Whenever I'd go to design conferences or my old job had huge events like conferences, I was always so bummed about the single-use items - especially the big banners, step & repeats, etc. I'd try to design them in evergreen ways but if it was a one-off event, much of it got trashed.
The real client examples helped (e.g. when you suggested language changes)
And yay for aluminum! I've been seeing plastic water bottle companies shift to using it so, on the surface, it seems like a good move.
I hadn't thought of the digital signage part so including the bit about tech waste was a nice reminder. At an old job, we'd try to book rooms or spaces that already had large screens/monitors or those pull down screens for projectors. Not sure if that helps in the grand scheme of things haha
And lastly, on the merch... I've been poking around for better ways to approach physical products at these big places. Some say less but higher quality and practical (e.g. a tote is more likely to get used than a mousepad or some random 'swag'). Some say ditch physical stuff all together. Some say only make physicals if it's for a workshop and relevant (e.g. a journal with prompts for a writer's retreat). I love experiential design so I'll probably be looking into this more.
Thank you so much for this amazing research. I'll share this with my client so we have plenty of time to plan for our fall signage. I really appreciate all you're doing to educate our industry
I hope it helps but even if there’s nothing you can do for your exact situation, I hope you can take some solace in knowing you tried!!! It sucks but sometimes there’s no easy answers so much of our world is tied to plastic 😭
I wish I had rad cool alternative suggestions for every application but sometimes its like yeah, sucks, gotta be plastic :( Change is slow but even having the conversations with clients and putting the ideas in their head is important work :) Good luck!!! And thanks for the great question, I got really into researching it 😂
Yes, it helps a lot, and I might create a way to do an evergreen sign with a small replacable piece with the dates. My client is really into the environment - https://frankfordpreservationfoundation.org/
Ooh great idea!! And reminds me, I totally forgot to mention this but I know when I was doing signage for a museum in house, one time we messed up on the dates for an event on a vinyl poster and the printing company was able to patch it and change it.
I wonder if this would be possible as a way of retaining its evergreen nature easier for date changes 🤔 I don’t know if a printer would patch job a year after the original print though.
Your client looks awesome! If you want / remember I would love to see what you come up with but literally no pressure hehe.
Whenever I'd go to design conferences or my old job had huge events like conferences, I was always so bummed about the single-use items - especially the big banners, step & repeats, etc. I'd try to design them in evergreen ways but if it was a one-off event, much of it got trashed.
The real client examples helped (e.g. when you suggested language changes)
And yay for aluminum! I've been seeing plastic water bottle companies shift to using it so, on the surface, it seems like a good move.
I hadn't thought of the digital signage part so including the bit about tech waste was a nice reminder. At an old job, we'd try to book rooms or spaces that already had large screens/monitors or those pull down screens for projectors. Not sure if that helps in the grand scheme of things haha
And lastly, on the merch... I've been poking around for better ways to approach physical products at these big places. Some say less but higher quality and practical (e.g. a tote is more likely to get used than a mousepad or some random 'swag'). Some say ditch physical stuff all together. Some say only make physicals if it's for a workshop and relevant (e.g. a journal with prompts for a writer's retreat). I love experiential design so I'll probably be looking into this more.
Thank you so much for this amazing research. I'll share this with my client so we have plenty of time to plan for our fall signage. I really appreciate all you're doing to educate our industry
I hope it helps but even if there’s nothing you can do for your exact situation, I hope you can take some solace in knowing you tried!!! It sucks but sometimes there’s no easy answers so much of our world is tied to plastic 😭
I wish I had rad cool alternative suggestions for every application but sometimes its like yeah, sucks, gotta be plastic :( Change is slow but even having the conversations with clients and putting the ideas in their head is important work :) Good luck!!! And thanks for the great question, I got really into researching it 😂
Yes, it helps a lot, and I might create a way to do an evergreen sign with a small replacable piece with the dates. My client is really into the environment - https://frankfordpreservationfoundation.org/
Ooh great idea!! And reminds me, I totally forgot to mention this but I know when I was doing signage for a museum in house, one time we messed up on the dates for an event on a vinyl poster and the printing company was able to patch it and change it.
I wonder if this would be possible as a way of retaining its evergreen nature easier for date changes 🤔 I don’t know if a printer would patch job a year after the original print though.
Your client looks awesome! If you want / remember I would love to see what you come up with but literally no pressure hehe.