Travel Guidebook Redesign Case Study, part 2

Original book cover design

In 2004, I was given the task to do a complete redesign of the famous Sanborn's Travelog guidebooks. In my previous article, I discussed the projects problem areas and my proposed solutions. I had originally intended this topic to be 2 articles long, but as I wrote the text below I realized that there was no way I could do that and keep this article from being overwhelmingly long. So I have chosen to write about the cover redesign process in this article, and I will write about the books’ structure and page layout in my next article.

The original 6 Sanborn's Travelog covers had the same unattractive color combination; Orange, yellow & brown. Each book also featured a map of Mexico on the front cover with the only difference being a pink highlighted area that would indicate which region of Mexico each particular book would target. At a quick glance, all 6 books looked exactly alike.

I will use the first guidebook, Mexico’s Northeastern Routes, as an example of how I tackled the book cover redesign.

My front cover redesign

I proposed to the Sanborn’s president and managers that we should use a photo of Monterrey, NL, on the cover, since it is Mexico’s 3^rd largest city, and 2 of the 3 routes entering Mexico in this book pass through it. This image would feature a white border and drop shadow to give the look of an actual photograph. I did this to portray the feeling of collecting memories. After pouring over dozens of images, a nighttime scene was chosen. Since the region this book targets has modern, colonial and archeological tourist attractions, I choose an image of a woven zarape, for the background, to represent the multi-cultural and historical beauty travelers would come across. Where the previous cover design had a bold san serf font for the title, I chose to go with a thinner, more flowing type style. All images, logo and title were executed using Photoshop. All other elements were later added in using Illustrator, to secure clean, crisp line rendering.

Since Sanborn's publishes their own books, it was essential that their logo stand out in the front cover to maximize their branding efforts.

To help readability of the covers' spine, I used the zarape image on the top edge, but flooded the rest with a dark blue color (used in the front cover) to allow the text to stand out.

My back cover redesign

I moved the large map on the front of the original cover designs to the back cover and made it much smaller. The decision to keep the map was as much for the agents who sell the books as it was for the customers. With this simple map, everyone would be able to easily tell which route each specific book was intended for. The back cover would also don a small photo of a Veracruz folkloric dancer that would help affirm the region the book targets. The background was kept to a simple, smooth blue-to-white gradation with the zarape image appearing on the outer edge. The last graphic element added was the books bar code. Not pleased with placing a standard barcode on my cover design, I chose to convert it into the bottom portion of a zarape. This image would be used on all books and would include Sanborn’s stylized sombrero and the number of years the company had been in business, to be updated with every reprint. Last but not least, I included a text summary of the features and benefits the book offers, as a “personal guide”.

The second book I redesigned, Northwestern Routes, showcased the Chepe train that runs along the famous Copper Canyon (it is actually 4 times larger than the Grand Canyon in Arizona). Although the canyon is quite famous, I wanted to bring attention to an amazing landmark that many travelers had still not visited. My third cover design was for the Baja peninsula. This cover design sports an image of tourist reaching out to touch a grey whale. I had chosen this image to show traveling families that Baja is not only a Spring Break destination. Several west coast cities in Baja are well known for their whale watching tours.

Unfortunately I was only able to redesign 3 of the 6 books in the series because the company had me redesign their website halfway through the project. You can see my 3 cover redesigns and the remaining 3 untouched covers here.

Thank you,

Pete C.

Brainwerx Design

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Travel Guidebook Redesign Case Study, part 1

In 2004, I was given the task to do a complete redesign of the famous Sanborn's Travelog guidebooks. This redesign project would include covers, log entry structure and content layout. In this article, I will discuss the project’s problem areas, the research and the solutions I proposed. In my next article I will discuss, in more detail, my cover design and page layout.

Previous cover design

My cover design

Guidebook background:

The Sanborn’s Travelog is a famous series of six guidebooks that cover all of Mexico with incredibly detailed directions along with tidbits of history and humor. These mile-by-mile guidebooks take the traveler by the hand to his destination. Each book calculates mileage and offers suggestions for alternate routes, as well as lists customer approved hotels and restaurants.

The Problem:

The latest guidebook covers were designed in the early 1990s and had not been updated in any way. All covers had the same unattractive color combination, stale design and outdated logo. The only thing that distinguished one book cover from another, aside from the title, was a large map highlighting the books’ target region. The interior pages had little to no design elements, other than maps, which made the reading experience a bit bland. Also, the structure of the log entries were difficult to follow because they repeatedly jumped from the front of the book to the back, then to the front again.

The Research:

I spent several afternoons at bookstores watching anyone that approached the Travel section. I wrote down their gender and approximate age. At the end, I looked over each book and map that was picked up by, what appeared to be, seasoned travelers. Afterwards, I looked over other guidebooks that also grabbed my attention. I studied the front covers and noted images and color combinations. I also made many notes on features within the interior pages of all those books. To this I added several hours of online research, and at the end compiled all my notes and presented them to the president and managers of Sanborn’s Mexico Insurance.

The Solution:

The log entries would be restructured to follow known travel routes, where before they spread out from the center of each city. This would eliminate much of the traveler’s frustrations with repeatedly jumping from one end of the book to the other, than back again. Also, the interior pages would feature a side bar to clearly show where additional information would be featured and to also provide travelers with an area where they could jot down their own notes as they followed the routes, instead of flipping to the end of the book for a Notes section. The cover design would feature a large image showing a well-known destination, landmark or activity. I proposed that the cover background be a textured image that would represent the region each book was dedicated to. The map of the region would be moved to the back cover and made much smaller. It would show the routes that the individual book would follow. Each book would also contain plenty of extras, such as maps, featured articles, redesigned hotel and restaurant information, unit conversions and English-to-Spanish translations.

This guidebook redesign project took approximately one year to complete. In my next article I will go into more detail about my cover design and page layout.

Thank you,

Pete C.

Brainwerx Design

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Wish I'd Done That! - Super Sexy CPR

The Sexiest Lingerie Ad Ever?



On May 12, a one-minute ad appeared on the video-sharing site Vimeo. It featured an advertisement for Fortnight Lingerie, shot in the style of a super sexy public service announcement. In this ad, two women demonstrate the proper way of performing CPR. On that day, the video earned a total of 15 views. After 5 days, the video had hit well over the 1 million mark.

No one ever knows which uploaded video will be a hit, but there’s an art form to creating viral advertisements. Does sex sell? Absolutely! Here, the Toronto based agency, Red Urban, used two sexy and attractive models dressed in frilly lingerie to promote CPR and Fortnight Lingerie.

So what’s the secret to this video’s success? Sex? Sure, but it’s also a legitimate instructional video. (Honestly! There was actually a medical expert on the set.) The truth is, more than anything, that this promotional video was brilliantly created for a lingerie company that hardly anyone had ever heard about. It was created by an advertising agency that wanted to go all out to show the world what they could do.

Red Urban’s creative director, Christina Yu, later admitted that the agency had created the spot at no cost to Fortnight Lingerie, and released it onto “the net” to see how it would do organically.

Now, all lingerie companies produce sexy bra commercials, but Red Urban did it with a twist. The concept was simple - Fortnight Lingerie makes anything sexy. And what’s the most unsexy ad an agency can possibly create? You guessed it, a mundane instructional CPR public service announcement.



In June 2010, the Super Sexy CPR site was launched and added its Super Sexy Abdominal Thrusts video, (also legitimately educational!) along with that cool, minimalistic soundtrack used in both videos.

Saving lives has never been sexier.

Thank you,
Pete C
Brainwerx Design

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When good logos go bad, who's to blame?

The original logo design I created in 1999.

In 1999 a local coffee house, MoonBeans Coffee, asked me to create a logo for their new business. One of the main requests, by the company owner, was that the logo appear as if the company had been a well established franchise. With that in mind, I dove into my research and worked closely with my client while developing sketches.

At the end of the entire process, the client choose the logo that you see here. I developed a full brand identity system for MoonBeans that included stationary, disposable cups, menu boards, etc. I even painted a mural on a wall and helped design the interior of their original establishment.

After months of collaboration and hard work, the client and I slowly stopped working together. He concentrated more on radio advertisement, which is a media that I do not work with. Days became months, and months became years. On a rare occasion, the coffee house owner and I would get together and work on a small project but our business relationship never blossomed again.

Flash forward to 2 1/2 weeks ago (1-15-11). I walked into a local burger joint and saw that same logo I created 12 years ago on a T-shirt, but it had been (how can I put this kindly) revised. As soon as I saw the altered logo, my first thought was, "Somebody changed it, and it doesn't look good." Honestly, I would have had the exact same thought whether I had designed the original logo or not. Knowing what the original logo looked liked and seeing what it became, makes me think that "the change" did not improve the logo or my ex-client's business. It seems that whoever altered it had a very specific audience in mind. Or absolutely NO audience in mind.

Altered logo.

Now, don't get me wrong. I don't feel bitter about this at all. No designer should expect their artwork to live forever without being adjusted after so many years. As a general rule, graphic designs rarely last more than two years, due to changing trends. Most well designed logos will last 8 - 10 years before someone changes "something" about them.

So who's to blame here? Me for not keeping up with the client? The client for allowing a negative change to his image? The designer who made the change for not having a broader audience in mind?

I've passed by the coffee house many times. Each time, I see the exterior light sign that still bares the original logo. That gives me hope that not all branding efforts are lost for my ex-client. Maybe it's time to stop by for a cup of coffee???

-Pete C.
Brainwerx Design

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