Cooler Yet Warmer

Rhode Island's new brand, tagline and tourism image was recently released. The reviews have not been promising. 



Lukewarm(er) at best.

Watching my home state dance in the crosshairs is nothing new, dear readers. She's well versed at it. RI's failed list of monikers -- The Biggest Little State in the Union, The Beehive of Industry, Buddyville or The Creative Capital -- serve as proof she's been experiencing an identity crisis while walking that fine line between success & failure for decades.

What really concerns me is the echoing of complaints from "everyone" about "everything" about the project. Particularly from those who have no idea what working in a creative environment entails.

[SIDE NOTE: START]

The 4.5 million dollar budget wasn't simply for a "logo", y'all. That's an investment for the entire program. And, when you think of the type of money tourism is supposed to generate, it's a reasonable fee. 

Chalk it up to the cost of doing business. 

As for folks talking about others doing a "better" job for free as a contest are an even bigger concern. Classic oversimplification. Do you really want to devalue the creative process so much that you think a state's tourism message should be created by an amateur? Or as a contest? How will students who just spent all that money on their design education pay their loans and bills? With contest awards? 

Let's put this into a different context. 

Would you advocate for someone to do the state's taxes simply because they can use a calculator? Or, better yet, would you expect an accountant to do the state's taxes for free or as the result of a contest? 

Of course you wouldn't. And you know why you wouldn't? 

Because you project inherent value on what an accountant is and what he/she does. You simply don't apply that same level of value to an individual working in a creative industry.

[SIDE NOTE: END]

All the backlash comes down to faulty thinking, really. Assuming creative work is so "easy" and "should be free" is the crux of the issue. Creative work, like any other profession, has its own unique set of challenges and those challenges require education and experience to overcome. 

The fact is, most people simply can't relate to creative the same way they can to, say, a mechanic or a doctor. Would you trust someone to perform a successful surgery just because they're wearing scrubs and watch Grey's Anatomy?

[SIDE NOTE II: START]

My guess is the shortcomings with "Rhode Island: Cooler & Warmer" are a result of the creative teams involved being handcuffed by the client. The entire program smells like a decision made by committee or a "frankenstein job" of different brand ideas that were "liked" and pieced together. 

Contrary to popular belief, brands aren't about what people like. Save that elementary thinking for social media ego boosts. Brands are about finding a message that people will connect to with supporting graphics, images and text that, if done well, evoke reaction. 

Good brands are loved by many. 

But the best brands are loved by many...and hated by others. 

#polarize

[SIDE NOTE II: END]

Working in the industry, I try to temper my judgment on projects I'm not involved in. Or at least wait until the entire program is launched before doing so. Obviously there are serious problems with the "Cooler & Warmer" tag. Shit, it's a tagline for a dual temp cooler called Koolatron. Which also happens to be my favorite transformer, by the way. 

The bottom line: not everyone is a creative. And the overwhelming "I could do better" mentality is a bit of a joke. Everyone who can use photoshop thinks they're a great designer and everyone who writes think they can be a copywriter or name specialist. Just like everyone with a license thinks they're a good driver. Obviously that's not the case and the majority of them are wrong. 

Creative Capital, indeed.

Do my profession a favor: focus your ire elsewhere. The "I could do better" attitude does little to help Rhode Island find her identity. It also devalues the entire creative process along with pigeonholing our state in a perpetual identity crisis. Try being cooler about it. 

Or maybe even warmer.