Occupy-NorthPole.com is now live and fighting the good fight against cookie inequality! Learn more about the movement on their site and then check ‘em out on Facebook and stay up to date about all the news by following the movement on Twitter:

@ChandlerWobble: Head spokes-elf for the ONP movement.

@Occupy_NP: The official twitter account of the ONP movement.

@Red_NoseRudolph: Santa’s 9th reindeer and proud member of the Reindeer Union for over 72 years.

@Sam_theSnowman: Lead reporter covering the movement for the North Pole News Network.

Read Full Post

On March 18th, at the esteemed National Conference of the American Copy Editors Society the Associated Press made a bombshell announcement that quickly reverberated through new and old media alike: E-mail was officially losing its hyphen, effective 3 a.m. EDT Saturday, March 19.

It was the hyphen drop heard round the world. News outlets reported a collective sigh of relief from English majors who felt not just absolved of their sins of de-hyphenation, but a sense of hope for a future where the word Internet need not be capitalized. It was, for some of us, a big day.

Read Full Post

When Studiobanks first landed the Bojangles’ account, we knew one element of the digital platform would test our problem-solving skills: the menu. If you’re from the South, you know Bojangles’ is famous for its chicken and biscuits. All told the menu includes over 30 different entrees, 10 types of side items, 12 drink choices and countless meal, dinner, box and combo combinations. It’s a lot to choose from and even more to content manage.

It wasn’t the number of menu items or even organizing them into categories—we’ve done that before—that proved to be challenging. No, it was the nutritional values (of all things) that would become our nemesis. The nutritional values needed to display accurately for all menu items, including all possible meal, dinner, box and combo combinations. To up the ante even further, it’s common for Bojangles’ to tweak its recipes, thereby changing the nutritional values on a fairly regular basis. The digital platform would require a database and content management strategy that would allow for an easy, scalable approach to the way nutritional values are recorded. Challenge accepted!

Read Full Post

Studiobanks recently launched a trio of integrated microsites for Allen Tate Company’s homeownership services, insurance and mortgage divisions. These online destinations provide customers with detailed, interactive content applicable to their unique needs.

Home Services connects homeowners with quality, pre-screened home service providers – from simple home repairs to major renovations. Customers can search service providers by their needs and location.

Insurance provides comprehensive information about the company’s full-service insurance coverage options. Instant chat and rate quote features quickly provide customers with personalized information.

Mortgage is a valuable resource guide for consumers looking to purchase or refinance a home. Features include mortgage calculators, online applications, an application checklist, a terms glossary and easy access to Allen Tate mortgage consultants who serve as mentors throughout the mortgage process.

Read Full Post

Bojangles' boasts a tremendous community of loyal, passionate fans, our team included. So we were thrilled to celebrate the recent launch of its new digital brand platform designed to bring the quick-service restaurant chain's distinctive personality to life online and seamlessly deliver the engaging fan experience Bojangles' customers expect. The platform includes a new consumer website, a microsite for news and a mobile site for smartphone and tablet users.

We partnered with our friends at BooneOakley, Bojangles' advertising agency, to create a cohesive brand experience that matches the award-winning "It's Bo Time!" campaign. The new websites are highly-functional and engaging, allowing visitors to browse an intuitive food and beverage menu, interact with promotions and quickly find nearby restaurants.

Read Full Post

In the spirit of giving, earlier this fall we donated our services to create a new website for Banks’ family church, Central Steele Creek Presbyterian. The church, founded in 1793, has a rich history of serving its community through missions, worship and meaningful year-round programs.

We provided the ministry with a useful online tool to enhance and grow its connectivity with existing and new church members. The website features a look into the church's history, a calendar of events, volunteer opportunities and much more. We hope it supports Central Steele Creek's mission to continue making a difference!

Read Full Post

Of the many pangs of being a web developer, one that rises to the tip-top in terms of pain-in-the-assness is backwards compatibility. Whether it means discarding cool features, scaling back designs or even creating a separate site altogether, the steps we take to ensure backwards compatibility for browsers and email clients not only hinder our creative potential, but also costs considerable amounts of time and, therefore, money.

In their latest victory over progression, Microsoft have declared war on advancements in email design. FixOutlook.org has taken a stand and is encouraging people like me and you to let Microsoft know that we're mad as hell and we're not going to take it anymore. From their site:

Microsoft have just confirmed they plan on using the crippled Word rendering engine to display HTML emails in Outlook 2010.

This means for the next 5 years your email designs will need tables for layout, have no support for CSS like float and position and no background images. Not to mention the long list of bugs and quirks that break the simplest of layouts.

Outlook 2010 is still in beta and Microsoft have confirmed they want to hear your feedback on this decision. It's time for the email marketing and design community to rally together and encourage Microsoft to embrace web standards before it's too late.

They have launched an aggressive Twitter Campaign and an impressive site to go along with it. Join the cause, fight the power, Viva La Resistance!

Read Full Post

Campaign Monitor, an online email service provider that serves as the backbone of our client newsletter system, has just featured our AAF Charlotte newsletter design in their design gallery. While it’s more likely that they are more impressed with Wray Ward's Sunbrella ad, they still had some nice things to say about the newsletter:

Read Full Post