Happy New Year! 2011 was named the “Year of Mobile” so it’s important to ask what’s next in this ever growing field. CGI broke into the mobile market in 2011 by bringing presentations and apps to tablets and smart phones. We’re excited to see where we can grow with mobile in 2012. Here are our top three predictions for the next twelve months:

• Mobile Presentations: A one on one presentation can benefit from being presented on a tablet, such as the iPad. Not only does the presentation design look great, it’s interactive and easy to use and you will be sure to impress clients with an innovative new way of presenting.
• Tablets Replace PC’s: Tablets are quickly gaining momentum in the sales and marketing departments of Fortune 500 companies as the best way to present information. They are easy to use, portable, and great for presenting on the go.
• Digital Marketing Initiatives Grow: Smart phones are everywhere these days and marketers are taking advantage of the growing mobile market by creating digital marketing initiatives – from checking in with FourSquare to playing games like SCVNGR  digital marketing initiatives targeting mobile devices will continue to grow throughout 2012 and for years to come.

Every year, CGI sends a unique card  to our friends, family, and clients as a way to share the spirit of the holidays. CGI’s card last year was a fun animated video featuring illustrations of our whole team and a special appearance from our virtual mascot, Frank the Fish – check it out here!

This year the CGI team thought it would be nice to share a personal view of our beautiful world by providing scenic pictures of their travels. The result is a simple but straight forward Holiday Card – wishing you peace + joy wherever you may be. We hope you enjoy it.

As a way to take our wishes with you, a link at the end of the card allows you to access a landing page hosting the photos from the CGI team. All photos can be downloaded to your mobile and desktop system and used as a background or in any creative way you like! Feel free to share our card with your family and friends and spread the holiday cheer!

Design is a process just as much as it is an art. In the design process, words such as “dynamic” and “sleek” get thrown around a lot, but these words can have a different meaning to everyone in the room. Even when you might have a clear image in your mind of what the design should look like, it’s something that can be very difficult to describe. This is why so many of our projects begin with a design concept phase as a way to visualize the project direction. However, there are situations where our clients don’t currently have a strong brand or perhaps they are going through a brand transition. In this situation, we recommend mood boards as an important first step.

Mood boards are a valuable design exercise that helps us to explore our client’s brand by examining elements such as color, photography, iconography, font and overall business personality. Unlike a design concept, the look of a mood board is unstructured in that it doesn’t attempt to solve a usability problem or messaging goal. It is intended to create a feeling, rather than defining a layout. Presenting and discussing mood boards with our clients provides a great open forum and gives the designer a solid foundation for the look and feel of the project as we move forward.

What other brand exercises have you encountered that were really beneficial in defining your company identity?