Author: fourfin

Hiring Alert: Art Director

Posted on December 4, 2017 by - Four Fin Update

Four Fin Creative is a boutique design and branding firm located in La Mesa, CA, and we’re looking for our Fourth Fin. Are you a humble and positive graphic design rockstar who loves your craft and thinks about brands all day? Maybe you’d love to run your own studio, but hate finding clients? Do you enjoy challenging yourself? Do you enjoy people? Do you enjoy tacos?

We’re looking for you.

As part of a small team, you should be a self-starter, comfortable wearing many hats, taking initiative and collaborating. Do what you love in a fun and casual environment with flexibility. At Four Fin, you’ll have the opportunity to make a direct impact on our growth as a firm, and on the growth of the brands we work with. This position offers leadership potential for the right self-starter who grows with us.

Job duties may include:

– Taking a project all the way from concept development to final execution of print and web designs
– Adhering to brand guidelines and brand consistency, while keeping the creative fresh
– Working with the Creative Director to conceptualize and design brand-experiences across platforms, from email marketing and social content, to printed collateral and trade-show booths
– Sourcing and directing outside vendors as needed, from photographers and printers, to illustration artists and copywriters
– Preparing artwork for final print production
– Writing brand guidelines and designing brand books or culture books
– Professional design execution of corporate communication pieces such as brochures, pitch-decks or sales sheets
– Mentoring and guiding other designers

If you are the Fin we’re looking for: 

– You have a minimum of 5 years of agency or similar experience
– You work in Adobe Creative Suite on a Mac environment
– You love nurturing a brand through all touch-points
– You always love to try something new and do not hesitate to dive in
– You explore other artistic disciplines because it lights you up
– You are a great communicator, quick to grasp new concepts and platforms
– You pride yourself on your ability to “get” your client’s vision
– You conceptualize in the big picture world / and execute meticulously on the details
– You have done your fair share of production work: cleaning up files, prepping files for printing and publishing, etc… and you don’t loathe it
– You are comfortable working with clients as well as under a Creative Director
– Collaboration is your jam. You love spinning rough ideas off of others and, in turn, you give feedback honestly and often

What could additionally set you apart?

– Video or photography chops
– WordPress experience
– Experience in copywriting
– Experience in assisting with brand strategy exercises
– Experience in environmental or packaging design
– Illustration and or hand lettering skills
– A medal in an extreme sports competition (kidding, not kidding)

About Four Fin Creative

Four Fin Creative is a small but fierce design and branding firm, located in up-and-coming La Mesa, where the parking is easy, and it’s (almost) always sunny. We work with a range of smart and ambitious companies, from start-ups to established corporations and organizations. Four Fin helps our clients understand and beautifully communicate their brands, product benefits, services and missions in a way that is efficient, beautiful and compelling. We focus on brand identity design, and how to carry that brand through a number of touch points and platforms.

At Four Fin, our tight-knit team values a sweet balance of getting shit done, celebrating successes, and supporting each other in the process. We offer health-care and generous paid vacation and sick leave, with additional non-paid leave on approval – because we want you to explore life, and keep growing as an individual, in and out of the office.

Looking for full time, but would consider temporary part-time, moving to full. Work should primarily take place at our La Mesa place of business with occasional remote work as life demands it.

To Apply

Send us an email at jobs@fourfincreative.com and tell us in the body of the email:
1) Why you are a good fit for this position
2) Why is this position a good fit for you
3) Your favorite brand and why

Please include a link to your online portfolio and attach your résumé as a PDF.

How Branding is like Surfing: Positioning 

Posted on November 22, 2017 by - Branding Insight

Out in the surf line-up, the most important thing you can do is paddle into a good position and keep adjusting to stay there. This is true of brands too. Companies extend a decent amount of energy getting into the sweet spot of their desired audience’s attention and needs. In surfing and in branding, there are a couple of ways to approach positioning that take this analogy a step further.

Hit it where it’s hot. 

When the waves are firing, there’s an obvious spot to sit to land a big one. It’s right next to everyone else. Sitting right next to nine other people will make it more difficult to catch a set wave, since only a few will win out during a three-wave set.

Now, you might decide that you can sit in that spot because you’re clearly a better surfer (or have a better product/offer/business) than those nine. If you are deciding this from a place of objectivity and not a place of ego, you might be right. And, if you decide to take that calculated risk, then go after those three precious set waves, or consumers in a crowded space. Go after them with confidence, and paddle hard.

Also, in this situation, staying connected to the oceans energy and reading the shifting swells will help you know where exactly amongst those nine you’ll need to be. Just as absorbing the energy of your consumers and reading the shifting trends and feedback will help you fine-tune your messaging. Always watching, always fine-tuning, always shifting.

Find a sweet spot.

Sometimes, if you look at the whole scene before you head out, you might be able to find a corner or reform that’s breaking a little further inside that no one noticed. They’re not perfect, they’re likely more varied, but the point is that you get a bunch, because no one else noticed them.

If you look at the whole scene before deciding where to position your brand, you might find this little pocket yourself. The B-list of waves, that doesn’t break out where the A-list breaks, but is perfectly comfortable riding small on the inside, and taking you with them.

If you’ve gotten this far, maybe you’re thinking, cool analogy. But, I’ll be honest, it’s not perfect.

Branding has an advantage surfers wish they had. 

When you are surfing, you are working with the forces of Mother Nature, and that sexy powerhouse will place those waves wherever she damn well chooses. You have to position yourself according to her rules. When you are positioning your brand, you can create waves where they weren’t before. The ‘waves’ in this analogy are followers, adopters, consumers. These waves have forces of their own, and can be drawn away from their normal spot if they are intrigued by your energy. In fact, it’s the often a great way to get them. Shine like a unique and unavoidable bacon from a calm and unsuspecting spot, way past the line up, and watch the wave patterns shift.

I wish I had that power in the ocean.

Do you know your brand’s position? Are you charging hard next to nine others in the line up, or are you beaconing greatness from the calm? I’d love to grab a coffee and chat it out with you.

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This post is one of a series of posts from Four Fin’s Founder and Creative Director, Jen Derks, on how branding is like surfing. Follow us on instagram for updates on our blog post releases, studio happenings and client work.  

Design Values and Client Partnerships

Posted on November 2, 2017 by - Branding Insight

I recently came across this article and thought it was worth a share as it’s incredibly relevant to some of our core values at Four Fin. I’m officially making it required reading for every new design hire. The article speaks to solo in-house designers at companies of non-designers, but I believe the lessons shared are universal. We approach our client-relationships with a partnership mentality, and we’re often our clients’ only designers. We’re batting on their team, in-house or not.

“Don’t be the smartest guy in the room”

At Four Fin, we believe that creativity and ideation are not the designers’ tasks alone. Everyone, whether they are the client or work for the agency, is valuable in the process of better understanding user experiences, seeing a challenge from a different perspective and bringing in varied expertise. Our Account Manager regularly contributes ideas to our work and our design staff has no issues bringing those ideas to life to test them against the others. Our clients know their users better than we do and that experience is invaluable. The point is, it’s not about us. The best idea on the table could have come from the client’s new intern, we just care that it’s the best idea related to the goals of the brand.

“Let good enough be good enough.”

This principle might seem to counter your perceptions of what a design firm believes. Don’t get me wrong, people come to us when good enough isn’t cutting it, and we value the power of iteration and nailing details. But there is a lesson here. Our clients’ success matters to us and it’s important to me as we grow that we retain a high level of respect for their goals. When a brand is in the early phases of development, we recognize when design perfection should not be the goal, and we comfortably adjust our own standards (yes, really) in order to achieve what is needed for phase 1 (e.g., get that simple landing page up, or fill the feed with relevant stock images until photoshoots can be scheduled). If we maintain this thinking and strategy in supporting our clients through phase 1, we then have more success in helping them grow and get to phase 3. This is when we grab the coffee and pump the Sonos – with design perfection as the goal.

Does your company lack an in-house designer? Is it possible we could fill in, with the same mindset as a designer on staff, but with more resources and flexibility? Let’s find a time to talk it over.

Making Waves: Drew Auker

Posted on October 31, 2017 by - Making Waves

Drew Auker

The Auker Group

 

 

 

 

 

 

  1. So, you’ve been consistently named “Top 1% of all REALTORs in San Diego County.” What has led to this distinction?

I did what some really brilliant mentors told me to do. Fast forward three years of doing that and having my focus on people and not selling houses… and low and behold, I sold a ton of houses.

  1. What’s the coolest home feature you’ve seen?

 I’m still a sucker for a master bath shower with a panoramic view and a door to the outdoors.

  1. What’s your favorite secret spot in San Diego?

Red House Pizza in University Heights. (Although I don’t know how much of a secret it is… they’re always packed!)

 

Making Waves: San Diego Letters

Posted on September 19, 2017 by - Making Waves

 

Roxie Prima & Phoebe Cornog

CoFounders, San Diego Letters

 

 

 

 

 

 

  1. When did you team up as SD Letters, and how many murals have you painted together?

We teamed up in August 2015 and started San Diego Letters as a monthly Meetup group. After collaborating on planning events, branding the club, and promotion, we realized what a good team we made. After doing a couple freelance jobs together for fun, we realized that we had a passion for painting murals. We were both frustrated and unfulfilled with our full-time jobs so we decided to quit our jobs and turn San Diego Letters into a business in January 2016. We’ve been loving entrepreneur life and have big plans to continue to grow the business. Since we turned it into a business we’ve painted 42 murals and are excited to do our first international mural in Tasmania in a couple weeks!

 

 

  1. What’s your favorite thing about the gig?

Our favorite part about working for ourselves is the freedom to travel. We love teaching workshops, painting murals, and meeting up with our friends that we’ve had on our podcast (Drunk on Lettering) in every city we go to.

 

  1. Do you actually get drunk when recording the “drunk on lettering” podcast?

Yes, we actually get drunk for our podcast and most of our guests do too. The only time we don’t get drunk is when we have to record at 9am with a paper lettering artist in Mumbai!

 

Check out more about what Phoebe and Roxie are doing at  sandiegoletters.com and see more of their work on their Instagram account @sandiegoletters  and their podcast @drunkonlettering

Are Business Cards Relevant Anymore?

Posted on August 16, 2017 by - Branding Insight

I was working with a client recently who said, “Yeah, let’s design some cool business cards too to go with our new brand. We won’t need many per person. No one will really use them anyway, it’s more for them to be excited about having a business card with their name on it.”

Hm… It reminded me of another recent occurrence I had related to this topic. The last time I was at a networking event, I was talking with another business owner who “didn’t have any cards” on him. “You can look us up,” he said.

It got me thinking about what value business cards have. Maybe they aren’t really needed? After pausing to consider change (always a good practice), I can’t get behind it this time. The concept that business cards are not needed doesn’t sit well with my branding and marketing mind. Here are my 5 reasons that I believe you still need business cards.

1. It’s a physical reminder to follow up

At that same networking event I mentioned before, I gathered about 8 or so business cards from people I had met. I came back to my office the next day, jumping right into client work and running the office, setting my stack of business cards next to my computer. Three days later, I spent 20 minutes or so following up with the people I met that day, checking out their websites if I wanted to learn more about them. The guy who didn’t have one, hmmm… what was his company’s name? Couldn’t remember.

We’ve all had that moment when we find a business card at the bottom of our purse too, and we remember that we were going to reach out. We all need a reminder here and there of our good intentions.

2. They will help jog our clouded memories

This is an obvious one, but still valid. “You know, I met a woman, I think her name was Maya. She could really help us out with this issue we’re discussing. What was her business name again? Wait, I think I have her card somewhere…”

3. It’s the first touch point of a consistent brand experience

This one speaks the truest to my heart and what we strive for here at Four Fin. Consistent brand experiences. Give the person you are talking to a peek at your brand in that initial conversation, with your business card. Is your company established and professional? Scrappy with a sense of humor? Super girly and glamorous? The design of your card can help set that tone without having to embody that persona in your talking points and personality (sometimes you just might not feel humorous, or glamorous).

4. You will empower your team to be brand advocates

Help your team get your business out there by equipping them with little leave-behinds. They might only give a handful out, but that’s a handful of people that might not have heard about you before: a handful of people that are getting the first taste of their own consistent brand experience with your company.

Your team members should all be champions of your brand. If they are not, it might be that you don’t have a brand they are proud of – if that’s the case, we might be able to help. However, If they are already advocates, then help them help the business by equipping them with something to leave behind when they talk about how much they love their jobs. 😉

5. They have the potential to be seen by others aside from the person you gave it to

The person you hand your card to might be a lower level sales person or employee of a small business, who will take your card back to their boss, or the business owner.  If this happens, they will not only be passing on your contact info. If your cards are professionally designed with your brand in mind, they will also be passing on your brand.

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How does your business card stack up? Does it portray your brand well? Maybe there’s a way to reimagine it, satisfying the reasons above, but also rethinking the status quo, and delivering something unexpected like these amazing designs. We’d love to brainstorm on it with you.

Making Waves: Sarah Hernholm

Posted on August 15, 2017 by - Making Waves

SARAH HERNHOLM

President/Founder, WIT- Whatever it Takes

 

 

 

 

 

 

  1. So your company teaches teens how to be entrepreneurs.Why teens? 

Because teens make great entrepreneurs – they are rebellious, don’t like to be told what to do, think they know more than most adults (which they do!), and want to make a difference in the world. And I just LOVE working with teens. They bring an energy and authenticity to the field of entrepreneurship that I don’t often see with adults. Plus, our teens aren’t getting access to “real world” business experience in school and I think if we want to set the next generation up to be successful in the “real world”, we’ve got to give them the tools needed to thrive.   

At WIT we know that not every teen will go off and launch their own business, but every teen can benefit from developing an entrepreneurial mindset.  

 

  1. What is your favorite secret spot in San Diego? 

Wait… if I tell you it won’t be a secret anymore! OK, I’ll reveal a couple favorites … I love the bridges in the city … you can enjoy them on alltrails.com. I’ve gotta favorite bridge, but I’m keeping that a secret :)  

 

  1. If you had endless time and money – what could you see yourself getting super into? 

Happy to say that I’d just be doing more of the same. I’m incredibly passionate about engaging teens in finding solutions to the challenges facing our communities and world. When teens are engaged their confidence and sense of self worth increase…and that’s a win-win for everyone! I’d also want to reform the education system … I’m trying to do that now, but the Teachers Union is heavily funded and they fund a lot of political campaigns …but if I had endless pockets of money, hmmmmmmmm…… 

 

Check out more about what Sarah is doing at  sarahhernholm.com and learn more about her WIT work at www.doingwit.org and www.smartcitysaturday.com  

 

What does it mean to be creative?

Posted on August 8, 2017 by - Branding Insight

We believe, as Creative Mornings does, that everyone is creative. Our Account Manager, Jess, is often pulled in on branding or naming discussions, and weighs in on our design work with doodles and feedback. Our clients have come to us, at the beginning stage, or during the process, with new ideas and inspiration for the project that elevates the end result. Our Creative Director encourages feedback on rough sketches, sharing new ideas un-inhibited by ego, volleying projects back and forth and other traits of free flowing collaboration.

One of our Graphic Designers, Kendall, recently brought a great new phrase to us by way of her latest experiment with improv. That phrase being “yes, and.” It’s perfect. While some people might be more artistically minded than others, we believe that creativity can be harnessed and encouraged. We believe that creativity is more about feeding on all that’s around you, less about natural genius. It’s why people are often “inspired by” something.

Along this line of thought, follows the idea that creativity comes from feeling uninhibited, free to express and curious about what will happen in someone else’s creative process when we throw our ideas out there. It’s the guts to share… because once you do, and more ideas are on the table, there starts to be patterns, highlights, new tangents that arise, and clear winners. The creative trajectory of a project redirects to a path that was never possible when only the safest ideas are brought forward.

All of that said, creativity does need to be guided when you are harnessing it to create a brand or ad campaign. Without guidelines, it can run wild and get raucously off track from where you started. It can form a life of its own that might be super fun or edgy (this is a lovely zone for a fine artist, btw). But it might not solve the original brief. It can also be very subjective and hard to agree on. That is why we start all of our projects with strategy. We need to understand the goals of our creative efforts so we can consistently monitor and reign in all the uninhibited and wild ideas into something that solves the challenge, delights the intended audience and represents the brand well.

So, if you’ve always thought, “I’m not the creative type,” ask yourself the last time you freely shared an idea you were sitting on, or the last time you truly listened to someone else’s idea, not to evaluate their “creativity,” but to really soak into the idea they were sharing. Alternatively, if you think “I’m more creative than other people,” ask yourself, how many of your “great” ideas were grown from the seed of someone else’s planting.

We believe all brands should be creative…it’s one of our #wordstobrandby and by that, we mean, all brands should be given the chance to be shared and collaborated on. All brands should be harnessed from a deep well of free-flowing thought, a well that is devoid of ego and full of unsuspecting characters and new, unforeseen paths.

Is your brand ready for some creativity? Great. We have ideas. We’d also love to hear yours.

Why We love La Mesa

Posted on July 18, 2017 by - Community, Making Waves

We work with companies throughout San Diego, but have decided on La Mesa as our headquarters for Four Fin. Why? Because, we believe in real connections, genuine people, easy parking and sunshine. It’s a straight shot on the 94 to Downtown San Diego, and quick to hop on the 8 or 125 as well. We like the creative vibe of our space, the neighboring businesses and the growing culinary scene out our front door. La Mesa is turning a corner in it’s history, to appeal to younger crowds with cool new establishments like Public Square, Coin Haus, Farmers Table, Boulevard Noodles and Sheldon’s Service Station.

Those last two are owned in part by mover and shaker, Aaron Dean, who is infusing life into the business community with his involvement with the La Mesa Village Association and his energy into a number of new local hotspots.

 

AARON DEAN

La Mesa Business Owner

 

 

 

 

 

  1. So, we’ve seen you pouring serious heart into La Mesa (we’re amped). Why this part of San Diego?  

La Mesa has always been a part of my family. I went to Fuerte Elementary decades ago. My father medical practice has been at Grossmont for over 38 years and my Grandparents were active in the community since 1959. For me I see huge potential for growth and love the feeling of being part of this community.

  1. What was the last thing you got really excited about? 

Well I was really excited and honored to be on the cover of Day & Night in last weeks Union Tribune. It was a great article not just about me but the happenings in La Mesa. It felt good to be able to talk about so many of the businesses and events happening in La Mesa.

  1. If you could only drink one beverage for the rest of your life, what would it be?

Sheldons Coffee of course…however in a few months my answer would change to Depot Springs Beer!

 

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For more information on Aaron, and his improvements to La Mesa, you can read the latest two union tribune articles he was featured in:

La Mesa: the next culinary hotspot – The San Diego Union-Tribune

Aaron Dean has appetite for big plans in La Mesa

Thank you Aaron for all you do to foster community and encourage the growth of this town we love. See you at Sheldon’s!

Doing things your way

Posted on March 2, 2017 by - Branding Insight

Authenticity is at the root of the most successful brands. That’s why part of our branding process is a deep dive into your soul as a business owner. What are your values? Why do you do it all? Why is your company important to your customers?

It’s a word that gets thrown out a lot, but what is authenticity? We believe it means ignoring what others are doing (to an extent) and focusing on improving your offerings and relationships with customers in a way that makes sense to your business. We believe it means being in the long game. We believe it means showing your human side.

Mailchimp recently created a whole campaign around the concept of doing things your way. For them, that was to have a little fun with their name.

Why is this campaign successful? Beyond the insane good creative direction and execution, it’s successful because it shows businesses how to have fun with their brand. It also shows us how to be human. Mailchimp is a HUGE organization, that speaks to you like a friend. We are all people in the end. Whether a CEO or intern, we’re driven by emotion. I want to like who I’m partnering with, or buying services from, or investing in. And I can’t like them, if I don’t know them.

What does “authentic” look like to your business? Is there a possibility you could open up a bit more in your brand? Maybe you can dig a little deeper and share your companies values. Let your customers get to know your company more, and thus like you more. Baffled on how to start? We can help.