May 2012
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“I like nonsense, it wakes up the brain cells. Fantasy is a necessary ingredient...”
– Dr. Seuss
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Value Is Not A Feature, It's A Benefit
Almost the first thing anyone asks me about having an explainer video created is the price. Is that the only thing they should really care about? What if I said $100 and then produced garbage, would that really have been worth the $100? Shouldn’t the first question be, are your videos any good and who have you worked with? We all have a price point that we can afford for everything....
6 tags
Type Tuesday #142
Week 142 of Type Tuesday. Each week I try and share five free fonts that I’ve come across for you to use and enjoy. I hope you like what I have picked out this time. Be sure to comeback next week for another great set.
bariol
Alex Scribble
bavaria
Dyno
Capital Daren
4 tags
Meet the Beer Traveler →
I’m today’s featured beer traveler on The Roaming Pint. Since 2006 I’ve traveled over 150k miles and had a number of pints on those trips!
2 tags
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Stickers! A Low Cost And Fun Marketing Tool.
I’m a big fan of stickers, I love getting stickers from businesses and brands. They are low cost and easy to get printed. That’s why one of the first things I did when I started LooseKeys and got going with the HopCast was to make stickers. Some of the stickers are just the logos but the ones that people really love are the illustrated characters. They are a lot more fun then just a...
5 tags
5 tags
“The artist is nothing without the gift. But the gift is nothing without work.”
– Emile Zola
7 tags
Get Back Up And Brush Yourself Off
Failure isn’t all negative, it’s more a process of wrong choices that help you to find out what’s going to work. Sometimes they’re small, others are huge but this is how you learn.
As a designer, you have days where nothing you create looks good. You don’t stop being a designer because your creative juice ran out. It’s something you have to get through, then move on....
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Think You’re Finished?
So often when a project or a design is finished we are so proud of it that it gets sent off to the client or posted online right away. Sometimes you’re done just because you’re sick of looking at it or working on it and don’t have any interest in prolonging the project any longer then necessary. However, just like a paper you wrote in high school or college that you revised, re-wrote and...
6 tags
6 tags
11 tags
Four Questions To Ask When Writing An Explainer...
The script is probably the most important part of your video. I almost split my time evenly with time spent writing a script and doing the animation. That’s how important a part of the process I think it is.
The first step to writing an effective script is a clear understanding of the audience for the product or service. Who needs to understand it and who will be viewing it? When writing...
6 tags
6 tags
Type Tuesday #141
Week 141 of Type Tuesday. Each week I try and share five free fonts that I’ve come across for you to use and enjoy. I hope you like what I have picked out this time. Be sure to comeback next week for another great set.
alliewritting
Science Lab
Tellural
Aviator
Loco TV
4 tags
7 tags
Make An Animated Video Your Sites Focal Point
Animated explainer videos add interest and make a perfect focal point for your landing page. Everyone who visits your page needs to be grabbed quickly or they are going to click away. It only takes them seconds before they move on. You have to grab their attention and hold it. Whether it’s a video that explains how your service works, gives an overview of the product or just teases people...
3 tags
“The greatest revenge is massive success.”
– Frank Sinatra
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Fear Strikes When You're The Weakest
I typically don’t remember many of my dreams but I’ve noticed lately that I’ve been waking up to dreams that have a very bad outcome. Not so much a nightmare but rather just everything turning out wrong. I know I have a lot going on with building a business and a wedding just months away, so it’s no wonder that when my mind is at rest that it’s struggling with some of...
6 tags
“Now what the fuck is a vacation.
I see no satisfaction.
I work 12 hours a day,...”
– Logic
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WatchBelly Ballot makes naming your baby more fun. In under 2 min you can invite loved ones to vote for your favorite baby names via Facebook and Twitter. Watch this quick demo to see how it works, and how you can even win cool prizes in the process. See more at http://babynames.net to create your Belly Ballot!
Client: Belly Ballot Production Company: LooseKeys Design & Illustration: Brad...
5 tags
“Always do your best. What you plant now, you will harvest later.”
– Og Mandino
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Someone You Should Know
If you’re flipping through the most recent issue of Screen Magazine, you might notice a familiar face. Earlier this year I had to chance to chat with Andrew Schneider about my creative past and how I’m building my production company LooseKeys, here in Chicago. It was great to be included in Screen Magazine and under a very cool article title of “Someone You Should Know.”
5 tags
One Day At A Time
When you’re building your own business, everyday can be a struggle but measuring everyday as if it were “make it or break it”, isn’t always going to work out. If you go to bed thinking you didn’t accomplish anything or that you didn’t accomplish enough, this might make you hungry to kill it tomorrow but more likely it’s going to just get you down. And that...
4 tags
6 tags
“You see business over bullshit’s my company policy”
– B.o.B
6 tags
Type Tuesday #140
Week 140 of Type Tuesday. Each week I try and share five free fonts that I’ve come across for you to use and enjoy. I hope you like what I have picked out this time. Be sure to comeback next week for another great set.
RPM 45
Znikomit
ABO Mando
Retro Town
Stroke
11 tags
WatchStartups are constantly starting up, or at least trying…
How do these potential giants get the attention of the world? Or, most importantly, how do they get the attention of influential influencers and socially connected socializers?
Startups want and need Influencers.
Meet Wahooly.
Wahooly is all about getting these enlightened startups the traction they require to blast their...
9 tags
Having a Focus Or Niche
The other night I was talking with a girl at a party and she mentioned that she was an aspiring fashion designer. I asked her what her focus or niche market was. Her response was “everything, I didn’t know you needed to have one.” Everything? I don’t know much about the fashion industry, any little knowledge I have comes from watching project runway. So really that’s...
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“Sales Cures All. Know how your company will make money and how you will actually...”
– Mark Cuban
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Happy Mother's Day
My mom taught me lots of lessons growing up but there was one thing she helped instill in me that has helped me greatly over the years. It was a solid work ethic. My mom possessed a fantastic work ethic, something that she learned from her parents and worked hard to instill in me and my sister. Looking back on it now, it’s amazing that she worked a full-time job as a teacher, had a couple...
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WatchThe kick off of Chicago Craft Beer Week is just days away and there are a few things to know about the week. Brad Chmielewski and Ken Hunnemeder share a beer with one of the volunteer organizers Jonathan Surratt to go over a few details of the 11 day festivities. One of the important items to note are the special lanyards with maps you’re able to pick up at participating neighborhood venues...
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Setting Up A Newsletter
It seems like everyone has a newsletter lately that offers special content or a recap on what’s been happening on their blog. It’s a great way to have direct communication between you and your readers.
Blog posts and videos you upload can sometimes get missed with the amount of content getting shared but newsletters go right to the people that are interested in what you or your...
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“Sometimes we need the clarity that crisis provides.”
– Scott Belsky
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Type Tuesday #139
Week 139 of Type Tuesday. Each week I try and share five free fonts that I’ve come across for you to use and enjoy. I hope you like what I have picked out this time. Be sure to comeback next week for another great set.
New Theory
JAH
el yazi
Pilaca
Typometry
12 tags
Waiting Is Not Effective Marketing
Figuring out your marketing strategy is often a guessing game. You try one thing and see how it goes and then re-tool and try something else. Whatever you’re doing, you need to be pro-active with your marketing. Running a web banner and just letting it sit out there is a waste. Just waiting for the work to come in isn’t the way to get new clients or bring back past clients.
I really...
9 tags
Growing The Business
It looks like its time I stop flying solo and make the leap to hire someone at LooseKeys. As I’m moving forward with LooseKeys, after just celebrating my one year anniversary, it seems like this is the logical next step if I want to grow. Business has been great and I’m working with some amazing people and businesses. Right now I can only handle so much of the work and although...
5 tags
5 tags
It Starts With A Story
I’ve been looking at the process of how to explain to people what it is LooseKeys does and how I go about creating an explainer video. The first step I always go back to is the story, it starts with the story. If it’s the idea of the story or just knowing you need to figure out a way to tell your story. Great stories have the ability to move and excite us, whatever the medium. I love...
8 tags
If It Ain't Broke Still Try And Fix It
You hear people say it all the time “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.” That seems like such a copout, is that really the best way to run a business? Especially if you’re trying to innovate. Personally it seems backwards to me… how are you going to move your company and our collective culture forward if you’re always just going with what works. Shouldn’t you be pushing...
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LooseKeys Is One Year Old
It’s hard to believe that its already been a year since I left Daily Planet Productions ltd. and started my own business, LooseKeys. Going from a secure job with benefits and a guaranteed paycheck each week to… well, no job security, no benefits and if we don’t get enough work, there’s no paycheck at all. Its been crazy but at the same time exciting. I have no regrets for...
11 tags
Communicator Awards
I’m extremely excited to announce that four explainer videos LooseKeys worked on this past year have won 2012 Communicator Awards. FitOrbit’s “Sally Meets Harry” won a Gold for Branded Content - Business to Consumer. “What is BodyShopBids?” won a Silver for Branded Content - Business to Consumer. For Branded Content - Business to Business, “FreebeePay...
April 2012
10 tags
WatchHere’s a problem with social networking sites we’re all familiar with. Whether your friend list is small or very large. You generally only socialize with a small handful of people. That’s because even though you have hobbies and interests that you are passionate about. Most of the people on your friend list are there simply because you know them, regardless of their interests....
15 tags
WatchYou’re awesome! Thank you for the love and support you have given to us over the years. Now it’s time to celebrate! October 6th, 2012 is fast approaching and we can hardly wait! We hope you can join us. Be sure to save the date! To get information on all the wedding happenings, check out www.maeveandbrad.com
7 tags
Keeping It Positive Online & Offline
Lately I’ve noticed that a lot of people using social media are being relativity positive. I’m not saying everyone is, some use Twitter and Facebook as an outlet to vent. Sometimes it just feels easier to be negative and complain. But I personally see a lot more positive tweets and updates in my stream. I guess it comes back to the if you don’t have anything good to say,...
8 tags
8 tags
Challenge Yourself To Learn And Stay On Top
Athletes and musicians practice playing for a reason, it’s silly to think that you shouldn’t practice and learn your own craft to better keep up your skills. Even if you’re number one now, you need to find time to keep learning to stay on top. You have to continue to challenge yourself and figure out what’s new and how you can stay ahead of the curve. When you keep learning and...