Thank You Letter

       A couple weeks ago we created a thank you letter to send out to companies we do business with.  I did not have much difficulty creating mine because I went with the theme of my business card, a relaxed, laid back picture with blue and black font.  I used a tropical island in the middle of the ocean.  It seems very relaxed and as if you do not have much to worry about.  This is how I want the people I work for to feel, as if they do not have to worry. 

Logo Designing

The other day we designed logos for ourselves.  After redoing my own  countless times, I finally decided on one I like and feel represents me.  I picked the three colors blue black and white.  They look great together and the black and white are flat solid colors, while the blue adds color to it.  I picked the blue because it is the color of the ocean, which is very calm and relaxing to most people.  My initials, J and S, interlock to form a modern design that a lot of major companies are using today.  The off center box adds a sort of originality to the whole logo it self.  My sub images are sharks with the three main colors.  I like fish alot and sharks are the kings of the sea in my opinion.  Overall I feel this was a good project to add to our experience and force us to use creativity to inspire something we would use all year.

American Made, Carrots Make a Come Back

     Carrots are trying to make a come back when it comes to their consumption in America.  I read this article today on how the carrot industry took a hit in it's profits and consumption in the United States recently. They are redesigning their whole angle of advertising and are trying to make it considered more of a junk food or snack food.  They saw how the sale of junk food and the packaged food in everybody's kitchen drawers were rising and thought they could do the same.  They looked for the right way to advertise and after plenty of meetings, met Crispin Porter and Bogusky.  They were referred by a rival who thought they would be just right for the job.
     The company, Crispin Porter and Bogusky, went into kitchens of the surrounding area and took notes and did research on the families eating habits.  The first thing kids did when they got home was go for the snack drawer, then look in the fridge in the main open space.  The fridge drawers were avoided because it held the fruit, vegetables, and lunch meats. Even adults seemed to avoid these drawers.  The packages picked the most were in packing with a lot going on.  Since the carrot bags were in boring packaging, the first idea was make them into smaller bags with designs and colors.  This would cost about 25% more in packaging costs but the profit gained from the idea would make up for it  and some.
     The new packaging and branding of the product has created a come back for the carrot business.  Kids are now reaching for the chip like bag of carrots and eating healthier.  Sales went up 10-12% in november from the year before.  They installed vending machines in select schools to see how the product would sell.  The machines sold 80 to 90 snack packs per week.  The new idea has brought them back and their profits are now increasing once again.  The new packaging and making the food more fun not only makes more money, but increases the sale of a healthier snack to kids.
     I think that this new found marketing strategy is a great way to bring back an American business.  We need to stop selling out to other countries and buy more American made, any way we can.  The carrots being sold this way will also increase kids consumption of the product, hopefully lowering child obesity.  It may even increase the amount of adults that eat healthier.  Overall I think this is a great idea with long term benefits in many fields, and no negative effects in sight.