As the client service joke goes… “Speed, quality, price… Pick 2.” While explaining limitations may have worked in the distant past, online environments, with long established leaders like Amazon and Facebook, have raised the bar exponentially. Users now demand perfection and expect to get it. 

If users don’t see what they need within seconds of navigating to a website, they’ll head back to the search engine. If they can’t easily complete the purchase process, it could lead to an abandoned shopping cart. 

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Honestly, it’s up for debate. But WOW Tech Group’s record breaking billboard ad ‘Scream your own name’ for their women’s sex toys is adding more fuel to the fire on the side that says OOH (no pun intended) Advertising is still alive and well.

We have so much to unpack to explain why this is happening. So, here’s a condensed version:

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Instagram isn’t just about snapping cute selfies anymore! Small businesses and large companies alike are turning to social media as a prime form of advertisement, and Instagram is rolling out a plethora of new marketing features that will make 2019 your brand’s most social year yet. At Oblique, we love Instagram as a platform for sharing our work and the things we find cool. Here are some tips for how to up your Instagram game.

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We need to talk.

No, we’re not breaking up with you. We’re calling you to action, actually. We need to talk about mental health.

May was Mental Health Awareness month. A topic once taboo and brushed aside as mere histrionics has now entered public discourse.

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Your customers spend a lot of time on their phones and 89% of that time is spent using mobile apps. They are constantly on some app or other, which is why so many businesses are creating their own mobile apps to reach their customers. 

However, it’s not an easy feat. Making a good mobile app takes up a lot of time, money, and resources. Your app needs to be easy to use, efficient, and it has to look good. This is a challenging balance to strike. You need to design an app that is user friendly and visually appealing if you want your customers to actually use it. To help you out, we’ve put together a few tips for creating a successful mobile app. 

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Now we’re a branding and graphic design agency, but let’s talk about architecture for a minute. Sometimes, you can look at a building and know exactly what purpose it serves. The design clearly matches the type of business that will be housed inside, either through branding or the general form or aesthetic. You may have to stretch your brain to make the connection, but at least somewhere a connection can be found. Then there are other buildings that seem to have been dropped into place by aliens, and while the building could be interesting to look at or a structural masterpiece, there is no way to connect its form to its function. 

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Have you ever looked at a website and felt as if your eyes were going to bleed if you had to read anymore? Did it remind you of every lecture you were forced to sit through in college? Do you want your viewers to be so sore from laughing that they have to put their phones down? Stick close, friends, because Oblique has the tips you need! 

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You don’t hear Red, White and Blue and think, “Ah yes, France.” That’s a fact. You automatically think of the United States. Everyone thinks of the United States. Red, White and Blue has been our color palette since the American flag first came onto the scene. However, our America is miles different from the America of the 1770s.  

Despite current efforts to flatten the heterogeneity of our nation, our diversity shines through. We’re in an era where multiculturalism is celebrated and, more importantly, needed. So, why have presidential candidates of yore always stuck to using only Red, White, and Blue in their campaign like we need help remembering what our flag looks like?  

Maybe a simple answer is: We weren’t ready for it. Please consult their brand specialists because that’s not our department.  

Today, we have the most diverse batch of presidential candidates we’ve ever had. Female Democratic candidates are shaking things up: the political landscape, and yes, you guessed it, the political color palette. 

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When businesses first started using the web to connect with customers, they didn’t have to create beautiful web pages. They didn’t need to cater to mobile devices. If loading a website led to the sound of your dial-up ringing for a few minutes, customers were willing to wait. 

But times have changed and our internet speeds have gotten faster. The days of walls of Comic Sans text and multi-colored rainbows tabs are long gone. Now, having a visually appealing website that your customers navigate seamlessly can be the difference between them choosing you over a competitor. 

Your customers know what a great online experience is and if you’re not providing that, it’s time to make some changes. If you’re struggling to improve your website’s user experience, we’ve made a list of a few things you should consider when undergoing an overhaul. 

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Look, we’re not telling you how to think…but we’re gonna tell you how to think.  

 Okay so, we’ve all been told to ‘think outside the box’ before. In some way or another, Mom, Dad, your teachers, your clients, even your design team has told you to come up with a solution to a problem that nobody has thought of yet. So, how are we supposed to do that?  

 Two words folks: Design. Thinking.  

Yes we can hear you saying, “Okaaaay, Oblique Design, what does that even mean?”  

 Obviously, we’re here to tell you!  

 (Bear with us for a sec, this is about to get real cut and dry) 

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