Hampshire police thought it would be a good idea to advertise on the rear of a bus.
Their planning did not take into account the position of the exhaust pipe. Thanks for this one Colin! 
Filed under: Blogging, Life, Organic, Technology, Work/Life Balance | Tags: balance, Cyber hippy, freedom, freedom fighters, Technology
For a while now I have been grappling with a ‘secret’ contradiction… I have a problem with balancing my quest for freedom vs. my love of ‘most things’ technological.
I often preach that the internet is the one final frontier left for ‘freedom fighters’, BUT I keep thinking that at some point there may be an ‘up-swell’ of people that will reject the world of the computer/intenet/mobile to once again ‘find freedom and themselves’… On one side I get this [and I may even join the group.. if I can bring my laptop and iburst!]….NO really…..it would be cool to sometimes just go into total ‘switch off mode’ [eeekk!] and run away from the world and its noise.
The reality though, is that technology has become such a part of my life [I can just hear some of you saying.. sooo sad] and no matter how I try to reject it, I simply cant. I feel isolated, cut off and insular without it.. far from free…
So that got me thinking, will we ever get to the machines vs. humans [ala Matrix] stage? Are we pushing forward to fast and hard…forgetting [in part] what makes us human…personal interaction? Part of me wants to throw off my shoes and run carefree [wind in the hair etc etc] in a green meadow with grazing sheep, feeling the earth ooze beneath my feet.. I am a hippy at heart BUT the other part wants to create, surf, dig and interact with as much new technology as I can get my hands on… can I have it all?? Maybe I should call myself a cyber hippy?!
In the end I suppose its about finding my personal balance in a world of high speed and change.. not an easy one….
Posted by: Cyber Hippy [aka Candice]
Filed under: Blogging, Environment, Lifestyle, Music | Tags: Art, Charity, Illustrations, Music
It was a breath of fresh air to see the greater community of South African Illustrators come together to appreciate/support the vast talent of illustrators we have in our country. To the rest of you who either live in an office cubicle 24/7 or don’t read the paper at all (hope I’m wrong), I talking about the Night of a 1000 drawings which was held at the Lister Building in Jozi CBD.What was also really great was the fact that this was a charity event, where all the illustrations submitted by the illustrators were exhibited for sale at R100.00 each, cheap but priceless at the end of the day cause some of those illustration were mind blowing.
After going to the 18th floor where the illustrations were exhibited, you had to register for the newsletter informing you about upcoming events of similar note. I was in awe at the vast Talent of Illustrators I saw at this venue. The cosmopolitan atmosphere (writers license baby.haha) was fully appreciated and it was also interesting to meet and talk to some of the illustrators and the fact that it was peers whom I could very much relate to in terms of the subject matter and the fact that we all pushing the same cause.
The crowd was vastly made up of some of the well established agencies in Jozi, who are really doing ground breaking projects in the field of Design /Media in general. Oh I also got to rub shoulders with some of the Top Dogs in the Industry of Production and Motion Graphics.
I also feel the need to mention the venue, especially the rooftop where a mother of all jols was happening, and boy was it happening. The view of Jozi from the rooftop was one of the things that basically made my night and I would rate as one of the best views I’ve seen in my life, totally priceless.
All in all bigups to the organizers who orchestrated the event. It’s good that not only are we bringing exposure to the talent we have, but also the fact that it was an event to give back to the masses of SA.Thank You very much and see you next year.
Peace
Posted by
Mpumelelo Bhengu
Filed under: Design, Lifestyle, Trends | Tags: Cocktails, Luxury Hotels, Treat
To meet for a cocktail and a chin wag at one of luxurious Morgans Group Hotels…….see you in Miami!!!
Posted by: Donna
Filed under: Branding, Design, Trends | Tags: Advertising, Graffiti, Street Culture
Graffiti is often seen as a mark of individualism, aesthetic and rebellion, but what happens when the corporate tries to take a piece of this spraycan pie?
Many artist still argue the fact that the corporate world has no connection into the world of graffiti .Why is it that many brand campaigns are all of a sudden taking to the deep end of this medium ? Street culture has become a solid core/part of the youth and brands are trying to capitalize on this (visually) to be the brand of the moment or the “it” brand. Agencies also view Guerrilla Advertising as being popular because they claim it opens more OPTIONS for the agency creatives to connect with and engage the consumers.
The fact of the matter is most of these brands (including some of the agencies) lack the true objective, understanding, vision and the essence of what this medium is all about, the medium they are trying to piggy back on. Firstly there is no logical connection. Basically in most cases it’s not really about the execution of the concept, but the lack of original thinking. What some of these brands don’t realize is the fact that there are vast possibilities of using this medium and if a brand decides to pick up a stencil, cause it’s the cool thing at that particular moment, they will just be cheapening the artist that has spent time, effort, risk and energy just to be seen as the cool brand of the moment. Using Graffiti/Street culture to sell a product is much trickier and harder than it seems to appear.
I personally feel that a good Campaign when it comes to using Graffiti has to be subtle, but not to subtle to the point of making the product unrecognizable. It also has to appeal to other creatives (graffiti artist) and not become an annoyance to the general public; it is occupying public space after all. All in all it has to be created by a genuine artist who isn’t “pressed down” by the corporate view/vision (if there is one).
In closing Brands will have to formulate a genuine understanding of their audience and the medium itself, in order to achieve an all effective and successful Campain.Also as the understanding of this culture grows and true objectives/visions grow, expect to see more vandalism….oops I mean fantastic designs popping up in walls near you.
Mpumelelo a.k.a the Infamous Anonymous Muntu / IAM
Filed under: Branding, Business, Customers, Funny | Tags: Cars, female purchasing power, Funny, SA
or NOT!!
This post was irresistible and a perfect example of how brands are still not taking the female purchasing ‘vote’ seriously enough [over 70% of purchasing decisions are now made by the female in the house]. It seems that everyone is not on the same page…this lot were reading a different book altogether!
Donna may of had good service when she brought her car BUT this is a pic of her new car keyring….
It really ’speaks’ to the audience… NOT. Total waste of money, it was removed instantly….
Filed under: Blogging, Branding, Business, Customers, Technology | Tags: Business, Customers, Technology
An article in the Harvard Business Review got me thinking about the ‘relationships’ that companies are building with their customers. It has become hard to miss [most brands have though] how necessary it is for companies to create an environment of choice for customers. Lets face it, the days of being tied into contracts for long periods of time [and still getting appalling service] are numbered.
Holding customers to the fine print, profiting from their confusion, ignorance and poor decisions BUT worse of all… penalizing them for things, is really no longer sustainable. In this country cell phone companies and banks are the worse culprits.
This approach is obviously very profitable for companies, providing things like guaranteed projected sales and great cash flow [and a lot more] BUT those sadly don’t benefit the customer, as poor service delivery is rife.
Today’s customers are more informed and NO choice is really the worst thing you can ‘offer’ in this new economy… it will leave you with REAL brand terrorists. Add the new digital tools available to the anger…. and WOLA you have an anti-brand revolution.
We have entered a credibility economy now more than ever and lets just hope that the SA brands start to respond favourably… Well done to Virgin Mobile for their approach…the revolution begins……
Posted by: Candice
I have to admit after living in the land of Milk ‘n Honey for the past five years and now being back in Africa [where I belong and where I want to be], there are just a few things that can’t go unnoticed. Like this one, it’s a rare sighting seeing limo’s in South Africa but in Los Angeles they are a dime a dozen. I think this is helluva amusing the difference in classy transport is worlds apart – hopefully this will make or break your day – obviously depending on which part of the world you live in – “North” or “South”!!!!
Anyone for a ride down South?????
