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An ice cream brand went bankrupt this month because a judge ruled its pints copied Van Leeuwen's trade dress and made it hand back $23.8M. Every dollar the look ever earned.
The ruling turned on one word: deliberately. Intent is discoverable. The reference deck with the competitor pinned as "target" becomes evidence.
Your "make it feel like Linear" slide is the same slide. Nobody will sue you. You just pay differently: every impression you buy trains buyers to recognize their codes, not yours.
$23.8M for "looking familiar" is absolutely insane. Ig intent leaves a trail - references, iterations, assets, timestamps - and once that trail tells a story, the pixels are almost irrelevant.
$23.8M for copying a look, brutal
INSANE. much more than brutal
“Really interesting point — especially for designers. A reference can guide direction, but the final visual identity should still have its own rationale and distinctive system. Documenting the design decisions along the way can also make the creative process much clearer.”
Write the quality you admire in words, don't pin the screenshot might be the sharpest reframe of competitive research I've read. Translating into words forces you to actually understand why something works instead of just copying the output.
The network for creativity
Join 1.25M professional creatives like you
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Creatives on Contra have earned over $150M and we are just getting started
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If these two ads showed up in your feed, which one would make you stop? ☕ A or B?
A) Curiosity + Product Benefits
B) 20% OFF + Free Shipping
Two creatives. One product. Two different approaches.
The goal was to keep the typography, colors, photography and overall art direction consistent while changing the advertising angle from curiosity and product experience to a direct promotional offer.
Which creative wins for you A or B? 👀
Advertisement DesignCreative DirectionMeta Ads ExpertsocialmediadesignbraddesignAdobe IllustratorAdobe PhotoshopCanva
the first, i have to say! something about that pour in action pulls so much weight in the best way.
Just published a new case study from one of our most recent branding projects ✨
This one has been in the making for the last few months, so it feels good to finally have the full project out there.
Over the next few days, I’ll be sharing key parts of the project, some BTS work, key takeaways, and the thinking that shaped the final identity.
If you’d like to see the complete case study, it’s already live on my profile. Go have a look and let me know what you think.
Thank you for following along 💚
P.S. Animated this entire project using @Jitter It's such a great tool, Making animating my projects very easy & simple 🙇♂️
Wowww very impressive, the presentation looks super professional. 🔥
