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Case Study: CAPS Collateral Redesign

July 2, 2015 by edspickles

In 2015, a former client of mine started working with CAPS, or Center for Advanced Professional Studies, a specialized school program for high school students in Kansas’s Blue Valley school district. The old collateral had an early-nineties Apple default desktop look to it, with a lot of unattractive gradients and curvy lines. It felt stale, unattractive, and contrary to the goals of the CAPS program itself, which is innovative, forward-thinking, and focused on new technology.
CAPS Folder Before & After Redesign
CAPS Folder Before & After Redesign

The first piece I redesigned, and the piece that served as a jumping-off point for the entire project, was a folder. The folder is used to distribute course information to prospective students, so it needed to be eye-catching enough to make someone want to look inside. I proposed three options: a circuitry theme, an icon theme, and the one that was selected, a high-tech design that invokes the idea of moving forward at high speeds, which is what this program lets students do in their education. (see right). You can see from the original the design problems I was confronting – they had a great idea in abstracting the logo, but here it just drifts and it doesn’t communicate anything about the nature of the program. My design is lighter and has a sense of energy and fun, with a richer, brighter blue and an avoidance of gray. Each course section, or “strand,” is featured prominently on the back of the folder.

CAPS Barracuda Banner
CAPS Barracuda Banner

The next step was a Barracuda banner. The banner sits on an adjustable holder, so it can be shorter or taller as needed. This presented a challenge – the information needed to be designed in such a way that it would be OK if some of it were hidden when the sign is being used on tabletop. I tackled this issue by moving the logo onto the middle bottom – so if it is gone, it doesn’t impact the design or the listing of the strands – and then to fill the bottom space, I wrote some copy that I felt encapsulated what the program is about: Develop Professional Skills / Foster Critical Thinking / Experience Innovative Education. You can see how the design of the folder is taken and applied to the new dimensions and needs of the poster.

Next, I tackled the brochures. This project required several marketing pieces in several formats directed at different audiences:

  • For other educators: An overview tri-fold that detailed the benefits of the program and a course prototyping sheet so educators can see how the curricula are crafted;
  • For prospective mentors: Mentor Handbook outlining benefits, goals, and rules for student mentors;
  • For current and prospective students:
    • Bi-fold Course Listing;
    • Course Overview;
    • Internship Handbook;
    • Student/Parent Handbook;
    • Individual Course Brochures

I developed a color code for each strand that I carried through to all marketing pieces, so that students could know immediately when looking at a class brochure which strand it belongs to: Teal for Accelerator; Green for Bioscience; Navy for Business, Technology, & Media; Blue for Engineering; Aqua for Human Services; and Purple for Medicine & Healthcare. The brochures, which used to be several pages, were shortened to one 8.5 x 11 bifold to save on printing.

Foundations of Medicine/Bioscience Brochures, Before & After Redesign
Foundations of Medicine/Bioscience Brochures, Before & After Redesign
CAPS Brochure Interior, Before and After Redesign
CAPS Brochure Interior, Before and After Redesign

As you can see, the old class brochures used the same unattractive, tired gradients as the old folder, except, even worse, some of the color combinations were quite unfortunate and jarring to the eye. The old brochures look disorganized and corporate, when the actual program is anything but. The interior is boring. The redesign created focus by using one great image for each program, and then the interior is more brightly colored and engaging. Photos are shown in fun bubbles and the strand is clearly noted on the bottom. Important course information, such as credits, credit designations, and weighted grade eligibility are listed in a colored sidebar that draws the eye.

I was very lucky to have the opportunity to work on this project. It was great fun taking a design and applying it across such a wide range of pieces, so many that I can’t feature them all here. This was a case where the program’s collateral didn’t match the energy of the actual program – and I was honored to bring the two into alignment.

Filed Under: Case Study, Portfolio Tagged With: Bifold, Brochure, Folder, Marketing Collateral, Print, Redesign, Refresh, Signage, Trifold

Portfolio: Print & Marketing Collateral

May 28, 2015 by edspickles

For me, print is where my design career began. Over my career I’ve worked on what seems like every print project imaginable – small projects like quick-turn one-sheets, postcards, posters, bookmarks, all the way up to large projects like multi-book catalogs, cohesive marketing collateral systems, and advertising campaigns. With a highly adaptable style and the unique point-of-view of an in-house designer, no matter what the project I am the perfect partner in creating eye-catching, memorable marketing pieces.


The Whole Shebang
Advertising
Art Gallery
Badge
Book
Bookmark
Brochure
Catalog
Collateral
Conference
Coordination
Folder
Inserts
Leave Behind
Magazine
Marketing
Marketing Campaign
Packaging
Postcard
Poster
Press Kit
Print
Production
Program
Sales
Sell Sheet
T-Shirt
Trifold
NAVTA Journal
NAVTA Journal

NAVTA Journal

In the fall of 2017 I was hired to completely redesign the NAVTA Journal, a trade journal for the The National Association of Veterinary Technicians in America. I refreshed the overall typography with a friendly, rounded font for body copy paired with a very open sans-serif for headings, etc. A color-coded, tabbed design helps guide readers to desired sections. The magazine 64-pages and comes out bi-monthly.
IAAO Awards Luncheon Program
IAAO Awards Luncheon Program

IAAO Awards Luncheon Program

I designed this program for the International Association of Assessing Officers's Conference 2018 Award Luncheon. The overall design for the conference was kind of woodsy and naturalistic, so I used this beautiful watercolor as inspiration for the program, which needed to look nice enough to be a keepsake.
Blue Valley Academy Student Handbook
Blue Valley Academy Student Handbook

Blue Valley Academy Student Handbook

When the new principal of Blue Valley Academy (BVA) came to me, he was dealing with outdated and unattractive materials. Because it is a front-facing piece that all students and parents will see, we opted to update this piece first. I started with an interim new logo design based on abstract layered shapes, to invoke the idea that BVA students take abstract ideas and turn them into something new and concrete. I stuck with the existing BVA color story but elevated it to something more modern and fun. I also designed a PowerPoint template and letterhead to complement this design.
Boelte-Hall Bartle Hall Brochure
Boelte-Hall Bartle Hall Brochure

Boelte-Hall Bartle Hall Brochure

Boelte-Hall is a Kansas printer based in the Roeland Park area. They have a partnership with Bartle Hall, a leading location for conventions in downtown Kansas City. This brochure advertises their signage services for potential exhibitors. It utilizes their recent rebranding look, with a hexagonal pattern and bright color scheme.
CAPS Course Brochure Gatefold
CAPS Course Gatefold Brochure

CAPS Course Gatefold Brochure

CAPS is a professional development program for the Blue Valley school district in Kansas. I did an initial redesign of their collateral when I first started working with them (See case study for that project here). Subsequently we simplified some of the collateral offerings and refreshed the look and feel with this design, which utilizes a lot of hand-drawn lines and abstract shapes paired with the existing iconography to keep the through-line of the original design. This design was iterated across all collateral.
Pryor Learning Solutions e-Learning Trifold
Pryor Learning Solutions e-Learning Trifold

Pryor Learning Solutions e-Learning Trifold

I designed this trifold brochure for Pryor Learning Solutions. It's designed to promote the company's e-learning options, utilizing their recent brand update. Bold color blocks in their brand color story move the reader's eye to the most relevant information, with a clean design that makes it easy to digest. The brochure also include the Pryor custom-designed (by me) iconography.
IAAO Las Vegas Conference Program
IAAO Las Vegas 2017 Conference Program

IAAO Las Vegas 2017 Conference Program

I designed this program for the International Association of Assessing Officers 2017 Conference, which took place in Las Vegas. The design is bright and clean, with colorful informational boxes and icons to draw readers' eyes and increase the usability of the program, which was much smaller, yet bulkier last year. The program also features a stitched-in center fold-out panel with the various maps conference attendees would need to navigate to the various conference events.
Time Home Entertainment, Inc. Book Catalogs
Time Home Entertainment, Inc. Book Catalogs

Time Home Entertainment, Inc. Book Catalogs

The biannual catalog for Time Home Entertainment, Inc./Oxmoor House features both new releases and a fairly lengthy backlist. For 2014, the catalog was redesigned to utilize the previous color scheme but a more compact layout that still gave generous space to point out special features for each title. This project took approximately six weeks from initial design to press files.
The Snarf Scarf Packaging
The Snarf Scarf Packaging

The Snarf Scarf Packaging

The Snarf Scarf is a handmade protective scarf that helps keep clothes clean from spills. There are scarfs for adults and children. While the logo was already designed, I designed a unique mark to complement that, and then designed packaging for both the adult and child versions. The adult sleeve is clean and modern, while the child one is more fun and whimsical, but they all complement one another.
Kansas International Film Festival Marketing Collateral
Kansas International Film Festival Marketing Collateral

Kansas International Film Festival Marketing Collateral

Starting with the unique and graphic Kansas International Film Festival logo, I designed the 2010 poster to zoom in and really make the most of the stark shapes and colors in the identity. I then utilized the poster theme across all other collateral for the show, including t-shirt, festival passes, and the festival program.
Andrews McMeel Publishing Book Catalogs
Andrews McMeel Publishing Book Catalogs

Andrews McMeel Publishing Book Catalogs

At the time I worked on this project, Andrews McMeel Publishing put out catalogs featuring new products three times a year — Spring, Summer, and Fall. Each season had several catalogs — Frontlist, Cookbook, Childrens, Gift, etc — all following the same design style. I worked on this project for over five years and it involved a lot of content management, quick work, and production know-how.
Time Home Entertainment, Inc. Sell Sheets
Time Home Entertainment, Inc. Sell Sheets

Time Home Entertainment, Inc. Sell Sheets

I often create quick-turn sell sheets for Time Home Entertainment, Inc.'s sales department. These sometimes promote a particular title or sales offer, etc. I design each one to complement the aesthetic of the books it is featuring, or to fit perfectly with the look of the catalog if the offer features a more diverse range of titles.
The Great Cook Ads
The Great Cook Print Ads

The Great Cook Print Ads

These print ads were designed for the Spring 2015 title The Great Cook. The client wanted something simple and sophisticated and supplied several image options. Each ad size required thinking of the design in a different way.
Andrews McMeel Publishing Pembroke Program Ads
Andrews McMeel Publishing Pembroke Program Ads

Andrews McMeel Publishing Pembroke Program Ads

The Pembroke Hill Playbill, which is distributed at all performing and visual arts events throughout the school year, raises income to fund children's arts programs throughout the year. This series of ads was placed by Andrews McMeel Universal and features the cartoons published by this company as both syndicated features and books. I wanted to emphasize the fun of the art but I needed to look at it in a new way every year. I think each ad stands on its own as a design but they all work together as a series as well.
Indigo Wild Sell Sheets
Indigo Wild Sell Sheets

Indigo Wild Sell Sheets

Kansas City company Indigo Wild has a very distinctive and fun design aesthetic, but it is one that has grown and transformed in the six years I've been working with them. This is a selection of sell sheets from the last six years. The designs have gone from quirky and hand-drawn to a sexier, more streamlined look. As always I design my sell sheets to complement the existing aesthetic of the company, so these have been fun to tackle over the years.
EUTWC Ad
Eating Up the West Coast Print Ad / Postcard

Eating Up the West Coast Print Ad / Postcard

This ad was created for Time Home Entertainment Inc for the spring 2015 book Eating Up the West Coast. It ran in Sunset magazine. The book is a kind of cookbook/travelogue based on a popular blog, so I chose to feature images of the author, who is a main selling point here, combined with a travel photo, a restaurant pic, and a food photo. The book design was really fun so I pulled several of those elements out to keep things light. To me this ad really encapsulates everything the book has to offer. I also designed a complementary promotional postcard for this title.
NextPage Independence Day Postcards
NextPage Independence Day Postcards

NextPage Independence Day Postcards

NextPage is a company offering a wide range of print services. For major holidays, they produce a series of promotional packages that they sell to car dealers. They came to be with a request for three Fourth of July "high end" postcard designs that were then extrapolated into handouts and web banner ads. I think these are fresh and modern looking but still hit the Independence Day notes.
America's Best BBQ Press Kit
America's Best BBQ Press Kit

America's Best BBQ Press Kit

America's Best BBQ was written by Kansas City BBQ Grillmasters and published by a Kansas City publisher, so the press kit really needed to shine. I was lucky to have a really great book design to jump off of. I started with the a folder, which is the "menu", and the kit contains five pieces of collateral and a foldover bookmark. A wet nap sourced very cheaply from Amazon.com adds a fun touch that makes the kit really memorable. I've done a lot of press kits over the years, but this is really one of my all time favorites.

Filed Under: Portfolio Tagged With: Advertisement, Advertising, Booklets, Bookmarks, Brochures, Catalogs, Cohesive Marketing, Folders, Magazines, Marketing Collateral, Postcards, Posters, Print, Trifolds

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 816-809-1993

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