Get Up. Go Volunteer.

This campaign for volunteering shows that volunteering is a simple activity that anyone can do. The plain white shirt that the man is wearing is the sign that volunteering is an uncomplicated act. The designer also used a modified word cloud design to get the point across. And the word cloud tells us exactly what we can do. This advertisement succinctly gets the point across.

Source: the Ad Council http://www.adcouncil.org/

Travel Writing

The Affluent Traveler

I couldn’t resist purchasing this magazine upon seeing its title. I really wanted to know who the publishers envision as being affluent. Is the affluence the money the traveler has or the style of travel taken? It seems both things are applicable.

If you travel to these locations you will be treated as royalty, hence the financial affluence. And if you travel to these locations you are expecting a certain level of attention, hence the style.

What entertained me most is that each location listed extends an exclusive offer (discount) to the readers of The Affluent Traveler. If you are financially affluent, why do you need these offers?

View of a 1-page spread

View of a 2-page spread

Show and Tell 1 - More than Just a Recipe

Cook’s Illustrated

This magazine serves as my example of good food writing. The magazine takes a complete approach of educating the reader, not simply providing a recipe. In preparing their article, the writer/cook:

·         conducts research of the main ingredient

·         prepares multiple versions of their recipe

·         shares the results of the research with the reader

·         lets the reader know what went wrong with early versions of the recipe

Usually sidebars contain information such as

·         How taste testers rated varieties of an ingredient

·         The science behind a preparation method or ingredient

·         Preparation steps

In addition, as the title implies, illustrations are the norm in this periodical versus photographs.