The Trades - new deck on USPCC

[markallender]

New on Kickstarter - The Trades
Honoring the folks that build and craft the world we live in every day.
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/ma ... rds-uspcc/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[theCapraAegagrus]

I can't find a single positive thing to say about this one...

[Adonael]

MS Painting a hard hat and vest onto some standard courts doesn't seem like much of an honour to me.

[STLBluesNut]

I can't find a single positive thing to say about this one...

I can find one. I like the blue orange and white color combo. That's it.

Sent from my Galaxy 8 using Tapatalk

[BaconWise]

I was excited to see this launch. I am a big fan of Mike Rowe and his mikeroweWORKS Foundation. He is a huge advocate for trade schools and how they can be a viable alternative to a traditional college education. I was thinking, if this project is in any way decent, I will shoot it over to his inbox because he loves to see things like that.

Then I saw the campaign details and died a little inside.

[Decknowledgy]

I can't find a single positive thing to say about this one...

But you also didn't say anything bad about it, so does that mean you actually like it?

[theCapraAegagrus]

I can't find a single positive thing to say about this one...

But you also didn't say anything bad about it, so does that mean you actually like it?

No.

No.

No.

[markallender]

I was excited to see this launch. I am a big fan of Mike Rowe and his mikeroweWORKS Foundation. He is a huge advocate for trade schools and how they can be a viable alternative to a traditional college education. I was thinking, if this project is in any way decent, I will shoot it over to his inbox because he loves to see things like that.

Then I saw the campaign details and died a little inside.

Ok, help me out here. What would make it better?
I've been a graphic designer for a construction company for the past few years - they loved the designs.

[ICantShuffle]

This is why we generally pair the graphic designers with someone from marketing.

Please take this as criticism and not personal attacks on you as a person/designer.

First mistake: know your market. Does anyone in the construction company collect cards or are they involved in magic/cardistry as a hobby? If you answered "No" to these questions, you weren't engaging your market.

I'll start with the good for this project: It's USPCC Printed. The color scheme.

The Bad:

While the back design isn't the worst I've seen, it's not very imaginative and you only have one picture of it, so I can't see much detail, and it doesn't look like it has anything at all to do with the theme. Also, your render has squared edges and the cards won't, what is the actual border thickness of the card back?

You don't have enough pictures of what the finished deck is supposed to look like. Renders are fine, but show off your deck, for Christ's sake, what the hell am I backing?

I see no pictures of any number/pip cards. Will those be standard?

I don't mean to be insulting but your "custom courts" look like early 2000's Adobe Illustrator reinterpretations of standard courts with detail actually removed from the standard courts and then recolored. That's being generous, too.

The tuck box design manages to somehow be less appealing to my eyes than a standard bicycle tuck box I see on the shelf at Wal-Mart. The fonts used other than the bicycle logo are extremely bland. Seriously, was any thought given to the layout of the tuck?

When I think of the Trades and tradespeople, I think of carpentry squares, complex joints, routers, miter saws, rivets, fasteners, dimensional lumber, pipes, welding masks, gloves, goggles, gas bottles, TIGs, MIGs, aprons, sledgehammers, rulers, slides, guides, levels, plumbs, spades, trowels, putty knives, gypsum board, detail drawings-- hell, even clipboards. I only see like a couple things in there: a hard hat, some combination wrenches, and a level. That's a start, but where's the rest?

[theCapraAegagrus]

I was excited to see this launch. I am a big fan of Mike Rowe and his mikeroweWORKS Foundation. He is a huge advocate for trade schools and how they can be a viable alternative to a traditional college education. I was thinking, if this project is in any way decent, I will shoot it over to his inbox because he loves to see things like that.

Then I saw the campaign details and died a little inside.

Ok, help me out here. What would make it better?
I've been a graphic designer for a construction company for the past few years - they loved the designs.

Literally almost anything can make these better. Examples:

1. The back design is a clusterf^&*.
2. The tuck is boring.
3. The courts are 15th Century Kings/Queens/Jacks faces on modern "workers" bodies?
4. The "reds" to "baby blues" doesn't offer any contrast for suits.

It's just altogether very amateur.

[BaconWise]

I was excited to see this launch. I am a big fan of Mike Rowe and his mikeroweWORKS Foundation. He is a huge advocate for trade schools and how they can be a viable alternative to a traditional college education. I was thinking, if this project is in any way decent, I will shoot it over to his inbox because he loves to see things like that.

Then I saw the campaign details and died a little inside.

Ok, help me out here. What would make it better?
I've been a graphic designer for a construction company for the past few years - they loved the designs.

I have to remember that designers are a big part of this forum as well, so I apologize for not leaving any constructive criticism. The fact you are on here and asking how it can be improved is awesome. Keep in mind that my perspective is one of a collector and I view my decks as pieces of artwork. Here are a few thoughts I had on your project with some rationale:

- Your design is simply too...simple. While it conveys the message, there isn't a sense of refinement or attention to detail. There are a LOT of designs launching on KS at any given time and it's very difficult to stand out. Those that do, in my opinion, are creating a truly custom deck, from top to bottom. Or, if they are doing custom courts, the detail is incredible.
- Lack of project details. What does the back of the tuck look like? Are the pips standard or custom? Will the tuck be embossed or standard tuck stock? Details like that should be automatic with a launch.
- Stretch Goals are missing. You have no stretch goals listed, though you say you will add some if the campaign gains traction. It can only help your campaign to share what your stretch goals are from the beginning. It gives backers more to look forward to and it also shows that you have done your cost research. I don't get the sense you know what the added cost would be to add foil or embossing or any of the extras that are typically part of a campaign.
- Your card backs aren't inspired. No connection to the theme in any way. This is your chance to have some fun with the plethora of trade elements you could have integrated into your design. While your backs have a classic look, they don't match the theme in my opinion.
- Your courts need TLC. I love the idea of altering the courts to this theme. However, the effect is a big letdown because you have very classic court characters with modern tools/hardhats. Why not go the extra step and have completely re-designed courts where the clothing is updated to safety vests or trade uniforms? Your updates feel stuck-on rather than fully-realized.

When I said I died a little inside, I was being a bit dramatic, but my true feelings are that of disappointment. I want you to succeed with your concept as I think it unique and could be a big hit. As it stands, perhaps you will have the chance to make some changes and re-launch. I have specific tastes so my response may not the same as others who collect semi-custom decks. That being said, the details will be a real hurdle for any kind of collector. This doesn't have to be a novelty deck. I think it could be a bona fide cheeky piece of art if you put some more love into it. Good luck and I hope this helps. Cheers.

[markallender]

Alright now have a gander. I can't guarantee that you'll like it any better, but at least you'll see more of the designs, plus a detail of the back.

You make a good point. Probably this deck isn't designed for cardists and magicians. So I should've expected this kind of response in a forum like this. My other designs have been rather avant garde and have required short runs to fund. For this one I really wanted to mimic a standard Bicycle deck - and yes remove a lot of detail to add clarity to the tools being utilized.

I do appreciate the feedback. You can't please all of the people all of the time. And all of those people just looked at my campaign.

Thanks!
m

[ICantShuffle]

No, you can't please everyone, but don't discount what coming to seek advice from what is essentially a free marketing focus group can do for you. And, keep in mind, you're asking for nearly $10,000.00 from complete strangers to accomplish your goal.

Campaigns that have had difficulty in the past funding have come to us for rehab and relaunched successfully, and to sometimes unforeseen/unanticipated success.

Kickstarter is a hobby gateway for many. Should one of your backers potentially come across our little corner of the internet, or some other corner, and stumble upon something like the Kevin Cantrell decks that have been produced recently or, for a more apt comparison, Bicycle Venexianas or Bicycle Butterfly. How do you think that your deck measures up? Would that backer be willing to come back to support one of your future campaigns?

Also, I cannot for the life of me remember the name of the deck, but someone DID do a trades themed deck, and it was done in a hand drawn realism style, like turn of the 19th/20th century style. How would your deck compare to that? I feel like not correcting at least some of these things and not making any changes you are shrugging your shoulders and being lazy, not really caring about what you create.

Edit: found them on Will Roya's site https://playingcarddecks.com/products/b ... ion-sealed" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

But, you're right, you will never be able to please everybody. However, don't let that become a cop-out.

[robcan0630]

I appreciate you taking the time to ask for and respond to feedback. I'm still pretty new here, but I'm amazed at how much participating there is between designers and collectors on these forums.

[markallender]

...someone DID do a trades themed deck, and it was done in a hand drawn realism style, like turn of the 19th/20th century style. How would your deck compare to that? I feel like not correcting at least some of these things and not making any changes you are shrugging your shoulders and being lazy, not really caring about what you create.

I definitely hear what you are saying. That said, my desire was not to make something detailed or artisinal. I very specifically wanted to spoof the classic Bicycle design. I have purchased many intricately illustrated decks for my own collection - but this was not what I was trying to create here.

I'll definitely take another look at back design. Again, I appreciate the comments. Thanks y'all!
m

[markallender]

New back design

[ICantShuffle]

That's good start, but I would make the design denser. Also, what about the medallion in the middle? What do the cherubs have to do with blue collar work?

[Nova]

I actually can appreciate the concept, but it's not very 'elegant', but that is kind off inherited in the concept. I suppose that is why card enthousiast will maybe be less positive about it.

[hsbc]

It's a strange juxtaposition between the detail of the center circle and the less-detailed tools around it...

Also thanks for coming into this thread and engaging with us

[Outsider]

I don't think it's such a bad looking deck, but the back could definitely stand improvement. The highly detailed medallion looks - and is - completely unrelated to the assortment of tools around it. Also a huge contrast between the busy design in the center and the negative space outside it.

With these colors and theme, maybe backs drawn to look like blueprints in a visual pattern evocative of the Rider back design, since the rest of the card is an obvious homage to Bikes?

[ICantShuffle]

With these colors and theme, maybe backs drawn to look like blueprints in a visual pattern evocative of the Rider back design, since the rest of the card is an obvious homage to Bikes?

+1

[Jocu]

Thanks for coming to UC for advice - many a campaign has gone from cancelled to funded thanks to the advice here.

The main thing that jumps out for me is that all the tools in the hands of the characters go behind the hands. It’s especially noticeable here on the box and the Queen. Little details like that get picked up on by those far more observant than me.