CV and Three (+) Promotional Items (research included)

 

BUSINESS CARDS

Why a business card? (see prom. strategy)

This is a fundamental promotional item for workers across the board. They are particularly useful in networking, if you keep them on you they have quick promotional value-easy to give to someone you think may be helpful in furthering your career. You can leave them out in exhibitions, give them out at book fairs, ask people to put them in shops or even in your local library at the counter (these are all places I have encountered them).

As a fundamental starting point I will need a new/updated business card that clearly promotes my work and intentions as they are today. My old business cards were completed using moo, which, as a pronters has always given me brilliant results, on good quality paper and cleanly printed.

Images

 

My old design is still relevant, the images used are still my signature pieces and the fairy tale themes even more evident in my wkek. However, since then I have become more adept on Photoshop and have cleaned up/enhanced the images. I can now apply this to my business cards.

 

Contact information: choose relevant

 

My portfolio address

Domain name

Website

Facebook

Blog

Email address

 

SEE Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/victoriaupson16/portfolio-and-promotion/

 

Below: laser cut images are expensive and time consuming to produce. This card is also more decorative than Illustrative but I love the 'shabby chic' quality. It is also (despite the extravagant edge) relatively simply in design and a nice tactile thing. I think, however, to complement my style I must stick to something clean and white. Whiet space always sets off my Illustrations well. 

Some unique designs below. Once again, expensive to produce-you can produce business cards like these using some specific

Publishing Programmes

However, I don't think I need something this extravagant; I don't want to be unwilling to part with my business cards becasue they were very expensive; in ways they should be throwaway- I want to be able to give them out as much as possible.

MOO: For Business Cards

I have used Moo before for cards and I am always pleased with the results. The brilliant thing about them is you are able to get free copies to see if you like them (you cannot really use them becasue they have the moo logo on them). You can use them to judge if they are for you; change the paper/ edges/how your work prints etc.

Below is my final card. I designed it on moo (using a Georgia style font). the calligraphy is my own. I am really pleased with how clean they came out. The images printed brilliantly with no loss of colour or quality. I ordered 50 to start but I can see with the degree show approaching I am going to be wanting more (I will use a lot at the London Book Fair).

How have I used my business cards in relation to my promotional strategy?

1. They have become tags on my branded T-shirts and merchandise
2. They have become the label/contact details in the plastic wallet in the corner of my presentation folder/portfolio
3. I have used it to label my handmade portfolio (front of business card front of portfolio back on back) craftily used so I know the front from the back of my handmade portfolio. The mermaid has also influenced many a colour choice during this project. The handmade portfolio especially. It has made everything coherent.
4. I have used them as tags on my handmade promotional bags (so my contact details are evidently placed).

POSTCARDS

Postcards are a vital part of my promotional strategy. I am certain that they could be a massively useful item to me. Here are my reasons for using them:

1. They are easy to send, cost little, not heavy
2. They can be re-used 
3. I can write on them -send like a letter 
4. I can send them with, alongside or in other promotional items 
5. I can order in bulk give away for free
6. They are small easy to carry around 
7. They work individually or all together as a series

I used the images that best sum me up as an Illustrator and are in keeping with my agenda. These will be seen in my portfolio. 

Using Moo: I have chosen MOO because I am extremely pleased with the business cards. I know I can trust that they will arrive on good quality paper, in good time and I will be able to re-order them whenever is needed as MOO saves all of your projects and information. 

I am pleased that these cards suit their purpose. I am planning on ordering more now I am pleased with them. I will be sending these out frequently, to magazines etc and hoping they work to get my name out there to some degree. 

 

STICKERS 

       

I chose these images but they demonstrate a variety of ideas and genres of my work. The Fairy tale theme is evident , as best describes my work.

   

Uses:

1. To be used to secure things/fold and stick together 
2. Branding things 
3. Part of bag goodies, something pretty 
4. Show my work can be printed small and work 
5. Extra give-away, multi-purpose item 

T-SHIRTS

These T-shirts are an example of my brand in use. I have used my logo to create T-shirts for women and girls as it is a feminine design . I have made an alternative design for men, but still a brand-able image (The Gothic/vampire trend is still very en vogue and marketable). 

• These T-shirts cannot be give away. I could , Like Larson sell them online, take them to Fairs, Bromyard Gala, Welland Rally. Sell them in stalls and booths or at book fairs.
• I prefer to think of them as an example of how my work could become a design brand. I will have them photographed professionally and send the pictures alongside my gift bags and CV  to design houses/companies brands etc. 
• The logo is a mere starting point . A similar one could be created to form a mens brand. 
• I could market them on my outward facing web-presence, see if I can sell any that way. 

 

 

HANDMADE GIFT BAGS

These gift bags are going to be use-able for many kinds of promotion. They are predominantly a secondary item to house my CV; ie. I can drop my CV into fashion houses, organisations, companies. Leaving it with a secretary may not be a bad thing if it is left in one of these bags. The items inside might be used or shared. It leaves my work in the right hands. 

1. I can take them to the book fair minus the CV
2. I can leave them with interviewers minus the CV
3. I can give them out at exhibitions 

BOOKMARKS

The Fairy Tale series. I wanted something else to add into the bags (goodies). I love bookmarks and I pick them up whenever I am at a Fair or party or gallery exhibition/some people use them as a business card. The idea of a Fairy-Tale series is something I have been toying with for a while and I am positive that I could give these away or sell them in packs. I like the idea that you could use them in your Grimm and Hands Andersen books-mark the story with the bookmark. I also love that you only get a hint of the image ! This should make people curious , hopefully they will Google me! 

http://achen089.deviantart.com/art/The-Little-Mermaid-Bookmark-371243362

Above: Inspiration Athinka Poda, her bookmarks always hid some of the image and keep you guessing. 

Above: My Final Bookmarks. I think these will serve well as part of the gift bags and could be sell-able on their own. I have put my domain name at the bottom of the image, so that my work can be easily accessed. Use-able items are the most effective form of promotion because people keep them and look at them. They may even give them away of mention you to others. People only keep and use things that they like. 

CURRICULUM VITAE

Note to reader: I have included no information on this blog page that cannot be accessed elsewhere on the internet, or that is not common knowledge. For this reason, I am happy for this personal information to be included in this blog.

WHY A CV?

See my promotional strategy

I am hoping to be attending interviews. I need a good artist CV to send out

I need a CV that I can drop in places as well as send out

It must be tailored to a creative proffession; I can use my generic CV for other jobs.

It is not impossible that I will be asked for a CV, in which case I need to have it ready.

As someone who is not marketing themself as a freelance Illustrator I must be prepared to have all the neccessary information regrading my education/qualifications/expierience etc. at hand and ready to send at a moments notice.

lots of Illustration/fashion jobs are promoted online and ask specifically for a CV to be sent via email. This is a main part of my promotional stratedgy.

CV's Research

link to my research pinterest page :

http://www.pinterest.com/victoriaupson16/cv-research/

This is my favourite CV I have found. It sucessfully manages to include lots of information and juxtapose it with an appropriate image. I am keen to use an Illustration (not this much of one) in my CV. I have more information that I want to include, however.

Below: I think this CV looks messy. However, I understand why it has been done in this way-it's adhering to a trend. I think it qould work on a non-lined background. The hand-lettering is interesting but I have bo talent for typography unless it is calligraphy and so would not attempt hand-lettering.

See my pinterest link and account for more CV research.

Acessing the information:

This is a copy of my generic CV. I have updated it over the years but kept my original qualifications. However, it has been advised that this is not needed; instead I should tailor another CV that is specifically aimed at artist related jobs.

I want to set mine out in a creative way; however, I want it to be clean and simple with white space to contrast with the colourful images I may include. Also, I want it to be easily fold-able, so a generic shape will suit better.

Above: Had help laying out my artist CV. Am pleased with this layout as I can adapt it using my pre-pared CV (not much extra to write)

I have decided to complete the CV using In-design as I this is the programme I am most comfortable using. It was also ensure my work is well formatted and easily changed or rectified in the future.

A first draft of the CV. I have chosen my favorite image to be included in the CV, in additon

Final CV:

I was given corrections. There were some things I had to change about my first draft. These were mainly spacing issues. I took some notes about type and spacing in the lecture today.

NOTES ON TYPE

• Don't use uppercase too much
• For things like titles only
• Avoid orphans and windows
• No overhanging words it looks messy
• Avoid combining two types of text that are similar you can't tell the difference.
• Stick to text layout
• If using coloured text make sure it is bold enough for background
• Optimum reading line 40 to 80 characters
• leading 2 to 5 point larger
• Good fonts, Times Georgia
• Bad Fonts, Comic Sans, Impact, Trajan
• Places to find fonts: DA FONT/HYPE FOR TYPE/LOST TYPE CO
• Leave empty space
• Margins and negative positive space
• Set own margins and use a grid.

     

Note: My CV is a massive part of my promotional strategy because I will be targeting companies/organisations/fashion houses. Although I cannot include my CV as a promotional item because you would not use it in that way; it is still vital to my promotional strategy. I have chosen something easily foldable; purchased personalised stickers to secure it with and made lots of other items that work along with it. Bookmarks/postcards/T-shirts etc. These will be usable alone (to send off for interviews) and along with my other promtional items. The Snow White Image-Along with my logo (mermaid image) are part of my branding; important that I include them in all things promotional becasue my strategdy is to brand myself and my work.