Google Pays $100M for New California Office

The Googleplex is spreading with Google’s $100 million purchase of a 240,000 square-foot office center in Mountain View, Calif.

The acquisition, reported in the Mercury News and confirmed by Google, is Google’s largest property purchase in Silicon Valley this year. The property, called The Landmark at Shoreline, will house about 960 workers.

Google, which added 2,600 employees in its most-recent quarter, bringing its total workforce up to 30,000, has spent $225 million in 2011 alone buying 15 properties in Mountain View, according to the Mercury News. Last year, Google also bought a 2.9 million square-foot office building in New York City.

Image courtesy of Flickr, tshein

Source: http://mashable.com/2011/10/22/google-100m-mountain-view-office/

Meet the Newest Angry Bird

Rovio has introduced a Halloween treat for Angry Birds fans: A new Angry Bird.

The orange bird doesn’t have a name, but does have the ability to blow up several times his size. The bird, which is introduced in the video above, is part of Angry Birds Ham’O’Ween, a new collection of 30 Halloween-themed levels.

For those that have already downloaded Angry Birds Seasons but otherwise costs $.99. Click here for the iTunes and Android versions.

Source: http://mashable.com/2011/10/21/meet-the-newest-angry-bird/

What Makes A Great Logo

by JSB Morse

If you are a consumer, or a marketer, or a CEO of a company looking for branding, you should be interested in logos. Logos are the centerpiece of a company’s brand image and can tell you a lot about the company. The quality of a logo can tell the consumer how much their image (and customer opinion) means to that company. The effectiveness of a logo can help sell whatever product or service that the company offers. Also, the beauty of a logo is something that the company can be proud of and identify with.

Branding is the most important aspect of a company’s marketing strategy and should be heavily considered. Companies that took their branding lightly during their inception may suffer in the long run. This happens even if their service or product is great, because their logo is unprofessional, confusing, or offensive. Companies with bad logos may not be taken seriously or worse, they may be made a butt of a joke.
There are four principles that make for a great logo design. A great logo must:

• follow solid basic design principles
• be functional
• represent the company
• be unique

We will go over each of these principles in depth. Continue reading »

Branding Basics

Have you ever asked yourself why a competitor’s business gets more attention than yours? The answer just may have to do with the elements that go into how memorable the business is. And that has to do with branding.

But exactly what is branding, anyway? Think of branding as predefining what a company is all about in the minds of its clients. Good branding differentiates your products and services in a positive way that really sticks in the minds of potential customers.

The First Key Element of Branding; Create a Great Logo.

You have given a great deal of attention to your company name and believe it speaks to who you are and what you do. Great! Now you need to wrap a graphic image around that name to carve out a prime piece of real estate in your target customer’s mind. That is exactly what a great logo design can do.

Continue reading »