Big Thinking – Page 2 – Design 6 Degrees

Give Bl _ _ d / #MissingType

In their #MissingType campaign, London-based PR company Engine Group and NHS Blood & Transplant, tried to get people’s attention by eliminating the letters A, B and O from public landmarks and participating brands across the globe.

missing-type-opera

Image by Sydney Opera House via Instagram

missing-type-msterdm

Image by Iamsterdam via Twitter

missing-type-marmite

Image by Marmite via Twitter

The (missing) letters – A, B and O – are used to identify the main blood types. The campaign hoped to reverse a decline in new donors and encourage blood donations to meet the need for blood in the future.

According to an article on NPR the NHS said: “The shortage of new donors is a worldwide phenomenon… A survey of blood services participating in the Missing Type campaign found the number of first-time donors per year had dropped more than 27 percent between 2005 and 2015.”

admin 2017-05-22T13:16:58+00:00 August 25th, 2016|Big Thinking, In The News|Comments Off

FlyBabies

In honor of Mother’s Day, JetBlue gave passengers on a recent flight from JFK to Long Beach a reason to smile every time a baby cried.

An announcement was made at the beginning of the cross-country flight, that travelers would receive a 25% discount off their next ticket purchase every time a baby cried. In the end passengers applauded the babies who helped them get a free ticket.

Not designed to increase sales, but rather to create more compassion among travelers, JetBlue spokesman Morgan Johnston said, “We’re hoping to inspire … conversation and know that while it may be tough for you to sit next to a crying kid, we hope you can think about the stress that parent is going through,” he said. “And maybe we can be a little bit more supportive of moms.”

Another airline made passengers very happy for a different holiday.

admin 2017-05-22T13:16:58+00:00 May 5th, 2016|Big Thinking, Humor, In The News|Comments Off

Feeling Lucky? – Google Is Bringing “The Claw” To SXSW

Google has been known for extravagant display booths and giveaways, and this year’s South by Southwest – an annual film, media and music festival, running from March 11th – 15th in Austin, Texas – is no exception.

Visitors can channel their inner child and the (hopeful) excitement of nabbing a toy, by participating in the “I’m Feeling Lucky” experience presented by Google Store, using a giant claw machine to win products such as Chromecast, Android Wear, Google Cardboard or even a shiny new Nexus.

Those not at SXSW can play along via Twitter.

Image via Google

admin 2017-05-22T13:16:58+00:00 March 11th, 2016|Big Thinking|Comments Off

An Otherworldly Cross Promotion

"The Martian" Potato Cross Promotion

The photo of “The Martian” in the potato section is making the rounds online, as Albert Bartlett Potatoes, who partnered with Twentieth Century Fox, is cleverly using the film about an astronaut stranded on the red planet, to promote their line of red potatoes.

In the movie Matt Damon’s character is trying to grow potatoes in Martian soil to ensure his survival, until a rescue mission can reach him.

Images via gizmodo

admin 2017-05-22T13:16:58+00:00 February 17th, 2016|Big Thinking, Humor|Comments Off

Six Degrees of Separation … no more

For years Frigyes Karinthy’s 1929 theory of Six Degrees of Separation led us to believe that any two people are separated by just six degrees aka friendly acquaintances. But today – the day Facebook turns 12 and deemed “Friends Day” – they also just shrunk that number to 3.57.

According to VentureBeat‘s website, “In newly released statistics, Facebook claims that its services have reduced the degree of separation between users — now 3.57 degrees, compared to 3.74 degrees in 2011. The company interprets this is a sign that in the past five years, we’ve grown more connected globally, something it hopes to continue to advance through its various initiatives.”

6 Degrees of Separation

To see how close or far removed from everybody you are on Facebook, log into your account and visit their “separation research” page.

admin 2017-05-22T13:16:58+00:00 February 4th, 2016|Big Thinking, In The News|Comments Off

Humor Does It

Pumpkin Spice

A sense of humor can go a long way and businesses can profit by engaging with customers and making an impression by stepping outside the realm of the expected.

“Laughter relieves stress and boredom, boosts engagement and well-being, and” – according to Harvard Business Review – “spurs not only creativity and collaboration but also analytic precision and productivity.”

admin 2017-11-08T09:34:05+00:00 November 4th, 2015|Big Thinking, Humor, Inspiration, Local|Comments Off

The Future is Here

When Doc Emmett Brown (Christopher Lloyd) and Marty McFly (Michael J. Fox) went on their second adventure, traveling 30 years back in time to October 21, 2015, they most likely didn’t anticipate the excitement that would accompany the movie more than a quarter of a century later.

While everybody is talking about “Back to the Future II” and which predictions came true (video conferencing, big screen tv’s, virtual-reality goggles, the cubs (having a chance at) winning the world series) and which didn’t (flying cars, hover boards, “Jaws 19”) – two brands are emerging as true winners of product placement years after the fact.

Pepsi Perfect - Back to The Future II

Image via Click 2 Houston

PepsiCo released a limited edition Pepsi bottle today to pay tribute to Marty McFly’s arrival in the future and to celebrate one of the biggest movie franchises of all time.

“Pepsi fans asked and we heard them loud and clear,” said Lou Arbetter, PepsiCo’s senior director of marketing, in a statement. “The ‘Back to the Future’ trilogy was as big a moment in pop culture history then as it is now, 30 years later. We are excited to be part of this moment and to bring fans something only Pepsi could deliver – and there’s no need to wait – the future is now!”

PepsiCo even released a commercial for the product launch. Not that it was necessary to sell the product. Retailing at $20.15 – to commemorate the year – the bottle had a limited run of 6,500 and appeared to have sold out immediately.

Nike, whose shoes had also been featured in the 1989 film, released 1500 replica pairs in 2011, and although they were not of the self-lacing type as in the movie, the company raised $4.7 million dollars for the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research.

Having filed a patent back in 2009, Nike did confirm that an actual self-lacing shoe was in development, teasing fans yesterday with a tweet to Michael J. Fox stating “see you tomorrow.”

.@realmikefox see you tomorrow.

— Nike (@Nike) October 21, 2015

Maybe today is the future?

Update: Self-lacing are indeed here. Nike send a pair to Michael J. Fox along with a hand written letter from Tinker Hatfield, the shoe’s inventor. The self-lacing shoes will be produced in 2016 and once again auctioned off to benefit the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research. The actor showed them off, appearing on Jimmy Kimmel Live.

admin 2018-03-21T15:21:49+00:00 October 21st, 2015|Big Thinking, Humor, In The News, Videos|Comments Off

Upscale Thrift

Goodwill, which is funded by a massive network of retail thrift stores, is not usually associated with high end brands, but rather affordable prices. To set itself apart from increased competition in the thrift store market, Goodwill is taking a new approach by opening select boutique style stores, which are designed to feel more like Urban Outfitter or Anthropologie rather than a thrift store.

RARE Storefront (The Suitcase Studio)

Rare by Goodwill is the nonprofit’s latest retail experiment. (David Kawashima / The Suitcase Studio)

One of the OC Goodwill's boutique stores, located in Huntington Beach, CA. (David Kawashima / FastCompany)

One of the OC Goodwill’s boutique stores, located in Huntington Beach, CA. (David Kawashima / FastCompany)

Over the last four years Goodwill has opened approximately 60 such stores across the country, trying to take advantage of luxury donations and to appeal to a broader audience. Prices are slightly higher than regular Goodwill prices, but still beat the price tag high end name brands, such as Prada, Chanel, Burberry or Ralph Lauren would fetch at traditional retailers.

The O.C. Goodwill Boutique in Huntington Beach features wooden floors and artfully arranged clothing displays. (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)

Frank Talarico Jr. of the Goodwill in Orange County, was quoted in the LA Times saying: “The boutiques set us apart. This is a really nice way to expand. We are definitely not going to stop.” Adding “The only reason retail is relevant is because we are using the money to serve.”

admin 2017-05-22T13:16:58+00:00 September 21st, 2015|Big Thinking, Design, In The News|Comments Off

The IKEA Catalog Got a Formal Review

IKEA has been known to come up with creative ways to promote it’s catalogs and store openings. And this year was no different. IKEAS Switzerland (Agency: Wirz Werbung Zürich) got Germany’s famous literary critic Hellmuth Karasek to review the catalog like any other piece of literature, since it is the most widely distributed “book” in the world.

“It is a furnished novel,” he says tongue-in-cheek. “The characters are forced to crowd themselves between the furniture, they seldom get their say, they barely speak coherently — and yet this work has become such a success.”

admin 2017-05-22T13:16:58+00:00 September 8th, 2015|Big Thinking, Design, Humor, In The News, Videos|Comments Off

Google’s New Logo

Google’s homepage introduced a new sans-serif logo today – the biggest redesign since 1999. Small screens and readability on all devices have been a major consideration, with modern typography (a new Google specific font called Product Sans) that scales better to smaller sizes for easier reading.

“This isn’t the first time we’ve changed our look and it probably won’t be the last, but we think today’s update is a great reflection of all the ways Google works for you across Search, Maps, Gmail, Chrome and many others. We think we’ve taken the best of Google (simple, uncluttered, colorful, friendly), and recast it not just for the Google of today, but for the Google of the future” the company stated on it’s blog.

Google also changed their icon – instead of the blue “g” – an uppercase “G” in Google’s four colors will be displayed, which many are saying will become “people’s primary association with Google going forward.”

The video below recaps the evolution of Google and it’s logo – the way people interact with Google today across many different platforms, apps and devices.

New logo animation & video via Google

admin 2017-05-22T13:16:58+00:00 September 1st, 2015|Big Thinking, Design, In The News|Comments Off