Channing Maddox

Course Blog

Month: June 2022 Page 1 of 2

Newsletters!

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On June 25, 2022

In Newsletter

Newsletters are a great way to keep your loyal consumers up to date with larger companies and organizations. A good newsletter consists of different topics that involve what your company has been doing, including any changes happening within the company and transparency throughout the company.

It is important to create a sketch for your newsletter prior to starting designing in InDesign because it gives you a rough estimate of how you want your newsletter to look. You can quickly create multiple sketches until you find the one that fits the information needed and one that flows properly with the information. It is much easier to create multiple sketches on paper rather than on application on the computer.

Grids help everything flow through the newsletter. You do not want one story bleeding into another so I suggest creating grids around the stories, and maybe have colors in the background that help differentiate which article is which.

You want to keep your newsletter information, but also not too bulky with information. You can add links to your newsletter that would allow consumers to learn more about a certain topic. You want to just be able to provide the most important information and then you can link to more information on the bottom of your section.

Allowing consumers to subscribe to a newsletter helps them feel more involved in you company and allows them to stay up to date with the latest things happening throughout the company! I highly suggest creating one that goes with a email list that you could give to customer to stay up to date with your company!

Here is my sketch for a newsletter. It is very basic and I like being able to throw out different ideas on my sketch!

Social Media… Do we love it or hate it?

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On June 25, 2022

In Social Media Campaign

Maintaining a social media presence can be daunting, but it is also a way to get creative and interact with consumers. We always want to try and maintain and positive and uplifting relationship with consumers and by posting regularly on social media, it can help consumers know what your company is up to.

When creating a campaign, you want to first start with the big picture. What are you wanting your audience to gather from your campaign? Once you have the big picture set out, you can start on the smaller details and a timeline for you campaign. This allows you to feel better organized and to make sure everything is getting done on time. In addition to a timeline, set out dates to post on social media to keep your audience informed of the new campaign and what can be coming to your company.

You want to keep your campaign engaging and interesting to look at. When posting, maybe ask some questions as to what new things your audience would like to see. This helps them feel that they have a voice and are being considered in your companies campaign and decisions. It might give you some helpful ideas of what you need to bring to the table.

Personally, I love social media. I think it is a wonderful tool that we can use to engage consumers and make them feel included in the company. It is a great way to communicate with larger audiences and to gain more interests from people who may not know too much about you or your company just yet.

Canva is an AMAZING tool when creating different graphics for social media. It is very easy to use, and free! It is not too difficult to get the hang of, but I suggest watching the tutorials when you first download just to get a good grasp of what all you can do in Canva. Once you get familiar, messing around on the app is a lot more fun than you think!

Reflection on Photoshop

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On June 16, 2022

In Uncategorized

As I have spent the past few days working on photoshops and designing different handouts for OU recruitment services, I have found that photoshop can be very frustrating. It is a very detailed application and it can be very difficult to get the hang of how everything works. It is very important to take the time to learn how to use photoshop and to not skip the instructions in the beginning of downloading.

There are so many different YouTube videos for all different types of learners that allows you to move at your own pace, or allow you to work with them as they go along. Taking the time to learn all the tips and tricks will make designing so much easier. Take the time to find the video that you can follow along with and are enjoying watching.

There will be mental breakdowns. That is okay. Breathe and, like I always say, take a step away. You need to have time to allow your feelings to regulate and calm down. Then come back, you will always be more prepared then, and maybe even come back with some new ideas.

ROUGH rough rough

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On June 11, 2022

In Handouts

Starting new projects can be tough. It is hard to figure exactly what you want your design to look like, and it is hard to put all of your ideas onto your design if you do not know exactly how to work the application. Photoshop is an extremely great editing tool when it comes to making designs. Photoshop can be pretty difficult to work with if you do not know what you are doing. Here is a great YouTube video that shows you the basic steps of how to use Photoshop.

Photoshop can be very overwhelming and can be discouraging if you do not know how to use the application. I highly suggest taking time to watch some YouTube videos and reading up on what all you can do on the program. Breathe. That is one of my biggest tips, to just breathe. If you feel like you cannot accomplish your project, then click save and come back later. Learning how to use it is more important than jumpstarting to a project. Here is my very rough draft of a handout I am making for the University of Oklahoma! Everything starts out rough. It is all apart of the process!

Stakeholders.

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On June 8, 2022

In Uncategorized

18-22 years old, newly accepted students, first generation college student, wants to be active on campus, plans on attending events on campus, slightly above average household income.

Handouts are important when new people are constantly filtering into your community. When it comes to at a university, if you are a part of an organization, you want people to join that organization. Handouts help people know and understand what you and your organization are. It gives them information and allows them to learn something about the organization to see if it interests them. Handouts are also a great way to make a first impression and get people to remember you and your organization. During the first week at OU, many organization will set out booths along the south oval to invite new students to learn more about their organizations and possibly join. Handouts can be a variety of things like paper handouts, stickers, t-shirts, prizes, and even food.

It is important to figure out your target stakeholder because you want to give your handouts to the right people. You spent your time and resources to offer these handouts, so just handing them to people that do not care to join your organization may just be wasting your time and money.

Why is Collateral Material Important?

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On June 8, 2022

In Uncategorized

So what’s the big idea? Why would these small types of things be so important for a company? To put it simply, it is ALL about the details. Nowadays, it is hard to connect with customers on a personal level. Since everything is online nowadays, it is much easier for people to just click a few tabs and be done. By defining these small details, it allows for you and your company’s personality to shine through your material.

I made this business card for the Oklahoma City Zoo. I wanted to incorporate real photos of the animals at the zoo to allow customers to have a personal connection with the zoo’s mission. You want to be able to provide that for your company and its consumers. Now it is easier for people to find a connection with a living animal, but that doesn’t mean that you can’t do the same for your own company.

Let your personality shine through your creativity and design. It is amazing how much more interest people show in things that they deem pretty rather than something plain and simple. When making letter heads and envelopes, you want to still be a personal as possible. Write professionally, but also kindly to your customers. It allows them to understand who YOU are as a person and not just as a strict business.

Collateral material is vital to your success in a company. You want consumer to be excited to work with you and remember you. One of the best and easiest ways to do that is by being creative with your work.

Why a Business Card?

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On June 7, 2022

In Collateral Material, Collateral Material

Business cards are vital when it comes to the marketing and PR side of companies. You want people to be able to find your information when needed. Business cards help people always have your information on hand and ready to find your contact information at anytime. I highly suggest keeping business cards on you at all times so when people ask, you will be able to deliver.

Creating a business card can be so exciting and fun, but also overwhelming. If you are not one to be super creative, that’s okay! There are many different website that let you choose from templates or having designs already laid out for you where all you have to do is enter your own information. A site that I love using is Canva. They have so many different options for all type of designers. Canva allows you to start from scratch or fill in your information. If you are wanting a free option, then Canva is the way to go. Here are some of the options that Canva allows you to choose from.

Canva’s Free Business Card Maker!

If you are very tech savvy and love creating all on your own, I highly suggest InDesign. It allows you to create all of your own dimensions and exactly what you want to put onto your business cards. InDesign does cost money to buy so use that if you are wanting to design more things with the application. Otherwise, Canva does allow many of the same things that InDesign does.

Here is a great YouTube video from Linda Ward that explains how to create your own business cards in InDesign

When designing a business card, you want to first look at what your competition business cards look like. You want to have a card that is unique to your business and your own style. Make sure you business card is not too overwhelmed with information and is easy for your customer to read and understand. I suggest making an inspiration board on Pinterest that will allow you to see what aspects you like on other business cards and what you do not like. Let your personality shine through your business card. You want people to be excited to work with you! Let your designs flow and get excited from your inspirations! Happy designing.

Why is being creative so difficult?

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On June 4, 2022

In Uncategorized

Creativity takes time. Time is something that I do not have a ton of during this season of my life. I really enjoy sitting down after a long day and getting on my computer or phone to just sit down and create things, but after such a long day, my brain tends to stop working. I feel so burnt out of ideas and I just do not know how to create things. It is so frustrating. Either way, I still must be creative for my classes, so here is an EXTREMELY rough draft of my first business card for the Oklahoma City Zoo!

OKC-Zoo-Business-Card-1-1Download

Like I said, extreme rough draft. I enjoy the ideas that I have, and for every backside I would love for different animals to be on the business cards so that people can have the chance to get to know the animals a little more personally. It is very hard to do branding research when it is not a super popular thing for zoos to have business cards. I definitely challenged myself, but it is very fun to create things like this, even if they are only seen by a few people.

When it comes to business cards, you have to think about how this is the impression you will leave with your customer. You must understand that this is one of, if not the only thing you leave with them so you should understand what you are communicating with them. A business card is super important for a communications strategy, it is a huge mean of communication by itself. Making sure that all of the necessary information is provided on the card is vital. It allows your customer a way to easily contact you whenever they need.

Inspiration and mood boards can help when it comes to designing because although you may like a bunch of different things, by putting them into those boards, it is easier to see what you like the most. You want to make sure everything fits with each other so putting them all together in one place where you can see them easily allows you to do that.

The Rise of Zoos Around the World

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On June 2, 2022

In Uncategorized

Zoos have become more and more popular around the world throughout the years. As they have begun to grow, so have peoples worries about if zoos are truly doing good by the animals. It is important to fo research about the zoos that you are wanting to visit to understand how much they are doing for the animals.

For my public relations design class, I have chosen the Oklahoma City Zoo as my organization for an assignment. A competitor analysis will be done over how other zoos market and what they look like from a branding point of view. The Oklahoma City Zoo works closely with many zoos around the country, so the competitor analysis is purely marketing and nothing to do with what zoo is more effectively working on conservation. Most zoos chose to work together as they all have similar goals and missions.

I have chosen the St. Louis Zoo for my competitor analysis as it was another zoo that I grew up going to. I would like to compare the difference in branding and marketing in the upcoming days and would love to see the evolvement over time. I believe all zoos should have very similar images and messages. We want to keep our wildlife safe and allow them to live long and prosperous lives. Here is a Pinterest board of the different marketing and branding that has stood out to me about the St. Louis Zoo.

Brainstorming!

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On June 2, 2022

In Reflections

I have never been a very good brainstormer in the moment. It always happens during random times of the day like when I am driving or doing the dishes. This will definitely be a blog that I come back to and will have to add to as we go, but that’s the wonderful part about having a blog.

I will be using different types of designing platforms like Canva and InDesign to be brainstorming the different designs in my mind for the Oklahoma City Zoo. I want to focus on the animal aspect of the zoo and what the Oklahoma City Zoo stands for: conservation. I would love to incorporate any type of animal that has come to the OKC Zoo for rehabilitation. I think another great idea would be to have images of the babies that have been born in the Oklahoma City Zoo like the baby giraffes, elephants or the upcoming tiger that is expected during summer of 2022.

Lola, the Sumatran Tiger, will be giving birth sometime this summer

These images will allow for more of a connection with the animals and how these visitors are helping these animals rather than just walking around, staring at them all day. Some people may have heavy feelings about zoos, but it is important to do research to understand how much the Oklahoma City Zoo is helping out our wildlife.

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