storm from the east

The Creative Instinct: new course

I'm really happy to introduce a new three-part course on creativity called The Creative Instinct.

The course has been developed over the last few years through working with clients and has been condensed into three main components:

 

Samurai, assassination, an iconic logo and the man behind Mitsubishi

When deciding to do a series on great minimalist logos from Japan - of which there are many - I couldn't leave out Yataro Iwasaki's iconic design for Mitsubishi which still looks good over 140 years after it was designed.

The thing is, there aren't many logo designers that have a samurai background, were great industrialists, were involved in political intrigue and were part of pivotal moments in their nation's history, so I thought I'd say a little bit more about the man behind Mitsubishi.

Born into a farming family in what is now Kochi prefecture (his grandfather sold the family's samurai status to pay off debts), Iwasaki moved to Edo - now Tokyo - when he was nineteen, determined to pursue an education. While there, he studied under the reformist Toyo Yoshida who influenced him with ideas about opening and developing what was at the time a closed nation.

Power PR: Press Releases

I have revised the title for my forthcoming book to 'Power PR: Press Releases' (as you may already have noticed).

The aim of the book is to help people create outstanding press releases and ensure that they get published and noticed.

Topics include:

• Media targeting
• Audience targeting
• Style
• Content
• Length
• Image
• Format
• How and when to make contact
• Dos and don'ts

The book also contains a number of activities to help create great press releases and there will be an optional course to accompany the book, including:

• Case studies
• Free editing, proofreading & drafting advice/help
• Additional activities
• Optional ongoing services

The book will be available in January 2012 in ebook format.

If you would like to reserve a copy, or receive a free sample, please email me at: richard at storm-from-the-east.com with the subject 'PR book'.

Thank you!

5 PR mistakes that can cripple your reputation

PR is about much more than press releases, advertising and promotional events: it's an ongoing process that deserves attention at all stages. When done right, it can cement your reputation as a leader in your field. When neglected, however, it can seriously damage your reputation.

Hopefully you are avoiding these five PR mistakes. If not, it's time for a rethink.

1) Telling people they are wrong

I receive a fair amount of PR material and, most of the time, I'm more than happy to share it because it's interesting and comes from great people. Occasionally, however, there are mistakes in the media package (a mistyped date or url, for example) and they need to be corrected. There is most definitely a right way and a wrong way to go about this.

DO: Politely point out the mistake and ask for it to be corrected (even if you didn't make the mistake). This approach will be greatly appreciated and raise your PR profile.

DON'T: Tell people they're wrong and order them to fix the mistake. A curt "You got the date wrong on the press release. Please fix it at once." is not going to win you any fans.

iD-institute launches

With the launch of iD-institute, Regina and Wolfgang Hanke, two Berlin-based design entrepreneurs, present their vision of an International Design Institute.

The new service features sophisticated functions and highly concentrated information, and already features 1,145 designers from eight countries, as well as numerous public organisations and world-renowned universities. International agencies and marketing professionals have also lent their support to the project.