I work on a 13″ Macbook. Having to move quite a lot, I find it much handier than the larger sizes, but from time to time, I get frustrated at being restrained to such limited visual space. In those precise moments, even a professional diagramming tool doesn’t replace a good old writeboard. Problem: There was no writeboard at hand, and I needed to lay down the basic architecture for the underlying data of a new project. Post-its and red tape helped get a clearer vision of how data should be structured, and tackle many issues before running into them.

The result was both satisfying, both from a useful standpoint as from an aesthetic one. No matter which stage you are at web development, there’s always an artistic side to it.

- Gregory Mirzayantz

We all know Nguma’s mark by now. The octopus might be steady, but the logo itself has adopted many (type)faces over time. For this new version, we wanted something entirely fresh and homemade. To the occasion, we created a new font, and adapted it to fit with that particular stream of five letters.
The type is slightly three dimensional, and has a feeling of curved paper. The logo will be implemented along with some other visuals at our next website update, which should be way before it gets any warmer out there…

As a result of a study on the concept of co-working, we ended up with a small poster that promotes the offering to our friends at New Work City. Breaking free from the cubicle is literal, reusing well known imagery from the breakout game serie.

This is a first of a serie on visuals about human emotions and their potential impact. The goal is to match the following equation: 1 emotion + 1 action = 1 visual.

“Most people think the important thing about a logo is that it illustrate what the business does, or what it represents. There is nothing about the IBM symbol that suggests computers except what the viewers read into it. Stripes are now associated with computers because the initials of a great company happen to be stripes.” – Paul Rand.

A band identity starts with a name, a tagline and a strong logo. We did logos for many projects and companies to help them define uniqueness and become a remarkable brand.

Brand identity goes beyond a logo and a business card. Setting a full spectrum of visual identity, we engineered a panoply of elements that would reflect the message of the brand as from a uniquely recognizable standpoint. These elements include: Invitations, hangtags, website, in-house CRM and store display.

A smart contact page isn’t shy at giving as many ways as possible to get in touch. Of course, you will find Name, Address, Telephone and email, but it should never stop there.

Basics

How can you add a bit of dynamism to that dull, cold contact page? First reaction would be to facilitate the spreading of its content. Vcards have been around since the 90’s and are probably the easiest way to ensure your presence in your visitor’s address book.

Here is more information on how to create link to a vcard

Links

Direct access to Social Media profiles should be embedded. You can opt in for a simple list of icons, or be more specific. Links that state clear call to action, such as “Follow us on twitter @nguma” or “See our company profile on linkedin”, tend to be more compelling than just writing “Twitter”, “Linkedin”, “Facebook”…

Give Room to Feedback

Unless you are already using a third party management tool, such as getSatisfaction, now is a good time to think about implementing a feedback form. Going even further, you could custom design a form that already prepares the ground for each type of reason a visitor would want to get in contact. Remember that as long as you keep it simple, people like guidance.

Where to place my contact section?

Having a dedicated area, clearly labeled contact is always a good idea. In addition to that, I personally like to have the basics displayed on every page (footer?). Take a look at our home page, the address, email and phone number are part of the header, and the first thing you read landing on the site. After all, there will always be a portion of the returning visitor whose only goal in to get in touch with you.

Map it out

You have no excuse not to add a link to google maps, or even embedding a map marking your location directly in the page.