HERE IS OUR ROUND UP OF THE NEWS STORIES AND INDUSTRY ARTICLES THAT CAUGHT OUR EYE IN APRIL.


Swedish storybooks have inspired the new identity for a children’s literature prize

“Design studio Happy F&B has crafted a new identity for children’s literature prize the Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award, inspired by the eponymous writer’s own shorthand and stories.

As part of the rebrand, Happy F&B has created a new hand-drawn logo and a graphic pattern based on Lindgren’s handwritten manuscripts.“

The full article can be found on the Design Week website.

GSK’s Jerry Daykin on how to avoid the ‘slippery slope’ of digital KPIs

“The advent of digital marketing brought with it new ways of communicating with consumers, new ways of targeting them and new ways of reaching them across the customer journey. With that came shiny new metrics: clicks, engagement, viewability.

But as focus shifted to these online metrics, effectiveness started to fall, according to Jerry Daykin, EMEA senior media director at GSK Consumer Healthcare.”

 The full article can be found on the Marketing Week website.

Sports Direct Rebrand

“Sports Direct has revealed a rebrand in the attempt to unify the retailer’s identity and keep up with trends in the sports industry.

The work – which includes a new logo, name change and in-store details – has been carried out by London-based brand consultancy Venturethree.”

The full article can be found on the Design Week website.

Mark Ritson’s ultimate marketing bullshit top 10

“Do you remember ‘humaning’? The completely made up concept introduced by Mondelez at the end of last year.

Marketing Week columnist and Mini MBA founder Mark Ritson was not impressed by the snack giant’s plan to “stop marketing and start humaning”, calling it “utter bollocks” and giving it fast-track entry into his all-time marketing bullshit top 10, which we published in November.”

The full article can be found on the Marketing Week website.

Prince Philip: “An incredible ambassador of design”

“Following the Duke of Edinburgh’s passing, we look back at his contribution to design including the long-running designers prize that bears his name.”

 The full article can be found on the Design Week website.

Tesco deems marketing ‘mission critical’ following Covid sales boost

“Tesco says it will continue to put its faith in marketing over the next 12 months, following a year in which the supermarket managed to grow sales, gain market share and strengthen its brand in spite of the Covid-19 crisis.

Looking forward, the brand is banking on value, loyalty and ecommerce as key areas to drive further growth.”

See Marketing Week for the full story.

Coca-Cola warned marketing spend will be put on hold for markets with slower Covid-19 vaccination programmes and rising cases.

“Speaking on its Q1 2021 results call this afternoon (19 April) Coca-Cola’s CEO James Quincey said pandemic-related lockdowns continue to impact markets, which could greatly affect how it distributes marketing spend over the coming year.

‘If we see demand is coming in at the higher end and more reopenings [of markets] happen quickly and revenue starts accelerating, we will also likely re-accelerate the restitution of marketing spend,’ Quincey said.”

Full article from Marketing Week.

This flag has been designed to represent and protect Antarctica

“ ‘Flags are maybe the best example of effective communication design there is,’ says designer Evan Townsend. ‘I knew we could use a tool like that in Antarctica.’

Despite having been the subject of human exploration for 200 years, Townsend is the designer of Antarctica’s ‘first ever’ flag.

He designed True South while working there, providing support to a scientific research team during the continent’s winter, when the average temperature averages -49°C. “

Read the article on the Design Week website.

In-house design teams: how an internal studio keeps Wikipedia weird

“ ‘As part of our series looking at in-house design teams, we talk to Wikipedia’s Khanyi Mpumlwana and Zack McCune about ‘breaking’ the online encyclopedia.

Wikipedia turns 20 this year. The online, collectively-edited encyclopedia – which has always remained free – is one of the most visited websites in the world, familiar to students reading up on subjects, writers of trivia quizzes and fans of obscure culture alike. “

Full article in Design Week.

More news

This was the April 2021 news. We have plenty more where this comes from – check out the rest of our insights.