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Archive for the ‘Basic Design’ Category

Top Design for Charities

Monday, February 2nd, 2009

I’ve wanted to do a TOP 10 “Design and Communications” blogs for charities, but I’ve have had trouble finding any. There are a few that do touch on the subject once in a while but don’t make it their main focus. If you know of any please let me know because I would really like to hear about them.

So today I would thought I would take a look at some “local” talent that time and time again, I am blown away by. The work of these folks and their firms inspires me to work harder, keep focus on why great design equals brilliant communication executed flawlessly.

They obviously share my passion for making a difference, for helping charities do better at connecting with their donors and at giving their all to create change in the world.

http://www.wishart.net/

John Van Duzer and Wishart. I’ve been following John’s work for years now. I recall seeing him speak at a AFP Congress years ago and being amazed at the quality of work that was being done – and it was for charities! John brings great conceptual thinking and breath-taking graphic design to his work. It makes me wish the work was mine – thanks for inspiring and making me jealous John!

http://www.raymondhelkio.com

Raymond is one of those people who’s name I keep seeing all over the place and when you look through his work, you know why. His dedication to the sector is easy to see by looking through the samples of his work and I look forward to seeing more of it!

http://www.gravityinc.ca

Wendy Gray has been showing me what clean and beautiful design for charities should look like for over a decade. A flip through the portfolio of Gravity Inc. shows you the value of graphic design and the impact it can have on the viewer.

http://www.designforgood.ca/

This is sort of a plug, but I dig Mark Haak’s creative and what he brings to his clients in terms of online experience and ability – which is part of the reason he is working with Idea Design now. It’s hard to find someone of his seniority and range of experience who works on his own. And now we can offer all of his talent of our clients.

I am a honest believer that great creative and design stands out and gets noticed, and I love that fact that there are so many obviously talented and dedicated people who bring their skills to this sector to help your charity make a difference. Design for good – not evil.

Posted in Basic Design, Inspiration | No Comments »

Logo of the Month

Monday, January 26th, 2009

I had wanted to make this a monthly post because really – what could be easier than posting someone else’s work that you can either critique or rave about and just be done with it?

To be frank, the main problem is that I really don’t see logos for non profits that I like very much. Logo’s don’t need to cost a lot, they just need someone to think about that they are doing and be appropriate and relevant to the charity. (And by the way, I don’t care what anyone says, but a logo designed by your board is NEVER going to be a good thing.)

So let’s take a look at the pro’s and con’s of my logo of the month.

At first glance, I really like it. It is simple, memorable, and would reproduce well at small and large sizes. The type face is a contemporary sanserif called Bree which is notable for it’s stylized characters. But when I started to really look at it as a communicator and designer, it started to lose it’s shine.

The use of emoticons. Are we there? If this is a logo for a charity whose demographic is younger – it would be fine. But I’m not sure my dad would get this (no offense dad!).

The actual mark. Obviously this is a logo designed by a designer who wanted to make a cool logo but I think they didn’t do their homework. Being schizophrenic does not mean you are happy and maybe sad at the same time, or you two people at once – it’s about the distortion of a person’s reality. This mark does not speak to that. It plays on a common misconception about what schizophrenia is.

The type face. I do like it – but ideally – the type face should say as much about the charity as the mark does. But with a few little tweaks, it could have gone much further.

Agree? Disagree?

I welcome you to send me some of your favourite logos for consideration for Logo of the Month.

Posted in Basic Design, branding | 4 Comments »

Epiphany!

Monday, November 17th, 2008

Last year, I was approached by Cheryl Breukelman and Simon Geoghegan of CBA Coaching to help them rebrand their coaching company. As I’ve blogged before, I had already been working with Simon to help me redefine and express what Idea Design does, more clearly.

I approached good friend and colleague Dan Banko to assist me in this exercise. Dan has a lot more experience in rebranding exercises and him and I like to work together whenever we get the chance.

We had a number of meetings with Cheryl and Simon to determine what they wanted out of this rebrand.

Ultimately, Dan and I came up with a list of about 30 potenial names for their new company which we shortlisted down to 4.

Cheryl and Simon picked “Epiphany!” out of the shortlist, which worked on many different levels. In a coaching experience, there are many aha! moments. Moments of clarity, of surprise, of inspiration.

As we started to move forward on designing the logo and collateral materials, I wanted every piece to capture that “aha” moment.

As I’ve mentioned before, I like to start with the type. If I can find a typeface that is expressive and works with the name, then in some ways I am already half way there.

In the case of epiphany, I need I wanted something bold and strong with an element of playfulness…

After I take a look at the name set in a number of faces that may or may not work, certain fonts really start to call out to me which I highlight to use as I move to the next stage.

I often sit down brainstorm/sketch visual ideas that are coming to me as well as other words that may lead to or be part of the final logo. Just like the font selection, every element that is part of the logo should express something.

We came back and presented four logo concepts to the clients. I present the logos in black so we don’t get distracted by colours. Like I say, if we can make it work in black, then adding a colour will be easy.

Simon and Cheryl laboured over the decision somewhat but came back with their selection. It was time to add some colour, which I knew would also keep in line with the original idea that every element and design touch should say “aha!”.

As I added colour to the logo and worked on the materials, I could feel it all coming together.

I applaud Cheryl and Simon for trusting in my abilities and letting me provide some solutions that were a little out of the ordinary. But as I showed them a mock up of their business cards, letterhead and envelope and explained how everytime they met someone and passed their card along, they would have the opportunity to tell their story. And watch as they go – “aha!”.

“Working with Idea Design was the best decision we made when deciding to rebrand. John took us through a thorough process that helped translate our work, vision and values into a new identity that we love!” – Simon Geoghegan

Posted in Basic Design, Case Study, branding | 8 Comments »

Reach for the Rainbow

Monday, November 10th, 2008

Laurie Pringle is a woman on a mission. Recently she was hired as Director of Development at Reach for the Rainbow and she has come aboard committed to making a difference within the organization and to their donors. And she asked me to help design their newsletter.

We started by establishing a word count so my colleague Sonya MacDonald (one of the top fundraising writers in Canada) could start to work on the copy. A word count is helpful to the writer and editor as it tells them how much copy they can fit on one page. I usually work with a 50/50 ratio. No more than half the page should be filled with copy, the other half is reserved for images, pull quotes and white space. Having any more copy than that will make the piece look very copy heavy – unless that’s what you are going for of course.

We settled on calling the newsletter: Inside the Rainbow. We felt that the newsletter would be giving donors a look at the going-ons and inside scoop on how donations are being used and making a difference.

I usually begin the design process by setting up my grid which helps to ensure that any element I have on the page will line up with any other element.

In the case of “Inside the Rainbow” I went with a seven column grid. I tend to use an uneven number because although using a even number will always allow me to keep things balanced, an uneven number means a little more design work to balance off elements – but the result is a visually interesting piece. Notice how everything plays off the grid.

Next comes the masthead. The masthead, for me, sets the tone of the piece and therefore I always work on it first. I wanted to it to have some visual impact, be bold and a little fun too. I also wanted to avoid over-doing the whole rainbow thing.

The font I selected is called Bau. Bau is a nice selection because of it’s tiny imperfections and little kicks, like in the “a”.

I tracked in in very tight (decreased the amount of space between each letter) so each character melted into one other – now they belonged and supported each other.

For the body copy I wanted to stay with a typeface that would be appropriate to the audience and selected Adobe Garamond, one of my favourites for body copy.

Once I have the copy typeset and masthead in place, I can start to design by adding images, colours and little touches that bring a newsletter to life.

As I was finishing the first draft I still felt it was missing something – an extra element of child-like fun. As I was preparing dinner the one evening I looked over at my daughters as they happily made a massive mess with paint and their hands. I think I knew what I wanted to add.

What a great way to end each article.

Laurie was a great client to work for and we both look forward to rolling up our sleeves as we get to work on the next project.

“Recently John designed a newsletter for Reach for the Rainbow and the entire organization is overjoyed with the look, feel and effect. With precious little guidance from our overburdened team, John designed a bright, crisp, enticing and effective newsletter that we are proud to send to our constituents. John’s design clearly portrays our organizations’ values with simple, but impactful elegance.

I look forward to enlisting John’s expertise on many future projects. The children and youth who rely upon Reach for the Rainbow’s services will enjoy a happier holiday season as a result of his excellent work.” – Laurie Pringle

Thanks Laurie!

Posted in Basic Design, Case Study | 1 Comment »

Tweaking your logo?

Monday, October 27th, 2008

I saw something this past week that I found quite unsettling and I’m still not sure how I can make sure it never happens again.

I am working with a new client developing some direct mail packs for them. About eight years ago I designed this clients logo on a pro bono assignment through the agency I was working with at the time. Last time I noticed, they were still using the same logo.

In the midst of package development, the client sent over the “new” versions of their logos. The colour had been changed to a lighter blue and a light green (the original was a dark blue). In my books, that was no-no number one for reasons I’ve outlined before.

They also revised the bilingual logo to create an English only version – and by removing the French completely changed the meaning of the logo. Now the logo didn’t mean anything. It looked like some random elements thrown together.

Needless to say, I wasn’t terribly amused. But what can I do? In this situation I was a little more lucky because I now had a new contact with the client and the opportunity to “fix it” – but what about other cases?

I know that some charities can have massive turnovers. I know that often they have no idea where the logo came from or who did it, or even why it was developed as it was.

As a designer, if a client calls and asks me to change/tweak their logo – I tend think “no way”. In the commercial world, it is total taboo to mess with another designers logo.

But in our sector- it seems to be ok, acceptable – expected.

When I design a new logo for a client – I give them every variation that makes sense (2 colour, 1 colour, Black only and reverse out white options) and as well provide them with the common formats (.eps, .jpg, .tif) saved for the Mac and for PC users and tell them – put these in a SAFE place. I also make sure my name, contact info and font and colour information is included in the digital file.

That’s all I can do. I’ve come to accept that when I release the logo to client – it is no longer mine and people can change it at will.

But, how can I protect against this sort of thing in the future?

Posted in Basic Design, Two Cents, branding | 2 Comments »

Does brand kill fundraising?

Monday, October 20th, 2008

Being a subscriber to a few blogs ensures I don’t miss a thing people are writing about. One of my favourites is written by Jeff Brooks over at Donor Power Blog. Time and time again he nails something that is floating around in my head, and he obviously feels that he can speak the truth and tell it like it is. His post on “Does Brand Kill Fundraising” is a case in point.

He says “…in the real world, branding shackles fundraising. And the more involved the branding effort is, the more damage it does to fundraising revenue.”

He makes a great point about how the very nature of branding is that it is all about you. Which is just great.

But what about your donor? Where is your brand book that is all about your donors? What? You don’t have one?

Jeff closes with, “Keep your brand simple. And not about you.”

I don’t completely agree with him on that. You do need to have a common voice, a common way of communicating with your donor. You need every touch point a donor might have with your charity to be a similar, inspiring and helpful experience – but one that constantly engages the donor and makes it about them… Like Jeff says, keep your brand simple, and focus on what’s most important – your donor…

And I will personally design and put together a brand book for FREE the first charity who wants to create one all about their donor.

Posted in Basic Design, Inspiration, Two Cents, branding | 5 Comments »