November Favorite Ads

For our monthly favorite ad design contest at RHD, we were honored to have Matt Leo of California serving as our guest judge. Matt has been a long-time supporter of Ranch House Designs and the previous Two Girls Web Design. He and his wife Amanda live in California where they have one son, Brody. They are currently partners in Bright Leo Show Steers and very active in the California cattle business and especially the Angus breed.

Many people would know Matt for his real judging, which is cattle shows, however he is just as qualified to judge our ad design contest as he is to judge a show! In college, Matt was very involved in the ag media circles as he interned at the California Cattleman and also worked closely with the Pacific Showcase.

In summer 2001, I wanted to learn how to design print ads so I took an internship at The Showbox. I spent the first month designing piddly little black and white 1/4 page ads. During my last month, my own family (V8 Ranch) had an ad in The Showbox so Cherie said I could design it. I probably spent 40 hours working on this ad! I was so happy when it came out, literally ecstatic. Matt was one of the first people I showed the magazine too because I knew he had worked in the magazine field and I considered him an expert. His exact quote was "This looks terrible." This resulted in a very shocked look from me, followed by a meltdown ha ha. When I asked why, he said the photos were too small, the background was too busy, and the headline (which was supposed to say Congratulations V8 Juniors) looked like it says "Congratulations V8 Uniors" due to the font I had chosen and the text positioning.

I was crushed. Here I had spent all this time working on my first ad, which I thought looked simply amazing, and he ripped it apart. But this taught me a very valuable lesson that sticks with me even today. Matt's harsh critique forced me to really analyze and study basic design principles such as typography, layout, legibility, and the importance of big and sharp photos. Even today, nearly 10 years later, I often think of the "congratulations V8 uniors" ad and laugh at how far I've come! And sometimes when I flip through the magazines and see all those overwhelming, busy ads, I think that they need a good ol' conversation with Mr. Leo to set them straight about what really matters in good design.

So, here are this months winners, and we really thank Matt for taking the time to give his opinion! He picked out four favorites and commented that all of the ads were "Great Ads, very effective each client should be very proud!"

#1 Tusa- Very cool ad! I love the Lone Star state on center stage and all the counties faded in the background, thumbtacks on the state were neat too. Great colors !

#2 V8 – Great head shot of the Brahman. I like the white background. Everything stands out. There is a lot of class and tradition in the way the advertisment was worded.

#3 Colorado Conection / Sidwell Hay & Cattle- Looking at that ad makes me feel like I’m at home riding around the ranch. The sky the mountains and the use of colors ties the whole add together and makes you stop and want to read more.

#4Forgason- I love black and white ads, and this one is great, neat picture of the Brahman cattle, windmill in the background, and yet a strong statement that hits close to home for everyone. The picture made me feel like I was back in Texas!