Simple On the Outside Doesn’t Always Mean Simple On the Inside.

Steve Jobs’ legacy of incorporating design into EVERYTHING, no matter how seemingly small or inconsequential, inspired extrovertic to seek out design elements in unexpected places within the agency model.

Seeking inspiration (and new ways to approach this goal), I purchased the new Steve Jobs biography by Walter Isaacson as soon as it was available. And I loved every word of its 656 pages.

Now, if you’ve ever tried to write anything (even a blog post), you’ll know that the creative process is never simple. In fact, a key takeaway from the book for me was that simplicity requires relentless effort, revisions, editing, and reediting.

Given the runaway success of all things Apple, one might assume that the iPad and iPod had easy births. However, Jobs dispels this myth, saying, “It takes a lot of hard work…to make something simple, to truly understand the underlying challenges and come up with elegant solutions.” Isaacson notes, “Jobs had aimed for simplicity that comes from conquering complexities, not ignoring them.”

To conquer these complexities, Jobs went with his gut. While creating the iPad for instance, instead of doing consumer research to find out what people wanted, Jobs expressed Apple’s approach as, “We figure out what we want. And I think we’re pretty good at having the right discipline to think through whether a lot of other people are going to want it, too.”

In addition to the tireless pursuit of an elegant solution, Jobs encountered other speed bumps on the road to success. His former CFO Joe Graziano infamously dismissed the Apple Store concept by saying, “Apple’s problem is it still believes the way to grow is serving caviar in a world that seems pretty content with cheese and crackers."

Fortunately for Jobs, at the end of the day, his naysayers became inconsequential because he had the internal resources to see his vision through.

After spending some time processing Jobs’ situation, I began thinking about times when I didn’t succeed in realizing my own vision. Was there anything about my mindset in those situations that got in the way? How could stronger internal fortitude help me slay those “I can’t do this” thoughts that arise when facing a difficult challenge?

With a little introspection, here are a few lessons I came up with:

1.      The little voice inside your head doesn’t always require medication. In fact, I’ve found that ignoring that voice has always gotten me into trouble. In the early years of forming extrovertic, I sometimes didn’t push enough on some critical fronts. When starting a business, there will always be things that get in the way of pushing yourself to the limit. So, trust your instincts and push, push, push for a better solution.

2.      Leaders—broadcast the little voices in your heads. On a personal level, it’s not always easy to be relentless. As extrovertic has grown from a 4- to a 40-person agency, I’ve realized that success is directly linked to the performance of each and every extrovert. To gain maximum leverage, my job is to set the bar high and keep raising it.

1.      Do not be a “blame sponge.” When I was at Pfizer, during our first attempt at building a patient database, I got myself into a lot of trouble for accepting cockamamie excuses for numbers that made absolutely no sense. I blamed myself for not understanding. Finally, I found someone who could explain to me what had gone wrong and how to fix it. We then made a plan, executed it, and built a functional database. 

So that’s the tack I am going to take in my quest for simple, elegant solutions. Does any of this resonate with you? How do you bolster your inner resolve to achieve your goals?

-Dorothy

“Soldier on, partner,” and other notes of inspiration from a cough drop.

It's been a few weeks since we extroverts embarked on our quest to identify how good design can add value to the healthcare agency model. As a result, I am now seeing smart design everywhere, from the construction of our company chairs to the wrappers on my cough drops.

To be more specific, the power of design really hit me as I unwrapped a cherry-flavored Halls Defense drop. I had recently stocked up on them to help fight off an impending cold. While looking at the packaging, I expected to see the usual ingredients—zinc, Echinacea, and vitamin C (to give me a little boost). What I hadn't expected was, "A pep talk in every drop." But that’s what I got.

Printed on each Halls wrapper were 3 or 4 brief, aspirational messages. My wrapper reminded me, "You've survived tougher," implored me to, "Be unstoppable," and told me, "Don't give up on yourself." As intended, the drops gave me both a physical and a mental boost.

What a great example of taking customer insights and transforming them into a design element aimed at generating customer delight! Halls takes the concept further with their corresponding TV spots, which are sure to put a smile on your face. The print ads are great too!

Halls’ clever design makes me wonder how we can incorporate little pick-me-ups into all the patient education, packaging, relationship marketing, and digital programs we create for our healthcare clients.

-Dorothy

First, AIGA. Next, Jetpacks.

As Extroverts, we are naturally inclined to seek out others whose work relates to what we do. That’s why, in keeping with our Designing Extrovertic theme, we recently took a company field trip to see the best of the best in design, as captured in an exhibition sponsored by the illustrious AIGA.

For those who are unaware, AIGA is the professional association for design. Their philosophy is to highlight exceptional pieces in every product category whose design particulars increase their ability to communicate.

Our team of Extroverts walked down the block to the AIGA NYC chapter on Fifth Avenue and 21st street to view offerings from the winners of the AIGA 365 Design Effectiveness competition. We saw a collection of clean, sophisticated items that clearly outshone the pedestrian designs we see on a daily basis.

Two features stood out to me as consistently effective design elements—strong geometrical precision and clutter-free layouts. These elements were utilized on a wide range of products, from 3-D design books to coffee bean packaging to corporate financial reviews.

With these pieces fresh in our minds, we returned to the office, where we had a free-flowing brainstorming session. We discussed our thoughts on the out-of-the box design principles we’d just seen, and shared personal insights. Feedback on various design elements ranged from “niche ideas work(ing)” to  “surprising and delighting (your audience).”

Beyond the elements of design, we began thinking about ways to apply these approaches to our own work. Taking a “no ideas are wrong” approach, we shared our thoughts on different ways to improve the agency’s design profile. The resulting suggestions ranged from “embracing cool for cool’s sake” to “providing company jetpacks,” (which was my personal favorite tidbit).

What I am learning at Extrovertic is that advertising doesn’t begin and end with fulfilling client requests. It also involves looking to the forefront of creativity. Every piece we produce should explore different ways to present material that will benefit our clients and the patients they serve.

This ability to integrate design and creative problem solving into everything we do will eventually become part of Extrovertic’s status quo. A smartly designed communication affects account people and creatives alike—it makes our collective work better, which benefits everyone involved.

That’s why we look to AIGA to identify pioneers at the forefront of integrated creativity.

Who knows, maybe someday Extrovertic will be the first agency to introduce jetpacks into everyday office life. An AAE can dream….

-Thomas 

Brilliant—A Gift Card That Doesn’t Work At Any Store In Town.

Who doesn’t want to give back? We all like to think that most people are inherently good and, if given the opportunity, would donate either time or money to worthy causes. That said, people are also busy, perhaps now more so than ever. There are tweets to tweet, Facebook posts to post, blogs to read, and trends to follow. We also need to find time for those family, friend, and job things that seem to take precedence in many of our lives (for some reason!)


But what if giving were made easy? Isn’t that what holds us back from giving back—not having the resources to do something good simply and efficiently?

This holiday season, I received a truly inspired gift from a friend via globalgiving.org. GlobalGiving defines itself as:

“A charity fundraising web site that gives social entrepreneurs and non-profits from anywhere in the world a chance to raise the money that they need to improve their communities.”

The front of the elegantly designed white gift-card holder reads, “Brilliant. A gift card that doesn’t work at any store in town.” The back of the card holder offers the headline, “But gladly accepted in over 100 countries throughout the world.”

Below that is a biodegradable gift card that, after removal from the holder, reveals the instructions:

1. Go to www.globalgiving.org/redeem.

2. Find a project you are passionate about.

3. At checkout, select “pay with a gift card.”

4. Feel good about changing the world.

Donators (and gift card recipients) are urged to “select the projects you want to support…and you'll get email updates from the project so you can see how your gift is making a difference.”

Everyone loves getting presents, but this was a different sort of present that really made me feel good. Aside from being impressed as a writer/creative with its cleverly written copy and tasteful design, I also love the idea behind it. Both giver and receiver benefit, as does the global community at large. It’s the type of Big Idea creatives aspire to stumble upon and the sort of big idea we work to produce at Extrovertic. In pharma especially, we strive to employ these same themes—simple, elegant, and easy to understand and implement.

You can do it anytime, but isn’t this holiday season a great opportunity to visit globalgiving.org and give back, simply?

-Jamie

We Need Holiday Parties.

The annual holiday party is a curious rite of passage for just about any agency. It’s an obligatory ritual that’s squeezed in among the hustle-bustle of many year-end activities: financial reports, evaluations, and finishing up OPDP submissions before the holiday break.

For those given the task of organizing the holiday party, there’s tremendous pressure, whether it’s for a shop of 20 folks or an agency with 500 employees. You’re charged with ensuring the merriment of your colleagues. You’re responsible for making sure they have a good time. That is the only agenda: to have a good time.

The quality of holiday parties is as varied as the agencies that host them. Some are so monumentally epic that your grandchildren and people in foreign lands will be reading about them in their history books. (If you were there, you’d know what party I’m talking about.) Others are so awful you just want “Die Hard” to happen in real life.

Good or bad, fun or not, one thing is clear: We need our holiday parties. Because holiday parties are cathartic.

They’re not just some drunken convergence of people who go to work in the same building as you do every day. Holiday parties are important milestones in every agency’s year. It’s a time to get together with the folks with whom you spend a majority of your waking hours and reconnect as people, as friends, as trusted partners. It’s a time to stitch up the past year, pat everyone—including yourself—on the back, and look ahead to the coming year. There is always something to celebrate at the holiday party, no matter how big or small.

Extrovertic holiday parties—yes, we have more than one!—have much to live up to. It’s not like we have a choice—we’re called Extroverts for a reason. In a year of such explosive growth, it would’ve been tempting to overdo it and go all out and over the top—“go big or go home” style. 

Instead, the first of our parties, was rather…nice, charming, and a little quirky. Very Extrovertic.

Berklee College of Music students brought the jam.

A tarot card reader helped us look into the future. (Will anyone use this new app I’m designing?) We ate, we drank, we sang, we danced, and we drank some more. And then we all hopped into cabs, went home, and watched the sunrise.

Like I said, cathartic.

Desmond

Form, Meet Function.

What’s the first thing you do when you move apartments? Offices? Desks?

You clean house.

You sort through everything you have and decide which pieces can fit into your new space and which need to be left curbside for the garbage trucks.

Following this culling down of belongings comes the fun part—the need to acquire new furniture. Which is exactly what we did for the move to our new 21^st Street location.

In keeping with our emphasis on design, each piece of furniture for our new digs was carefully researched and evaluated prior to being purchased. We ended up with snazzy turquoise desk chairs, frosted glass desks, and polka dot-covered work stations (to name but a few).

But the coolest pieces of furniture (in this Extrovert’s opinion) are the Interstuhl chairs designed by Christine Lüdeke. Uniquely designed, visually stimulating, and bright chartreuse in color, these chairs at first glance counteract the idea of form following function. This principle states that:

The shape of a building or object should be primarily based upon its intended function or purpose.

By just looking at the chair, however, it seems to be…,well, non-functional.

But the Contemeporist, a product discovery site for architects and interior designers, quotes Interstuhl and clears things up a bit:

First of all you have to use your imagination to identify an easy chair in the 60-degree slanting element. But if you let yourself down at an angle you will experience something unique. You will be rewarded by a very comfortable seating sensation in a type of cantilever model that has been made possible by modern fibres and new weaving methods.

So, when it comes down to it, the modernist approach to design really does hold true—form usually follows function even when that doesn’t appear to be the case at first. Modern design merely asks that we work a bit harder to reap the benefits.

What are some ways that you can integrate form and function into your home or office?

Jamie

* A special thanks to Account Extroverts Bill, Thomas, and Steve for modeling in these chairs, thereby kicking them up yet another notch.

Massive Health’s Holy Trinity: Technology, Healthcare, and Design.

As a healthcare communications agency devoted to raising the bar on strategic and innovative thinking, Extrovertic has launched an initiative to explore how the principles of design can be employed to improve our processes, products, and daily agency lives ((see post date 11/28/11)). 

One of the first places we looked at during our design exploration was Massive Health, a startup dedicated to infusing design and technology into healthcare. Massive Health believes a new approach to tackling the healthcare crisis is needed. According to their website, Massive Health is about “making beautiful products that sit in your pocket and give you deep insight into your health conditions.” Massive Health turns “data into meaning, and make(s) that meaning actionable.”

They recently launched an iPhone app called “The Eatery,” which is designed to help people make lasting changes to their diet. Using an iPhone, people take pictures of everything they plan to eat, give it a simple rating (Fit or Fat), and submit. Massive Health’s wonderfully executed app makes it easy to adhere to the simple rules of healthy eating and to implement the basics of successful behavioral changes.

There’s also substantiation that this approach to eating works:

1.      Sharing your goals makes you more likely to accomplish them: With The Eatery, you can share your food selections with your friends and get their reactions. In addition to helping make you more accountable to your goals, your friends may help bust your personal food myths. For example, is that daily smoothie really healthy or, as their site suggests, is it “a sugar bomb?”

2.      Eating colorful foods is a must: In keeping with Michael Pollan’s belief that food needs to be colorful, The Eatery allows pictures of your meals to become part of a patchwork quilt that can you can evaluate in a glance. Is it bland and brown or full of orange, green, purple, and red?

3.      Making small sustainable lifestyle changes is more effective than strict dieting: By compiling your eating habits in pictures and easy-to-read colorful graphs, you are able to identify small self-defeating patterns. For example, is every coffee break accompanied by a cookie break too?

I compare this beautifully designed app to the tools my daughter was given by a nutritionist to ensure she eats 4,000 calories daily—the amount required for her to participate in competitive skating. Flora got a boring three-ring binder and a stack of what looked to be slightly off-kilter mimeographed sheets straight out of a 1960s health class. Only a highly motivated, disciplined athlete like my daughter would stick to that regimen. Her baby-boomer mom certainly wouldn’t!

Massive Health says on their blog, “this iPhone application offers a simple, beautiful approach to eating better.” This is quite an accomplishment; simplicity is something we aspire to but often encounter obstacles in attaining. As someone who has spent close to 2 decades banging the health literacy drum in Big Pharma, I know how hard it is to get the simple stuff through review committees. Bigger words and complex graphics are often more technically accurate, and therefore safer from a regulatory/legal point of view.

Deadlines loom, and the folders stack up. However, apps like The Eatery provide inspiration to push back just a little harder (perhaps there’s an app that can help us make small, sustainable review committee changes). Massive Health’s first foray into merging design principles and healthcare, raises the bar for all of us involved in healthcare communications.

Dorothy