The first step was to design a logo and branding for the event. I started off by drawing the lettering in Photoshop using my Wacom tablet. I painted the colors inside the letters using these watercolor brushes from Bittbox.

I also tried a variation with the lettering reversed out on a red background:

In the final version of the logo I ended up removing the outline around the lettering, cleaning up the letters and adding some texture and the red/blue of the Haitian flag behind.

Once we finalized the branding, I designed the event web site and handed it off to Ben Stewart for development. This is the final version of the site that goes live today:

Mark your calendars for February 27 for this special event. I’m excited to partner with Compassion International for this event to help the people of Haiti. But don’t wait until February 27, you can click here to give to Compassion’s relief work or text “DISASTER” to 90999 to donate a gift of $10.

A specially rigged Coca Cola vending machine was set up overnight in Marilac Hall at St John’s University in Queens, with five hidden cameras ready to catch the action. The next day students were surprised by a vending machine that handed out (literally in some cases) pizza, flowers, extra Coke, balloon animals and a a six-foot sub. The video ends with the question, “Where will happiness strike next?”

Coca-Cola “Happiness Machine”

Ok, I can’t even begin to tell you how much I love this video! It’s so creative. I don’t know how or where but I’m going to do something like this here in Indianapolis.

What do you think of the “Happiness Machine” video? If I were a betting man I’d lay down money that you’re already emailing it to someone…am i right?

Time for a little self-examination and honesty. Here’s mine…

I WISH sometimes that I had a lot of money and lived a life of ease and luxury
I AM actually enjoying the life that I’m living right now
I WILL BE dead and buried in 70 years so why do I keep chasing after the things that won’t last?

I WISH I had the six-pack abs and well-toned physique
I AM someone who works behind a computer all day so go figure
I WILL BE as strong and as fit as I have the discipline to be

Your turn…

I Wish…I Am…I Will Be…

A German book company, Eichborn, decided to create an advertising campaign for their booth at the 2009 Frankfurt Book Fair that, uh, flies in the face of convention (sorry, I’m a sucker for bad puns). Eichborn’s “smallest commercial gimmick in the world” campaign was simple: attach physical banner ads to actual flies. Yes, they somehow tied small red Eichborn banner ads to flies and let them loose in the Frankfurt Book Fair. The result was flying advertising that nobody could miss.

(ht: @MichaelForsberg)

What do you think of the flyvertising campaign? Creative? Gross?

• writing scathing emails to our boss or client and then later deleting them
• screaming obscenities as we struggle to force every creative muscle in our body to use that font
• sticking pins in little voodoo dolls that curiously resemble our boss
• scheduling emergency phone appointments with our psychologist…3 times….in one day
• Curling up and rocking slowly on the floor in the corner of our office while trying to convince ourselves to get back up and finish that project

Creatives are known for having very thin skin. We have a difficult time taking any criticism, let alone the stupid kind you get from people who wouldn’t recognize something creative if it were screen-printed in neon Pantone colors on their face.

I’d like to share a few stories during out sessions at Cultivate tomorrow so this is where you come in.

Tell me the story of your biggest creative confrontation with your boss, co-worker or client and how did you end up resolving it?

I recognize that you may need to post your comment under creative anonymous names such as “Confused Creative” or “$#@%$ Frustrated Designer” in order to protect your identity. So go ahead and get that story off your chest.

[photo by xgravity23]

Will your family be doing Halloween costumes this year? If so, what characters do you have planned?

BEFORE: Assorted White Castle sandwiches & sides

AFTER: Tapas de Castillo Blanco

BEFORE: Burger King Croissan’wich & Ham, Egg & Cheese biscuit meal

AFTER: BK Quiche

BEFORE: Popeyes Chicken Meal with Sides

AFTER: Spicy Chicken Sushi

BEFORE: Dunkin’ Donuts Boston Cream & Strawberry Filled

AFTER: Boston Krème Brûlée & Fruit Tart

Who knew fast food could look so good?

Many of us are not on a path; we’re in a rut. We have confused comfort with peace, belief with faith, safety with wisdom, wealth with blessing, and existence with life.

Now what you have to ask yourself is this: am I willing to move from what I have to what I could create? Am I willing to give up what I know for what I don’t know? Do I keep shrinking back to the life I have because it’s the default mode for existence? Am I willing to risk everything I have to create the life I could have? This is the same tough choice that those who came before us and were marked by faith had to make.

Our dreams are one of the most valuable things we have as human beings. We start out in life with big dreams of who we can be (astronaut, cowboy, president) and then temper those dreams with reality as we grow older. We know that God has called us to do something extraordinary but eventually life beats the dreams out of us. We settle for simple dreams like making it through the week or paying off the loan on the car, hardly the kind of dreams that infuse us with passion and energy.

I love talking with people who still know and is chase after their God-sized dream. They’re inspiring to be around. They give you life and remind you that we really can accomplish far more than we think in our limited imaginations.

That’s why I’m so excited about something called DreamLabs by Erwin McManus and the amazing dreamers at Awaken. Watch this teaser video:

I’ve already registered to start a 12-person DreamLab here in Indy (local and interested? let me know if you’d like to join my DreamLab).

If you want information on hosting your own DreamLab in your area email dreamlab@awaken.org to request more information. (ht: BeDeviant for letting me know about this)

I wonder how many people while visiting this zipper pond instinctively checked to see if their fly was down…

That’s why it’s refreshing to see new ideas that help bring an interactive, memorable element to the advertising message. (ht: TheCoolHunter.net)

Nikon D700 Paparazzi Billboard

At a busy Seoul subway station, Nikon mounted a huge interactive, light-box billboard displaying life-like images of paparazzi that appear to be jostling and competing for the best celebrity snap. The celebrities in this case are the passersby, who automatically triggered a deluge of flashing camera lights as they walked past the billboard. The accidental superstars then followed the red carpet all the way out of the station and into a mall – directly into the store where they could purchase the new D700.

Fitness First Wait Watching

No more living in denial about the size of your waist line, thanks to this fantastic albeit terrifying guerrilla marketing initiative from the health club chain, Fitness First. Unsuspecting commuters in the Netherlands are faced with viewing their body weight in bright lights – quite literally – when they take a seat at this Rotterdam bus stop. Scary to say the very least, but extraordinarily clever. I’m curious, what would you think about this advertisement? Does it go too far or would it accomplish the goal of getting you into the gym?

Get Them Off Your Dog (People As Fleas)

A mall in Jakarta, Indonesia, has taken interactivity and creepy-crawliness to a new, flat level with the creation of this massive ‘floor sticker’ in an Jakarta shopping center. The ad, for Jakarta’s pet emporium JAKPETZ, promotes Frontline Flea & Tick Spray with the slogan ‘Get them off your dog.’ Viewed from the upper levels, the people walking on the ad look disgustingly flea-like which serve to help reinforce the ad message and probably lead to quite a few camera-phone pics.

Interactive Sharpie E-Cast

Most have a fascination with graffiti art. How many of you have ever looked over your shoulders to make sure no one’s watching when you scratch your initials in a freshly laid slab of cement? Yeah, me neither. The creative minds working for Sharpie, the ultimate in permanent markers, have discovered a way to satiate our desires to deface public domain.  Interactive e-cast billboards have been scattered around cities, which allow people to experience the rush of creating their own graffiti.  Choose some colours, write a message and Sharpie makes it possible for anyone to leave his permanent mark on the side of the bus stop or the public phone or anywhere else billboard adverting may be experienced. I’d be curious if, since it’s in a public place, the messages remain appropriate. Either way, it’s a great concept – a billboard that interacts with the customer.

Koleston HairCare Billboard

To promote the line of Procter & Gamble’s Wella Koleston HairCare Naturals hair colourant, H & C – Leo Burnett Beirut did this creative piece of outdoor where the woman’s hair, die cut out of the billboard, allows the colour variations of day and night shine through. While the message may be too subtle for most I think it’s an ingenious new take on a traditional ad medium that’s been around for years.

What ads have you seen lately that have really stood out in your mind?