Digital Advertising Inspirationally Projected Into 2011

With the New Year just round the corner, the world is abuzz with prophecies of every color, size and breed - but not all predictions are created equal; some are plain old common sense, which commodity, by the way, is notoriously uncommon. Take, for instance, the 6 Predictions for Digital Advertising in 2011 by Jesse Thomas; quite a few of them come across as a matter of putting two and two together - once you have read them.

Heck, let us not be too unkind to ourselves and too grudging in giving credit where it is due; all things inspirational seem obvious once revealed, but impossible before.

Questions Fundamental to Strategy, Execution

"Business leaders can't develop and execute effective strategy without first gathering the right information, says Harvard Business School professor Robert Simons. In his new book, Seven Strategy Questions: A Simple Approach for Better Execution, Simons explains how managers can identify holes in their planning processes and make smart choices. Here's an excerpt outlining the seven questions every manager should ask."

Seven Strategy Questions: A Simple Approach for Better Execution — HBS Working Knowledge

'Ugly and Different', Google Logo Works

"There are however many examples of what can arguably be called ugly design that have done very well in creating a strong visual brand.

The example that comes to mind is the Google wordmark. The same typeface, rainbow color scheme, drop shadow and beveled look applied to any other entity would never make it as logo of the day on the sites we frequent. Aesthetically, I find the wordmark horrible with its inclusion of many elements I would hesitate to put into any logo, let alone all of them into one. But wow, does it ever work."

Ugly and Bland Can Win the Race – idApostle: An Identity Love Affair / Logo Designer, Ottawa, Canada.