redhype | the blog

redhype is an ad agency in downtown greenville, sc that specializes in graphic and web design, branding, and marketing. The Hype Family Marie Michael Drew Jeremy David Lauren Brooks Find The Hype

[redhype]

A very redhype Christmas

“Santa Claus. Call me a scrooge, but the rotund man coming down the chimney only encourages the already rampant materialism and consumerism in our country. No holiday should be about how much stuff you can accrue.” -Cody

“My least favorite thing about the Christmas holiday is shopping. Shopping is the worst.” -Eddie

“Having to break through people's attention-addled brains and try to force them to observe traditions. You can't teach reverence or gratitude.“ -Drew

“I HATE Christmas stock photography. I understand the idea of 'faking it,' but how do you expect me to believe you're that excited about fruitcake?” -Brooks

“I'm glad that my crew is beyond the age where I have to stay up all night Christmas Eve assembling ridable toys. The worst part of which was waiting until the end of assembly to apply all the decals only to discover that I was supposed to do that in between steps 72 and 74. Now I've got to take this thing apart again. Ugh!” -Alan

“Christmas songs should be classified as a form of torture. I don't personally celebrate Christmas, but Winter Solstice rather - no one cares though. I don't care much for the warm fuzzies, and all the good will stuff. Halloween is a better holiday, in my opinion.” -Mika

“My least favorite part of Christmas is that it is now robbed us of a full day of Thanksgiving! Black Friday is now black Thursday and a half!” -Gene

“Fruitcake. I HATE fruitcake.” -Lauren

“I hate the fake outrage on the war on Christmas.” -Michael

“Inevitable over-eating.” -Maia

“Black Friday - Materialism and subsequent traffic and anger that follows.” -Marie

“Thinks I like- Merry. Things I dislike- Christmas.” -Lindsey

This does not mean that we do not LOVE Christmas. Well, most of us. Here is what was we deemed our Christmas favorites:

“Collecting ornaments with my family and decorating the tree and attending and volunteering at the Christmas services at NewSpring.” -Marie

“Long hours of family time.” -Maia

“Family time and giving gifts and Christmas lights and food and Christmas kitties. I just really like Christmas!!” -Lauren

“My favorite part of Christmas is the smell of the cedar tree and the watching of A Christmas Story. You'll shoot your eye out!” -Gene

“Lights I guess, and food with friends. It's a good time to annoy people with gaudy-ass decorations, which I get a certain satisfaction from.” -Mika

“Watching It's a Wonderful Life with my kids, then having them laugh at me when Clarence gets his wings and I cry like a baby.” -Alan

“When it comes to the holidays, I LOVE the family gatherings and togetherness. No matter the distances or differences, it seems like the season bonds us closer each year.” -Brooks

“Stockings. They're an excellent delivery mechanism for thoughtful gifts and memories... or devious ruses.” -Drew

“Most definitely the food.” -Eddie

“My favorite thing about Christmas is my family's tradition of celebration. Several year's ago, my mom got tired of cooking practically the same thing as she did for Thanksgiving, so we go to a Chinese restaurant like in A Christmas Story and then go to a movie. It keeps things much more relaxed and allows us to enjoy the day and our time together.” -Cody

Merry Christmas from Redhype!

[redhype]

What makes a great creative director?

3% Conference - What makes a great Creative Director? from Pitch on Vimeo.

Our favorite quote? "A creative director is the punching bag and lighthouse of the work."

[redhype]

3% MiniCon: Marketing to women works

Our creative assistant Lauren attended the 3% MiniCon in Atlanta last week. and wanted to share her thoughts.

The 3% MiniCon in Atlanta was about women as creative directors and marketing to women.

In 2004, a study was done showing that only 3% of creative directors were women. Since then the percentage has increased 319% to 11.5% of CD’s being women.

The main idea behind having more female Creative Directors is to keep diversity in the marketplace – both male and female working together to come up with the best marketing strategies. It keeps us (as workers in general) from working with only people that think exactly like ourselves.

Women control 73% of consumer purchasing and $20 trillion of the world’s annual consumer spending, so why don’t we market more toward women? A great example of this was given by Kat Gordon, who came up with the “Birthday Gift Test,” which asks, “Who do you ask for advice when you want to buy a woman (wife, girlfriend or friend) a gift?” You ask other women. You do not ask other men. So why not the same in marketing?

Marketing to women will not alienate men. Research shows marketing to women works because most women want more (more detailed in their wants) than men so you exceed the expectations of men. Examples given included Ikea, JiffyLube and Midas.

It was also mentioned that women are both the leading adopters of technology and largest users of social media. The only social media outlet that statistics show men use more than women is LinkedIn.

But for other outlets, Twitter is a free 24/7 focus group with the ability to offer live help and a fast way to gauge sentiment about anything and everything. Pinterest is “Visual catnip for the creative person” (No, I did not come up with that), an amazing resource for social media content, sharing unpolished depictions of women, and inspiration for campaigns.

The conference definitely sheds light on the need for diversity in the advertising world- “Mad Men” style just won’t work anymore.

Lastly, there was a “Speed Mentoring” Session featuring 20 experienced creative directors and designers (both male and female) and 20 mentees with six minutes to gain as much insight from each person as possible. It was fantastic. Something that stuck with me was from David Muhammad with Moxie, who said, “No matter what, do what you are most passionate about. It will make you happier even on the days that the workload can get you down.” He also said there is an unspoken 18-month rule. If after 18 months at a job you are not where you think you should be or you do not see growth/opportunity for growth then leave.

Amazing conference with amazing and insightful people!

http://www.3percentconf.com

[redhype]

US men's soccer team rallies behind Belgian waffle boycott

The US men’s national soccer team takes the pitch in their first knockout game against Belgium today. What’s their rallying cry? It’s no less than boycotting Belgian waffles in a “one if by syrup, two if by butter” fashion.

Among the instigators, Bojangles’ and Waffle House have taken to social media to both cheer on the most popular American soccer venture in history and push their brands.

Bojangles’ apparently just hates waffles altogether and wants to #BeatBelgiumWithBiscuits.

We've been boycotting waffles since 1977. #BeatBelgiumWithBiscuits #USAvsBEL pic.twitter.com/IpXFXWq4hr

— Bojangles' (@Bojangles1977) June 30, 2014

On the other hand, Waffle House just wants you to eat the right kind of waffles, particularly of the patriotic variety.

We ready #USA #WEBELIEVETHATWEWILLWIN pic.twitter.com/Sfdg0zXyNJ

— Waffle House (@WaffleHouse) July 1, 2014

All this goes to show that rallying behind a motto or common interest will drive the herd, but having fun with it helps even more.

[redhype]

Throwback Thursday: Michael Jordan's comeback announcement

Let’s take a trip way back to 1995, when Michael Jordan announced his retirement from his two-year mistaken foray into baseball and his return to the Chicago Bulls. He announced it with what is unquestioningly the best press release in history.

“I’m back.”

Obviously, His Airness had unparalleled worldwide stardom at the time, but sometimes the best way to inform people of what’s going on is to just tell them.

Here's to keeping the message simple.

[redhype]

Mario Maker brings out the nostalgia in us

If you grew up in the 80s or 90s, get ready for a wave of nostalgia. Nintendo has announced the impending release of Mario Maker, which allows players to create their own levels for the original Super Mario Brothers game.

Even though the 8-bit graphics haven’t been state of the art since its release in 1985, Super Mario Bros has held a special place in in the world’s collective heart for nearly 30 years, even among non-gamers.

You won’t have to blow into any cartridges to make it work, but Mario Maker will release in 2015 for the Wii U and allow players to determine the place of pipes, bricks, coins, 1-ups, and Koopa Troopas.

This signals a bit of a switch in gaming and technology in general. Previously, games such as Call of Duty essentially treated the player as a nuisance to be ushered through over the top cinematics. With Mario Maker, the overall presentation is set aside in favor of immersing the user in an environment they control and create.

Expect more along this line of thinking in branding. This generation is particularly fond of an almost open source approach that allows them to use whatever they buy in whatever way they want.

But really, the kicker here is Mario. People love the simplistic side-scrolling platform game so much that it’s the second best-selling video game in history. Consumers relish being reminded of simpler, more innocent times in their lives. Ten years ago it was Elvis Presley merchandise. That generation has been replaced in the consumer market by 80s babies, and 80s babies almost universally have some childhood memory involving Mario.

Elvis and Mario aren't the only nostalgia inducing characters on concepts in the world. What opportunities does your own brand have to tug at your customers' heartstrings?

[redhype]

A hard truth of crafting identity

Allen High School in Texas was planning on moving into a plush new 18,000-seat football stadium next season, and it "only" cost them $60 million to build.

What’s the problem? They can’t use it, because it was deemed structurally unsafe

They rushed to get into the stadium, which is the first thing someone sees when they come to a game. What was supposed to be the pretty face for this team, athletic program and school has instead turned into a black eye.

In the branding world, this is analogous to getting your niece to make a website for your on Weebly because she made a sweet MySpace design once. Cutting corners nearly always results in catastrophe.

When it comes to crafting a new identity, don’t rush into things because they’re easy. Take your time and make sure the job is done right. If you need to, hire someone who knows what they’re doing.

[redhype]

Throwback Thursday: George R.R. Martin writes his novels using DOS

This week’s Throwback Thursday takes a look at one of the most shocking things to come out of the Game of Thrones universe. Fans can relax; it doesn't contain any spoilers.

In an interview with Conan O’Brien, creator and author of the A Song of Ice and Fire series George R.R. Martin revealed that he writes his books on a computer that runs DOS. If you don’t believe someone can write a book series that sells 24 million copies with DOS, watch the segment below.

It actually seems to be a pretty brilliant way to be more productive - no Internet, no pop-ups, no distractions - even if it was already archaic when Martin published A Game of Thrones all the way back in 1996.

[redhype]

Drake handled his lint roller incident like a champ

Drake may claim to be unstoppable, but some fuzz on his pants proved him wrong when TV cameras caught him using a lint roller from his courtside seats at a playoff game between the Toronto Raptors and Brooklyn Nets a couple weeks ago.

With information travelling faster than light these days, animated gifs and memes started popping up nearly instantly. It’s only natural, of course, to rib a celebrity when he reminds us how human he is.

Drake, who was named the Raptors’ team ambassador in September, took it all in stride, even poking fun at himself on Instagram. But the best part is that the Raptors gave out promotional lint rollers in conjunction with Drake’s record label just a few days later.

Not thundersticks. Not towels. Not foam fingers. Lint rollers.

Limited edition for Game 5... ready to roll. Thanks @BounceFresh! @Drake #OVO #WeTheNorth #RTZ pic.twitter.com/BBAOlDBTgs

— Toronto Raptors (@Raptors) April 30, 2014

The best part about this is that Drake is basically saying, “Yeah, I’m a little OCD about fuzz on my pants, and that’s cool. Let’s laugh about it.”

[redhype]

Throwback Thursday: Rage Against the Machine edition

In true throwback fashion, we present to you the first ever public performance by Rage Against the Machine. The show took place way back in 1991 in Northridge, California.

Of course, since we’re talking about Rage, there’s some NSFW language.

Notice how Rage is playing for a couple people and maybe a dog at the beginning of the set, but they’ve assembled an impressive little crowd by the end.

How much can you relate to that? Whether it’s a business, band, artist or athlete, it’s tough to get people to care in the beginning. But if you keep at it with a quality product, people will pay attention. None of those people had any idea that the band they were seeing that day would go multi-platinum.

[redhype]

Redhype Exhibition #01 - Throwback Thursday

Today here at Redhype we were doing a bit of spring cleaning. As we were going through our old files and folders we came across this little guy.

You may not recognize this fly (our own employees barely did) but this was our humble beginning. The Redhype fly was meant to create buzz and upon visiting our first Flash website (Yes, we said Flash) was seemingly splatted into green goo just in case you didn't fully receive the message.

We have recently decided to start our new blog segment showcasing our very own creatives' artwork, in and out of office, in our own "Redhype Exhibition." What better way to start anew than where it all began?

1. "Hot Hot Hot" - We were so hot back then we had to really drive home that message with a gradient sunburst in the back.

2. "Fresh & Juicy" - This is an orange. We wanted you to know, your business is an orange, and we will juice it into something fresh and drinkable for your customers.

3. "Buzz-worthy business branding" - So we heard you like branding.

When we decided to post this Momma Hype herself said, "Yes, of course. Put it up! If you can't laugh at yourself, then you're too serious," then proceeded to laugh with the rest of us.

We started thinking about how we kept growing, not only as a company, but as individuals who worked together and went on to create this.

Which lead us to later make this.

And this.

The moral of the story?

"Don't stop until the job is done." - Marie Dunn-Blough

[redhype]

Owning your memes

University of Nebraska football coach Bo Pelini did one of the best things ever during his team’s spring game on Saturday, and that’s not an exaggeration.

You see, quality parody Twitter accounts are hard to come by, but @FauxPelini is that diamond in the rough. It’s so good, in fact, that Pelini has responded in about the only way possible.

And there’s this gem that @FauxPelini posted.

That led to Pelini, who works in an industry notorious for taking itself too seriously, taking the field with his team with a cat. He even held it up Lion King style.

  The best part about this is that Pelini has embraced what has become a running joke about him. That’s exactly the opposite of what the man who became the Hipster Barista meme did when he lived up to the moniker with his comments to eater.com.

“I do find it discouraging and disappointing that there was so much exposure brought to an attempt at making a joke of a culinary industry and the professional barista. To me, it's very telling on how we laud farm-to-table food, craft beer, cocktail mixology, but it's ok to have no respect for the specialty coffee world and the people who are committed to it.

“On the other hand, the whole thing only makes me want to work harder at my job, make better coffee, serve my customers better, and bring more positive exposure to both the company I work for, the barista profession, and specialty coffee as a whole. If anyone were to see my and my coworkers' work in the café, they'd see that it doesn't quite match up to most of the jokes made against the ‘Hipster Barista.’”

In the PR industry, we call this the wrong way to respond to the social phenomenon known as a joke. He takes himself far too seriously, which is a great way to both burn yourself out and make yourself the butt of even more jokes.

Contrast Hipster Barista’s reaction to that of Rick Astley. Astley has been a meme for the last seven years in what has become known as Rickrolling, when someone advertises a YouTube video as one thing, only to have his 1987 hit “Never Gonna Give You Up” play.

Astley embraced Rick rolling so much that he Rick rolled the 2008 Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade.

Take every opportunity to roll with the jokes made (in good taste, naturally) about you and/or your company. You’ll find the results refreshing.

[redhype]

Of all the David Letterman tributes, Keith Olbermann's is the best

Even if you don't like David Letterman, but the guy has been a TV legend for decades. His announcement confirming his impending retirement next year understandably sent shock waves through the media.

You may also dislike Keith Olbermann, but he has also been a cable mainstay for a couple decades. And when Olbermann takes a break from berating practically everyone under the sun to tip his cap to someone he respects, it’s worth a listen. Seriously, he equates Letterman's retirement to Babe Ruth. That's high praise.

Take a minute and watch Olbermann’s tribute to Letterman, and think of the effort and dedication required to master an art at such a high level for so long.

[betype]

Type Mural.

[typostrate]

Typo found on Instagram 19

Instagram is the fastest and most changing platform online with lots of inspirations and designs. But it seems like a Mandala if you are not fast enough to watch it, it disappears by outer influences. We try to freeze on the moments where the inspirations appear and give you some typography inspirations we found on instagram. Some of them are send by our followers and fans and the other half is found. If you like to get featured with your instagram account on our site just add #typostrate to your insta image and it will show up in our footer. Enjoy the inspirations!

Follow Typostrate on:

[serialthrill]

Dept. of Dance

[dribbblepopular]

Logo Wood Burns

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