branding Archives

POV: Your Hours Spent Scrolling on TikTok Finally Paid Off

There’s nothing more escapist than lying down on your couch after a long day and sifting through the infamous app that has had the majority of us entranced since the early days of the pandemic: TikTok. What was once merely a source of cheap entertainment during the darkest of times has now evolved into one […]

May 9 2022 by Hunter Ellis in Editorials

Gotta Mint ‘Em All: Are POAPs the Future of Brand Engagement?

Can you recall the early days of Pokémon GO, when crazed players logged thousands of steps to catch the rarest characters? The game brilliantly capitalized on FOMO and the shared human desire to collect things — and in doing so, fostered a diverse, devoted community that is still active today. Could POAPs be the next […]

Apr 13 2022 by Madeline Rosemurgy in Metawise

Second first impressions: Reflections on naming at Otherwise

We founded our studio in 1992 under the name Otherwise, which went against the tide of naming conventions at the time. Lifetime devotees of language and grammar — and unafraid of doing things differently — the name Otherwise revealed itself naturally, signaling not only two forces coming together (design as “other” and ideas as “wise”), […]

Nov 11 2021 by The Otherwise Team in Editorials

What’s in a tagline? Everything if you get it right.

While rooting around in the Otherwise flat files recently, we stumbled across a number of branding campaigns that we haven’t looked at, or thought about, for some time. And one of the things about this patinated work that jumps out right away is wow…we’ve written some wonderful taglines over the years. Here are just a […]

Sep 23 2021 by Nancy Lerner in Editorials

2008-9 Lycée Français de Chicago Artist-in-Residence Program: Lightyears ahead of #vanlife

As an unintended consequence of the pandemic, the role of the recreation vehicle has become central to the conversation about life in America, and values related to independent thinking, minimalism, adventure and bucking the status quo. But back in 2008, the prescience of an artist keenly observing our culture imagined how a vintage Airstream might […]

Jul 29 2021 by Nancy Lerner in Breaking the Grid