Self Promotion Notepad

PRICING AND LIMITATIONS

For our first true project we have been assigned to create a 5x7 Self Promotion Notepad. These notepads can have any graphic on them, but must contain our name, telephone number, email, and a QR code that can be scanned to direct our audience to our blog site. My notepad is a 5x7 50 sheet pad with a chip board backing with only black ink. I spoke with Printing Services and found that if I submitted a PDF they would be able to my notepad in about 2-3 days and it would cost $3.30 per pad.  That's not bad!! I think this is a much better idea that business cards for students in our standing who will be attending business fairs and need an edge to stand out.

 BRAINSTORMING AND THUMBNAILS

I began my creation process by considering who my target audience will be. For my purpose I will first be using the pad as a visual example of my understanding of the process from computer to print and then tearing off a sheet of this pad to leave behind with those prospective employers as a way for them to remember who I was and a way to suggest they research my work further through the QR code and contact me if they see fit. With that in mind I began with a word bank and then drew out 10 thumbnail sketches that signified some of my best skills.

 

 

ROUGH

After reviewing the layout and design elements of the 10 thumbnails I then selected 1 that I thought displayed my skills best and created a life size rough with .125" bleeds and .25" margins. 

QR CODE

Once the planning process was done we went to the computers to reproduce what we had drawn. Mrs. Benson showed us how to create a QR code at www.qrcode.kaywa.com which we downloaded as the largest size possible in order to get the best resolution when we resized it in Photoshop before bringing the code into our InDesign file. The QR is our audiences call to action and bridges the gap between our print skills and interactive media skills. It's a great tool to use due to the number of people who own hand held electronics which have access to QR Readers.

GRAPHICS OF DESIGN

I chose to use to face profiles looking at each other with swirly lines coming from their mouths to symbolize my skills in communication as well as graphics since the skills needed to created it are ones that I have learned from classes. My progress thus far is below, but I may do some editing as I continue.

ON-SCREEN CRITIQUE

After our on-screen critique I decided to remove the swirling lines which I had anticipated as representing conversation, but can easily be mistaken for smoke. Instead I replaced them with text bubbles which contain my personal information and QR code. I truly think my final notepad is a better display of my communication skills and allows space for the pad to be more functional.