myturtleneck design primer series | part 3: why crowd-sourcing your logo is a bad idea

My design process is a thoughtful one. There is a reason behind every decision. There are no shortage of companies offering cheap, crowd-sourced, instant solutions for logo design. For some companies, entities or organizations, a crowd-sourced logo may … suffice. But if you know your industry, competitors and target audience, chances are, you are aware that design needs to be a more serious consideration. 

Crowd-sourced design (including so-called “design competitions”) and stock logo resources fundamentally go against my personal philosophy. The ‘designers’ who participate in crowd-sourcing are more about quantity than quality. Multiple submissions are often appropriated or ‘reused’ from elsewhere on the web in order to increase the chances of getting ‘picked.’ There’s a false sense that clients are getting the most for their money because they may get quantity but unlikely to get quality. The results are mediocre, at best, and generic because these logos are created to easily ‘fit’ companies in any number of industries. You will get what you pay for.

I must discuss design competitions, too. Simply put: I don’t believe in them. They fundamentally devalue the graphic design industry as a whole. It’s a way to, once again, get numerous submissions offering (if you’re lucky) a small cash prize and the promise of ‘exposure’ to the winner. For designers who agree to submit work they will likely never be compensated for, it shows how little they value to the years (and tuition money!) spent on their education. The promise of exposure is also a load of crap. A design competition audience is already the wrong audience to expose your work to. Participating designers are already selling themselves as someone who will work for (almost) free. This doesn’t set them up to meet clients that will respect and value their work. From where I’m standing, choosing the design competition route – particularly for something as important as your brand identity – does not say good things about your company. It’s exploitive, arbitrary and cheap-looking way to find very important design solutions.

It’s also worth pondering whether a crowd-sourced logo is truly what you want to be identified with for the next five, ten (or more) years.

“A good brand icon is like a tailored suit—it should only look good on you.”

— Marty Neuimeier, The Brand Gap

Great overall design that your company can truly OWN will not come from “the mob.” It comes from thoughtful consideration of who you/your company are and where you’d like to be. A good designer starts by asking you good, relevant questions and doing research about your industry and your competition. Design is a rigorous process — if done correctly. As Marty Neumeier said, “A good brand icon (or logo) is like a well-tailored suit —it should only look good on you.” The words/phrases you choose to describe your company matters to the design process and should be part of the research phase. A clear, thoughtful message about your company is only enhanced by great design and a strong visual vocabulary. This visual vocabulary (a.k.a. all your brand’s visual elements) is part of what a good designer will help establish for you. This design process will not be possible to achieve through crowd-sourcing. When your overall message is clear and logo strong and your audience’s experience of your brand is positive, brand loyalty actually has a chance to build. This makes having a strong foundation for your brand a worthy investment.

myturtleneck design primer series | part 2: why design now and not later?

Defining your brand identity early benefits your company in many ways. As the saying goes: “You only get one chance to make a good first impression.” I believe this holds true for brand identity and branding. Your product/service will evolve over time. But your brand identity needs a strong start because it's part of what helps establish loyalty with your audience. Your brand story should be part of your company's foundation and DNA. Your designer can help build this into your brand identity. So your story is critical information your designer will ask you at the very beginning of the design process. Your company logo is often the first contact your audience will have with your brand. Why not get it right from the beginning? Why start any other way? More importantly, why wait to understand and connect with your customers? 

Some companies attempt to get by with free, ‘quickie’ or cheap logo design in the early stages of their business in an attempt to keep startup costs down. Some rely on crowd-sourcing or design competitions to establish brand identity. I will elaborate on why crowd-sourcing your logo is a really bad idea in a future post! Stay tuned! :) One reason this is a strategic mistake is it will end up costing more in the long-term. Deciding to establish a well-considered company identity later will incur added expenses. Think of the cost of re-doing everything that has your logo on it – especially after you’ve grown the company in size: reprinting business cards, packaging, signage, etc. Another important reason to get the logo right the first time (and sticking with it) is that you also risk losing your growing audience’s trust by changing their brand identity on a whim or too frequently. Being wishy-washy with your brand identity just doesn’t say good things about who you are as a company. In this Internet age, we've seen how logo redesigns have backfired on much beloved (albeit large, well-established) brands. Companies like Gap, Airbnb, etc have provoked public outrage over logo redesigns. The main reason for the passionate response is that over time is that people become attached to brands or come to feel a sense of personal belonging towards certain brands. Many have called this phenomenon "tribalism." Once your company establishes an audience of believers, aka your fan base, they can also become your best promoters. Today's audience is vocal in both positive and negative ways. Opinions about companies of all sizes are spread instantly and widely on social media these days. It's become too important to manage your brand right. 

“Design is the silent ambassador of your brand.” – Paul Rand

Many startup success stories today have often been co-founded by designers – Apple, Airbnb.com, Kickstarter, just to name a few. This means good design was inherent to what made them successful (this includes everything from their brand identity + branding, marketing and the product or service’s user experience). It's no coincidence that companies founded by designers have PRIORITIZED design. How does any company expect to compete in today's landscape if great design isn’t on your company’s list of priorities?   

myturtleneck design primer series: logo vs brand. the distinction.

about me + my design primer series 

For those who don't know me, my name is Catherine Mangosing. I am the owner and chief creative of My Turtleneck Design.  In the past 22+ years, I've worked on numerous brand identity projects, print, packaging, digital design, design consultation, etc both in-house for brands and at design studios and agencies. I've taken on independent projects over the years and continue to do the same for clients in the US, Canada, and elsewhere. I've often asked about my design process and I’ve written a little bit about it. I will be sharing some of what I know and how I work in a series of blog posts here on my blog. The primary goal for sharing is to help small businesses, startups or organizations who may not have worked with a designer before identify the key pieces of information that you'll need to consider before a designer, like myself, can successfully develop a strong brand identity. Hence, Design Primer Series. I hope you will take away something valuable to help you begin building your brand, establish clear goals as well as maximize your time with your designer. I will try my best to demystify the design process and break it down into digestible chunks. 

My personal approach to design is a thoughtful one. I consider everything from the concrete to the nuanced information clients share with me about themselves and their companies. All of it helps me distill the knowledge down into a memorable visual representation. 

Lets get started. My first post is below. Stay tuned for more. Thank you for reading! :) 

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what is a logo?

Logos and brands are often talked about but there's confusion about what they mean. Here's a quick distinction: 

A logo is a symbol for the brand – the brand’s identity. A logo could be an icon or symbol, graphic and/or the typographic treatment of the company name – also known as a wordmark. It is a starting point and visual centre for any brand. One easy and very recognizable example to cite is Apple.

More than ever, we live in a design-savvy world. So it shouldn’t come as a surprise that the most recognizable brands out there also have great design. People today are passionate about design (case in point: Apple). Whether you love or hate Apple, the reason behind that passion is simple: Apple made good design matter to everyone – not just to designers.  

A logo should be memorable and communicate a clear idea about a company. The Apple logo (and name) has always been about being simple, friendly, fun and approachable. Great logo design is a strong starting component in building that trust and brand loyalty. These days, brands can no longer afford to not prioritize design. Our visual landscape is saturated and the audience is more savvy. Great logo design undeniably adds value to your company. But it is also ONLY THE BEGINNING of your brand story. 

what is a brand? 

A brand goes beyond the logo. A brand is a person’s gut feeling about a product, service or company. It’s everything from:
· a shopping bag
· advertisement
· the colour palette of your communications
· your stationery system design
· packaging design
· the design of the website
· store or truck signage
· the interior design of your retail or hospitality space
· the design of your event space, kiosk or booth
· the design of the way-finding system in your building or space
· the user experience of your app, website or online store
· the voiceover for a tv ad
· the tone of your promotional and advertising copywriting
· the quality of your customer service
· the look and feel of your mobile app, website or online store

Your brand is all those things and more. It's defined by how people feel about your company. The emotional connection people have with brands like Apple is what gives them power. That connection is built over time. Particularly in this age of social media, what gives shape to a brand is inextricably linked to the audience’s experience of it – both positive and negative. The audience is vocal, for better or worse. A brand is an ever-evolving entity that requires trust from all who interact with it in order to thrive. Companies with the most loyal followers consider their brand design very carefully. It requires good management and consistency. The most successful brands have managed to have their audience fall in love with them. A great designer can put you on the road toward achieving that. 

Below is an example of what the Apple BRAND consists of: 

Images via Apple

Working Mom Editorial Feature // September 2017

Raya Goods' creative director & founder was featured in Working Mom magazine for the interior design of her son's nursery.

raya goods on vinta gallery

Announcing my first design available via my first stockist starting this Friday, June 24th at noon on the Vinta Gallery online shop! I'm very exited to roll this out. These illustrations were inspired by my little Rumi, of course. I worked on an illustration recently for a client and it inspired me to draw some more. I've always liked clean line art illustrations. I wanted to see my baby wear my own creations and got excited about silk screening them onto clothes. I shared my ideas with a few friends and they encouraged me to go for it. Why not?  I also like the idea that these onesies can be worn by any gender baby. There's not enough cool baby wear out there in my view.  I am full of ideas and I look forward to sharing them in the next few months. Follow me on @rayagoods on Instagram to see the latest. 

raya goods

I'm excited to introduce something I've been working on for the past little while: Raya Goods - a new product line featuring my own illustrations printed on baby onesies, bags, t-shirts, etc. RAYA (pronounced rah-yah) in Tagalog and Spanish means a drawn or printed line or stripe. In Sanskrit Raya means flow of a river, zeal, ardour, quickness, force or velocity. Raya also means king, prince. My little Rumi is the inspiration behind all of this, of course. I can't wait to share them with you in the next few weeks! Please follow @rayagoods on Instagram to check them out.

Babyhood

Babyhood is SO short. I am reminded all the time. People feel compelled to remind me, too. Like, constantly. I believe every parent comes to this realization pretty quickly and all on their own anyway. What might be easy to forget (especially if you're not really into kids - not everyone has to want/like kids) is that who they become once they are done being these cute, little creatures is... FAMILY. I look forward to those next stages with excitement and humility. I couldn't imagine a baby for many years. I hesitated to want to tackle parenthood on my own (side note: bravo to single parents!). But when Rudy and I got together, I thought: it would be nice to have family around. It's the reason we women put our bodies through the trauma of pregnancy and birth. Both physically, mentally and emotionally. But I'm humbled and grateful to have had the chance. Changes are happening fast with Rumi. Daily. I'm in awe. I'm focused on every amazing moment of his babyhood. 

my lexie

My little angel passed away this weekend. She was ripped away from us by sudden heart failure. My heart has never been so broken. She's recovered from other health issues (like hip/back problems) before and although she was diagnosed with a mild heart murmur early on, it had never bothered her before. She had a tumour in her mouth surgically removed last month but recovered quite well from that. She was back to her old self immediately after. She seemed really happy to have the tumour gone. 

I want to honour and celebrate her life today. Lexie was my sidekick and travel companion for the past ten years. I was living in Brooklyn when I adopted her. She's been with me through thick and thin. Her Toronto home was quieter than Brooklyn and she really loved it here. 

Lexie started her life in rural Arkansas. I adopted her from a breeder there who was using her to breed puppies. She wasn't even two years old and she had just had her second litter of pups. The breeder was giving her up because, apparently, she had trouble with labour. I don't know much about dog breeding but I thought she was too young to be bred. I also suspect she was neglected and bullied by other dogs. I like to think I rescued her from a less happy life. I fell in love with her the moment I saw her. I still believe she is the prettiest little dachshund I have ever seen.

One humbling lesson I learned not long after I adopted her was while on my commute home from work in NYC. She rode the train to and from work with me every day. An animal behaviourist struck up a conversation with me when she spotted me carrying Lexie in a bag. Having seen ‘The Dog Whisperer’ on television, I thought to ask her if she had a tip for how I could train Lexie to be less nervous on the subway and/or of loud noises. What she told me almost left me in tears. She said that there is no trick. I just had to learn how to love and accept Lexie for who she was. I instantly felt so guilty for thinking that she needed fixing. Learning this actually made me want to love and protect her all the more.  

Lexie stayed exactly the same her whole life. I kept her nervousness in mind and did my best to work around it. She was a shy, delicate and sweet creature. But she was wise, serene and polite. She made up her own mind about who she loved and how much attention she wanted. She was occasionally aloof - which I must say, I respected. She didn't like everyone indiscriminately nor needed everyone to like her. She loved with conviction. I was lucky enough to be on the receiving end of that love. She and my husband adored one another. She was loyal and gently protective of us. When I brought our baby home three and a half months ago, she squealed with joy, wagging her tail, running in circles and kissed our baby's face. I was moved to tears. She had seen my life journey and welcomed big changes with so much love. Her joyful greetings and kisses whenever we came home never got old. What I will miss the most are her long, soulful stares. Those eyes told me a lot. I understood her. 

I am filled with so much sadness. I still expect to see her little body coming around the corner in our apartment. I still expect to feel her stand on her hind legs to ask me to lift her up. She didn't care for toys but LOVED food more than anything. My husband (a chef) would add his special touch to her dog food and fed her the best meals. We both miss spoiling her. She was such a good girl. She gave me life. I hope she's watching over our little family now, that she's somehow still around us. 

Wherever you are, Lexie, I wish you peace. I hope I gave you the happiest life. I will miss you forever and ever.

So much love, 
Mommy

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Lexie's life was well documented. In many ways, I celebrated her life in photographs. I've put these images together (in rough chronological order). This is mostly for me and my husband, but feel free to take a look. :) 

kalsada filipino street food

I'm very excited to share a new venture with my husband, Chef Rudy Boquila. It's called: KALSADA Filipino Street Food. Toronto can look forward to Rudy's thoughtful and tasty twists on the Filipino food he grew up with and loves dearly. Many have regarded his food to be full of heart and soul. I absolutely agree! The word kalsada in Tagalog means street (calzada in Spanish). There's so much in Filipino street food for Rudy to explore creatively. He can't wait!

We're starting to plan some fun dining events around Toronto (and beyond). My sister Caroline and I are playing supporting roles. Although this is a new area for me, professionally, in many ways it makes a lot of sense. Graphic design will be a mainstay in my life – as well as the other major soon-to-be role – MOMMY! But I'm also really looking forward to this new venture with my talented husband. We will revealing more in the coming months. So please follow along to see it unfold! 

love, convention & a baby

“We're having a baby!” 

I never imagined I’d ever be making this announcement. Yet, there it is. It's very surreal, terrifying and exciting all at once. If you know me well or have read my blog before, you’re familiar with my thoughts on marriage and love. My thoughts on children are similar. I spent my late twenties and thirties navigating the occasionally fun but often brutal dating scene in New York. Dating in Toronto wasn’t much better. The whole experience made it difficult to imagine children. I just didn’t see any potential partners I could truly share that experience with. My devout urbanite self wondered if I was even cut out for parenthood. New York was a grind. Would I dare have one on my own? I was in the toughest (and the most expensive) city to attempt single parenthood. How could I even afford childcare on my own? As I reached my late thirties, I found it more difficult to even imagine. Unlike my parent's generation and traditionalists, I saw parenthood very clearly as a choice and NOT an obligation. I still feel this way now. It's time to look at the big picture and evolve just a little. The self-righteous, sexist traditionalists need to get over it. Children aren’t for everyone and it's TOTALLY FINE. 

“There are no have-to’s, just choices”  
― Eleanor Roosevelt

That being said, Rudy coming into my life made me look at everything through a whole new and different lens. My life really changed. A child suddenly became easier to imagine and something that I genuinely wanted. Canada somehow feels like a kinder place to have children. Watching my little nephew grow has been an incredible, moving experience as well. Rudy felt exactly the same way. He hadn't imagined a child of his own before we met either. He and I talked about it over many months. Aware of the potential obstacles (like our age, possible health concerns, etc.), we made the choice to try.  NOT because we felt obligated to fulfill some kind of duty, convention or societal pressures. But because we simply wanted to experience a little family unit of our own. When we got married, we both agreed that if a child truly wasn’t meant to be, we'd be just fine too. We looked to experts in February of this year for a professional assessment to confirm what, if any, problems there may be. Fast forward to today and I’m 17 weeks pregnant! So far, everything looks very well and we’re full of hope and excitement. Having this baby will be THE biggest project either of us will undertake. I'm so fortunate to have a partner who is as generous, patient and kind as Rudy. He's going to be the sweetest father! Neither of us ever really thought we’d be in this position. But we're so looking forward to it. ALL of it!

Please send positive thoughts our way for a healthy and safe pregnancy (and delivery).  :)   

myturtleneck letterpress recipe cards

I'm very excited about my new limited edition letterpress recipe holiday cards BEAUTIFULLY printed by Graven Feather here in Toronto. They feature recipes by my husband, Chef Rudy Boquila. You can now purchase (single cards or packs of 6) online on Etsy or Gravenfeather.ca.

They are also available at the following Toronto stockists: 

A Homerun

Graven Feather

Room 2046 

ARTiculations

VINTA Pop-up in Kensington Market

our wedding photo gallery

UPDATE (on Feb 2016): Our wedding photos can now be viewed here. :) 

We're sharing a preview of our wedding photos on our website.

get nostalgic and kultura 2014

As part of this year's much anticipated 9th annual Kultura Filipino Arts Festival is this fantastic food fest called ‘Get Nostalgic’ featuring two of Toronto's most celebrated chefs: Chef Rudy Boquila (Lamesa Filipino Kitchen) and Chef Basilio Pesce (Porzia). It will feature innovative menus (via stations) with childhood and family nostalgia-inspired dishes, an open bar, art created by Kapisanan's flagship arts mentorship and cultural immersion programs AND live music (featuring 1960s Filipino pop music classics) . All proceeds benefit Kapisanan Filipino Centre for Arts & Culture's (where my sis Caroline is Executive Director) youth arts programs. This event will be held at the beautiful Twist Gallery on Thursday, August 7th at 6pm. Great food, great cause and a fun party. I cannot wait! Get tickets and info about this and all the Kultura 2014 events at kultura.ca before it sells out! You don't want to miss this, Toronto. 

A little secret about Chef Rudy's menu for this event (and those with familiarity with Filipino food) there will be SQUID INK PALABOK. I cannot wait!

note: kultura.ca mobile site will be available by this weekend!

#kulturato

pretty frugal living + gift tags

Amrita Singh, founder and editor of Pretty Frugal Living, resident Frugalista on CBC's Steven and Chris and CTV's Canada AM today. The segment features Frugal Hostess Gifts for Garden Parties, I designed some cute downloadable gift tags for gift makers/givers to print at home for the fab hostess gifts featured in Amrita’s tv appearance. Watch the segment here.

Click HERE to download a printable pdf of these gift tags for Pretty Frugal Living.

Directions: 
1) Download pdf file (click the link above)
2) Print out pdf on your colour printer
3) Cut out gift tags and attach or hang on jars
4) Enjoy!

love, surprise & convention

A big change descended upon my life recently. I fell in love. I got engaged. Although I've never really felt compelled to write publicly about my personal life, I've had things on my mind that need to be expressed. Here it goes.

Being loved by Rudy sometimes makes my heart want to burst – in the best way possible. It was a big, wonderful surprise for us both. We redefined what dating meant to each other. Being a free agent (for the most part) all these years has been ... entertaining. Needless to say, I’ve had a full life. It’s been quite an adventure. I found someone great who was busy having his own multifaceted, interesting journey. And for many reasons, joining forces just made complete sense. What finding love didn’t do is suddenly validate me nor made me more ‘whole.’ I find the notion that women are these sad, incomplete beings without a partner terribly insulting. But let's face it, society hasn’t evolved all that much. But we don't need partners to have children or survive anymore. It's 2014! I also didn't cross some imaginary finish line by getting engaged. It isn’t some kind of noble achievement. The way I see it is stars just aligned, love found me. I think it is FANTASTIC. It is worth celebrating. But I'm not suddenly more dignified because of it. Anything that alludes to this just gets under my skin. 

When I told my mom that Rudy expressed that he wishes we met in our twenties instead of now, her immediate reaction was “Oh, but you’re both SO much more interesting now!” I thought: Wow, SHE’S RIGHT! I love her for that. I love my parents for never, ever making me feel like being single made me somehow feckless or lacking. They didn't try to dictate how my story should unfold. My story was my own. 

I have always been an idealist. I’m not what most would consider a traditionalist. At 18, I didn’t want the (obligatory) big debutant ball – or a ‘debut’ as Filipinos call it. I traveled instead. I was never going to be someone who settled. I found it difficult to imagine having a child before I was with Rudy. In my world, there are no requirements – only choices. Being a free agent makes you self-sufficient and resilient. Of course, I wanted love. Along the way, there was trial and error. There was fear. There were a few near disasters. Dating in New York was occasionally fun. But It often felt like I was on a bad reality dating show. The idea of ‘settling’ terrified me more than flying solo. I’ve been accused of being too picky, too independent (seriously?) and just ‘too much.’ Eventually, I realized that people were simply projecting their own inadequacies and/or religious righteousness on me.  

I knew I wanted and deserved more. I wanted the kind of love that took my breath away. Unfettered by artificial societal pressure. Something that would let my whole being shine, exactly as I am. And it would be undeniable. That is Rudy for me. He inherently understood all this. His choices aren’t shaped by convention. He is vastly different from anyone I've had the experience of knowing. It's a grown up relationship. We're not a couple of 20-somethings still in the midst of angst-filled self-discovery. We’ve lived some. We also just have this joy together. And maybe I needed to leave New York to be ready for it. I’m glad no one else got it exactly right until this precise moment. To me, this was the best kind of surprise there is.  <3

hello spring 2014!

myturtleneck.com has undergone a much needed facelift! There are also new projects added to my portfolio. Have a peek at my latest newsletter and tell me what do you think.

Sign up here to receive future issues of my turtleneck new(s).

:) 

Cheers,
Catherine

it's official!

 “To love and be loved is to feel the sun from both sides.” - David Viscott 

I held out for the real thing. It happened at precisely the right moment for us both. Rudy completely changed the game for me in the love department. It was as unexpected as it is wonderful. I've never felt so loved and at peace. 

– Catherine 

thank you, 2013

2013 was good to me. Lessons. Gifts. Love. 

Looking forward to 2014. Happy New Year all!

music and more for a cause: projectliftph

When Rudy Boquila isn't busy being a chef,  he makes music with his band, DATU. On Wed, Dec 4th, special guest Scratch – from The Roots (yes!) is performing live with DATU at ProjectLiftPH #Haiyan  #YolandaPH fundraiser event! 

Here's DATU performing this year at The Canadian Philippine Fashion Week


There will be great food from: Lamesa Filipino Kitchen, Porzia, Sukho Thai  among others.

For more info on the full line-up of amazing performers and participants on Facebook.

Get your tickets here now: 

Please share and support :) 

konektado at lamesa filipino kitchen

Toronto: Come dine (very well) for a good cause on Dec 2, 2013 at Lamesa. They have has begun an ongoing benefit dinner series called Konektado. The first guest chef collaborating with Chef Rudy will be Dennis Tay of Richmond Station, Keriwa Cafe and Top Chef Canada. Menu details to come. All donations will be going directly to a member of our community who's family was affected by the typhoon Haiyan/Yolanda. This dinner will be fantastic. Tell your friends and family. Don't miss this!