Branding Archives - designRoom

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These days, it’s harder than ever to stand out in a crowd. Typography is a great example of this problem in a nutshell; most templated websites use the same handful of free fonts. Many small businesses use fonts that come preinstalled on computers, that everybody has. Of course, sometimes using a common typeface is inevitable…

People come to us to design logos. It is the favorite part of my job and an integral part of an organization’s visual brand. It is also the easiest branding component for people to understand. Logos are tangible assets, and their creation is a fairly simple dialogue between client and designer. But a logo isn’t…

A healthy brand helps. In fact, a healthy brand helped me make a wedding dress decision. I am more convinced than ever that a healthy brand helps everything. Our decisions are not rational. They’re emotional. We like to believe that we are in control of our decisions – analyzing facts, assessing prices, comparing features, to…

Brand conversations are important to the ongoing health of your brand.

I work as a brand designer and a brand builder, and I’m fascinated by how branding affects me as a consumer. Are the effects different than on a non-designer? Or am I like everyone else when I’m outside of my design cave? Sometimes I’m hyper aware of how branding affects me, and I make mental…

Branding is good medicine. But sometimes, to help it go down, you need to add a spoonful of sugar. A couple weeks ago we held our annual designRoom strategic planning/branding workshop. It’s for the whole staff, and everyone prepares and contributes. The sugar I provided was lunch for everyone from L’ Albatros restaurant in University Circle,…

When you love what you do, your brand shines through. It might seem a little touchy-feely, because for me in this case, it is. My daughter started her freshman year in college this past August. During this hectic, bittersweet transition I’ve had quite a few internal freakout moments. Did I prepare her well enough? Did…

I hear a lot about evidence-based treatment as I travel. Over the past ten months I have been fortunate to attend behavioral health and addiction treatment trade shows and conferences across the country. These shows are pivotal for my personal growth. I am able to engage with experts in the field, current and potential clients,…

Every time I walk through the doors of a well-positioned and branded behavioral health organization I get goosebumps. And as I visit with more of them, and speak with the incredible people that do the good work, the source of my goosebumps is clear. They all share some key traits. I’ve identified five brand features…

I say it all the time — a healthy brand just keeps on giving, adding value way beyond a cool logo or tagline or website. A great example of this popped up just a few days ago. Healthy Brand in Testimony I listened to Marvin Ventrell, Executive Director of the National Association of Addiction Treatment…

Trade show season is in full swing. And I love it. I just got back from my first two shows of the season – The Admissions & Marketing Symposium and NATCON18 – and am continually humbled and honored by my experiences. The people, the energy, the conversations. They get me going and keep me going. Upon…

I am not a brand guru. I don’t claim to stand at branding’s burnished edge. Our offices don’t overlook Madison Avenue, or the Thames. I don’t sit in an Eames chair, or play ping-pong in the office. (That would be cool, though…) From where I sit in our gritty brick building, this Healthy Branding…

Embrace the research. There are good reasons why you should. After eight months of brainstorming sessions, meetings, assessments, and everyday interactions – I’ve acquired a reputation for research. I never asked for this “researcher” title; I don’t go around shouting “I love data”. But I am curious. I ask questions. The answers aren’t all I’m…

Health. Far too often we take it for granted. It’s never a problem, until it’s a problem. And when it becomes a problem it can be all consuming, hoping we can be healthy again. Nothing else matters when dealing with mortality. There comes a point when it is out of our hands. We need help.…

designRoom is getting a custom typeface! As part of our efforts to refine our brand typography, I will be creating a typeface from scratch exclusively for use by designRoom. When designing anything, it’s hard to know where to start sometimes. With fonts that can be a particular problem. So, before I start the design process,…

Take a Position. It was my theme for 2017. And my promise – to you and to myself – was to share content and thoughts and ideas that would help others grow and sustain a healthy brand. My goal in taking a position was to open up and share: • Our studio • Our process,…

Launching Your New Logo: Six Critical Steps After months working with your branding agency, you just approved a new logo. You are excited, and maybe a little impatient, to show it off to the world. We get it. But now is not the time to be hasty. There is more work to do. Here are…

Brands that market from the heart will create strong, enduring bonds. I have seen it work. It has been over a week, but I am still feeding off the energy from the Admissions & Marketing Symposium in Los Angeles. My first-ever west coast presentation went well. It won’t be my last! I was challenged by…

Make a promise you can keep. Then keep it. This is something we recommend to clients, and is a quintessential part of healthy branding. The first part of the process is to assess the brand. What sets the brand apart from similar organizations? How is it special? What does it offer? This is positioning, and…

Recently, I attended the Brand New Conference in Chicago, a “two-day event on corporate and brand identity with some of today’s most active and influential practitioners from around the world.” I’ve been to countless design conferences, but it had been quite some time since my last. To me they had become tedious portfolio reviews offering little…

My reflections from NCAD? Branding first. Web next. While at NCAD, I noticed there is more chatter around branding today than there was two years ago, which is great! Though branding is part of the conversation today, many still aren’t sure where branding fits within the process of marketing a new or evolving organization. CEO’s…

Hi there! I’m Lauren Miller, the new Business Development Manager at designRoom. My story is one you have likely heard many times before – the young Ohio girl venturing to the big city to find herself, only to realize that Ohio is where she was meant the be all along. I spent my formative years…

Every time I come back from a conference (and I go to a lot) I am more convinced that our brand assessment process is vital. The inside job — the uncovering of what makes an organization special and what the brand stands for — helps an organization become more efficient, productive and sustainable. Here’s a…

Design debt is very much about wasted time and money. That’s why we refer to it as debt. And why it’s a good idea to avoid it. Almost everyone has experienced a design process of some sort. Whether through a marketing plan and a design firm or an interior design solution for your kitchen, design spreads across…

In case you haven’t noticed, designRoom recently completed a logo refresh of our own. Why? Because its easy for us! It’s what we do, when there’s a good reason for doing it. LOL Just kidding. A logo refresh was actually quite difficult for us. Why? Because it’s what we do for a living. It’s true what…

How does Seattle typestyles end up as the topic for this blog? I’ll tell you: Kelly and I were in Seattle a few weeks ago for NATCON17. I swear this show gets bigger and better every year. We were thrilled to connect with inspiring behavioral health professionals and attend some insightful sessions. But, as with all…

Ohio Travel Bag (OTB): established in 1908 as a manufacturer of traveling bags and coin collection bags. The Industrial Revolution, with its locomotives and steamships and motorcars, had opened up travel to everyday Americans. Ohio Travel Bag outfitted those travelers with their luggage. As larger manufacturers took over the market, OTB transitioned to sourcing and providing…

As I teased in my social post, I have some thoughts on Aldi’s fresh logo. First, let me tell you my impressions of Aldi and their old logo. For a long time, I had driven by Aldi’s and had no idea what they were. It sounded and looked vaguely automotive. When I finally heard it…

Brand belief is important. Belief leads to brand loyalty, which leads to sustained brand success. I believe it’s being threatened. A while back I wrote a blog about how a healthy relationship equals a healthy brand. I stated that the number one tenet of a healthy client/agency relationship was “belief”: “Simply put, you have to…

A message in a needle. It’s not quite the kind of messaging I’m used to. Normally I’m cobbling together the right words for a client, to capture the essence of a brand, a promise, a benefit, a selling proposition. Or writing a clumsy, but heartfelt, blog. This is different. It’s not a bottle floating in…

“I trust them with my brand. I trust them with my marketing business. They will not steer you wrong. They will ensure everything is on point moving forward.”

Lauren Byers, Vice President, MarshBerry

"Our client base increased. Our staff base increased. Our reputation and notoriety in the industry increased. The branding has lifted us up to be very confident.”

Denise Corbisiero, COO, Integrity Billing

“We trust them as true professionals who really understand the process that’s required to do things right.”

Carole Boye, CEO, Community Alliance

“They really bring in the heart behind the message. They tell the story in ways that are compelling. They’re really creative and that matters.”

Anthony Guido, VP of Communications & Marketing, Cohen Veterans Network

“…we really felt that they understood what we wanted to accomplish. They listened to us instead of puking their process on us.”

Laura Bren, President, Deeley Insurance Group

“Loved the process – we got so much more than a new logo; helped us unite around a common mission and language.”

Travis Pearson, CEO, Endeavors

“This input helped us work better together as a team. The whole brand refresh process was a wonderful team building opportunity.”

Matthew Wolf, Vice President, Seabrook

“We never had the production value in terms of the presentation/signage – the quality was new and impressive and people really embraced it.”

Marvin Ventrell, Executive Director, National Association of Addiction Treatment Providers

“Take the time to let designRoom get to know you. It is amazing that they get to the core of who you are…”

Jonathan Lee, President & CEO, Signature Health, Inc.

“They became much more like partners deeply embedded inside our business.”

Travis Mlakar, President, Millcraft Paper