It’s A Sign: Things We’ve Learned Meets St. Louis Design Week
Do you know what a swipe file is? Some people call it a morgue, but that is a little morbid for me. A swipe file is a folder where you hold all your good ideas for a future project. Mine…
Author: Mike Spakowski
Beyond Business as Usual: The Story of Branding Trepwise
The truth is, a lot of professional services firms are pretty similar. Sure, they offer different services or target niche audiences. But they face a lot of the same challenges. Like tough competition—and how to stand apart from the field.…
The Overlooked Approach to Winning More Business
Recently, I gave a talk to a group of professional services business owners and leaders about how branding helps to close sales deals. And while it was fresh in my head, I thought I would share some thoughts here. In…
Historic Meets Modern with The Victor Branding
Did I ever tell you I have a slight fear of elevators? Our first office was in an old building on Washington Ave. in downtown St. Louis. It had a manual switch you used to operate it. No button or…
Remembering George Lois: “I was always making a point.”
Have you ever read Steal Like An Artist by Austin Kleon? If you haven’t, you should. The book is about the creative process and where ideas come from—and how to generate your own. It gives great examples of how different…
A Bit of Reinvention for Cite Studio’s Web Design
“So who is your dream client?” Over the years, I’ve come to dread this question. I’ve also learned that people love to ask it to creatives. Nike—I would imagine that 90% of creative people would answer something along the lines…
Branding City Museum: Iconic, Unruly and Weirdly Wonderful
“You see, it started out as an aquarium, but it sort of got out of control.” – Bob Cassilly, Creator of City Museum There really is no simple way to describe City Museum—even with great branding. The easiest attempt would…
GoGo Cluckers: A New Restaurant in Your Driveway
(Disclaimer: This was an April Fools’ joke. Proceed with caution.) A very wise man (Account Director Jesse McGowan’s Dad) once said that “The secret to getting rich is to nail two things together that have never been nailed together before.”…
My Pinewood Derby, Web Design & SEO Obsessions
Have you ever raced in the Pinewood Derby? If you grew up a Cub Scout, or are the parent of a Cub Scout, you know that the Pinewood Derby is an event where kids build a car from a kit…
The Adventures of Loaded Nachos & Fast-Casual Branding
I was on a new business call this summer, walking up and down my driveway, listening to what I thought was an inconceivable idea for the summer of 2020: someone wanted to open a new restaurant. Not just any restaurant,…