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May 08, 2004

Northern Alliance Logo Contest

You know what they say: "If you can, you draw a logo. If you can't, you kvetch about the logo the guy who can did."

That's the current situation; when we were filling in for Hugh Hewitt a couple of weeks ago, James Lileks noted that the logo on the Northern Alliance Radio Network website looked like someone did it in MS Paint.

And, indeed, it was. It's the result of about three minutes' work one evening between cooking dinner and working on kids' homework. I'm a usability guy, not a graphics guy; but it was three minutes of bad drawing more than anyone else put in on it...

...but the pack of baying divas other guys from the Northern Alliance have decided that the show and site should have a new logo, what with State Fair season coming on and all - so we're throwing it open to the audience. We're having the NARN Logo Contest.

In exchange for the winning logo, you'll win a valuable (and still to-be-determined) prize, and the satisfaction of keeping me from throttling the roomful of prima donnas doing a logo for a plucky bunch of local talk show hosts. It'll get plenty of exposure!

The usual rules apply - we claim the rights to the winning design, yadda yadda.

So - if you have an entry, send it to:

logo

at

northernallianceradio.com

Go to it!

Posted by Mitch at May 8, 2004 06:42 PM
Comments

Any preferences on colors/general style? Were you planning on keeping the rest of the website the same (particularly the sidebar's blue line?)

Posted by: dorkafork at May 9, 2004 12:50 PM

I'm a usability/information architecture guy with a background in document design, so I prefer things more or less like you see both on the current NARN blog and on this site:
* Lots of white space
* very subtle dividers
* sans-serif fonts (but that doesn't apply
to logos, per se), especially Verdana.
* colors that are easy on the eyes yet
readable and high-contrast (which is why
I use so much blue on white for emphasis).

Remember - that's because of my vocational background. Part of my job is to, er, reel in
the parts of the creative peoples' instincts that detract from readability and usability.

That being said, if a design drives the blog in a different direction, I'll be happy to run with it.

Posted by: Mitch at May 9, 2004 01:01 PM

Er, that last sentence should be 'if a logo design pushes the show site in a different direction..."

Posted by: Mitch at May 9, 2004 01:03 PM

Remember - that's because of my vocational background. Part of my job is to, er, reel in
the parts of the creative peoples' instincts that detract from readability and usability.

As well as "listenability", especially on Saturday afternoons. :-)

Posted by: Captain Ed at May 9, 2004 01:13 PM

If I actually had time, I'd draw a guy on horseback in full gallop, brandishing a microphone, just to connect with another iconic Northern Alliance image.

But I don't.

/lame

Posted by: chap at May 9, 2004 02:05 PM

Yeah, Ed, sheesh.

Put a guy in the anchor seat for two hours and suddenly he's Howard Freakin' Stern. ;-P

Posted by: Mitch at May 9, 2004 03:42 PM

At least you're not bitter or defensive about the whole thing Mitch.

Posted by: the elder at May 10, 2004 04:43 PM

Tongue firmly in cheek, big fella.

Posted by: mitch at May 10, 2004 05:19 PM
hi