesses saw the need for design and branding. According to graphic designer, Louis Danziger: “He almost single-handedly convinced businesses that design was an effective tool. [. . .] Anyone designing in the 1950s and 1960s owed much to Rand, who largely made it possible for us to work. He more than anyone else made the profession reputable. We went from being commercial artists to being graphic designers largely on his merits.�

One of Rand’s defining corporate identities, if one has to pick just one, was his IBM logo in 1956, which as designer Mark Favermann professes, “was not just an identity but a basic design philosophy that permeated corporate consciousness and public awareness.� The logo was modified by Rand in 1960, and the striped logo in 1972. Rand also designed packaging and marketing materials for IBM from the early 1970s until the early 1980s. It was Rand’s ability to sell the importance of the corporate brand and how it needed to evolve and grow with the corporation itself that has given us the … permission to see that brands are not held still in time. Growth, both as a designer and with design was Rand’s gift to us… and the world!

His logos are brilliant in the simplicity and power they exude. Rand was quick to point out that, “ideas do not need to be esoteric to be original or exciting.� Looking at the unchanged ABC logo, now fifty years old (created in 1962), it epitomizes that ideal of minimalism, while giving an undisputed truth to Rand’s point that a logo “cannot survive unless it is designed with the utmost simplicity and restraint.�

Among the ideas Rand pushed in his book, Thoughts on Design, was the practice of creating graphics capable of retaining their recognizable quality even after being blurred or mutilated, a test Rand routinely performed on his corporate identities.

As with all of those who sought to change the status quo or think differently, Rand had his detractors and they were more than willing to flail him publicly with such labels as, “reactionary and hostile to new ideas about design.� Though some of us believe the title “reactionary� is a must to stretch one as a creative designer, Rand was also labeled, “an enemy of mediocrity, a radical modernist.�

As designers, don’t we strive for the fabulous? Don’t we revel in what is Earth-shattering? There are many designers we idolize but, in my opinion, few who truly deserve it. Paul Rand was no flashy egotist. It wasn’t hype or a good public relations geek working in a corner of a studio, being paid to send a thousand press releases out on one design job, hoping someone will notice. Rand gained popularity and changed our industry by struggling against everything he knew and by which he was bound. He gambled and won; and his prize is also ours while we sit comfortably behind our computers. He made us all stars and our work worthy of doing. For that, he deserves the title, as opposed to it as his religious upbringing might be, of design God… or at least our design angel!

(rb)

This wallpaper is dedicated to Steve Jobs, one of the most inspiring persons I've ever known. Without him I would not be where I am right now. Thank you! In this spirit: Stay hungry, stay foolish and enjoy this new wallpaper.

This wallpaper is dedicated to Steve Jobs, one of the most inspiring persons I’ve ever known. Without him I would not be where I am right now. Thank you! In this spirit: Stay hungry, stay foolish and enjoy this new wallpaper.