The minimoko Blog - Filed under '2011'

Sleep on it

A few days ago I was looking at this infographic, outlining the biggest logo re-designs of 2011. 2011 was a big year for re-design. A lot of brands changed their iconic logos and that created a ripple effect.

Suddenly everyone started reviewing what their logo looks like and considering if they should also change. Hey, if They are doing it, why are we sticking with our old, memorable logo? My advice on this would be to sleep on it. From the infographic there are a few logos that stand out as rush jobs. Changing meaning and values to something new just for the sake of it.

Take NBCUniversal for example. The old logo wasn't perfect (I generally support that brands should be created with separate identities and images, instead of merging the existing ones) but it reflected its history and values. The new logo doesn't say much and I would just call it ...different.

Some of the others have done a fantastic job revamping their old image and adapting it to the "new way of things", making them look fresh and up-to-date.

If you decide to go down the route of re-designing your image and logo, then don't take it lightly. You need to invest a lot of time, stick to what you stand for and make sure that you don't damage the image you have already built.

Filed under // 2011 Branding Thursdays logo logo design logos rebranding

Posted by Harry Mylonadis

We Wish You a Simple Christmas!

This is the last post before Christmas and we wanted to wish all of you a Simple Christmas and a New Year filled with Joy, Happines, Love and Prosperity.

2011 has been a great experience and we've learned a lot of things. We've increased our audience, formed new collaborations, changed the way we communicate, never stopped posting to our blog and generally had a very nice journey.

We are really looking forward to 2012 and we hope you will be with us for the new journey.

HAVE A SIMPLE CHRISTMAS EVERYBODY!! Ho-ho-ho

P.S. We will be following the UK bank holidays so we won't be posting on Monday 26th and Tuesday 27th

Filed under // 2011 2012 Christmas minimoko simplicity

Posted by Harry Mylonadis

Has It Been One Year Already?

About a year ago, we started posting on a regular basis on this blog. With this anniversary we want to thank all of you for supporting us and we hope that you have enjoyed reading this blog as much as we enjoy writing for it.

Writing this blog has been an amazing learning experience. Here is what I learnt in the past year:

Everyone can do it. Before starting I would always find excuses to not do it. I need someone to edit it, my writing is not that good, I haven’t found an interesting topic and any other excuse. But then one day, I turned to Helen and told her “You know what, we are starting the blog next Monday”.
You need a schedule. And you need to keep it. Having a schedule helps you get into “writing mode” on a daily basis. It also helps you brainstorm ideas for posts and come up with more ideas without even knowing it. Have a look at our schedule here.
To improve your writing, you need to write. Before we started this blog, I had problems writing. Not that I couldn’t write well, but whenever I sat down to write something I would literally feel pain from trying to focus and get my "writing brain" to work. The best way to improve is by writing on a daily basis, and a blog is one of the best ways to do this.
It’s the best way to show what you stand for. For people to understand what your beliefs are, you need to share them. Having a blog not only helps you do that, it also lets you add a certain voice to it from your writing style.
You need to use your own voice. I hate it when I visit a company blog and all I see is corporate speak. If you are going to do it, do it right. People are looking for a way to connect with you, so use your own voice. If you have been reading this blog and have also met me in person, you will know what I’m talking about.

Enough with lessons learnt and on to what rewards you should expect from having a blog. For me it has been the following (this time I will keep it short):

Ideas start flowing. Because you are producing on a daily basis, your brain becomes more active and ideas start flowing.
You feel better. Every time you write something inspiring, you also inspire yourself. You finish it and when you read through it you can say “Wow! I just wrote that!”.
You build a reputation. When I started this blog, I wanted to place minimoko at the junction of branding and simplicity. One year later, I believe the blog has strengthened our place in this junction.
It’s the best SEO. Forget about backlinks, meta and all the other c**p. If you want good quality traffic and good positions for the search terms you want, then start writing good content.

I’ve blabbered enough for today and as you know by now this is not my style. This past year has been an amazing journey and we’re really looking forward for this new year. Stay tuned and we will always do our best to bring you the best content.

Filed under // 2011 Inspiration Mondays achievement anniversary lessons one year

Posted by Harry Mylonadis

Celebrate this Halloween with a Present from minimoko!

With Halloween just around the corner we have prepared a nice giveaway to help you celebrate!

A few months ago we launched The Monkey's Paw iPad app, in collaboration with Turned On Digital and Beware of the Art. For those of you that don't know this classic story, it's ideal for the night of Halloween. The app is full of dark illustrations, interactive pages and even your very own Monkey Paw so you can have your chance for 3 wishes to be granded (but beware of the consequences!).

So on to the giveaway! At 11am sharp (UK GMT) we will post a message on our facebook page and twitter. The first five people to comment on our facebook post or retweet our message, will get an iTunes Store code to download The Monkey's Paw for free! The app runs only on the iPad so make sure you have one before retweeting/commenting.

Good luck!

Filed under // 2011 The Monkey's Paw halloween iPad

Posted by Harry Mylonadis

Everything Ends

(download)

Yesterday was the official end of our summer vacation.

We are thankful that we were able to take these days off to regroup, align and reflect. The result apart from relaxation has been new ideas that will be implemented very soon.

Everything will be posted here so stay tuned!

Filed under // 2011 Friday Lessons end vacation

Posted by Harry Mylonadis

Have a minimoko Easter!

We want to wish everyone a Happy Easter and hope you enjoy the holiday!

We will be taking our time off to enjoy the Bank Holiday, so we will not be posting this Friday and Monday.

Have a great Easter!

Filed under // 2011 Easter Happy Easter holidays

Posted by Harry Mylonadis

Go, go, Pavegen!

image from CreativeReview

Our good friends and neighbours at C4CC, Pavegen, have now been nominated for Product of the Year at the 2011 Brit Insurance Design Awards!

They really deserve to win and we want to wish them good luck!

You can read more about Pavegen at the coverage on the BBC and Creative Review websites.

Filed under // 2011 Brit Insurance Design Awards Pavegen

Posted by Harry Mylonadis

TEDxActonStreet is in 2 Weeks!

Only 2 weeks and only 2 tickets left for TEDxActonStreet!

TEDxActonStreet, is a TED2011 Simulcast (TEDxLive) event. This means that we will be projecting a stream from the TED2011 conference in order to bring the experience of TED to London.

We're looking forward to meeting everyone and exchanging ideas.