Marketing Literature

Design

Project Background

As a student in the Lincoln Business and Law School I was lucky enough to

gain access to freelance placement schemes under Access Innovation,

namely Outstand.

I was commissioned but Outstand to help in the design of their B2B

marketing literature for providing potential clients with information on the

firm via a small and concise brochure.

The project started in late 2010 and is due to run up until around May 2011.

So far within the Project I have developed several draft concepts and draft

developments for the front cover concepts as well as testimonial pages for

the internal copy of the brochures. All of which are shown within this

document.

My main aim of the project, through the means of semiotics and

semantics was to develop a running theme of development and skill

building, which key services are offered by the business as leadership

consultants.

I am currently in the process of finalising the document ready for print,

with only another month left of the project till final completion.

Draft Cover

Concepts

Draft Concept 1: The message of the first design was to reinforce the metaphorical

symbolism of the name Outstand by having 3 Outstand logos as the central image

piece, all in varied hues of blue.

The centre image was made to be distinctively darker in order for it to Outstand

Draft Concept 2: The message of the second design was the focus on the theme of

development, again using the logo in various hues, but in a hierarchal fashion, going

from faded to clear and bold.

The aim was to metaphorically illustrate the positives of leadership development from

faded and unsure to bold and confident.

Draft Concept 3: The message of the third design was different from the former two,

using a more creative concept of childrens building blocks to focus on the theme of

skills building.

The image of childrens blocks represents the theme of building and constructing a

leadership style from scratch i. e. an infantile state. The logos represent Outstands role

in securing it to a more solid and secure standing through emblazonment on the blocks

themselves.

Draft

Development

Draft Development 1: The client stated that the previous image came across as too

obvious and standardised in its message and lacked creative flair.

To conquer this I chose to use a quirky way of representing the them of being

outstanding by using a mosaic/ pixelated effect on the bricks so it sequenced from

been very unclear and hazy to a bold clear image.

Draft Development 2: The client stated that the previous image seemed to flat and

boring and lacked true representation of the ethos of the business.

I developed this further by skewing the images to create a depth to the images,

representing the depth of development involving in the consulting process.

Draft Development 3: The client stated that the previous image came across as too

childlike, and affected the perception of the firms professionalism.

I fought this problem by using a more non-age specific and sophisticated looking

building block image emblazoned with the logo, which would hopefully avoid any

infantile connotations. The developed theme of simplicity and cleanliness also created a

cleaner cut slick image.

Final Concept

Final Concept: In order to create a cleaner more professional look from the previous

style I chose to emboss the logo of Outstand within the building block, to symbolise the

integral role that the company plays in the development and building of leadership. The

fact the logo is now part of the brick gives the image of a more integral role for

Outstand.

The tagline from the companys web literature Organisation Effectiveness through

People was also used to create a much more IMC style strategy.

Testimonials,

Internal Pages

&

Contact

Testimonial Page: The use of Post it notes reinforces the message of Organisation in

the tagline, as they are all placed as if on a note board, which shows an organisation of

ideas.

Whereas the point of a testimonial, crediting the company for their Effectiveness,

represents the latter end within the chosen tagline.

Internal Page Templates: The theme of building blocks was carried through all internal

sections, focusing on the three main areas requested by the client, culture, leadership

and teams, all semiotically colour coded to represent the message present within that

section of the brochure.

The choice of colours was based on semiotic and colour theory.

Orange was used for teams as some of its positive behavioural effects are said to be

communication, friendliness and receptiveness.

Green was used for Culture as some its positive behavioural responses are hope,

security and adaptability.

Blue was used for Leadership as some of its positive behavioural responses are strength,

energy, dignity and maturity.

All values evoked by the colours were chosen as I thought they were metaphors for the

message within the section of the brochure, and the semantics of the chosen section

title.

Contacts Page: There was little design expertise used within this back page, the main

aim was clarity and professionalism, represented by a standard use of clear fonts. The

presence of the logo also reinforces the brand image of Outstand.

Although by coincidence the social networking logos also reinforce the Blue theme that

has ran throughout the brochure, which helps in securing brand salience even further.