Henshaw: Reading Two

Chapter Seven addressed the many approaches that creative teams can put into action to create a successful campaign. As I was reading, I thought of many instances where these tactics were being used in advertisements that I viewed previously. The sections that caught my interest were the segments on the last page of the chapter. They included consumer-generated creative content and entertainment. All of the platforms varied, but they had one common factor: they all were possible due to advances in technology. For example, now a winner can be chosen for a brand’s short film competition from a YouTube submission anywhere in the world. Technological advancements have expanded the sphere in which advertisements reach. With this growing audience, advertisements now have a larger role than ever in the process of branding, making it even more important to create campaigns that are extremely effective. 

One of the greatest consumer-generated campaign was created by Doritos several years ago. They have a competition called “Crash the Superbowl” that allows consumers to make commercials that will run during the Superbowl. People then vote for their favorite, and the winning video is aired during the big game and accompanied by a million dollar check to the winner. This campaign has been running for many years now because the consumers enjoy feeling like they are involved with the product. What a great example of a design approach being put into action. The video I have included is one of the submissions for this year’s game. ( This one is my personal favorite, but be sure to check out the other ones on the Doritos facebook page.)

Chapter Eight tackles the ever important subject of typography. In my opinion, typography gets overlooked on many advertisements. The book emphasizes that integration is key when creating designs. Both the image and the text must flow seamlessly. At times the typography is secondary, when in fact many do not realize the time and effort it takes to select the appropriate typeface. Hell, only a super keen eye can figure out which typefaces can live in harmony, and this is certainly a skill that I am trying to hone.

Chapter Nine is the Arnheim book, even down to the nod to gestalt, summarized in thirty pages. Additionally, there is a section on modularity and multiple pages that caught my attention. As someone who would love to work at a magazine, it was intriguing to see how so many different options can be created based on using this one type of standard format. I really enjoy the idea that unity can be created without having to make every page identical.