New Hardware

 

Insight was just notified that we won 11 MarCom Awards for 2009 (loud applause)!

Just for the record -- no, we didn't send in 50 entries. Just 16. And yes, we had competition, with nearly 5,000 entries.

Also, for the record, we like the little statuettes MarCom Awards bring.

Here's how we did:

•  Four Platinum Awards -- the highest honor -- for “Moonlight Movies,” a movie trailer produced for Downtown Sioux Falls; Ethanol Today covers for the American Coalition for Ethanol’s membership magazine; a video for Children’s Home Society on the making of the Little Red Stocking window; and Santa’s Prayer, a book also created for Children’s Home Society.

•  Four Gold Awards for the “DSU 2.0 Invitation” for Dakota State University Foundation; the “Chicago TV Spot” for the Sioux Empire Community Theatre; the “Does it Hurt When You?” advertising campaign for Open Upright MRI of South Dakota and a television campaign, “It’s Turkey Time,” for the South Dakota Poultry Industry Association.

• Three Honorable Mentions, for the “Enjoy the Scenery” Season Poster and the Season Illustration for the Sioux Empire Community Theatre; and the logo, letterhead and business cards for Chicagoland Community Church.

The MarCom Awards is an international creative competition that recognizes outstanding achievement by marketing and communications professionals. It is administered and judged by the Association of Marketing and Communications Professionals.

 

 

IMD Begins Book Tour

Yes, Insight has been published. Not in an artsy little zine that three people in San Francisco read. Not in a brochure of Addy® winners. Not in a book we created ourselves (good idea, though).

In fact, Insight's work now appears in two books so legit you can find them at your local big box bookstore, or order them from your favorite local independent bookstore. Or online.

They're big books. The kind you'd find on a coffee table in a really cool house. Or in the art department of an ad agency.

The Big Book of Green Design, 2009, Collins Design, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishing, New York, includes four pieces created by Insight.

1. Insight’s Eco Bags, made of 100% recycled materials, were sent to clients with a list of “Top Ten Ways to go Green at Work.”
2. The Bike Rack Art Call for Entries for the City of Sioux Falls was created to solicit designs for original bike rack sculptures.
3. The Fueling Revolution poster for the American Coalition for Ethanol publicized the organizations 2008 National Conference and Trade Show.
4. Ethanol Today is the publication of the American Coalition for Ethanol. Insight designs each issue; The Big Book of Green Design shows the Insight-designed cover of one issue.

Edited by Suzanna Stephens and Anthony Stephens, The Big Book of Green Design features top green design materials created worldwide.

Another title in the "Big Book" design series, The Big Book of Self-Promotion from the same publisher, also hot off the press, contains several pieces from Insight. These include holiday books A Classic Christmas Tail and A Classic Christmas Tail 2.

The Big Book of Self-Promotion contains work from more than 500 design firms worldwide, showcasing the freshest, most inventive ideas used by these companies to promote themselves.

Proof that Every Design Project is Worth Extra Effort.

Donal McLaughlin was given the assignment to design an emblem for the United Nations Conference in 1945. So, at the age of 38, he was  challenged with the task of designing an original pictorial image in conjunction with the words "The United Nations Conference on International Organization, San Francisco, 1945". This new emblem was to be used on a round button, measuring 11/16ths of an inch. Not even 3/4ths.

Mr. McLaughlin created a map of the continents, with the United States front and center on the vertical axis. Another designer from his team added olive branches as a symbol of peace.

This design was adopted as the the official United Nations seal and emblem one year later, in 1946. Donal recommended and produced minor modifications that same year.

We lost Donal McLaughlin last month at the age of 102. He left behind a legacy of graphic design and architecture. But, his most monumental creation was a small button. You can read this story in it's entirety in the New York Times or the Washington Post. Thank you Mr. McLaughlin for the years of hard work and inspiration.

Email Design Gallery

Over the last two years Insight Marketing Design has created a series of campaigns for Sioux Falls’ own Howe Heating and Plumbing. One of the most recent projects was an e-newsletter that has received national attention.

Insight’s use of piping as graphic images and fun retro conventions earned us a spot in the Campaign Monitor’s email design gallery. This gallery showcases some of the great designs that Campaign Monitor’s customers come up with. 

See Howe’s and other awesome campaigns at: http://www.campaignmonitor.com/gallery/entry/2904/howe/

Or sign up to receive Howe’s e-blast at: http://www.howeinc.com/newsletter/subscribe.php

It’s SWELL!

Have lunch on us this Friday

Insight is looking for people with opinions.

We're conducting a focus group this Friday at noon regarding consumer products. The focus group will explore package design and taste testing. And we'll feed you and pay you for your time -- about 30 minutes. The fun starts at 12:15 pm and we'll have you out the door by 12:45 pm.

If you're interested in participating, give us a call at 605-275-0011.

Jeff Hayzlett to speak to SDAF Members

Insight Marketing Design is excited to sponsor the October 15th program for South Dakota Advertising Federation with guest speaker Jeff Hayzlett, CMO for Eastman Kodak.

Jeff's keynote is "Redefining the Kodak Brand through Digital and Social Media." Here's Jeff to tell you more.

Retreat to the Hills

Take eleven co-workers, transport them clear across the state, and deposit them in a sprawling house for four days. Add a couple of hours of discussions, followed by lots of playtime in the beautiful Black Hills. 

That was the premise for Insight’s retreat last weekend. Our first retreat, held in the same location two years ago, produced many tangible changes in our office – from hiring additional support staff to installing a smoothie machine in the break room. This retreat, however, focused less on structured meetings and more on structured fun.

After discussions on Friday morning, we all piled in the cars and headed for the (Southern) hills. Everyone, even the claustrophobics in the group, enjoyed exploring Rushmore Cave and a quick stop at Lake Pactola. Back at the house, we grilled out and played.

We were back in meetings on Saturday morning. But instead of Doug and Candy leading the discussion, several team members talked about trends in our industry. And then it was time to play again. Four of us were invited to the top of Crazy Horse Monument – a rare treat. The rest of us, along with tour guides Bill and Tam Colson from Children’s Home Society, hiked around Horse Thief Lake.

We finished the evening in Deadwood with dinner, drinks, a little karaoke and a little dancing.  And Sunday morning we packed up the cars and, with the 50 mph tail wind, nearly flew back to Sioux Falls.

We had great fun, got to see our co-workers in a new light, and even found time for some serious discussions about the future of our agency. Was it a successful retreat? Absolutely.

View all of the photos from the trip on facebook

Recent Work

Looking back on August and September, we've launched some outstanding websites. Here's a peek:

Henry Carlson Company

Henry Carlson Company (HCC) asked Insight to create a website that would instantly communicate to visitors that HCC is the premier general contractor in this region. Insight developed a design direction that was unique and cried out CONSTRUCTION. The site features silhouettes of workers engaged in many aspects of building construction.  Flip around the site to see different actions. (Also note that the figures are all wearing proper safety equipment.)

Chicagoland Community Church

The Chicagoland Community Church  wanted a fresh, new look that would appeal to 20- and 30-something urban church-goers. Insight created a number of pieces for the church, including this awesome website. The site incorporates the church blog and features a rotating flash navigation at the top.

Ask the CEO

Security First Bank wanted to start an online conversation with customers through an "Ask the CEO" column. Insight suggested the use of a custom formatted blog to not only allow for question submission but also to create a gallery of the answers. Posts are arranged in categories for organization and search-ability. It is our hope that in the future this blog could serve as a search-able FAQ section for the site. 

What do you think? We'd love to hear your feedback!

Facebook Update

These past few days have been very busy for Facebook.

Last week they came out with Facebook Lite, which strips down some of the less "essential" features of Facebook and focuses on messaging, photos and videos and in many ways was a step toward offering users an experience similar to Twitter.  Check it out here.

Then this afternoon Facebook turned on another new feature: Mentions.

Now when you are posting a status update you'll be able to "mention" or link your friends in your post.  But not just your friends, you can also mention pages/brands that you are a fan of, events, and groups.

This feature is another step towards creating a more Twitter-like experience and we'll be watching and exploring how brands can use this feature in their social networking strategies.

To use the new feature:
When posting a status update type the "@" symbol followed by the person, place or thing that you would like to mention.  As you type Facebook will provide a generated list of options to choose from.

So check it out!  What do you think?

Downtown Events

Heads up!

This Saturday be sure not to miss the Sidewalk Art Festival.

Word on the street:

"Yeah, they have stuff out along the sidewalk downtown from 14th street to 9th street. Tons of people checking out art...way cool."
 - Doug

"what?"
 - Brandon

From SiouxFallsEvents.com
"It's the largest one-day outdoor festival in the region with more than 250 fine art, folk art, craft and food booths. Proceeds support the Washington Pavilion's Visual Arts Center. Visit the Children's Garden Studio, where kids can make and take art projects. Tickets for these activities are $2 each or $10 for all. Admission to the Kirby Science Discovery Center is also free for the day! Children must be accompanied by an adult. Please check in at the box office for admission stickers."

The shindig starts at 9am and after you get done checking out the art hang around for Grmanfest.