Every aspect of Jerome Village is being considered from a smart growth perspective. How the land is used. The density of the development. The protection of local character and environmental systems.

With a fifteen- to twenty-year development timeline, Jerome Village will evolve into a mixed-use environment with more than 2200 residential units.

We were involved with the project before the first shovel of dirt was turned. We developed Brand Guidelines, Graphic Standards, a comprehensive Web site, and a variety of printed materials.

The most visible evidence of our involvement is our work in helping transform a 19th century farmhouse into a 21st century sales office and welcome center that is unmistakably on brand.

Tags: Design, Highland Real Estate, Interactive, Print

“I don’t have time for college.”

“I can’t get the courses I want online.”

“I can’t afford college right now.”

Working toward a degree is a commitment—one that’s easy to find excuses to avoid.

The Ohio Learning Network, a consortium of over 60 Ohio colleges and universities offering degrees online, knew it needed to offset the common excuses used by prospective students if it wanted to increase enrollment.

We wrote and produced a radio campaign aimed at these excuse-making prospects and lightheartedly poked holes in their misconceptions. Web traffic and online registrations doubled during the campaign.

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Tags: Broadcast, Ohio Learning Network

Take any group of people. Give them a goal in which they have a vested interest, throw some obstacles their way, and apply pressure. What happens?

One common outcome of a shared experience is that the group members will bond. They will say things like, “Our team busted our butts putting the annual budget together in four days. Nobody slept. It was a hell of an accomplishment.”

And they will identify with each other. They will give each other knowing looks in meetings and tell inside jokes. They will develop their own mythology. And something else: they will brand themselves.

Apparently it’s human nature. One would think a football team, for example, would have one identity only. But within a team, the defensive players share a special bond, as do the offensive players. And within  the defense, the linebackers hang together, as do the defensive backs. The seniors on the team are bonded as a class, as are the first-year players.

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Tags: Branding, Brandstoke, Design

Your brand’s essence — just one word that sums up how your brand connects emotionally with your customers. Identifying it sounds simple enough, right?

After all, you know your business. You know your audience. But articulating how they feel about your brand in an authentic and meaningful way is often challenging. Few get it right.

The reason: essence is an intangible.

The features of a brand, e.g. lightweight, fast or blue, are tangibles. Easy to sense, describe, measure and compare.

The essence, on the other hand, is felt.

Lacing up a new pair of Nike running shoes feels inspirational. Riding a Harley-Davidson motorcycle feels liberating. Experiencing Walt Disney World with your children feels magical. Strong brands have well-defined, easily grasped, simply obvious essences.

It should be easy to figure out, but getting there takes soul searching. To get it right, one must know how your consumers experience your brand.

To help those who participate in determining a brand’s essence, here are the primary criteria. Test your essence against them.

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Tags: Branding, Brandstoke

When you’re charged with developing a comprehensive campaign about child abuse, your first instinct is to create messages that tell the audience about the problem. But insight tells you to find a way to make the audience a part of the solution.

After talking with physicians, counselors and caseworkers who interact with victims on a daily basis, we realized everyone already knows child abuse is bad. But they don’t know what to do about it. We learned the worst possible course of action is to remain silent when abuse is suspected.

This insight lead directly to the RAISE YOUR VOICE campaign theme. The concept was executed in television, radio and print. We’re proud of the work. And honored to be involved with such an important effort.

Tags: Broadcast, Center for Child and Family Advocacy, Design, Nationwide Children's Hospital, Print

Imagine a service technician who not only understands truck engines, but the financial impact when a truck is sitting in a service bay instead of on the highway.

Every minute of downtime is lost revenue.

That’s the type of service tech any fleet owner would want under their hoods.

Which is exactly the type of service techs found at each of the 20 W.W. Williams bumper-to-bumper service centers across the United States.

They were doing their job. It was ours to make sure everyone knew it.

So we developed the campaign that instills confidence in the audience by inviting them back into the service bays.

They get to see the techs at work. The grease under their fingernails. Their focus. Their skill and expertise. All punctuated by a campaign theme that every fleet owner wants to hear when a problem needs solved.

Consider it done.

Tags: Print, The W.W. Williams Company