About
Robin Landa is a distinguished professor at Kean University and a globally recognized expert in creativity, branding, design, and advertising. She has received numerous honors, including the AIGA 2025 Steven Heller Prize for Cultural Commentary, the 2024 Gold Design Education Recognition Award, and the Human Rights Educator Award, and was named by the Carnegie Foundation among the “Great Teachers of Our Time.” Recently inducted into the New Jersey Advertising Hall of Fame, Landa is also the best-selling author of twenty-five books, including Graphic Design Solutions (6th ed.), Advertising by Design (4th ed.), Strategic Creativity, Nimble, Leadership by Design (coauthored with Kean University President Lamont Repollet, Ed.D.), The Secret to Getting Stuff Done: The Non-Negotiable Mindset, and The New Art of Ideas.
With Greg Braun, she coauthored Shareworthy: Advertising that Creates Powerful Connections through Storytelling (Columbia University Press). Columbia University Press published Branding as a Cultural Force: Purpose, Responsibility, & Resonance on January 6, 2026.
Landa’s insights on branding have been featured on Good Morning America, ABC Nightly News with Tom Llamas, and Newsweek, and quoted in the New York Times, France24, Yahoo! News, AOL News, Fox News, Entertainment Weekly, Yahoo! vida y estilo, GQ Mexico, and GQ India. She contributes regularly to Inc. magazine, with additional articles appearing in Harvard Business Review, CEO World, Print, and Fast Company.
Beyond writing, Landa has judged major design and advertising competitions, serves on the Education Board of The One Club for Creativity, and co-chaired Design Incubation for seven years. Through her teaching, mentoring, speaking, and writing, she has shaped the careers of thousands of creative professionals—inspiring the next generation while helping to define the future of the creative industries.
Featured Work
Branding as a Cultural Force
The most powerful brands don’t just capture attention—they ignite change. Branding as a Cultural Force invites readers to reimagine branding as a force for good, one that shapes culture, sparks movements, and drives meaningful social impact.
Going beyond traditional branding, Robin Landa explores how companies play pivotal roles in shaping culture, advancing causes, and forging emotional connections with their audiences. While most branding guides focus on commercial success, this book emphasizes how brands can align with their audiences’ values to drive social transformation. Through real-world case studies and practical strategies, it reframes branding as a tool for influence, advocacy, and activism.
Other Works
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Next-Gen Communication Design
2027
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Design Unbound: How Experimentation Enhances Creativity by Meaghan Dee, Meena Khalili, and Robin Landa
2027
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Leadership by Design: Winning Hearts, Building Your Brand, Achieving Success by Lamont O. Repollet, Ed.D., and Robin Landa
2026
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The Secret to Getting Stuff Done: The Non-Negotiable Mindset
2026
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Shareworthy: Advertising That Creates Powerful Connections Through Storytelling
2024
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A Career is a Promise
2023
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Strategic Creativity
2022
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The New Art of Ideas
2022
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Advertising by Design, 4e
2021
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Graphic Design Solutions, 6e
2019
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Nimble
2015
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Build Your Own Brand
2013
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Draw!
2013
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Take a Line for a Walk
2011
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2D: Visual Basics For Designers by Robin Landa, Steven Brower, and Rose Gonnella
2006
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Visual Workout
2001
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Creative Jolt by Robin Landa, Rose Gonnella, Denise
2000
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Creative Jolt Inspirations by Robin Landa, Rose Gonnella, Denise Anderson
2000
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Thinking Creatively
1998
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Visual Solutions
1986
Awards and Recognition
- AIGA STEVEN HELLER PRIZE FOR CULTURAL COMMENTARY Established in 2017, the Steven Heller Prize for Cultural Commentary celebrates critical thinking about design and the profession, and encourages development in the next generation of design voices through a variety of media.
- New Jersey Advertising Hall of Fame 2025 The Hall of Fame of New Jersey recognizes and celebrate those who have demonstrated leadership, creativity, and professional integrity in their careers.
- Great Teachers of Our Time, Carnegie Foundation
- Faculty Innovation in Teaching Award, Kean University, 2025
- Gold Design Education Award 2024
- Human Rights Institute Educator Award, Kean University
- Presidential Excellence in Research, Kean University 2021, 2016, 1990
- Kean University Teacher of the Year, 2013
- NJ Author’s Award, 1990
- Best Book on Creative Advertising, Shepherd.com
