soulsight®

Recently, I've been seeing quite a few things around that make me remember growing up in the 80s. Maybe you are like me and you grew up on synthesized music, bright geometric shapes, pizza rolls and brilliant television shows such as Perfect Strangers and Alf. Maybe you're not, but it's hard not to appreciate some of the ways that designers are borrowing from that era to create catchy pieces.

I found this artist online that I love named Sakke Soini. I've included a Ray Ban ad that Sakke did as well as something that I want to hang somewhere on my wall -- though I have no idea what it's for. Call me weird, but seeing a neon blue tiger wearing a ball cap and spitting guitar chords out of its mouth with the death star looming in the background is nothing short of genius. I've also included a few album covers that have that 80s feel, specifically, the Beck 8-bit disc that looks just like an old Nintendo cartridge. And, of course, the study would not be complete without a set of retro Reebok pumps donning the standard bright color palette of the era. Maybe this trend is more of a small niche than a huge movement, but I know I'm digging it.

Credit: enschedeaanzee.nl

Wish you could snap your fingers and a cold beer shows up? How about a quick phone call? Grolsch has found a refreshing way to bring cold to the streets of the Netherlands with its "Cool*Season" campaign. Just dial up the "Cool*Hotline" and a Grolsch-slinging rep will zoom in on a scooter (complete with refrigerated sidecar, no less) and trade your other brand of beer for a chilled can of Grolsch Premium Pils. Each can features a "Cool*Meter", ensuring you'll get the optimal chilled experience. Very cool.

For more info on other "Cool*Initiatives", visit the Grolsch site.

Unplug Design's Dreamball is simply awesome. It's a perfect example of how inventive design can serve a greater purpose, something more than just nudging one towards one product or another.

Dreamball is a cylindrical, custom aid package delivered to children in developing Third World countries ravaged by war, poverty and famine. It's a new way to think about creating a sustainable package that can be more than just a throwaway vessel for a product.

When the children take the paper off the package and follow the simple patterns and instructions on it, they can building themselves a pretty cool soccer ball. The leftover cylinder can be used to store the soccer balls and rolled to wherever they want to play, and the cardboard is biodegradable. And because most of the soccer is played barefoot, the lightweight, flexible design works great. This really can bring some joy and hope to kids who have not been afforded too much of either. It's always inspiring to see outside-the-box thinking, of course very literally this time, but even more so when it's impacting lives in the best way possible.

Nearly ten years ago, BP rebranded themselves as "beyond petroleum". However, with this year's controversial oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, Greenpeace has suggested that the company is in need of a new logo better suited for its "dirty business" and has launched a contest in search of the best redesign. The winning entry will be used as a part of Greenpeace's international tar sands campaign against BP.

To enter Greenpeace's Behind the Logo competition, submit your redesign by June 28th, 5:30 GMT.

For more information on the recent BP Gulf oil spill, visit the Greenpeace site.

In a world of changing demands and definitions, nothing is more in flux than the meaning of the word "luxury". Creating a unique brand experience beyond an emphasis on the product itself is increasingly important. If a holistic experience is created, truly personalized and considered by the consumer as a luxury, then a luxury product is born. For luxury is no longer just Almas caviar, Perrier Jouet champagne and Stuart Weitzman shoes. Luxury is purely in the eye of the beholder.

“Fluxury” is a term coined by trendwatching.com for the ever-evolving definition of luxury. Luxury itself is not a new concept, but its definition is a moving target. While delving further into this new realm of “fluxury”, we have uncovered several examples of how you can start to think about your brand in a new light. By tapping into learnings from the “fluxury” movement, your brand has the potential to not just exceed expectations, but move to unpredictable and rewarding heights of success.

Download Printable Fluxury Movement Insights

Soulsight is not only dedicated to the work we do, we are also dedicated to letting our co-workers know when they are appreciated. Over the past couple weeks, we’ve created an anonymous way to let people know when they’ve been “Caught in the Act”.

The feeling of being appreciated can go a long way. By setting this little card on someone’s desk, you might brighten their day.

Try this! Print these cards out to pass around your work!

Pretty much what we do everyday is experiment.
We experiment with ideas, strategies, designs, new ways of thinking and approaching problems.
Experimentation allows freedom to explore around the edges,
peaks and valleys, the expanse and the elasticity of ideas and concepts.
This is where the mind challenges assumptions and lets go of the norm,
and is free from bureaucracy.
During experimentation, there is no fear of failure;
it's all "what ifs" and preliminary answers and questions.
Experimentation isn't the solution; it's how you get to the solution.
And it makes knowing what does and doesn't work happen more rapidly.
It can lead to collective learning experiences and more meaningful collaboration.
The mind likes this freedom, and it's where great ideas come from.
Experimentation introduces the intellect and information to creativity,
forming quantum leaps to great ideas.

As designers, we are always referring to the Pantone Color Matching system for any project we work on. I find myself constantly gravitating toward the same colors time after time. Well, Pantone is now introducing more colors and several user-friendly tools to make our lives just a little easier. This new Pantone Plus system will include a new chromatic arrangement of colors (where they used to add any new colors to the end of the pack) as well as ink formulations for mixing colors, a color index, and a lighting evaluation tool. Picking the right color can make or break a design and hopefully this new system will provide a new spectrum of opportunities.


The video below is a cool look behind the scenes into the making of colors.




For more information, visit the Pantone site.

If you can't get enough Pantone, check out the Pantone Hotel in Brussels.

Recently I have been reviewing Alina Wheeler’s book “Designing Brand Identity,” and was particularly interested in the study on simple brand identity elements and their meaning.

I decided to test my son, who is 5 and not quite reading yet. I gathered some of the most recognizable brands and asked him what they were and what they meant to him. I was curious which brands he could identify and then wondered if he could explain what they stood for. He did better than I expected. It’s amazing the power that some of these brands have, and how they are able to communicate at such a basic level.

Here are the results. It’s interesting how the simple answers relate to what each brand delivers. (The captions below are how my son identified each brand)



1) “McDonalds” - That’s were you get french fries”
2) "Coca-Cola - Gives you coke”
3) “UPS - Gives you packages” (Grandpa is a retired UPS man)
4) "Computer - Sends you email sometimes”
5) “Target - You buy stuff there”
6) “The World - You can live on it” (This could be an interesting campaign for AT&T)
7) "Disney - You can go there and go on all kinds of rides, see Tinker Bell and Cinderella's castle” (We have never been to Disney land)
8) “The Post Office - Where you mail stuff”
9) “Wii - You can play games”
10) “Piggly Wiggly - You buy stuff there” (We refer to this place as “The Pig”)
11) “Soccer - You can buy soccer stuff” (Not surprising, he just started playing soccer this spring)

This week, the Soulsight staff took the Strengths Finder 2.0 strength assessment test. What is Strengths Finder? It’s the #1 Wall Street Journal and Business Week bestselling book and online personalized strengths assessment guide. How does it work? Online, Strengths Finder asks you a series of questions that you have to rank on a scale of importance and relevance to you. After the test, the program tallies your answers and assigns your top five themes.

All of us at Soulsight felt this was a great opportunity to really dive deep into what makes us all individual with similar goals but very different talents and strengths. All in all, it was a great team building exercise and everyone at Soulsight was interested in each others strength, not weaknesses. In a time when we too often focus our attention on our weakness, this was a fun and informative way of celebrating our natural inclinations for success. Strengths Finder also includes hundreds of strategies for applying your strengths. The next step is to put an action plan together to maximize our natural strengths and energies. We encourage all who are interested in learning a little bit more about themselves to take the test and see if it reflects what you think you know about yourself.

"Hide not your talents. They for use were made. What's a sundial in the shade?"
-- Benjamin Franklin