Interviews Session By Company Logos

 First of all I would like to introduce Paul Singh who is the buyer of MailFinch.

Tell us about yourself, Paul. Where are you from? What makes you tick?
PAUL: I’m originally from the DC area — born and raised here. I hate the weather sometimes, but love being close to my family. I’m an entrepreneur at heart; I think I’ve only ever had one “real” job. Then I learned that corporate life tends to suck, so I jumped ship and never looked back.

I love building stuff — whether that means doing it on my own or helping other people get their ideas off the ground.

You’ve been a part of some rather high-profile projects. What were some of your previous accomplishments?
I don’t know if I would call them “high-profile” but I’ve been lucky enough to be in the right place at the right time and work with top-notch people.

Prior to MailFinch, I founded Philtro which was a real time relevancy engine for social networks. We were acquired in late 2009. Prior to that I worked at PBworks, the world’s largest provider of hosted collaboration solutions for business and education, where I was responsible for building out the back-office systems and building their support team. And prior to that, I helped build Symantec’s SaaS business unit (which, incidentally, booked millions of dollars of pre-sales before we even finished building the thing).

God, I feel old… but I’m not.

For those who don’t already know, what is MailFinch?
MailFinch is an on-demand direct mail platform. Whether you need to send one piece of mail or thousands, we guarantee that it will be in tomorrow’s mail. There are no long-term contracts, no minimums and no fine print.

What was your inspiration for MailFinch?
MailFinch was partly inspired by a side project that Dustin Curtis (a particularly famous UI/UX guy) built, and partly inspired by my own curiosity. My dad (and a lot of his friends) sends a lot of flyers for his small business — I remember having to fold and stuff all of them. (It sucked.)

What are your goals — both immediate and long-term — for MailFinch?
My immediate priority is to avoid paper cuts. Seriously.

As for the long-term, my customers are helping me figure that out. It turns out that a lot of people still send a ton of direct mail. My goal is to make their lives easier.

We know how much of an enterprising mind you are. What’s next for you?
Good question. I have no idea — really. MailFinch is a lot of fun and I get to meet some fantastic people (who also happen to enjoy paying for the service) along the way.

I do want to get back into cycling though, I feel a beer gut coming. Gross.

2nd Interview

Who exactly are you? Tell us about yourself, please. Name, age, occupation, birth place, credit card numbers?
In my past life I was Optimus Prime, leader of the Autobots on Cybertron. I was red, blue, shiny, brave and noble. In this life I am Sneh Roy, best friend to Nick, fighter of my older son’s dragons, ass-kicker of my younger son’s nighttime monsters, serial coffee chugger, sees-logos-everywhere-designer, Pixar fan, hopeless romantic, compulsive list creator and a chatterbox. I am 32. I do several jobs a day, the most favorite would be sketching, planning and designing, the least favorite would be changing diapers and re-filling sugar. I was born in a city called Pune in western India in 1977. I have put a scan of my credit card in the mail and you should be getting that shortly.

Logo Concept: 1

For those who don’t know about “Little Box of Ideas,” could you tell us a little bit about it and its origins? (This is your chance to plug!)
I was going to be a neurosurgeon, and no I am not kidding. It was all I had ever known and worked for. Right before admission into medical school, I spent a day at a hospital watching how it all worked. At the end of that day, I broke down, cried my heart out because I knew I couldn’t do it. It wasn’t that I wimped out, just that I couldn’t take all that pain and suffering. So I enrolled in engineering, met Nick and flew blind for a bit. Then I discovered HTML and started designing websites. We started working on projects together back in 1998 and the seed for LBOI was planted. In 2005 when we officially set out to register our company, Little Box Of Ideas was a fitting name, seeing that my head is exploding with a bunch of them every single minute. In 2009 I designed my first logo and we rebranded to LBOI studio, taking our skills and work to a new level, offering a wide range of creative solutions for businesses.

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Give us some insight into your creative process, please. Where do you usually start?
With a cup of coffee
My creative process for a logo is pretty much the same for anything else I create, whether it is a website or a character or an exotic dish. For a client project, I sit down with the brief, reading and re-reading it till I know it by rote, word-mapping in a sketch book, doodling ideas, wireframing and drawing lots of little arrows to connect the words, ideas and doodles together. I like to do this before I start my research because this puts all my non-influenced, raw and original concepts on paper. After a couple of hours of doing this, I start the actual research. The research results in eliminating stuff that has already been done before … logo concepts, website domains, brand names and mission statements. After striking out stuff i cannot use, I go back to work on all the original stuff that has remained untouched and start developing that in more detail.

For a fictional project, like creating a logo for Brandstack, my creative process is the same as above, except that there is no brief from a client.

Because I blog everyday, I see a lot of inspirational designs and websites on a daily basis. Once I start a project, I try not to get online as I feel that muddles my thought process. I sketch extensively and I write. I don’t actually type stuff on the computer, I get a pen and paper and write the old school way. A lot of my posts have come to life in that fashion. I read a lot of books, I have always been a voracious reader. The words in purely textual books feed my visual imagination

Logo Concept: 5

What is your core design philosophy?
You have to love it, like you would love your child! Not exactly the same, but with an unabridged passion. Passion brings hunger and hunger will keep you going strong. Don’t just design with your heart [because the heart is the designer's Kryptonite], use your head too. The head and heart combination is unbeatable. And always, always keep an open mind and “That’s different, but I can do it!” attitude.

Logo Concept: 6

What about major influences? Is there anyone or anything that has informed your work?
In the past year, there have been so many people that have influenced me, in the way that they design, in the way that they interact and simply by being who they are. I am here to learn and I love the randomness of the learning channels. I could pick up something from a seasoned veteran who has been designing for 20 odd years or a newbie who just designed his first logo. Everyone has a story, everyone has a method and if you keep your mind and eyes open, it is amazing what you will learn.

I would like to add that I wouldn’t even be here today if it wouldn’t have been for Nick giving me a pep talk when I needed it the most a year ago, when I had no clue what to do after doing the same old thing for 10 years. He influences me a lot.

Logo Concept: 7

What is your favorite logo you have designed and why?
Out of all the logos I have designed, the LBOI logo would have to be my favorite. Why? Because it is big and bold and bodacious [I believe that term was used by a visitor to the blog] and has that quirk factor that we so badly wanted to represent our business. It has hidden meanings and symbolism for Nick and me and it has an owl in it. What’s not to love, right? And it took 4 years to arrive at.

Company Logo:

 What advice would you give to young designers just starting out?
Watch and learn. Don’t copy, but observe and absorb. Not everyone is going to like your designs and not everyone is going to be nice about it. Don’t let the negatives bog you down. You will know when criticism is constructive but stern and when it is just downright mean. Focus on the constructive bit and you will be fine. Push yourself harder every time and once you start something, don’t give up cause you got up too late or someone, online said something rude!

Logo Concept: 8

3rd Interview

Now third and lastly I would like to share an interview of Richard Scott who is Australian Logo Designer. Rich is from Australia and is a really swell guy, it is always a pleasure to correspond and chat with him.  In the logo designing world, he goes by the moniker of designabot.  From watching his amazing logos pop up on website inspiration lists to reading the deeply philosophical quotes he shares on twitter, Rich never fails to amaze us with his depth of perception. He experiments, adapts and is always there with a kind word of encouragement and a sunny demeanor.

Logo Concept: 1

1. Tell us a little about yourself. About Rich Scott the person and Rich Scott the designer.
I am a 30 year old currently living in Queensland, Australia. I appreciate all aspects of creativity and right-brain thinking! Love a bit of tennis, chess and music (mainly funk and break beats). I have worked on a Mac since forever but am pleased to have avoided all hype surrounding other Apple products… so far! I have run my own business for the last 2+ years and enjoy the freedom this brings to my life. I find it hard to be creative on demand, so working freelance gives me the chance to dictate my own schedule and let creativity flow at leisure.

2. How did you get started with logo designing? Why logo designing?
I am fond of all aspects related to the logo design process, from initial brainstorming to seeing the final article in use. I have always been inquisitive into the origins and meanings behind hieroglyphs and ancient symbols. I found myself gravitating towards logo design because of the emotion and messages you can impart on a viewer with just a simple icon and/or font. After a few years out of the game it wasn’t until quite recently where my passion for graphic design returned and with it my focus became logos/brand identity. It is quite a specialist field but one that really captured my heart.

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3. What according to you is the most fulfilling part of being a brand creator?
I would have to say bringing an idea to life that was once a mere flicker of inspiration in my mind then seeing the finished article is also a real pleasure. The amount of ideas and possible brand solutions are infinite which really fascinates and inspires me. It’s a really great feeling to receive feedback from your peers when you create identities that are unique, recognizable and fingers crossed, stand the test of time.

4. Can you share with us your most challenging logo design to date? What was the biggest hurdle in doing it?
Surprisingly one of my most challenging logos appears to be one of the simplest. It was originally an unused concept, which I re-worked for sale on Brandstack called ‘Silk Skin’. The concept came to me in a flash but when it came to vectorising in Adobe Illustrator, it took forever! Adjusting the size of one foot in relation to the other while still forming a recognisable letter ‘s’ was a real challenge but I got there in the end.

Logo Concept: 3

5. What has been the most unusual source of inspiration for your logos?
A designer takes inspiration from all areas of life not just the design world. One of my more recent brands ‘Vacuum Viper’ was probably the most unusual source. I was finishing up some house work (yawn) … then packing up the vacuum I pressed the cord release button. The speed and velocity of the cords recall reminded me of a snake as it nipped me on the way back! I jumped straight into illustrator with the idea still fresh in my mind and so this brand was born.

Logo Concept: 4

6. If there was one logo out there in the real world that you wished you had created, which one would that be?
There are so many but one recent logo that keeps popping up and stands out is ‘Under Armour’. It’s a simple and strong design, and as with all great logos combines graphic elements to convey a distinct message.

Logo Concept: 5

7. Out of your own portfolio, which logo is the dearest to you? Why?
I love all my creations but one that is dear to me is ‘Penny Puddle’. The main reason I am happy with this one is the strength of concept combined with the speed it took me to execute. I began reading the clients brief and the concept was in my mind before I finished reading. I wanted to convey emotions relating to financial wishes and upward mobility. I really think this solution delivers effectively.

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Any words of wisdom for newbie designers?
We have all at some point in time been new to the design industry. I would say try to be creative and as unique as possible. Create your own little niche within a fairly tough industry. Always keep a positive mind-set and have strong intent that you can and will succeed! Listen to others, ask questions and keep practicing whatever design process you feel most comfortable with. I would always recommend a design course of some sort to gain key knowledge and understanding of design principles. Whatever your skill level the main thing is to have a great concept. I agree that ‘less is more’ but it can be okay to come up with more complex logos providing the concept is strong and then presented in a visually appealing manner.