This first issue of the Coobot offers ideas for unique Christmas card designs, design insights for e-mail marketing, tips to improve your search engine rankings, Design Trends for 2012 and introduces our client, The Back Porch BBQ.

Christmas in October?

We can help you design a unique and memorable card in all kinds of formats from video to email to good old fashion print. Below are examples of some of the Christmas cards we’ve designed or customized for clients.

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We designed a video e-card for Coobo Media last year that also announced our move to a new office.[/av_one_half] [av_one_half]

This card was an e-card template that we customized for Houston Center Valve & Fitting.[/av_one_half] [av_one_half first]

“Fun with Photoshop” This is a printed Christmas card. Blake’s family chooses a fun theme and incorporates family photos every year.[/av_one_half] [av_one_half]

We created this simple, elegant e-card to complement this client’s brand identity.

We also create custom cards based on your idea.[/av_one_half]

In The Details

Why Share Your Brand Space?

Every time you send an e-mail blast using some of the leading ESP’s (Email Service Providers), you promote their service (examples below). If you are paying for this service, there should be a “white label” option (no ESP logo) so your customer isn’t distracted by another logo in the footer. It may seem like a little detail but there’s no need for even the smallest distraction when trying to communicate to your customer.

ABOVE: EXAMPLES OF VARIOUS ESP FOOTERS

Ready, Set, Launch

CLIENT: The Back Porch BBQ

This year we had the pleasure of working with Korin and Derrick Burnett as they built their dream business: a BBQ joint in La Grange, Texas. We helped them to create a logo, business cards, menus, social media pages, a blog, a web landing page and ads for local publications. And what’s the best part? Almost everyone at Coobo Media has had a chance to taste test the merchandise and we give it a BIG thumbs up!

ABOVE: FACEBOOK COVER DESIGN

ABOVE: SPLASH PAGE DESIGN, OPENING POSTCARD, AND CHAMBER OF COMMERCE AD

ABOVE: PRINTED MENU DESIGN

ABOVE: BUSINESS CARD DESIGN AND MENU BOARD DESIGN

Did You Know?

DYK: Being Relevant Can also Boost your Search Engine Rankings

Have you heard that there are “tricks” for pushing your website’s search engine results to the top of the page? If you have, you heard wrong. There is no way to “trick” the search engines. And if a search engine marketing company is guaranteeing top placement, they are not telling you the truth. The easiest (and least expensive) way to improve your organic rankings is to continually improve the relevance of your content. Share your expertise in your business. Find ways to offer your opinion to your customers and prospects, and draw them to your site for more information. By simply providing thoughtful insights and information on your website, your blog and in social media like Facebook and Twitter, you are loading your content with relevant key words and frequently changing your site. If you want to learn more about improving SEO organically, check out this article from Fast Company.

Not only are designers creating cleaner, more minimalist designs, they are reacting to the constant barrage of information and data that we are all inundated with during each day. This reaction is showing up in both design and typography. This design rebellion is seen in the recent trend to monograms for logos and the use of every day objects to create type in art. For more information on the styles that are influencing designers, check out the article from Creative Bloq (.com).
Discover the top 20 graphic design trends for 2012