You will need to write a new creative brief for this particular project and post it to your blog.
Start by finalizing the stuffed animal company’s name. This will become your client.
Then determine a specific target market for your stuffed animal, then will be your audience. You will need to define a persona or two for your audience and create a persona board and post it to your blog. There are software apps (xtensio.com) available to help marketing create hypothetical audience personas but you can do it on your own. Persona boards typically include a name and photo of your persona, their age, location of residence, occupation, and even personality archetypes. They can also include information about likes, dislikes, knowledge, interests, goals, and goals related to particular benefits of a product or service. It would also be helpful for you as an illustrator to include favorite colors, typefaces, clothing types, even cherished possessions, of your hypothetical persona.
Most persona boards also include a hypothetical scenario, to explore how your persona might interact with your product. All of this information will help you and a designer create an appropriate message for the ad, and an idea or concept for your illustration.
Here is an example of a persona/scenario board for a web site user.
This leads to the objective of this illustration project. The advertisement is to be benefit-oriented. That means that the illustration needs to introduce and/or portray the benefit of owning your stuffed animal.
Next, you will need to research and find an actual magazine that would be beneficial to run an ad in for your client, then download their Media Kit from the magazine’s ad site, which will have specs for size and resolution requirements. Post the magazine production specs for on your blog.
Here is an example of the advertising spec sheet from the Media Kit for a local magazine called Utah Style & Design.
The next step in creating your illustration is to brainstorm several ideas and concepts for your illustration. Create a word list and/or mind map, as well as an image board, like you did when creating your Bear and Bunny stuffed animals, to jump start and synergize your creative thinking.
As ideas pop into your heads, quickly get them down on paper as quick sketches and doodles.
Choose three that seem to have the most creative possibilities and develop them into strong concept thumbnails.
Let’s review, your initial illustration project preparation and development for this illustration should include the following:
• Creative Brief (Sender / Message / Audience)
• Persona / Scenario
• Magazine Spec Sheet
• Word List / Mind Map
• Image Board
• Three Concept Thumbnails
Post these on your blog Tuesday, January 30th.
The remaining schedule for this project is as follows:
A tight Illustration Rough for critique is due on your blog Thursday, February 1st.
A tight Illustration Comp for critique is due on your blog Tuesday, February 6th.
A finished Illustration for critique is due on your blog Thursday, February 8th.
The Final Illustration is due on your blog Tuesday, February 13th.
The Final Illustration due date has been extended…
This is intended to give you time to make changes and tweaks based upon our critique on the 13th. A printed version of the updated final is due posted in the crit wall along a digital version on your blog, on Thursday, February 15th.
