News from September 2009

Fractal Design

September 24, 2009

I recently stumbled across a fractal generator and thought I’d share the results here. I’d used them before but this one was a little simpler to use. It called Fractal4D and it’s an Adobe Air application so you need to have air installed to run it. Cyberra asked us to design a banner stand with the tagline “Cyberinfrastructure: The invisible infrastructure making things work” I thought a fractal would be a great visual accompaniment to Cyberinfrastructure. I generated about 10 or 15 different fractals until I settled on one I liked. I added a colour gradient and you can see the rest below.

I wear my sunglasses at night

September 17, 2009

“From the moment we arrived, we were treated like royalty.”

As cliché as it may sound, we really do feel privileged to have such a diverse range of clients to work for and we find that one of the more exciting parts of our business is the opportunity to really get to know them, their work and just what it is that makes them tick. Developing a clear understanding of who they are, what they do and where they’re going plays a key role in doing our very best job for them. As part of our “discovery” process, we love visiting our clients at their places of business. Seeing them in their natural habitats doing what they do best is always an eye-opening experience and can offer up so much more about a client than any meeting or survey ever could.

One such case of this took place on a sunny afternoon this past July, when we decided to take our entire staff on a field trip to surprise them with a spontaneous reward just for being awesome. We went to Londonderry Eyecare (one of our clients) and everyone was told to browse and then pick out a pair of designer sunglasses to take home and care for as their very own (no price limit, no designer prejudice). We went over a lunch hour, hoping to take up as little of the store’s time as possible, cause minimal disruption, and slip out as discreetly as we had arrived.

Londonderry Eyecare had something different in mind. From the moment we arrived, we were treated like royalty. One of the representatives happily accompanied our clan wall-by-wall around the store, unlocking dozens of pairs of sunglasses, helping us decide what shape and size was right for each of us, keeping a “maybe” tray with our favourites so we could cross-check whenever necessary, and finishing up with a custom fitting for each. Start to finish, we were taken care of, treated with patience as we deliberated over Chanel or Gucci, black or tortoise-shell, aviator or a more Audrey Hepburn look (life-altering decisions), and seriously felt as though we were the only customers there (which we weren’t).

Leaving the store and feeling a bit excessive, but secretly very cool in our Coach, Prada, Dolce & Gabbana, Paul Frank, Rayban and Versace shades, we all agreed, it was one of the more thorough and positive shopping experiences we had ever had. Their customer care blew us away. We’re in the business of client service, so when we see it done right, no matter what the field, it’s always a valuable lesson for us in how to do even better. Thanks Londonderry!