A couple of months ago we revealed SBS had claimed 10th spot in Desktop Magazine’s Top 10 Australian Logos of All Time.

Finally they have announced the winner of 9th place – Australia Post.

Click here to read the full article and get the inside scoop on logo’s history and design process.

First it was blogs, then Facebook and Twitter, and now Pinterest is becoming the go to social media platform, and marketers are cashing in.

With 620,000 Australian users in June alone (up 60,000 from May), Pinterest is definitely the new social media kid on the block.

Dr. William J. Ward, a Social Media professor at Syracuse University, says the habits of technology users, and the fact they are more pressed for time, has lead to the natural progression from large chunks of copy to more succinct information appearing in our news feeds.

“Blogs were one of the earliest forms of social networking where people were writing 1,000 words. When we moved to status updates on Facebook, our posts became shorter. Then micro-blogs like Twitter came along and shortened our updates to 140 characters. Now we are even skipping words altogether and moving towards more visual communication with social-sharing sites like Pinterest.”

Enter Pinterest – a virtual pinboard that allows users to upload, like and re-pin anything and everything that takes their fancy. From wedding boards to food ideas and even a category dedicated to tattoos, there is no limit to the creativity it can share and inspire.

And now companies are jumping on the Pinterest bandwagon, tapping into a huge audience of over 14.9 million users.

In an effort to engage with and attract and an audience, many companies are creating online pinboard competitions. And they are working. Not only does it generate traffic and increase awareness of a brand through the various social media links, but competitions can also help collect important customer information if contestants are required to fill out an entry form.

Our favourite Pinterest competition comes from Homes.com, where the company teamed up with some if the industry’s top bloggers to create the ‘Spring Into The Dream’ contest.

The competition required bloggers to create a board that showcased their ‘Spring Into The Dream’ ideas and share it with their blog and Pinterest followers. Homes.com then gained traffic from the bloggers, blog readers and their Pinterest followers, achieving the ultimate social media goal – virality. Homes.com managed to put in minimal effort to achieve maximum results, utilising every opportunity to reach a very wide audience.

If you’ve been inspired to join the Pinterest family and start your own competition to attract and engage with your customers, here are some tips to achieve the best results:

• Set goals and objectives you want to achieve from the competition.
• Keep your target audience in mind; what would they be interested in?
• Choose a prize that will entice your audience.
• Have clear and simply participation rules. The easier it is to enter, the more entries you’ll receive!
• Create an attractive landing page.
• Encourage sharing on other social media sites.
• Make sure things are re-pinnable and properly linked.
• Make the post of pin descriptions with clear, sharp copy.

Looking for more inspirational ideas? Check out these Pinterest competitions to get your creative juices flowing!

• AMC Theatres
• British Airways
• HuHot
• Threadless
• High Point Markets

Desktop Magazine has announced its top ten Australian logos of all time, and coming in at number ten is – drum roll please – SBS!

Votes from a panel of 7 judges have been tailed with those of an online reader’s poll to determine Australia’s ten best logos.

Click here to get an insight into the history behind the SBS logo and stay tuned as the following nine logos are revealed over the next few weeks.

Our friend and fellow art lover and dealer, Sophie Gannon, has had her gorgeous home featured in The Design Files. Take a peek inside her beautifully sleek yet homely abode here.

If you’ve jumped on the bandwagon of the latest smart phone app, Logos Quiz, you’ll understand the knack some logos have of sticking in your mind as a depiction of a company or campaign. The golden arches of the McDonald’s empire or the black Nike swoosh are great examples of a logo representing a brand.

So what happens when such an iconic logo is changed?

Last week, the Governor of New York, Andrew Cuomo announced the world recognised ‘I Love NY’ logo would be receiving a make-over. The New York State Division of Marketing, Advertising and Tourism, in conjunction with BBDO Advertising launched its multimedia campaign featuring the designs of New York locals and tourists in place of the original red heart.

The purpose of the campaign was to represent New York as a state with an abundance of attractions on offer, rather than simply New York City which is usually associated with the logo. New designs point out a range of destinations across the state, like Niagara Falls, Finger Lakes and the Saratoga Races.

Although it seems the logo will go back to its original form after the American summer, should it have been changed in the first place? Check out the images below and let us know what you think!

Offices we love nearly as much as our office, but would you get any work done?
These are some rooms of offices such as Skype and Red Bull, please click   here  to browse further creative office designs, care of The Cool Hunter

A reminder that earth hour is this Saturday 31st March 8.3pm.

Get your torches, candles, globe sticks and night vision goggles ready for this weekend. More than 5,200 cities and towns in 135 countries worldwide switched off their lights for Earth Hour 2011.

Click here for the official earth hour website.

Can you believe we are nearly in March? Our 2012 Calendars feature quotes by famous and intriguing characters to keep the motivation levels up each month!
Next month is “The trouble with the rat race is that even if you win, you’re still a rat.” – Lily Tomlin.

For some inspiration, a giggle and a free copy please email: experience@lma.com.au

2012 — Is This The End of the World as We Know It?

Perhaps not quite the apocalyptic “end of days” of Hollywood blockbusters, but will 2012 bring a profound change to the way we operate as marketers?

Consider this: Did you know that only 14% of consumers trust advertisements, whereas 90% trust peer recommendations? That in the USA 90% of TV viewers routinely skip commercials? That Facebook now tops Google for weekly traffic? Or that YouTube is currently the world’s no. 2 search engine? Read Lauren’s observations (supported by even more interesting statistics) Continue reading »

We were delighted to be appointed by Podco and Pembroke Developments to create the marketing and advertising communications for Roseneath, at 82 Roseneath Street, Clifton Hill. Continue reading »