Tom Ajello™

Prize pools on sweepstakes are big draws for consumers. The bigger the prize the greater the draw. So when defining your Estimated Retail Value (or ERV) for each prize keep in mind there are other costs associated with those prizes, one of which is, in the US, anything with an ERV over $600 will require a 1099 to be issued to the winner. This means more work to administer the sweeps and more money to mail those forms. Making sure you factor those costs into your total budget will lessen any surprises later on. #yesterlearnings #sweepstakes #promotions #design

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NEW ESSAY: The Sound of Software We're best known for our rich visuals at !Boring, but a surprising number of people tell me it’s the sound design that makes it for them. In most digital mediums like video games and film, sound is half the experience. And yet in software, designers mostly ignore it. I’ve come to appreciate that the reason sound is so maligned is not because sound doesn’t belong in daily software or is inherently bad. It’s just badly designed. In this essay, Composer & Sound Designer Thomas Williams and I dig deep into sound design to reveal how we use sound to create more soulful software and lay out the steps for others to get started. You'll want to throw the headphones on for this one… https://lnkd.in/gyDqrt7t

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🚨 Researchers, strategists, designers any anyone interested in using Open.Ai to work smarter - this 30 min webinar is going to be worth it 🚨 Join Hannah Gutkauf and Ravi Popat for a discussion and a demo that will leave you with: 1. inspiration on the many ways that GPT's can supercharge the design process. 2. access to an experimental tool that crunches what could be days of desk research into hours ✨🌀 There's a lot of hyperbole when it comes to the impact of GPTs, but we'll cut through the hype and share how we've experimented in tangible and impactful ways. Link to signup in the comments 🚀🤖 See you there!

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Discover how to design and develop #immersiveExperiences in #visionOS with Pasquale Vittoriosi and me! Explore different immersion styles and how to ensure user control and safety. 🪐 #XR #SpatialComputing #AppDevelopment

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One of the best articles to come out recently on brand strategy. Worth the time. When you are done listening to the Unorthodox Podcast by Rosie Lee Group, take a moment to read this one. #innovation #brand #creativity #bobdylan

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🌟 Exciting News from The Symbol Group! 🌟 We’re thrilled to announce our upcoming symposium, a melting pot for creative minds and forward-thinkers in the world of design, educators, researchers and communication. This is more than just an event—it's a movement! 🔗 Join us as we delve into the future of design, with an emphasis on how symbols shape our daily lives and our understanding of the world. Whether you’re a designer, educator, strategist, or simply someone who's passionate about the impact of visual communication, we want you to be part of this transformative experience. 🗣️ Why attend? Here’s why: Engage with a diverse community of thought leaders and innovators. Explore the evolving role of symbols in digital and physical realms. Share your voice and ideas in discussions that could define the next wave of communication strategies. 🌍 We're dedicated to fostering a truly international dialogue, because understanding symbols is universal, transcending borders and cultures. Let’s come together to craft the future of our visual language. 💬 We invite YOU to be an integral part of this journey. What symbols have captured your imagination recently? How do you see them evolving in the next decade? 👉 Reserve your spot now! symbol-24.org Join: thesymbolgroup (thank you to those that have already joined us) Let’s make waves. Let’s redefine design. Together. #SymbolSymposium #DesignTheFuture #VisualCommunication

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Our June issue of BOLT! explores the intricacies of developing packaging for multiple entertainment brands under a single overarching brand, from establishing visual hierarchy to the myriad of benefits of leveraging a unified approach to package design. If you have thoughts on this topic, please chime in. I'd love to hear from you! https://bit.ly/3VuP4fp

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Jason Allen won $300 and 1st place at a fair for his AI-generated image Théâtre D’opéra Spatial. The larger outcome is the resulting conversation. Is AI art. I think we're concerned about answering the wrong question. Opposition to the premise that Artificial Intelligence is capable of creating art supposes a simplistic and singular truth that art is completely bound to the experience, message, and meaning an artist directly and originally intends. This is an inaccuracy. Art evokes an experience, message, and meaning as received and perceived by a spectator - whatever that might be. The intention of art is not the sole catalyst for the appreciation or worth of it. Viewed from this lens... The source of art does not determine whether or not the outcome is art. The questions really hover around toolsets + artistry and the changing definitions and categorizations of same. And there's another big question - ownership. Matthew S. Schwartz tells us a story and gives us some more to think and talk about. #aiart #artisticexpression #aidesign #digitalart #AIpoet #mousetomousepad

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Looking forward to sharing my thoughts on emerging issues with AI and privacy!

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Designers know that constraints often make interesting opportunities possible. We often want feedback on something quickly to unblock a decision, or progress a design. To me, that’s the intent of a practice like Continuous Discovery - bringing feedback closer to teams so it can help them maintain informed momentum. In this post, we introduce our new service, Fast Feedback that applies some simple constraints to make it possible to deliver feedback on 4 things, from 4 people, in 4 days. Delivered by insightful, pragmatic design researchers. https://lnkd.in/gCv8cHzY

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Have you listened to The Design Imposter Podcast? Monique and I have some remarkable guests in the coming weeks and the conversations are 🔥 Actually, our pre-recording vibe checks have been 🔥🔥🔥 We really need to start recording the vibe checks for b-roll. ---- Here's one of my favorite episodes which discusses the benefits of working in a corporate environment over freelancing and entrepreneurship. https://lnkd.in/eYKW3sTA

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I had a great time presenting on AI & Privacy, as well as our role with this issue as designers at the Brooklyn Product Design meetup the other night. This issue is evolving so quickly, I find new examples cropping up almost daily. Given that, I've updated my recent piece on the topic for UX Collective. Friend link follows! #ux #design #privacy #privacybydesign #AI #LLMs

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Do you really need a PDF? PDFs have their place—legal requirements, large reports, brochures and whitepapers. And while they can be made accessible PDFs, they are a bit of a pain since any update requires you to re-do all the accessible edits from scratch. But if you have access to the HTML code of the site, then you have a better option. An accessible HTML page can be read by Screenreaders, navigated by keyboard, AND it will scale and be readable on a mobile device. Best of all is if the user truly needs a hard copy, a proper print stylesheet will allow them to print out or export the page as a nicely formatted PDF. #yesterlearnings #PDF #accessibility #a11y #html #webdevelopment #tips

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If you are new to AI, let me introduce you to the notion of the "Uncanny Valley". It is when AI is too clever for its own good tries to create a realistic image of a human but creates something disturbing instead. This article is a great introduction to this topic. https://lnkd.in/gHRNKihW #Technology #AI #UserExperience #CloudComputing #BigData #ProductManagement #AIEmotions #Emotions #Mindfulness #Management #innovation UEGroup

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A few branding hacks below from Nalla

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The UXPA Boston conference felt really energizing this year. It was so great to see multiple presentations around accessible design and research. It was also wonderful seeing so many familiar faces. Thanks to everyone who attended our talk on building an accessibility team. You can find the slides here: https://lnkd.in/gcTd9wiS #UXPABOS #UXPABOS24

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A takeaway from Adobe's AI/Terms of Service controversy: Creatives are, understandably so, on high alert when it comes to product/software changes around AI. Not only to protect our original work and IP but guarding the privacy of our clients and upholding NDA's. Many creatives I know have questions about AI, are vigilant about vetting any changes, and significant news spreads like wildfire. Although many of us use AI tools in our day-to-day or are overall optimistic (myself included), there is still a lot of unease and uncertainty in the community. Communicating changes clearly, in plain English (we're not lawyers), and making clear what it is and is not when making these updates is critical. #ai #creativeleadership

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Let’s bring some nutrition into cards. That’s something OPC (Organic Playing Cards) probably thought of themselves when they started to create playing cards with various fruit and vegetable themes. Together their team and I refined OPC’s positioning allowing the brand to double down on the things it is already known for. In a collaborative effort, we discussed ways to redefine OPC during multiple strategy sessions. The goal was to clarify OPC’s voice and approach to ideate, produce, and sell products as a community-first brand. Eager to grow and expand awareness the following are some learnings we discovered. Complete Case Study: https://lnkd.in/ewCPvx3T —- Client: Organic Playing Cards Strategy: Max Jung

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👇 Possible the most exciting and on point article I have read all year. The thing that keeps OG brands awake at night - us included - is the fear of the disruptor and the ‘wolf that attacks you in the dark’ 🐺 We spend a significant amount of time working with, and training client brands on how to ride waves of disruption - we call it #FutureMomentoDesign - as while we can't predict black swan events, we can prepare a brand not to be overwhelmed when they arrive by running ‘disruption war games’, as they should be known. What this article covers so well is how the likes of Perplexity also play these games, but with live ammo and as the ‘wolf not the lamb’ #innovation #theinnovatorsdilemma #blackswanevents #disruption

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