Phase 1
In an initial meeting, our goal is, very simply, to establish a goal. For small business, it may be overall branding. For a particular campaign, it may be illustrations or additional marketing material. This is essentially a fact-finding meeting, gathering your information that will allow our creative juices to begin flowing. In this meeting we will also establish budgets and detail the work to be performed.

Phase 2
Here the fun begins. Our initial concept for your company or campaign will be presented. We urge all members of your team that have input to be present, as this is the meat of the project. Your feedback at this point will dictate where we go from here. This generally takes 2-3 meetings, or more, depending on the size of the project.

Phase 3
Most of this phase will be behind closed doors, perfecting images and copy. Again, the time this takes will vary by project, but our attention to detail will not, as from here you will be ready move forward with your campaign.

Phase 4
After a final proofing meeting, and all details are signed off on, we go to press. All final art files are presented to you as well as the printer and media outlets. At this point, you have a recognizable and consistent branded image/campaign that will become the signature of your company.
 

Take a look at a few samples of our process:

Excursionz Magazine

Goal – To turn the online publication, Excurtionz Magazine, into a recognizable print publication. Since most of the CT magazines followed a very clean, traditional style similar to a “Martha Stewart Living”, the publisher of Excursionz wanted to create a more energetic, edgy feel. 

Process – We began by developing logo’s and stylized tabs for each of the six sections;
Dining Guide, Music, Home Owners Guide, Bikers Guide, Shopping, and Travel. While several of these sections had logo’s in use online, these needed to be updated to match the new style of the print publication. To do this, we decided to maintain simplicity, with a common theme running throughout to reflect the edginess of the magazine. 

End Result – A happy client. Excursionz Magazine was a unique, full color, 140 page publication which was distributed throughout CT, RI, and NY.



Sample pages from publication




JDRF Invite

Goal – To provide branding for a fund raising event for the Philadelphia Juvenile Diabetes
Research Foundation, being held at the University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology. This needed a fun, colorful campaign that appealed to all ages.

Process – Due to the location of the event, and that it was a fund raiser for children, we
developed an animated  archeologist for use on all of the campaigns posters and invitations. It was important that the title of the event be clearly visible, which we chose to do by putting it as the focus as the magnifying glass, effectively achieving our goal.

End Result – A great success. Our illustration was used on all marketing materials, and the
event was a successful night of fund raising for Juvenile Diabetes research!

First Round Caricature Sketches	Revised Solution	Final Invitation for the Event

Hopetree Branding

Goal – To create a peaceful, calming, zen like brand. It was important to maintain consistency between the logo, website, and all company materials (biz cards, postcards, letterhead, envelopes). The brand also needed to incorporate the “Ever Green. Ever Possible” concept, developed by the owner.

Process – To keep with the natural feel of the company, we kept the overall concept simple, and chose green as a primary color. Much needed flair was added with the 3 pink leaves, and having this color scheme matched in the company tagline resulted in a simple, elegant logo. 

End Result – A Brand that embraced the company mission statement of “Ever green. Ever Possible.” The Hopetree logo was one of 2000 selected out of over 50,000 world wide entries to appear in the well known international branding and identities publication, Logo Lounge 4.
 

Selection of First Round Branding Samples	Final Identity and Logo Lounge 4 Selection