Freelance, In-House, or Outsource: Building Your Creative Team

We know what you’re thinking…‘this full service agency is about to tell us how awful it is to NOT hire a full service agency.’ Spoiler alert: agencies aren’t for everyone. Neither are freelancers. And neither are in-house teams. (The only thing that is for everyone is McDonald’s French Fries, so grab some while we lay down some facts for you.)

Whether you have the most boring business (stamp licking) or the most interesting business (custom dog perfume creator), you’re going to need creative services at some point—a logo, a press release, packaging design, a new website, or even ongoing marketing campaigns. You have several options for getting any of those tasks done—again: hiring a freelancer, building a team in-house, or partnering with an agency—but how do you know which is the right choice for your business? Let us break it down for you so you can make an informed choice.

You Can Fly!

Binge watching ALL the things on Netflix? Ordering a pizza by yelling at Alexa? Unlocking your new iPhone with your face? These are all all modern-day things we love that are super cool. But those pale in comparison to the coolness of machines that fly and go into outer space! So imagine our excitement when we were tapped to work with South Carolina Aerospace on a new Aerospace Careers Campaign.

Meet The Peeps: Morgan Yarborough

We have a new team member! So in keeping with our 'Meet The Peeps' series, we’re letting our newest hire out of her cage so you can get to know the people who are doing amazing things at SLANT.

i5k Rejections

It's spring time and we thought we should dig up and air out some designs that never got to see the light of day for this year's i5k.

NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD...

In keeping with the Halloween spirit, we thought we'd show off some work that was KILLED IN COLD BLOOD, never to see the light of day. (ok, so the work was "politely dismissed" but that doesn't sound very halloweeny). Have fun browsing the land of the dead. MUWAHAHAHA....

Creativity: Nature vs. Nurture

EDITOR'S NOTE: Chris Edington (or Puddle Pirate for you fellow Coasties) is one of SLANT's talented graphic designers. He wishes to drop some knowledge on you now.

As a designer, creativity must be a powerful weapon in your arsenal. But how does one simply “learn” to be creative? A lot of people think it’s something you’re born with. I kick rocks at that theory...

Changing the world, one city at a time

This morning at 9AM, we officially launched a new website and brand for the City of Spartanburg, SC. SLANT was awarded the bid back in April to design a more user-friendly and vibrant website that would allow the City to more easily connect with its residents.

Why SLANT loves John Underkoffler

We caught this tweet from Fast Company on Friday: The Genius Behind Minority Report's Interfaces Surfaces, Unveils Mind-blowing New Tech http://bit.ly/bdjmmo

The video of John Underkoffler's TED presentation is an amazing show of gestural interfaces that (according to Mr. U) will be commonplace in a few years.

Our favorite part was this quote around the 13:00 mark - it reinforces our own thoughts from our recent GUI + UX video

"For some of this technology, ground center is a combination of design which is crucially important. We can't have advances in technology any longer, unless design is integrated from the start. And efficacy, agency... we are human beings, creatures that create. We should make sure our machines aid us in that task and are built in that same image. " - John Underkoffler

Take some time to watch it. And envision the awesomeness of the future (and the forthcoming buffness of computer users from all of that arm movement).

Good Interface Design Makes You (and Us) Happy.

You have this idea. It could be an awesome app. Or a killer product. Or just a whole new way for people to engage with your brand.

Think about it. With the proliferation of mobile and touchscreen devices like iPhone, Android, and Apple’s new iPad, hundreds of brands have the opportunity to deliver an amazing user experience.

The $64,000 question is: What now?

At SLANT, that's the kind of challenge we live for. (Well, besides all-U-can-eat taco night).

So, we created this video to share our thoughts on Graphic User Interface and User Experience Design (GUI + UX) and its ties to marketing.

From designing the GUI for products, iPhone apps, friendlier websites and content management systems, we know this stuff. And we love it. We can't wait to help make your product better and make you famous(er). Let's talk!

HEY YOU! Yeah, you - the one squinting to read the text in the video. Try the 'fullscreen' button or go watch the video in HD over on Vimeo.

Update on 2010-03-29 14:56 by SLANT

Behind the scenes shots posted in the Fotos section

Best and Worst Identity Redesigns of 2009

Design blog BrandNew (a division underconsideration.com) has posted their list of the best and worst Identity Redesigns of 2009. Definately some dead-on entries in there, but I'm not so sure I agree with some either.

Check it out here:
The Best and Worst Identities of 2009

What do you think?