Be Creative

News & updates from the Kinetic Creative Team

[fromcreativechameleon-blog]

Celebrating World Turtle Day

[fromcreativechameleon-blog]

A couple of examples of our work, on-shelf at #UKToyFair last week. And now we’re gearing up for Spielwarenmesse 2019. All work and all play...

[fromcreativechameleon-blog]

New year, new opportunities. What can we do for you in 2019?

Fancy a brand makeover? Need a marketing campaign for your latest product? Or simply want some new ideas to boost sales?

We can help. Get in touch.

[fromcreativechameleon-blog]

Our studio will be closed from 5pm December 21st until 9am January 2nd. Happy Christmas to all. We look forward to catching up with you in 2019.

[fromcreativechameleon-blog]

Great to see our designs on display at Essen. Lots of meetings and a certain amount of games-playing too...

[fromcreativechameleon-blog]

3 times (or more) you’ll need a full-service design agency

You might not need our services every day, but we’re willing to bet that sometimes you’d like a little help to get your message across. That’s likely to be…

1. When your business needs a boost. Not sure how you want your new logo to look (and how to use it when you’ve got it)? Wondering if your still-in-the-pipeline website will have the impact it should? Thinking about revamping your brand to attract more customers?

Whether you’re a start-up wanting to tell the neighbourhood about your product, or an established name looking to break into a different market, we have the technology (to quote a TV show you’re clearly too young to remember).

2. When your in-house design team has to meet a tight deadline, or is tackling a major project and could do with some additional talent on board for as long as it takes.

Getting a fresh perspective on your ideas can work wonders, turning your nearly-there campaign into a sure-fire hit.

3. When you want to resolve an issue and it would be good to call on some expertise. Design crisis looming? Tone of voice needing work? Looking for some promotional items for an exhibition?

Anything here sounding familiar? Give us a call and tell us what you need. It’s the first step to getting things done.

[fromcreativechameleon-blog]

Designing instructions for a new game. First set in German, three more European language versions to follow...

[fromcreativechameleon-blog]

The Great Kinetic Bake Off. Rules; if your chosen baker (name drawn from a hat at the start of the series) leaves the tent you bring your own baked offering into the studio. These are Sue’s chocolate covered shortbread biscuits. Roll on coffee time...

[fromcreativechameleon-blog]

Took delivery today of leaflets we designed to promote a client’s theatre workshops. Always a good moment...

[fromcreativechameleon-blog]

Choosing images to use in a promotional campaign for a local stage school, ahead of some summer holiday workshops. Great to introduce young people to the joys of musical theatre; boosts confidence and encourages teamwork! #campaigns #amdesigning #musicaltheatre

[fromcreativechameleon-blog]

Finishing touches added to the KMCD Privacy Policy. GDPR compliant.

[fromcreativechameleon-blog]

Sourcing Braille translations of brochures and sales leaflets for clients, improving accessibility to important information.

[fromcreativechameleon-blog]

How to Stay Friends and Influence Your Clients

It occasionally happens that a client you’ve worked with since the early days of their business, or since they decided to rebrand an existing business, chooses to go it alone.

When this happens, don’t fret. Much better to take the view that you’ve done a great job and given them the confidence to tackle things themselves.

You’ve designed a logo and penned a strapline that works across all media, chosen (or created) a font that reflects the business ethos – sober / quirky / warm / aspirational – and complemented it with a colour palette that adds variety to every campaign. You’ll have had numerous discussions about the best way to use all these elements in adverts, on social media, stationery, packaging, shop fronts, exhibition stands and more. Your contacts in the client’s office will have seen what you can produce and will be inspired to get creative.

This has to be a good thing. All those people now understand why brand consistency matters and how to achieve it in their business lives. They see that good design makes for clear communication, which drives progress and directly affects the bottom line.

Keep in touch

Of course, just as anyone learning to ride a bike will keep someone close at hand to straighten them up when they wobble, a fledgling marketing manager would do well to stay in contact with the person who created the brand look.

Your role now changes from designer to mentor, someone to check in with whenever a new challenge crops up, just to look things over, preferably before anyone presses send. To formalise such an agreement, consider putting a brand guardianship retainer in place, at least while the handover takes effect. And this transition period is the perfect time to create a style guide – or some style sheets, at the very least – to show how to use the brand elements (more importantly, how not to…).

So empty-nesters, don’t give up on the client who wants to go it alone. Offer support for as long as it’s needed, then turn to new subjects for your brand awareness masterclass.

[fromcreativechameleon-blog]

Nando's cries fowl over rival's branding

The chicken giant launches legal action, claiming a Berkshire restaurant copied its name and images.

When imitation is not the sincerest form of flattery

We’ve said it before and we’ll probably say it many times more, but it’s essential to consider – very carefully – the name, colour palette and logo design for your product before going live. Check that your brand isn’t going to land you in trouble with your competitors, especially if they’re bigger than you and have everything to gain by taking legal action to defend their stance.  

Aside from all that, why wouldn’t you want to use your brand to proclaim your individuality?  Rhetorical question, of course, placing your product in the consumers‘ eye line in colours that bring to mind a rival’s offering is very likely to have an impact on sales. But it’s a sure way to invite trouble (think Sainsbury’s versus Coca Cola a few years ago) so, please, don’t do it.

[fromcreativechameleon-blog]

Finally we have snow! 😃❄️ View thru the round window!

[fromcreativechameleon-blog]

This is our #beastfromtheeast keeping guard over the carpark by The Folly.

[fromcreativechameleon-blog]

All the world’s a stage

You’re rehearsed to within an inch of perfection, the costumes fit beautifully and the set delivers a massive visual punch. On opening night tension mounts backstage. Lights dim, the curtain rises – and the cast outnumbers the audience.

Make sure the theatre-going public knows about your show.

We can create eye-catching designs to support any promotional drive and keep your production in full view of your target audience. Posters, handbills, banners, programmes, adverts, web graphics – if you want it, we can do it.

It’s our copywriter’s (slightly biased) view that words matter just as much as pictures, so we complement our visuals with pithy and informative text, to briefly explain the plot, whet the appetite and boost ticket sales.

We have a back catalogue of show graphics and supporting copy that can be adapted to suit, but would be delighted to create something new for your play, musical or cabaret. (If you’re planning long-term, we can rebrand your company or venue, starting with something as simple as a new logo.)

Get in touch and we’ll send you some more examples of our work, so you can make an informed decision. Sound like a plan?