Opinion BY Armin

Next Stop: PHL

Founded in 1682, Philadelphia is “one of the leading cities in the world. Located in between New York City and Washington D.C., 40% of the U.S. population is within a day’s drive.” This succinct description — more facts here — comes from the Philadephia Convention & Visitors Bureau (PHLCVB), the official Tourism Promotion Agency for the city and the primary sales/marketing agency for the Pennsylvania Convention Center. Its mission is to “generate economic impact and job growth by increasing the region’s hotel occupancy and revenues” as well as doing “whatever it takes to attract ethnically diverse regional, national and international convention and tourism customers through creative sales, marketing and communications efforts.” To that effect PHLCVB introduced late last year a new destination brand designed by J2 Design Partnership based on strategy by Ex;it — both local firms.

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A B-Side BY Armin

Vancouver Community College

About: (Est. 1965) “Vancouver Community College is a public community college in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. It is the largest and oldest community college in British Columbia, with over 140 certificate and diploma programs.[1] VCC has two campuses, Broadway and Downtown, both located in the city of Vancouver. The college accommodates 26,000 students each year from a variety of nations, about 8 percent of whom are international students.” (Source: Wikipedia)

Design by: N/A.

Ed.’s Notes: Very swooshy, sparkle-dusty video below (or after the jump) and a quote from the press release that pretty much explains it all.

Relevant links: Press release.

Select quote: “The logo development, part of VCC’s 2011 - 2014 Strategic Plan, included considerable input from internal and external groups, including staff, faculty, students, administrators, as well as stakeholders from business, industry and the community. The final logo selection represents the voices and insights of over 700 individuals.” (Emphasis mine).

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A B-Side BY Armin

Business Software Alliance

About: (Est. 1988) “BSA | The Software Alliance is the leading global advocate for the software industry. It is an association of more than 70 world-class companies that invest billions of dollars annually to create software solutions that spark the economy and improve modern life. Through international government relations, intellectual property enforcement, and educational activities, BSA expands the horizons of the digital world and builds trust and confidence in the new technologies driving it forward.”

Design by: N/A.

Ed.’s Notes: Brand video below (or after the jump).

Relevant links: Press Release.

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Opinion BY Armin

Why Microsoft Got its Logo Right

More than my typical introduction that establishes who and what the company, organization, product, or service is because we all pretty much know who and what Microsoft is — those who don’t please step off the internet — we can pick up right in 2012 where Microsoft has almost completed a, if not 360 180, at the very least 27090-degree shift of both the quality of its hardware and software and the way it visually presents itself. This year has seen a full immersion into Microsoft’s now publicly catchy Metro design philosophy that favors flat colors, light sans serif usage, and user interface elements on a grid — an approach that is hard to be in disagreement with as it saves us from the 1980s, 90s, and early 00s Microsoft design philosophy which never get an official name, but let’s just call it Hideous. With the upcoming launch of a new Windows operating system as well as a completely revamped Office and on the heels of what has arguably been their sexiest product launch ever with its Surface tablet, Microsoft made its biggest move yesterday, with the introduction of the new logo, to transform its identity and its perception among consumers. The new logo was designed internally but is reflective of the involvement of outside consultancies that have been helping Microsoft reshape many of its brand touchpoints.

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Opinion BY Armin

Pull Here

Founded in 1989 and 1986 respectively, Nara Bank and Center Bank have provided financial services to the Korean-American community across the United States. This past November they announced a merger to create BBCN Bank, creating the largest financial institution for this community in the country, with 44 full-service branches in California, New York, New Jersey, Washington and Illinois. I couldn’t find out who designed the logo, nor are there any explanations of what it means but, for some reason, I thought it was an interesting logo to point out.

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