Research & Writing
Submission Recap
At the start of the lecture we went through what was required for our projects in terms of research and blog posts, I try to keep my blog up-to-date on a weekly basis but that has been hard due to work situations and shift patterns. Our blogs will be going towards the 40% of our overall grade for the module but we have also been asked to write a personal evaluation and a 500 word medium article on a specific are of branding or the overall branding process, this was mentioned previously in our lectures so I have been working on this for a few weeks creating various ideas on what I could base my article on.
Medium Article
We were asked to submit a 500 word medium article alongside our projects for this module, this could either be on branding as a whole or a specific element of the branding process. As I have been thinking about this for a while I decided to choose the element of branding that was new to me throughout this module which was creating a brand story or ethos, how a brand is created beyond its visual identity essentially. I was initially thinking of basing my article around logo design and visual identity as I found this the most enjoyable part of the module but I want my focus to be on learning which is why I chose to base my article on creating the backbone of a brand.
I have included some of the questions that were included in our lecture slides below as a reference for future articles:
- What is the topic?
- Why is it interesting?
- What are the (2?) sides of the argument?
- What has been said about it before?
- What are your own thoughts or conclusions based on your experiences and/or reading?
Possible Guide:
-
- Introduction To Topic – 75 words
- Topic Discussion – 200 words
- Your Thoughts – 150 words
- Summary/Conclusion – 75 words
Self Reflection & Self Assessment
Alongside our 500 word medium article we were also asked to write a self-assessment and module reflection blog post on how we thought the module went and what we would do differently next time. I personally think I have a lot to write about on this as I think there are a few areas I could improve on in terms on coursework and outside factors like work and travel, I really want to spend a bit of time thinking about this as I would love to improve on these for next year to ensure I maximise my opportunities.
I have included some of the questions that were included in our lecture slides are a references for writing my self-assessment article:
- How did you do it?
- Why did you do it that way?
- What worked?
- What didn’t?
- What would you do differently next time?
Task 1
Find an article / book / comment / video / interview / case study about branding and write a one paragraph summary of it.
For this task we were asked to create a summary of an article, book, comment, video, interview or case study, for this task I wanted to write about a book that I am reading at the moment – Shoe Dog. Shoe Dog is an autobiography about the founder of Nike and how he created one of the most famous brands in the world today, I wanted to chose this book as it is something I have an interest and it is also an industry I would like to explore in the future. We were given some initial questions to consider while writing our summary paragraph, I have included these questions below:
- What is it about?
- What is your key takeaway from it?
- How might the information be useful in future?
Shoe Dog is an autobiography written by Phil Knight depicting his life and how he created one of the most famous brand to exist today – Nike. The book goes through the early days of the company through to when it got established with big names like Michael Jordan and other brands. If there was anything I would take away from this book it would have to be his ambition and dedication in creating something he was passionate about, this is a characteristic I have always been inspired by and is something I try to be. Another takeaway would be the fact that it is to do with fashion and creating a brand within the fashion industry, this will be useful as this is something I wold like to explore in the future.
Copywriting
How many of you are scared at the prospect of writing?
When I saw this question I immediately knew the answer – yes. Writing has never been my strong point and I usually steer clear of the things I am not good or I don’t enjoy, I consider myself a creative and I enjoy working with audio and visuals but copywriting and writing articles has never been an interest of mine. Considering these factors I would have to say I am definitely scared at the prospect of writing.
How many of you think you don’t know how to write?
This one kind of follows on from the one above and the answer would still be yes, I have never been the best at writing and I usually tend to focus on more creative outlets so working with text and copywriting is definitely way out of my comfort zone. I personally think I am terrible at writing, and reading for that matter, so my answer to this question would have to be I don’t think I know how to write.
Examples Of Copywriting
We went through some examples of copywriting and how we can simplify text into more condensed forms that still say that same thing, I found these extremely difficult and I think it down to the fact that I’m a terrible reader and I overthink… a lot. Looking at these really help me understand how sentences and content can be simplified into a more digestible amount but still have the same meaning.
I have included some of the examples that were included in the lecture slides below for future reference:
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Tips For Copywriting
Our lecturer Daniel went through some of his top tips for copywriting and simplifying text, I found these extremely useful as I personally think I am terrible at copywriting so I think these will come in handy. I think these tips will also help in other areas of life outside of design like business, relationships and even my music in terms of writing lyrics for songs, as I steer clear of writing I often hire vocalists to write lyrics for me but this is definitely something I would like to learn as I know how much these people charge for this service.
I have included Daniel’s top tips for copywriting below:
Tip #1 – Always use the simplest word available. “If you found the word in a thesaurus, it’s the wrong word.”
Tip #2 – Say it out loud then write that down. “Explain this to me like I’m a 4-year-old.”
Tip #3 – Be as succinct as possible. And take new sentences often. “I didn’t have time to write you a short letter, so I wrote you a long one.”
Task 2
In groups, discuss aspects of the project and branding process that you found interesting/challenging or texts you might have read.
Overall I found the projects throughout this module extremely enjoyable, I have always had an interest in branding so exploring the process in detail in addition to creating our own personal brand was a bonus. I found the commercial brand easier than the personal brand, I think this was because I had to ask myself these questions and I find it hard to look into myself and figure out who I really am as a person. That being said I think I actually enjoyed the personal brand a lot more than the commercial brand project. What I found difficult throughout this module was time management with uni and work as I found my work got in the way of my coursework quite a lot this semester, this is something I would like to change going into second year. Reading the book Shoe Dog throughout this module has also helped inspire me to create my own clothing brand and explore the fashion design industry in the future.
Task 3
Write a title for your article. (Can change later) Write a tweet length synopsis.
For this task we were asked to create a title for our article, this could be changed at a later date but it was just to get us thinking about what we could write about. As I had thought about the a while I had an idea of what I wanted to write about and what the title of the article should be, we were also asked to write a short synopsis or summary about the article.
I have included the title of my article below alongside a short summary of what the article is about.
Creating A Brand Beyond Visual Identity
How to build brand image beyond the visual identity, building a story, creating an emotional connection and stating your mission are crucial factors to creating a long-lasting brand.