So, why aren’t you doing it? I ask this because if you’re reading this blog, it means you’re not doing any of the activities mentioned in the previous paragraph. It means that you’re currently connected to a device that is disconnecting you from what you really should be doing. Hello, my target audience.

You’ve told yourself that this year is going to be different. You’ve given yourself a day off, or two, or three to enjoy the holidays. You promised your family and friends that you’d shut the office door and delight in their presence…and maybe presents. But, man, are you having a hard time of it! You tell yourself: just one more Tweet, just one more email check, just one more phone call. No one has to know and you won’t do it again. Uh-huh.

When I was younger, my parents always said to enjoy your time on this Earth. Life really is short and in the end, it’s not memories of your work that you take with you. Of course, it was much easier back then when social media meant visiting your neighbor’s house. Nowadays, we are taught to always be connected, no matter what. You go out to dinner and the couple sitting next to you spends their entire time either talking into or punching away on their phones. So much for being social.

“It’s okay to hit the pause button. It’s okay to give yourself some time to breathe and reboot. It’s okay to enjoy a part of your life that isn’t work.”

I know it’s hard not working, even during the holidays, when there are a dozen things that still need to get done and if you don’t do them, no one will. But, I have news for you holiday workaholics. It’s okay to hit the pause button. It’s okay to give yourself some time to breathe and reboot. It’s okay to enjoy a part of your life that isn’t work. The clocks will still tick, the sun will still rise in the morning and there’ll still be a gazillion college bowl games every holiday season.

So, what do you say? Just take a deep breathe and put your iPad down, turn your phone off and walk away from your computer. Let’s do it together. I’m going to stop writing right now and watch last night’s “American Horror Story” on the DVR (Is that show beautifully strange, or what?) while I wrap gifts. What are you going to do?

To make a long story short, the beautiful Cinderella is treated very poorly by her wicked stepmother and obnoxious stepsisters until her Fairy Godmother shows up and allows Cinderella to shine in all her glory and capture the heart of the town’s handsome Prince.

The awful treatment of Cinderella by her step-family is how I feel web content is treated by its “family.” As something that is kept in the background, given second-hand status and not allowed to shine. Is that any way to treat web content, I ask? Web content has so much to offer and yet when it comes to website hierarchy, it’s not looked upon as “sexy.” We want pretty pictures and wow factors before we even think about content. To me, this thought process is fairytale stuff. In reality, your content should come first. Sure, first time users will be in awe of your site’s super-cool look, but, I guarantee that unless they find the information they’re looking for via content, they will not be returning to your site. It may look pretty on the outside, but the inside is a complete mess!

Putting content first means you’re catering to your audience, not yourself. In other words, you’re the evil stepmother. I cannot tell you how many sites I’ve been to where the content clearly disrespects its users. It’s not fresh/updated, cluttered, too much, not enough, all over the place, etc., etc.

Content strategy is about knowing your audience. Who they are, what they’re looking for, what they what to know, what they already know and everything in between. If you’re not putting your content first, you’re not putting your users first – plain and simple.

It’s time to be the Fairy Godmother to your content. Give it some glass slippers, nurture it and let it shine for everyone to see. Only then will your Prince Charming, aka your audience, fall madly in love and live happily ever after.

Not sure how to do that? Don’t fret. I’ll be giving tips on how you can take your content from rags to riches. Stay tuned…

You would think having so little room to work is beneficial to a project such as this. But that’s just it. You only have a small space to work with so what you say in that tiny area is very, very important. The message is everything, you see. The words applied to the card (or any other piece of promotional material) can’t be taken back. They’re out there and if you don’t have the right message for your business, you won’t be reaching the right clients.

“… you’ve got two choices when it comes to your message … it’s all about you [or] it’s all about them.”

The way I see it, you’ve got two choices when it comes to your message. One, it’s all about you. Two, it’s all about them. In option one you’re given free rein to talk about your company, how great you are, why you’re the talk of Twitter, etc. That’s okay. Some businesses are afraid to toot their own horn, so to speak, so why not put it out there?

Option two is about your possible client. Who they are, what they need and where they can turn to for help. Neither message option is wrong. It’s determining which one will work best for you and your clients.

“You need to deliver your message in a succinct and informative way.”

Next comes the content. When it comes to small, promotional materials there isn’t much room to play with. You need to deliver your message in a succinct and informative way. Oh, and you have about one second to do it. Let’s be honest, your promotional item will end up on someone’s desk or in someone’s trashcan if you don’t capture that one person’s attention immediately.

One of the best uses of promotional materials I’ve come across is this two-sided self promotional piece, from type goddess Nancy Harris Rouemy and Go For It Design, featured in the July issue of How Magazine. This piece works perfectly as it showcases her immense talent and does it in a way that is simple, fun, informative and visually stimulating. Love it!

So, what’s in your message?

Our client work is generally centered around finding a particular solution to a very particular goal. Designing, developing and deploying a premium theme, for high volume consumption, would require trying to imagine as many scenarios as possible with just as many solutions. The experience, thus far, has been incredibly eye opening and what we have learned about We Are Pixel8, as WordPress theme designers and developers, has been immeasurable.

But, there has been something that has been troubling me as of late. In an effort to distinguish and market themselves amongst the vast sea of providers, there is a prevailing trend of over bloating premium themes, by developers, with built in options that more than likely can, and should, be left to a plugin.

Before you start roaring that We Are Pixel8 is guilty of the same crime, I will politely cut you off there and agree 100%. This post is not meant to be an indictment of any developer’s practice.  In fact, this is more like a public statement about We Are Pixel8′s stance on the matter and how we intend to move forward.

If you are a proficient WordPress or PHP developer, and have created custom solutions for your themes without plugins, my hat is off to you. At the end of the day, if your methodology works for you, and your customers are satisfied with your product, then you will probably consider what I have to say here to not be applicable.

Is a premium theme really premium if it relies on plugins?

From what I can tell, one of the established arguments for differentiating a premium theme from a free one is the theme’s dependency on plugins. This distinct thesis centers around the conclusion that free themes come with very few to no options while premium themes are packed with options galore.

I find this definition a bit narrow, if not constraining. The questions we needed to ask ourselves were what is We Are Pixel8′s description of a premium theme and, secondly, what will our customers expect when purchasing one of our themes?

Our definition  of a premium WordPress theme is one that is of the highest design quality, developed solely with best current WordPress theme development practices, semantically coded with current W3C web  standards and provides impeccable customer support. We also believe that this is what is expected by the customer when they purchase one of products. Though a premium theme customer is not a direct We Are Pixel8 client, they should receive the same levels of service regardless.

You can argue that this should all be implicit when downloading a freely available theme. But, a customer is not guaranteed all of these services in a free theme and cannot rightfully expect said free theme to meet or exceed these services. Once a customer forks over their hard earned cash for one of our themes, all of these services are automatically explicit.

“…theme options are nothing more than a marketing ploy on all of our parts to sell more product”

Now, with our definition of a premium theme in mind, I return to the argument that theme options define a premium theme. I really don’t think so. In fact, I am beginning to believe that theme options are nothing more than a marketing ploy on all of our parts to sell more product. Often times, they are add-ons that do very little, like adding Google Analytics to the footer, but are highly touted.

We took a moment to objectively look at each of the theme options we were offering in one of our premium themes and asked this one question: Are our theme options a necessity for the user to extend the functionality of the product or have we made the user wholly dependent upon our theme? In some cases, the answer was the latter and we needed to rethink our theme options and the potential disservice we are doing to our customers.

A perfect example would be our Periodic theme. When first released, we thought the user would find an option for adding social networking scripts, via a theme option, beneficial. We built in options for Twitter, Facebook Like, Google Buzz, Digg and StumbleUpon. First, we were deciding which scripts would be important to a user which was pure hubris on our part. Secondly, scripts like Facebook Like continue to change, in terms of how that are added to web pages, which meant we would have to release updates every time this happened which was not optimal on our end or the customers. Lastly, we all know what happened with Google Buzz and its inclusion was superfluous in the end.

With the WordPress plugin repository full of viable solutions for this very task, we should have left well enough alone and allowed the user to decide what was important to them. Did our inclusion of this particular option help us sell more themes? It’s possible but I cannot say for certain. What I will say is that this option makes the user dependent upon Periodic, if activated. When the user inevitably changed themes, they would need to find a new solution for social networking sharing scripts.

Is that a bad thing? Yes. The inexperienced WordPress user will not be aware of this fact and that is simply a bad business practice. Could we circumvent this with a message stating upfront what happens when changing theme? Again, yes, but why include the option if it comes with this caveat?

Theme Options = Superior Development Skills

I once had a fellow developer tell me that, “If you are depending on plugins, you shouldn’t consider yourself a theme developer.” Aside from being highly offended by the comment, I found the notion that a true theme developer must have superior PHP skills to be both obnoxious and exclusive.

“I am in no way a PHP guy… and being a theme developer for WordPress does not require that I have to be.”

I am, in no way, a PHP guy. In fact, I don’t want to be and being a theme developer for WordPress does not require that I have to be. I am also humble enough to admit when I am not the smartest in the room. When faced with a bit of functionality, that is not native to WordPress, We Are Pixel8 continually relies on the valued assistance of the WordPress community for their willingness to share their knowledge and point us in the right direction when lost.

Sometimes that compass points in the direction of a stable plugin solution and employing such a solution does not speak to our deficiencies as developers. I would think it to be counterproductive to stubbornly attempt to develop another solution unless you are improving upon that solution.

Also, as a business owner who has to be cognizant of the unbillable time it takes to design, develop and deploy a premium theme, I have to make sure we do not dedicate precious time reinventing the wheel. Sure, we could develop our own custom contact form right into our themes. But why do so when plugins like Contact Form7 or Gravity Forms already work seamlessly with WordPress, are customizable, are supported and will allow the user to continue to use them without our theme? Does this dilute our products or make them less premium than the theme that does. Absolutely not!

Are theme options a bad idea?

I’m still on the fence about this one and don’t have a definitive answer either way. The more themes we release will eventually formulate an answer for us. I will say, in the coming weeks, we will be looking at all of our premium theme options and removing any that can be handled by a plugin. We will also do our best to vet plugins that can better perform the task we will be removing and make sure that our recommendations work seamlessly with our themes.To me, this is the responsible thing to do.

I know that this will mean that we are expecting our customers to be slightly more sophisticated and knowledgeable about WordPress and I think this is a good thing. Simply because the customer has the ability to purchase an inexpensive theme to easily launch their own website should not strip them of the responsibility of knowing how to use WordPress or extend the theme to fully meet their needs.

As developers, we also have to be an active participant in the education process. This is integral for the community to grow and thrive. What do you think?

via @Onextrapixel What to Consider & Avoid When Creating An Online Graphic Design Portfolio →

The Detroit Lions are in just such a position. During the 2008 season, the team became the first NFL franchise to lose all 16 regular season games (the Tampa Bay Buccaneers went 0-14 during the 1976 regular season). They also hold the esteemed honor of not winning a championship since 1957, which is the second longest drought behind the Arizona Cardinals, who at least made it to the Super Bowl last year.

How do you save the profile of a franchise that is mired in mediocrity?

The obvious first answer is winning. But, before the team can take the field, you have to demonstrate to your fan base that this is a different Detroit Lions football team. And, when the team unveiled their new logo on April 20, 2009, they took a conscious step towards that goal.

The new logo and type treatment is a subtle, yet effective upgrade of a logo that has been relatively unchanged since 1970. The mark, or emblem in this case, has been updated to give the mascot a fiercer look and feel while the type treatment has been modernized. And, though steeped in tradition, this new logo subtly reinforces that the 2009 Detroit Lions should be viewed as a new team with a new attitude and culture.

Is there precedent here?

I thought it would be interesting to look at another team who has successfully rebranded themselves over the past decade or so. I, by no means, believe that the Lions can expect the same outcome as this team, but did find the end result interesting.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

The Buccaneers entered the NFL as a franchise expansion team in 1976, which historically doesn’t bode well for any team. Their inaugural season, the team posted a win less 0-14 regular season record.

Granted, the team lacked depth of talent at all the positions, which is typical of an expansion team. But to make matters worse for the fans, you have to question the branding decisions made by the organization from the onset. The original logo, designed by Lamar Sparkman, is a picture of a pirate, who resembles Errol Flynn more than Captain Jack Sparrow, with a dagger between his teeth. Combined with the colors of orange and white, the team resembled a creamsicle more than a professional football team with a pirate macsot. The team would only post one winning season, out of 19, from 1976-1995 and was widely regarded as a team to not fear when on your schedule.

Sound familiar? At the end of the 1995 season, the Bucs would hire a new Head Coach, Tony Dungy, and ditch the old brand identity in an effort to reinvigorate the team, the franchise and its fan base. The redesigned logo, crafted by Eric Rickabaugh, features a tattered pirates flag with a skull and football mounted on a sword. The color palette was changed from orange and white (muted and passive) to red, black, orange, white and pewter (bright and aggressive). You have to agree that both the updated logo and color palette are befitting of an NFL franchise.

The season following the rebranding, the team’s record did not improve from the previous season’s 7-9. But the team would slowly improve until the 2001-2 season where they ultimately won the Super Bowl. Of course, this feat should be credited solely to the team’s play on the field and the coaches behind them. But, as a football fan, I didn’t begin to remotely take them seriously until the season they introduced the rebranded identity. As far as I was concerned, the team, and the brand, was a joke.

Will rebranding a team identity = winning season

… and what can this teach us about rebranding?

There is no way to say whether changing the brand of the Detroit Lions will change the culture of the team, or the attitude the fans have about the team, until they start winning games. And the formula for a winning team is comprised of great players and coaches,  not stylish uniforms and logos. But, the Lions have made a statement, whether you believe it is emphatic or not, that they are moving the organization in a new direction. Hopefully that new direction will be a successful one.

“A brand is a set of differentiating promises that link a product to its customers.”

This is such an appropriate quote from Stuart Agres. When your brand is suffering from poor public perception, it is imperative that you use every tool at your disposal to turn this around. A great way to inject new confidence from the inside out is to “reinvent” yourselves through a new brand identity. A properly redesigned brand can start you on the path of recovery, but know that it won’t fix your problems.

And, then it hit me. The tear sheets for the Fox Television serial, “Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles” used a poster that was much the same to promote their 2008 season. The Terminator poster, depicting the  lead “artificial” character’s head and torso hanging from wires with her innards falling to the ground, looks to be eerily akin to the new “Surrogates” campaign. And I began to wonder… when should inspiration be called plagiarism?

Where is the line drawn between inspiration and plagiarism?

Daily, we all try create a piece of original art, whether for ourselves or a client. But, let’s face it. As designers, we are probably not going to reinvent the wheel. The real possibilities of creating something nobody has ever seen are very slim.

And, we’ve all had those days when our brains are mush and we just cannot conjure one single original thought. When this affliction, I like to affectionately call “designer’s block”, strikes, it leads us to look for external inspiration to kick start out process. That inspiration can come from books, magazines, television or just walking around your neighborhood. Plus, when you toss the internet into the equation, we have 24 hour access to endless visual inspiration, especially within the countless design galleries that seem to manifest on a daily basis. So, it is natural that we will turn to one of these outlets to to cull a little stimulation.

But, I would argue that there is an inherent danger to our own organic creativity when we do this. Subconsciously, we all copy to some degree when we use other designers’ work as inspiration. Let’s take website design, for example. How many sites have we seen with paper airplanes flying around or cartoon characters as mascots? These are all pretty prevalent today. But someone had to have been the first to have spawned so many “copies” of the element. Thus an original/copy paradigm is created.

Does that mean that the designer who uses paper airplanes as a flourish is guilty of copying? Yes, if we are to go by the strict definition of the word. But, is this plagiarism? This is where I think the line becomes blurred. I believe if a designer is “inspired” by one of these elements, and uses it in their work in a fashion that is not a direct carbon copy, then it isn’t plagiarism.

Splitting hairs

Of course, you can argue that I am splitting hairs here and this is simply a matter of subjective opinion. But, let’s go back to what started this train of thought. The two posters are very similar in theme, layout and typography hence my feeling of déjà vu. This, to me, is a classic example of designer plagiarism. So many elements of the “Terminator” poster were copied for the “Surrogates” poster that I have a very difficult time finding the differences between the two, aside from the model.

As a designer, it is our responsibility to police ourselves to avoid committing this type of plagiarism. It is perfectly fine to be inspired by the multitude of great artist around us. I definitely have been and I hope it shows in my work. But, we cannot take the easy way out and simply copy other artists’ work. As artists in our own right, we must constantly strive to find our “voice” and carve out our small place in the designer universe. We won’t be able to do that if we simply plagiarize what came before us.

So, the next time you see something that inspires you, make sure you make it your own and not a xerox copy.