Archive for the 'Brands & Blogs' Category
Liquid Agency’s industrial design work is honored by IDEA 2009.
We’ve definitely won our share of design awards over the years: Our work has been honored in many design competitions for projects that have included identity, packaging, publications, environments, retail merchandising, and interactive design. That said, we’re particularly proud of the recognition we received at the IDEA 2009 competition…and in this one we only achieved “finalist” status.
The IDEA awards program.
For those of you who don’t know, the IDEA (International Design Excellence Awards) program has been honoring design excellence since 1980 – and is considered one of the most prestigious design competitions in the world – recognizing design excellence in product design, ecodesign, interaction design, packaging, and concepts. Out of 1631 entries from countries all over the world, this year’s jury, an international cross-section of design leaders led by Andrew Hartman, Philips Design’s design director, selected 349 finalists.Liquid’s work was entered in the competition by our client – Olive – with whom we collaborated in the designed of two products, the Opus 4 and the Melody 2. Although we did not walk away with the top honors, we’re super excited about making the finalist list. After all, this is the very first time we’ve entered an industrial design competition…and the IDEA program is probably the toughest one in the world – so, being a finalist is something to brag about, especially when you consider that we were competing with companies like Samsung, Apple and HP – and that other finalists included Intel, NVIDIA, and Pioneer!
Liquid Agency has worked closely with Oliver Bergmann, Olive’s founder and CEO, to develop his company’s brand from the very beginning. Our involvement started with the design of the brand identity, the website, the packaging and the marketing materials…and has grown to include the industrial design and the user interface. With Liquid’s help, Olive has created products that achieve a harmonious balance between sound clarity and aesthetically striking design. As a consequence, Olive has developed a cult following among music enthusiasts and has earned the “Editor’s Choice” title from numerous national and international publications including Sound & Vision, Digital Trends, and PC Magazine. Olive’s products are frequently featured in magazines that range from Forbes to Wired, from RollingStone to Business Week.
“We’re proud to have played a part in Olive’s success,” said Alfredo Muccino, Chief Creative Officer and co-founder of Liquid Agency. “Olive’s role in the music industry has been to champion the quality of the music experience, and that has included paying attention to details in the form and function of the products, as well as the sound. We’ve appreciated being part of the design teams that have developed such amazing products. Being a finalist in IDEA 2009 is a great honor, and an affirmation that our dedication to excellent design is recognized at the very highest levels.”The Opus 4 can store up to 6,000 CDs worth of music – which you can enjoy in true hi-fi quality – a far cry from the compromised sound of MP3s. Essentially, Olive is committed to offering all the convenience of digital technology without compromising any of the sound quality – therefore delivering the best possible music experience. Made with heavy gauge aluminum that eliminates vibration and operating noise, the design of the Opus 4 includes a color touch screen located in a unique angled front which allows for better access and visibility. The top of the system features a distinctive silkscreened typographic pattern made of words representing a variety of musical genres, which adds an elegant detail to the already sophisticated form factor. The Melody 2 is a player that connects to the Opus 4 wirelessly extending the music experience to any room in the house, and its design language echoes that of the Opus 4. To take a peek at the winners of the IDEA competition and the other finalists, click here.
No commentsSteal This Idea: Culture Quiz
Culture Quiz
By Marty Neumeier, author of The Designful Company
Transformation is in the air. Business leaders across industries are recognizing that “old school” management isn’t up to the task of nonstop innovation. As a result, companies that were once run from the top down are steadily shifting to a more networked style of management in which employees and customers play a greater role in driving innovation. Networked cultures tend to be more creative, more agile, and better able to anticipate the needs of customers.
How do you create a culture of innovation? By recognizing one simple fact: If you want to innovate, you’ve got to design. Design and design thinking are the tools that create new products, new services, new business models, new markets, and new industries. The best way to leverage innovation—as outlined in my latest book—is to build a “designful company”. (Buy the book.)
To find out where you are on the culture curve, take this simple test: Share a total of 10 points across each of the 10 pairs below. For example, if your company is more siloed than collaborative, you might score it 6 and 4. When you’ve finished, add up the two columns to measure your progress. If your totals come out to 60 and 40, for example, you could say that you’re 40% along the path to an innovative culture.
Olive’s products by Karim Rashid in HOW!
We were flipping through the pages of one of our favorite trade publications - HOW Magazine - and were pleasantly surprised to see some of Olive’s products featured in the June issue. Liquid is the branding firm behind the Olive brand…and it is our goal to make sure the brand gets noticed and is differentiated.
We have worked closely with Olive’s management since the inception of the company in the development of its brand identity, product design, interface, website, marketing, etc. Although the company is still small, it has built huge awareness amongst audiences interested in high quality sound – and we’re happy to see that the brand is starting to also reach the design community.
As part of the effort to build brand differentiation we suggested working with notable designers to further evolve how Olive’s products looked. The first one that came to mind was Karim Rashid. We’ve worked with Karim on other projects and we enjoyed it very much. Karim is not only one of the world’s best known designers of furniture, architecture and objects of desire…but is also an accomplished musician who DJs at events all over the globe. He agreed to collaborate on one of Olive’s products, the OPUS No.5, and the result is a series featuring Karim’s complex techno-patterns and singularly vibrant color palette.
To learn more about Olive and the latest products we’ve designed for them, visit olive.us…or check out the Olive Case Study on our site. And to wonder at the latest creations by Karim Rashid, visit karimrashid.com, you will find that this prolific designer is set on changing the way that we interact with just about everything around us.
Of course, if you’re a designer you probably already subscribe to HOW Magazine…but if you don’t here’s a link to sign up: HOW Magazine.com
No commentsGoogle Advertising?…
Google, arguably the worlds most impactful brand (it’s a tough argument these days), built this incredible brand without the use of any traditional forms of advertising, nor has Google used many forms of “marketing communications” in general. Until today, I’d never seen a banner ad, like this banner i saw in a forum this morning:
Could it be that Google has abandoned their aversion for advertising, and will we begin to see more outbound marketing communications from this outstanding brand? If/when you find other Google advertising, or interesting competitive advertising please add comments to this post!
No commentsLooking forward to Liquid Brand Summit 2008.
The Liquid Brand Summit 2007 was great!
The feedback we’ve received from many of the attendees has been extremely positive. And the experience was also great for us at Liquid. The summit was a wonderful opportunity to discuss topics about branding that are dear to our hearts. It gave us the chance to share challenges and solutions with people that face the same issues every day, and to put together a set of Best Practices.
We’re already starting the planning process for next year, and we’re evaluating potential dates and locations. We’re also updating the Liquid Brand Summit site, which will include some of the critical content from the original site + a dedicated blog + a photo gallery. Check it out!
Social Media & Conversation Marketing
A new book on Social Media covers the biggest trend in marketing.
Derek Gordon, VP of Marketing at Technorati suggests taking a look at a new book titled “The New Influencers” by Paul Gillin. The book is mentioned in an article by Dean Takahashi who covers the technology business for the Mercury News. The book covers the relatively new trend of “conversation marketing”, which has been facilitated through blogs and social media. The author shares many viewpoints with Derek Gordon, who facilitated a session on “Blogs and Social Media” at the Liquid Brand Summit 2007, including the notion that companies need to be more transparent, stop trying to control messages, and start joining the conversation in a meaningful manner. Now you have something to read poolside!
