Testing, testing... seek, inquisitor and eyeball

As the first few results come trickling in, here's a snapshot of what's been noted so far. Each participant was given a set of postcards – one logo per postcard, and a brief explanation on the service being offered (ie. alternative London events/venues).

They were then asked the following:
1. What are your first impressions of this logo? (Please describe in 3 words.)
2. How does the logo make you feel? (Again, please describe in 3 words.)
3. How well do you think this logo relates to the service?

The answers were then detailed on the back of the card, and at the end of the test, the participant was asked to state their preferred logo. The comments made a really interesting read, but I'm not going to detail every one of them here – it's more fun to read it in the original handwriting! ;)

Alter-egos

While trying to flesh out the personalities of the seek, inquisitor and eyeball, I realised words just weren't jumping out at me in the beginning. To get into a better frame of mind, I tried visualising them as having their own calling cards instead – which oddly (maybe not) did help!

I also wanted to experiment how the logo would lend themselves to simply being graphics, and out popped 4 designs for the shortlisted logos, complete with 5 characteristics for each detailed behind. Cue, photos!

The FMP – logo development - Round 2

From pen/pencil-to-paper beginnings, the shortlist of 3 names for my final major project have now made it to the Indesign/Illustrator drawing board.

My preferred versions for each name have been enlarged and placed in the bottom right corner of each jpeg. With a bit more tinkering where needed, these will then be tested with a sample of the target audience of 25-40 year olds – that might just be you!

(Don't shy away from expressing pre-testing opinions now...)

Pencilled in

Following on from the shortlist, here are some initial logo sketches for seek, inquisitor and eyeball. At this stage, I think the first two names lend themselves rather easily to the creation of logotypes, while I find myself gravitating towards more of a symbol-led logo for eyeball.

More development ensues!

Making the shortlist

How should one go about conjuring a name for a service that deals with alternative London? 

Branching out from themes like secret, break, alternative, time, movement, and area (it's very tempting to want to continue this exercise indefinitely), I decided to shortlist three to proceed with – chosen to convey the notion of discovering or focusing:

• eyeball

• seek

• inquisitor     

Coming up next... logo development for the shortlist!

Presenting...The official brief

Brief
To promote a service that showcases 'alternative' London events/venues offering eccentric, off-beat experiences in the city

Challenge
• to create a visually rich user experience
• to create paper-based interaction

Insight
London's vibrant culture offers abundant opportunities to experience the unexpected, exciting and unusual.
• Not many people know where or how to start looking for such experiences however. 
• There is a certain thrill that accompanies a new discovery followed by an eagerness to share it with friends.

The big idea
Central to the theme of this service is the ability to discover new encounters, and I'd like to capture this in the spirit of an amateur sleuth investigating promising leads on a mission. I'm also interested in utilising different channels of delivery within the campaign.

Ideally, this would result in interactive postcards that would reveal hidden messages, enticing recipients to learn more about the service. The augmented reality application similarly reveals the (previously unexpected) events/venues in London locations to users via their mobiles. Online, users will have the option to add on their own 'alternative networks' to either share with the public or simply with their own friends.

Primary target audience
25-40 year old Londoners tired of the same haunts and looking for something new/novel.

Communication channels
Integrated campaign
• series of postcards that need to be 'decoded' (can be re-posted to friends to share)
• mobile/web application utilising augmented reality with the option to customise networks (simultaneously generating alternative maps of London)

The Beginning of the End...

... starting the Final Major Project

A number of mindmaps and tutorials on, I've finally made it official – I'm basing the subject of my major project on 'alternative' London. With a focus on the quirky, wacky, or mildly curious (with a generous dollop of the surreal where I can find it), the aim will be to unfold the story of lesser-known events or sites in the city. 

I'll be looking out for events like Telectroscope (2008) – "the secret tunnel that runs deep beneath the Atlantic Ocean" connecting New York and London and Down the Rabbit Hole (2008), a multi-arts event inspired by Alice in Wonderland.

While I'm diving into research and have yet to give the project its definitive name, the working title shall be The London Inquisitor. This week, it's off to the Sandpit at the ICA and an evening at the Enchanted Palace (Kensington Palace). Meanwhile, do flood me with suggestions!