Fanatic.

It seems Laura's been working so hard that she has been lacking in social interaction, and therfore taken to making her own company to chat to. Oh well it's almost time for a break at Christmas!!

Back to Top

Most of us office based types spend 8 hours plus with the same view, all day, every day.

We recently spent some time and money investing in some new art to grace the walls, a magnetic board to leave each other 'colourful' messages, framed posters and prints. We also took the time and effort to have a big tidy up, moving our Macs from our desks onto the floor to create a cleaner, brighter working space. Clients and visitors often comment on the space we inhabit here at the Tobacco Factory, and we strive to keep the working environment a pleasant place. It can sometimes be a hard balance to strike; keeping a work space clean and tidy, when the work that you do constantly creates mess!

If your view could do with a bit of TLC and some inspirational decor, you'd do worse than to check out some of the following websites for prints, pictures and more... There are plenty of examples of contemporary and traditional office and studio spaces which have been given more than a new coat of magnolia.

THREADLESS

CORE 77

THE COOL HUNTER

Of course, there are some views that you can't change quite so easily!

Back to Top

Whether conceiving a new brand, designing a piece of print work or creating a website, the colours we use in our designs are paramount in communicating the right message.

Colours naturally convey certain messages within our culture and therefore have an effect on how a brand, flyer or website is perceived. Red, for example has connotations of 'Heat', 'Anger' and 'Power' whereas Blue carries undertones of 'Cool' and 'Calm'.

With this in mind the team at Fanatic focus closely on choosing a palette to suit the client or piece of design we're working on.

Colour combinations or 'colour palettes' can provide a company with an identity which carries further than a logo. Virgin Media, for example are known for their Warm, Red based colour palette, O2 for their fresh blues.

We've found a fantastic site which users can upload their own colour palettes in a bid to inspire and motivate other creative types. (Also handy when you're thinking of redecorating the downstairs loo!)

Check out www.colourlovers.com and be inspired!

Back to Top

Is this just the finest advert of 2008 or what!

it accompanies the launch of the new visual identity for Barclaycard, and as far as brand communication goes it does not need much explaining with the metaphor of a water slide out of the office; breaking free, representing touch free credit card use. Well Ok it might be a bit tenuous but it is definitely eye catching, engaging and memorable brand communication!

This is work is from BBH London, the creative behind some of the most eye catching spots... take a look at the full length 90 second version of waterslide on youTube... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0DiAjL72FVE

Back to Top

We've been struggling to communicate what we do with a brand.  We help understand brands, we align them, we discover what the soul of a brand is, what it's essence is, what it's favourite films are and what defines a brand.  

Communications expertise aside for a moment, I defy anyone to come up with a single term that describes what we do for brands.

Branding is about being remarkable. Branding answers the question of why a company or product exists. Branding is the heart, the soul, and the essence of a company or a product. Without a brand, a company would cease to exist. Branding serves as the anchor, as the core … as the gravitational force that every marketing activity revolves around.

Marketing is the articulation of the brand. Marketing is about telling the story of about how/why a company or product is remarkable. Marketing happens at every customer touch-point from an encounter with a customer service rep on the phone, to a television commercial, to a conversation between a store employee and a customer, to an email from the company, to a conversation between two customers about a company or a product. Marketing is everywhere communication (verbal and non-verbal) about a company or product happens.

Back to Top

We have had Mason in on Work Experience all week from Bristol Cathedral School. He has been working on a piece of promotional work for Brunel's ss Great Britain, using this brief to experiment with typography and layout. Here is one of the designs he has produced, which we feel is of a high standard for a year 11 student. We have enjoyed Mason being here and wish him good luck with his Graphic Design training in the future.

Back to Top

Following our recent re-brand and move away from the old 'Fanatic Design', and it's cyan footprints, we're here to hold your hand and help you to move forward too. Honestly, it really didn't hurt that much!

Whilst change might seem over-whelming, complicated, expensive even, it doesn't have to be difficult and is key to your Marketing activity.


This BBC potted logo history shows how far they've come in a relatively short time, constantly re-assessing, re-evaluating and rebranding the corporation. This process has enabled the BBC to reposition themselves within the incredibly diverse and dynamic broadcasting industry and remain fresh and relevant . And of course, it's not 'just a logo' - everything changes from the corporate colours to the staff charter.

There are some essential elements to consider before a rebrand.

No doubt you'll be keen to ensure that your current customers are behind your decisions and loyal to progress, so their feedback and opinions should be sought. The same is true for those that work for and with you, because if staff aren't supportive of the move, the customers won't be either.

What's more, all of your 'touch points' should be taken into consideration - after-all, what good is a new shop front is the furniture on the inside is falling apart?

Sometimes it's all too easy to compare ourselves to our equivalents or others in the same market place. It's just as valuable to review what's happening in other sectors as this will provide you with an overall picture of what's happening. For example, if everyone's raving about the new Google browser, Google Chrome - find out why!

It's worth remembering, sometimes just a small evolution is all that's needed to put a skip in your step and rejuvenate business. We're always happy to make suggestions, get involved and lend creative ideas to your thinking.

Back to Top

We like to have as much inspiring visual matter around us as possible. Our studio can look cluttered to some, but most people see a hard working space which is certainly visually rich! Adding to the variety are 4 new limited edition screen prints using our 4 favourite fonts to make imagery of naked ladies... Those of us who have spent hours in life drawing classes will know just how difficult it is to produce a convincing image of the female nude, but as graphic designers these are by far the most appealing life drawings we have seen!

The series is called Ladies of Baseline, from Ink Finger. Click here to visit their site.

Back to Top

After months of hard work, the Welsh Lamb website for HCC - Meat promotion Wales is now live!

We are very proud of how the site communicates the key brand messages, which are mainly to do with the quality of the market leading produce, and the fact that Wales has the finest country side in the world for its production.

See the site here: www.eatwelshlamb.co.uk

There is a farming and meat production industry website on its way too. The designs are signed off, and this is in build stage. This will be launched at the end of October.

Back to Top

Welcome to the Fanatic blog!!

It's been a few weeks/months in the making, but it's here, it's live and we're not afraid to use it.

We'll be using this space to boast, brag, moan and generally keep you up to date with the goings on here at Loft 3 in the Tobacco Factory. We also have a regularly updated News section on our website which we use to post stories and announcements of merit.

The studio is remarkably quiet this week with the absence of David and Nick on their summer holidays. The rest of us have found that we can keep ourselves amused with some good old fashioned hard work, BBC 6 Music and caffeine. We have a number of projects, mostly online which we're working towards putting live in the coming weeks -keep an eye on the News page for new releases....

In the meantime, on this sunny Friday afternoon we urge you to check out the very talented San Francisco based designer Scott Hansen aka ISO50 - we've just invested in some amazing prints to grace the walls of our new gallery!

Back to Top