George Costanza's confidence in Photoshop was the beginning of his downfall in this classic "Seinfeld" episode.

Q. I know the photo I sent our designers isn't great, but can't they just Photoshop it?

A. Photoshop is an impressive and useful tool, but it cannot be used in place of good photography. Designers can use Photoshop to do things such as lightening a dark image or making someone's skin look clearer. They cannot use Photoshop to change a person's clothing or hairstyle. And it would look unnatural to add someone to a group photo who was not originally there.

For proof, recall the episode of Seinfeld in which George Costanza asks the camera shop guy to remove him from a group photo. Unfortunately, he removes George's boss instead. George then tries to get a new photo of his boss with the exact same lighting and camera angle as in the original photo. This proves so difficult that George is left with no choice but to substitute a drawing of his boss.

While that is funny in a sitcom, it won't get any laughs from your real-world boss. Get a good quality photo taken to begin with and you won't have to worry. Photoshop is capable of minor enhancements - not magic!

Things Photoshop cannot fix:

Shot framing. If someone's arm is cropped out of the photo, Photoshop can't add it back in. When taking photos, zoom out a bit to leave space around your subject. Photoshop can always zoom in on an image, but it can't zoom out.

Out of focus. If the subject is fuzzy or blurry, Photoshop cannot bring it into crisp focus. If you want to blur out an area, Photoshop can do that. But if something must be clear, make sure it is in focus when the photo is taken.

Lack of imagination. If you want a well thought out, carefully planned and engaging photo, hire a professional photographer. Photoshop filters and "artsy" cropping cannot create the same interest and effect that a skilled photographer can.

Need help with design for print or web? Call Kim Landry at 484-829-0021 or email kiml@hollistercreative.com.

 

Your organization exists to help people who want or need what you provide. Yet many businesses struggle to engage more people they can help. And many nonprofits struggle to engage more people who can donate or volunteer to help others.

Why the struggle? Often it's because the organization doesn't know how to be engaging. Here is a simple formula to get you started: Prepare and share content with your target audience that follows these three pieces of advice.

1. Answer their questions.
Your prospects are asking questions about som ething they want or need as they search online for somebody, anybody to Help!

• Share your knowledge by answering typical questions on a web page or blog page and on your social media pages.
• Write the article's headline as the question and the article's text as the answer.
• Don't be afraid to "give away the store" of knowledge you have within your organization.
• Go deep enough into the subject matter for knowledgeable consumers, but be brief enough for the CEO.

2. Express your expert opinions.
Your prospects are overwhelmed by information. They want an expert to tell them what is important and how it can Help!

• By giving advice, you spice up bland facts, making them more pleasant for prospects to digest.
• When you write or speak as an expert advisor, your prospects see you as a thought leader.
• Your expert opinions naturally "sell" your expertise in a way that prospects won't dismiss as a sales pitch.

3. Be likable.
Your prospects must know, like and trust your company before they will call. Any way you can lighten up your content will Help!

• Use anecdotes to tell little stories.
• Pair text with an entertaining or spectacular image.
• Inject humor, if the subject matter allows it.
• Avoid making remarks that sound bossy, snarky or snide.
• Refrain from criticizing others, especially competitors.
• Keep every piece of content positive and upbeat.

Browse our blog to get more tips on marketing strategy.

 

Have a marketing challenge? Call Kim Landry at 484-829-0021 or email kiml@hollistercreative.com.

 

	Double negatives are fairly common in song titles. You will probably recognize more than one in the quiz below.

Q: My manager asked me to organize our company's Thanksgiving Cornucopia Raffle, but when she saw the email I sent to the employees she got angry and started sputtering about terrible grammar. All I wrote was: You can't not buy raffle tickets! What did I do wrong?

A: Your manager was upset because she was seeing double. A double negative, to be exact. Double negatives are troublesome. First, it takes extra work for our brains to untangle their meaning. Second, when two forms of negation are used in the same sentence, they cancel each other out, thus reversing the meaning. So your email did not promote the Cornucopia Raffle effectively.

Next time, use only one negative word in any sentence. Let the song "Ac-Cent-Tchu-Ate the Positive" be your guide. This song says the key to happiness is to accentuate the positive and eliminate the negative. It's good advice for living well and writing well.

Trivia: The song "Ac-Cent-Tchu-Ate the Positive" was published in 1944 and nominated for the Academy Award for Best Original Song for Bing Crosby's 1945 movie, Here Come the Waves. When the song was released, America was fighting World War II. Times were hard. Although the Academy Award went to "It Might as Well Be Spring" from State Fair, the song's message still stands.

Client's Challenge

	Click here to view other examples of before and after logo designs.

Mazda Miles founded Perfection Events in 2009. The company provides design, planning and production of large-scale events for corporate and nonprofit clients. By "large-scale," we mean huge: like the Delegates Reception at the Democratic National Convention and the Philadelphia Marathon Health and Fitness Summit.

Like many growing companies, Perfection Events reached a point where its logo was no longer in sync with the scale and prestige of the company's recent accomplishments. The  frilly, pink "PE" icon began feeling too lightweight for a business accustomed to heavyweight responsibilities. Furthermore, when the size of the logo was reduced, the words "Perfection" and "Events" became unreadable.
 
Miles came to Hollister Creative asking for a striking, edgy, clean and memorable logo that would align with her company's status and personality. She also asked us to integrate the full company name into the logo so it could be used in the square spaces provided for logos on social media sites.

Our Solution
Miles had just completed a redesign of her company website that incorporated slate green and a deep purple. She liked the website colors so much she asked us to use them in her new logo. The darker colors enabled us to make the logo pop on a white background. 

We eliminated the PE initials and added a circle for its many layers of meaning. The circle represents the company's holistic approach to event planning and execution.The two halves of the circle represent the coming together of the Perfection Events team and client teams to form one entity when working on projects. The circle also represents the company's commitment to completing the project cycle from start to finish: Perfection goes "full circle" with each client.

Finally, we made the company name large and used a modern font that's easy to read. Now, the word "Perfection" is literally front and center, grabbing attention in all uses and sizes.

Client Comment
"My previous logo was centered around the scripted PE, but what did PE mean anywhere else? Nothing. What we are known for is Perfection. I wanted to drive that home. When I pass out a card or brand anything, I want the word 'Perfection' to pop into the person's mind. Our new logo accomplishes that.

Did I mention we love it? I'll say it again ... we LOVE it !!!!!!!!"

Three Quick Tips

If you are challenged to redesign a logo, keep these tips in mind:

1. Type must be legible. The logo's job is to make the company name memorable. So the logo should be fired if the name is not legible at the smallest size it will be used. Versions of the logo also need to be legible when surrounded by colors or on top of a colored background.

2. Use the whole name. Unless the company is known by a set of initials, use the whole company name in the logo. In general, initials are easily confused, open to interpretation and not memorable.

3. Keep it simple. Even if the client's name is not "Perfection," the perfect logo is a simple, bold design. The more "stuff" you add to a logo design, the less effective it becomes.

Click to view more Case Studies with Tips.

Challenges and Solutions are mini case studies that include tips you may find helpful if you are facing a similar challenge. View more Challenges and Solutions on the Hollister Creative website. If you are facing a marketing challenge, call 484.829.0021 or email Kim Landry.

The holidays are here and long lost relatives are on their way to dine with you. That means awkward pauses when you struggle to make conversation with Cousin Felix twice-removed or Great-Great-Auntie Ursula. 

The antidote to awkwardness is preparation! This month's Chat Pack give-away will ensure you always have something to talk about. Each pack contains 156 cards, each offering a question to get people talking and interacting. 

Simply pull out any card, read it aloud and in a matter of seconds you'll have people telling about mischievous things they've done for fun, movie characters they think are like them or wacky things that happened in a job interview. Conversation won't fall flat when you have the Chat Pack!

If you would like a Chat Pack for the holidays, email us a request! Three subscribers who have not won a giveaway item in six months will be randomly selected to receive one.