Create a Flyer

Mail it, hand it out, hang it up, leave it wherever prospects congregate—a flyer, printed on one side of a letter-sized sheet, is among the least expensive, easiest to produce, and hardest working marketing tools.Use photographs to tell your story. Show the benefit or the result of using your product or service in a photograph. You can scan your own photographs or buy stock photographs already in electronic form.Use a delicate hand. People new to design tend to make text and graphics too big and/or too bold. Keep your layout simple. Limit yourself to two typefaces to minimize the visual confusion. Use illustrations that build on your message.Don’t make unrealistic claims. Nothing turns off prospects quicker. Be enthusiastic, tell your story in a positive light, but don’t expect people to believe statements you would not believe yourself.Organize your page with boxes and borders. You can include several different levels of information on a single page by enclosing separate material in a box or border.Establish a center of attention. Decide which idea or image is most important on the page and make it the single most dominant visual element by playing up its size, position, or density.Stick with it. Its easy to get bored with your marketing message and your visual identity. If your story is clearly and effectively told, don’t change it for change’s sake. To a new prospect, it is every bit as fresh as the first day you created it. To repeat customers, your message becomes increasingly familiar and secure in their minds.Illustration is more than ornamentation. At a minimum, a picture or graphic image should grab attention and draw your reader into the message. At its best, it will express something words can’t.Good design doesn’t have to be complicated. This is a simple design using two typefaces. The illustrations are from a clip art collection. The final artwork is printed in black and white on rich-looking paper.

YoCar and GD Solutions

Yocar.com and GD Solutions are working together on special project that is going to revolutionize the Automitive Industry! I can't disclose any information regarding this project but believe when we say the the Automotive Industry Worldwide is going to rely heavily on YoCar. I'll Keep everyone posted as soon as we have everything squared away but in the mean time keep visiting this blog.

THE GIANT ORANGE ARTVENTURE

If you’ve heard a rumor about an invasion of giant oranges, well, it’s true! They are coming to the city of Riverside—and it’s about time! Already there have been cows in Chicago, and moose in Toronto---angels in Los Angeles and apples in New York…it’s about time Riverside had its very own outdoor sculptural art extravaganza—and it’s appropriately entitled “The Giant Orange Artventure”.What began in Zurich, Switzerland in 1998 with the concept of placing individually hand-painted, life-size cow creations along city streets has spawned a whole menagerie of art in cities throughout the world. Wherever these imaginative and humorous outdoor exhibits pop up there is also a dramatic increase in visitors to view them. In Chicago the ‘Cows On Parade’ exhibit translated to more than a million visitors and an estimated economic impact of $200 million. In Toronto the Moose exhibit raised $1.4 million for Canada’s Olympic Athletes and local Toronto charities. It has worked equally well in small towns such as Belfast, Maine (population 30,000) where the first annual ‘Bear-fest’ netted over $48,000 in charity dollars to the community and won Belfast the Governor’s Award for Tourism. The Riverside Art Museum and Riverside Art Alliance have brought the concept to Riverside in a big way! Thirty* giant oranges will be arriving in Riverside this fall, earmarked to be designed and painted by local artists. “This project offers a great opportunity for the most talented artists in our area to be recognized and appreciated on a very public level. It’s also good for the downtown community, the City, businesses, tourists, families, art patrons, and, of course, the Riverside Art Museum”, states RAM Executive Director, Daniel Foster. Each orange will be sponsored by a company or individual and then ‘scattered’ throughout the Downtown Arts & Culture District, from the Courthouse to the Mission Inn. Part of the ‘Artventure’ will be to take a special map and tour all thirty* oranges! The oranges will be on display from June 2006 through September of 2006, and then will be auctioned, with proceeds benefiting the Riverside Art Museum. Each orange will be sponsored for $5000. This not only covers all the costs of the giant orange, it also allows for an artists fee and the cost of paints and materials. Each four foot round orange will be attached to a concrete base for security and displayed with a plaque bearing the proud name of the sponsor, the artist and the title of the Orange! What can the “Giant Orange Artventure” do for Riverside? It will make public art fun and accessible to everyone in the city and beyond. It will create an eye-catching exhibit that entices families to follow the ‘Artventure’ and learn about the wonderful cultural and historic resources in downtown Riverside. It will promote Riverside---after all, what is more symbolic of our city than an orange? It will involve businesses in the arts. It will give artists in our community a public forum for creativity. Finally, it will act as a vehicle for the non-profit Riverside Art Museum to raise necessary operating funds. The concept is ‘ripe’ to take off!

Ernie Hernandez is a local graphic designer/artist inspired by customization of cars from imports to traditional hot rods. He’s been designing for 8 years, running his own graphic studio, GD Solutions (design, print & paint), part time and working at Gorilla Marketing (promotional items) as an art director.
Says Hernandez, “California is known for having some of the best hot rods. Since I love cars, love painting, and love Southern California, I thought it would be great to pay tribute to these through this project. This will be my first time painting an off the wall object, especially one this large. I plan to have a lot of fun painting my orange.”

For more information, please call the Riverside Art Museum, or contact Kathy Allavie at kallavie@aol.com. *Thirty Two oranges have actually been sponsored!

• http://www.thegiantorange.com/ <-- Official Site

GD Soltuions in the Automotive Industry

As a gear head and a designer I know it will be soon when GD Solutions hits the track. At the moment i'm working on my own project Civic (2002). Foose inspired i think i found a new urge to start re-designing cars. Some cars were not design too well when it comes to looks. Everyone knows that 80% of the peole buy a car because of it's looks. Even cars that are well desined need a little spice to bring them to that visual plesant point that turns heads. I love watching Overhaulin' every Tuesday for one reason only, FOOSE! His concept of modifying and creating something so hot without getting caught has to be one of my favorite things about him. Not to mentions his ability to work with various tools. I hope to Eventually open Havoc Racing (currently just a racing club) as all around shop with ability to provide performance and paint jobs to the highest of clients looking to "Spice" their cars and throw a little Foose in there too. The yellow car is one car i helped design. At the moment this car is getting an extreme his engine upgrade. So keep and eye out for HAVOC RACING.

Graphic Design Solutions

GD Solutions started back in 1995 as a small group of high school students that created their own group identity calling themselves Silver Studio. Throught hight school the group branded every piece of artwork with their Silver Studio logo. As time went on and lack of communitcation after graduation every artist went their seperate ways.

To rise again the idea of creating a studio or graphic design firm. Ernie Hernandez started doing work on the side from his current full time job as an Art Director for a marketing company called Gorilla Marketing in Riverside, CA. For his graphic design skills and his ability to design, re-create & manage artwork in a fast pace more local screen printer contacted him for his services. Now in high demand he new doing business the right way would take his farther then collecting cash on the weekednds so he got his business license and opened GD Solutions.

"I think that graphic design is a great solution to some of the small companies problems. Sometimes because they are so small they can't afford to hire a design firm to re-design their entire identity. That's were I come in. I'm proud of my work and I love making a small company look like the are worth a million dollars. That's were the solution comes in and gives the general public that confidence to buy from that small company." His motivation comes from working at Gorilla Marketing for 6+ years. "I remember I was hired to do graphics at this company and they didn't even have the correct software to run the large quantity or orders they had. Every single order required art to be done and with limited tools i felt hopeless. We finally got the tools needed! From then on it was all about making this company look it's best. After 6 years of designing their website, designing the process of how the orders are handled, creating many forms, designing the graphics on the delivery vans, managing art files and giving the customers (Disney®, UCLA®) the ability rely on us to handle their artwork with a quick turn around the company had aquire more clients that rely on us to handle their artwork. I belive i helped them established a great graphic relashionship with LA's largest companies including Sony, Backyard Productions, UCLA, ABC Cable Networks (Disney), USC. " As sucker for custom cars (Hot Rods, Imports, Choppers) Ernie has felt the urge to "Tune Up and Modify" those small local businesses that are in need of some graphic design assistance. "Call me up and let's solve your graphic issues, GD Solutions!" says Ernie.

GD Soluions (Graphic Design Solutions) is available for many design services. ernie@graphicdesign-s.com (951) 756-4411

• Logos and Corporate Identites
• Small Websites (10-15 pages)
• Convert raster images to vector files
• Airbrushing on Apparels
• Screen Printing on Apparels
• Embroidery on Apparels
• Web Graphics
• Offset printing (Business cards, Flyers, Postcards)
• Small time Video Editing
• You need any other assistance? Call us!

Written by Jennifer Loftus. 2006

Choosing a business name.

Here are some helpful tips for generating a name for you company.

1. Choose words that are use widely in your industry (for graphic design I can use XX Studio or XX Designs or XX Promotions.

2. Choose words that are oxymorons. For example Blue Rose or Cool Fire. Here's a link that may help you. http://www.oxymoronlist.com/

3. Choose words that descibe what you're company is about. you're selling socks that are used in the snow then use something like Footsy. The name is is describing feet and describes something that you do when you are cozy under the bed, playing footsy with you're your partner.

Be creative and have fun with you're name it doesn't have to be serious. A small advise, stay awy from names that may push away business for example:

1. Don't use you're last name as a business name. No one who you are. This only works when naming a product after you not a business.

2. Stay away from words that offend people. like WhiteFolks Media.

3. Stay away from initials as names. I used GD because i do not advertise as much but people ask me what the GD stands for. I simply said Graphic Design Solutions and they go ooohhhhh duh!

4. Stay away from numbers if possible.

5. Stay away from words that resemble other large companies. This will not help you get more business. Infact i think it will decrease because the fact that it doest make you unique and people may feel cheated that you're trying to sneek in between them and some one huge. Don't name it BestBuys when you know that BestBuy is one of the larges competitors out there. Be UNIQUE, it sells!

Is some cases you can not get away from these no no's because either some else is using you're name or you really are thinking big and want to cause controversy. In that case go for it!

Any questions regarding this Business Name or any you require graphic assistance with you new business or would like to re-design you current businss and pump up business and indentity then contact me at ernie@graphicdesign-s.com or visit my webstie www.graphicdesign-s.com

Branding and Promotional Products

When it comes to promotional products and branding there is only one word that comes to mind. CONSISTANT! by buying promotional products to market your business or promote a special or product it is important that you stay consistant throughout your projects. When i mean consistant i mean choosing the right products for the the project and colors. Why? because people remember things the 7th time they see something. if I show you my logo about 7 times i'm sure it will get stored in you're memory. What color do you think all of Coca-Cola's products are? what about Pepsi? Target? That is what branding is! Using color is the best ways is to stay consistant. Taking Target as an example again, they use red, all their advertisement is red, all the uniforms are red, all their carts are red. You do not necessary have to put you're logo on everything for it to be noticed, choosing the right product and the right color makes all the difference in the world. Combinations of colors work well too. Up to 2 colors is great. for example UCLA? Blue and Gold.... USC? Cardinal and Gold.. BestBuy? Blue and yellow.

Once you've established your consistancy it is time to start branding. The best way to get started for branding is printing you're own shirts, then pass them out to friends and family members to wear. T-shirts and polos shirts work the best. On the road advertising, use you're personal car to promote you're business with a giant decal, name you're service then youre company name then a phone number or website. for example for me it is GRAPHIC DESIGN SERVICES, GD Soltuions (951) 756-4411, www.graphicdesign-s.com . Get small ones done to pass out to friends and family, have them stick it on their cars. Small items like pens are good to pass out to customers, use productst that people use the most and are more likely to keep for ever. For example how many of you still have old towels that are about 10-15 years old? You may not use them to shower but they sure make a great rag towel. See stuff that people use often and will ensure that you'r name stays out there.

Packaging and distributing your products is also as imporant. How will you present you product? will you just hand it out or will be mailed or shipped out?

Promotinal products is one of the best way to get people to notice you. people love FREE stuff. Promotional products can also be used as incentives for people to buy things or services from you. Buy $100 worth or services and we'll send you 1 free shirt. You spent $6 on a self promo with your logo on it and people want that to wear. They will make sure they spend over $100 to get that shirt vs $75 and your name is out there.

Branding is not only limited to products you can apply you're logo and colors on everything you have. flyers, business cards, invoices, coupons, websites, ads, letterheads, envelopes, outside of boxes and bags. just remeber that 90% of the stuff you see out there can be custom made and custom printed with you're logo.

If you would like to order promotional products give me a call or email me (951) 756-4411 ernie@graphicdesign-s.com i have connections with some of best local printers around.

Logos and Corporate Identity

Since the middle ages logos have been used to identify many things from families to nations. Indentifying each other is one of the most powerful things the human race have developed. Take for example our names. We give each other names to distintive each other. Armies in the old days used crests to identify were they were from and who the were fighting for.

Now, graphics have remain the same when it comes to armies, but the use of graphics has evolve into a strong selling tool for every single business, club, groups out there. If you sit down and watch TV, read a magazine or simply drive around in your car you'll notice that everything has graphics and for the most part they are trying to sell something or at least grab your attention. With that said you now know how important images are. The way you present yourselves has a lot to do with how much and how fast you sell or present something.

Before creating any advertising or promotions you need a why to differ yourselves from the other companies and creating a logo is the best way to get started. Logos can be complex or simple but the best logos are the ones that work on everything that they are put on. From billboards to clothing if it does not work on those then your out of luck.

To create the perfect logo you must gather information about the company. These basic question are something that will help you guide an artist to creating the perfect logo identity.

1. What type of industry is your company in?
2. How many people work in your company?
3. What do you want to convey to people when they think about your company?
4. Are there any particular colors you want to use (1-2 color MAX)
5. What are your competitors' logos look like?

Here's the reasons for these questions.

1. What type of industry is your company in?
You want to be able to identify your logo in the correct industry by using a particular font and icons. For example you own a Mexican restaurant? You may use Mexican style fonts with a chilly pepper incorporated into it.

2. How many people work in your company?
This will help the artist under stand the size of the business. Are they more corporate or are they a Mom and Pop shop. This will also reflect in the fonts and sometimes the way the letters are laid out.

3. What do you want to convey to people when they think about your company?
What do you want to tell the public? You want to tell them that your restaurant has the fresh ingredients and that your food is the fresh around? This can be incorporated in a tag line and icons that are used in the logo? For example a chilly of some type or a tomato.

4. Are there any particular colors you want to use (1-2 color MAX)
When people buy are look for services they all judge the book my it's cover. If you're logo is hard do read because it has too many colors then they will ignore it when they see it out on the street or in a catalog. You want people to know you without having them think. Also the color has a lot to do with what type of product or service you are selling. Take for example Mc Donald's, Jack in the Box and Burger King, they use colors that effect the brain in such a way that makes them hungry. They use color like Yellow, Red and Orange, you will never see a fast for restaurant using color like Black or Green or purple. Warm color make food look tasty. What colors are the plates at restaurants? White or warm colors. They are never neon green or any other bright colors. Same thing when it comes to department stores. atrack the right kind of people to the right store has a lot to do with what colors are used. Take for example Walmart or Target. What colors do they use inside their stores? White or blue, red but for the most part they use all white. White is a basic color and attract the general public more than if they were using dark brown or dark colors. Now think of an expensive store that sells high quality clothes over $200. What colors do they use? Dark brown floors with dark cabinets and all their sales people are wearing dark cloths. Black is rich in color and darks can be used to attract people with exensive taste.

5. What are your competitors' logos look like?
You want to be able to design something that looks more professional and true to the industry than you competitors. You want to stand out from the crown but not make then ignore you.
Take 3-4 competitors and design something that looks better in design, color and it is visually pleasant to look at. All these things come into play when creating a logo or corporate identity.

After the logo has been created and you are happy with it, be sure it can be used on everything from imprinted pencils to bill boards. If those do not print well then the logo is no good. You don't know how many times I'm being told that the person who designed their previous logo had to redesign or re-layout something because it did not fit a promotional piece they were working on. The logo should work in a 1X1" square and a large format dimension. Also the logo has to work in Black and white and full color. The logo should also contain NO special effects like drop shadows or gradients because sometimes they are hard to reproduce.

By following these simple tips I guarantee you that you logos will come out looking better than the competition and will recognized faster and more by the public eye.

When is comes to receiving your logos on disk from the designer it is important that you get all the following file formats.

Adobel Illustrator File: EPS, AI, PDF
Adobe Photoshop or raster images: jpg, tiff, psd.

You should get high resolution images, also with 2 versions (1 color, 1 black and white) you should also get an alternative layout. For example if you're original logo is stacked get one that is horizontal.

For any questions or if you need assistance creating your logo please contact me at ernie@graphicdesign-s.com or visit my website at www.graphicdesign-s.com