With any luck, you’re reading this at the beach! While you’re working on not getting a tan, check out what we found interesting, enlightening and entertaining this month.
Shade-y marketing
How do you feel about brands dragging other brands on social media? Corporate schadenfreude has definitely become more prevalent, thanks mostly to Twitter, the Triumph the Comic Insult Dog of social media platforms. Some brands are better at it than others, but it’s always a risk. Our take on it is that if you’re the little guy going after a big, faceless giant, the promise of reward is probably worth the risk. If you’re picking on someone smaller than you (or even your own size), the chance you’ll look like a bully or a mean girl is much greater. Have you ever taken a chance on a post like this? How did it work out?
👁 ❤️ emojis. Do 🐑*?
Love ’em or hate ’em, emojis are here to stay. Not only that, they are becoming essential in mobile and social communication. Text messaging and social media posts benefit greatly from the clarity added by emojis. Now, studies show that your brain reacts the same way to a 😀as it does to a smile IRL. In an effort to foster clarity and cooperation, companies are embracing emojis in interoffice communication, as well as on their social media channels. Are you using emojis in your social media marketing posts? If not, this article might change your mind. And if you want to know more about emojis than you ever imagined, check out Adobe’s State of Emoji address.
*on a laptop that probably looks more like a ram, but 🐑 get the idea.
Sites in white satin
If you’re looking for inspiration for a refresh of your website, check out these three trends that are taking shape in the graphic design world. One of these is the use of exaggerated white space, basically, home pages that are the digital equivalent to those white rooms you see in interior design magazines. The use of typography and other graphic elements like animation creates a disruption that’s compelling. While it may seem like all websites using this design would look the same, you can see from the examples that not only are they different, but they have the ability to make you stop and focus on what you’re seeing in a way that a site with more content does not.
Alexa, I’m thinking of a number between 1 and ∞
If you’re freaked out by the fact that your phone seems to hear everything you say, this is going to have you reaching for a tinfoil hat. Facebook is currently working to build “a non-invasive wearable device that lets people type just by imagining what they want to say.” Wait, what? Yeah, Facebook wants you to wear a computer that can read your mind. The primary use case for this technology is noble and necessary, allowing people unable to communicate through words or gestures (e.g. people with ALS) the ability to free the thoughts trapped in their head. However, the mere idea that Facebook is involved in this work understandably has some people concerned about privacy and security. It’s much too early to sound any alarms, with the technology at least a decade away. Still, we just put some tape over the laptop web cam.
Well, that’s the ☕️ for this month. Stay 🆒. 🎶 See you in September🎶!
