Rebranding Design for Library Battle of the Books Program Series

Rebranded program event identity design.

In February of 2016, my library's youth services teen librarian let me know that they would be needing a new round of publicity materials for the teen Battle of the Books events. In March, promotional material would need to be in place to promote the events so that potential participants could cast votes for books they would like to read prior to the competition events held during the summer. 

Previous marketing material designs: identity, web banner, print ad,
 flyer and handbill (same design), and quarter page handbill sheet.

Even before February, I had already discussed with the librarian that if we had time enough, I would like to redevelop the visual identity and promotional materials for this event. The existing marketing materials, which had been used for at least four years, utilized a photograph of open book in between two opposing hands holding with what appeared to be something akin to game show joy sticks, as well as a typographical treatment for the event name that was legible but somewhat awkward. It was less of a logo and more of a photo with a typographical treatment over the image.

8.5x11 inch flyers/sign redesign concepts would also be 
scaled to size for handbill and poster collaterals.

I wanted to create a logotype that could remain legible at different scales—especially small if needed—along with silhouetted images of people in some kind of action or fighting stances. The two images I had in mind were either youths in front of a standing microphone such as you would see at a spelling bee contest, or—and this was what I most wanted to pursue—images and typography styles that evoked vintage boxing posters.

I first worked up about 50 logo designs and presented them to our teen librarian. We narrowed the selection down to two that I could refine further based on her feedback. I also showed design treatments and reference images that included boxing posters, spelling bee photographs, and silhouettes of youths jumping for joy. It was decided that the silhouettes would be the most flexible design elements to work with, so I took the design in that direction and presented a series of print ads featuring silhouetted youths leaping in exuberant celebration along with the refined logotype and type treatments for what the essential promotional text would include. 

Additional development included a decidedly more feminine looking 
participant, and a vote instruction display sign.

Box wrapping paper design for vote entries.

Once that was approved, I created one additional ad that depicted a more clearly defined silhouette as a girl, as well as a display sign that could be set alongside of a box that participants could submit their voting ballots indicating which books they preferred to read for the summer contest series. In order to have the vote ballot box be recognized as part of the campaign, I used the advertisement design treatment to create a wrapping paper that could be taped around the ballot boxes.

The final promotional pieces to be created were online banner ads that would appear on the library's web site. I provided two options to be used.

Two web site banner ad choices.

Projects and quantities delivered:


8x11 Flyer/sign (21)
Quarter page handbill (200)
36x36 inch Vote box wrapping paper (12)
Web banner option #1 (1)
Web banner option #2 (1)

Library web banner in use.

Library Newsletter, THINK... Summer 2015 Issue Covers Summer Reading Events

Cover of the Summer issue of THINK....

Alachua County Library District’s free, 12-page winter edition of THINK... newsletter arrived in June. The issue covers quarterly news and over 800 scheduled events from June through August. A printed edition of 2,750 copies is delivered not only to all twelve library branch locations but also to select non-library businesses to extend its reach further into the community. Online copies are also available on the library’s website at www.aclib.us/news .
 
Development of the newsletter begins with library staff entering their planned quarterly events into the library’s electronic calendar system during a 30-day period prior to beginning the editorial production process, which in turn takes an additional 30 days of production prior to delivery of the publication to the public. Printing services are outsourced to a local printer, taking five to seven days before receipt of the printed product back to the design department for separating and shipping different quantities to the 12 district libraries and local businesses. 

Library website blog icon.

Events published in the newsletter are the same as seen on the library’s website calendar of events. Due to limited space in the newsletter, complete descriptive information about the events are not published, however, those details remain available on the online branch calendars.

Marketing design collaterals created to promote THINK... include the 2,750 copy print version which is also offered for download in digital .pdf format from the library website; a library website blog icon; and a television broadcast media public service announcement (PSA) image. 

Television broadcast public service announcement.

Marketing Design for Fandomonium, A Library Comic Con Event

Above: event identity utilizes a bold comic-styled iconography to catch viewer attention.

Above: identity variation without 
descriptive language for 
use in smaller applications.

Project: Alachua County Library District Fandomonium event visual identity and promotional collaterals.

Design brief: Establish a visual identity mark and develop integrated print and digital media marketing collaterals to promote the library's newly created annual event. 

Required collaterals (and printed quantities):
Series logo, with element variations and formats in both 
    colour and black/white (1+)
Newspaper Save the Date print ad (1) 
Public Service Announcement broadcast media ad (1)
67x63 inch library poster (1) 

Handbills four per 8.5x11 page.

45x45 inch library poster (1)
21x28 inch library poster (7)
21x28 inch library book sale announcement poster (1)
21x28 inch library event floor plan poster (3)
14x8.5 inch (open) / 7x8.5 inch (closed) 
    8-page program guide booklet (300+)
8.5x11 inch flyer (45)
8.5x11 inch newsletter (2,500) cover 
    and interior page layout design (1+1) 
8.5x5.5 inch Contributor Thank You Card (50)
8x2.5 inch bookmark (1,000)
Quarter page Save the Date handbill (2,000)   
Quarter page handbill (1,000)
Library website blog icon (1)
Library website banner ad (1)
Library website newsletter cover 140x188px image (1)
Library website newsletter cover 100x100px 
   blog icon (1) 

Spring newsletter cover and inside page provided event coverage.

Top: Library website blog icon; Middle: bookmark front, back. Bottom: library website banner ad.

TV broadcast PSA.

Black/white newspaper ad.

67x63 Youth Services display poster.

78x66 Teen Services display poster.

Design for both 8.5x11 inch sign and 21x28 inch poster.

8-page program guide booklet.

Black History Month 2015 Library Marketing Designs

Library website banner ads for general theme events (top) and "Outside the Book" event series (bottom).

Each year the Association for the Study of African American Life and History (ASALH) selects a theme for celebrating Black History. Based in Washington, DC, the organization has a website that displays its complete list of annual themes and provides information relating to its organization (see www.asalh.org). When I begin my annual Black History Month project for my library client, the ASALH is my go-to place for determining what the national theme is so I can develop imagery compatible to it. 

For 2015, the national theme was "A Century of Black Life, History, and Culture." The organization provided a single text page to speak on the theme, with the only visual offered being a black/white image of ASALH founder, Carter G. Woodson superimposed onto a parchment background. With this single image serving as a launching pad for my own creative project direction, I set out to develop marketing visuals for my library client to compliment the national theme set by the ASALH. 

Project: Alachua County Library District Black History Month Identity and Promotional Materials.

Brief: Establish a visual identity mark and develop integrated print and digital media marketing collaterals to promote the library's Black History Month events.

Required collaterals (and printed quantities):
General collaterals:
Theme logo, with element variations and in both colour and black/white formats (4)
8.5x11 inch event flyer front/back (400)
Library website banner ad (1)
Library website blog icon (1)
TV broadcast public service announcement (1)
Magazine print ad (1)
Newspaper print ad (1)

Resulting theme identity design.

Small publication print ad (1)
21x28 inch display poster (6)
116x68 inch large format display poster (1)
LIbrary newsletter 8x11 inch page (1)

Black History Month Thinking Out of the Book series events collaterals:
11x8.5 inch sign (10)
17x1 inch sign (10)
Half page handbill (75)
Library website banner ad (1)

Production notes: I already had an image of a parchment background that I could use. What I needed was something to give a little reference to the human component of the identity. I first explored illustration and photographic detail images of skin, however I still felt like I wanted something more recognizable, so I sourced for a face that I could use and finally settled on a purchased stock image I could crop tightly in on. I didn't want viewers to concentrate on a specific person, so I cropped in tightly on the face and reduced the area it took up so that the theme name would be the dominate visual element. 

Although the number "100" was not part of the official title, I added it to the theme identity for more visual impact, as well as to communicate faster and reinforce the words "a century." Typeface used on the identity was Headliner No.45 for a bold and slightly distressed appearance. URWEgyptienneTMed used for the ampersand because one was not included in the Headliner No.45 font family. Headliner No.45 was also used throughout the design collaterals as the display font. Body text used on collaterals was either from the Adobe Arial or Adobe Garamond Pro family set, both standard typefaces that are part of the ACLD corporate identity standards. 

Theme identity development began in October and was presented for review in November. What resulted was a four-item set of theme identity marks that could be used in a variety of ways. Specific collaterals were developed as content was delivered by project stakeholders. 

 Four colour and black/white variations of the identity with and without the background image.

Website blog icon

Left and center: 8.5x11 inch flyer front and back. Right: newsletter page.

TV broadcast public service announcement (PSA).

Half page handbills, and both 11x8.5 and 17x11 inch sign formats all used the same design.

Integrated Marketing Design Collaterals for Library Literacy Learning Conference

PowerPoint welcome image.

Event promotional 8.5x11 sign

The Alachua County Library District Literacy Office will host a conference event in Gainesville, Florida. It will be preceded by a breakfast for tutors and students, then open to the public for the rest of the conference.

To help promote the conference to both invited guests as well as the public, a set of promotional collaterals was needed to be designed and printed. A few months earlier, I redesigned an new integrated identity and set of marketing collaterals for the office

( http://librarygraphicdesign.blogspot.com/2014/08/integrated-library-literacy-collateral.html ), so I used these as the basis for designing the conference event collaterals too. Maintaining a consistent use of the design sensibilities created earlier during the redesign helped to further reinforce brand recognition of the ACLD Literacy Office.

 

Design collaterals (and quantities delivered) for this conference event included:

Breakfast Invitation to learners & tutors in English language (42)
Breakfast Invitation to learners & tutors in Spanish language (10)
Conference Invitation to general public (20+)
E-mail announcement invitation image (1)
4.5x3.5 inch folding invitation schedule insert (62)
4.25x8.5 inch two-sided event program (100)
8.5x11 inch PowerPoint Welcome image (1)
8.5x11 inch PowerPoint Thank You image (1)
8.5x11 inch award certificate (1)
8.5x11 inch promotional sign (520)
22x28 inch promotional poster (10)
Library website banner advertisement (1)

Folding invitation exteriors (printed two-up on 8.5x11 inch card stock then folded and trimmed to size).

Folding invitation interiors (two versions: one for learning teams and one for public.

Invitation insert page.

Program front / back.

Certificate award concept (to be used later in conjunction at year-end event).

PowerPoint thank you image for closing the event.

Logo Design for Library Summer Palooza Event

After 25 years of hosting a Literary Festival event in October, the Alachua County Library District decided the time had come to integrate it into the Summer Reading Program and rebrand the newly appointed August event as the "Summer Reader Palooza," that celebrated the end of the Summer Reading program and kicked off the back-to-school season.

To initiate branding of this new event, the library required a new event identity. I wanted the mark to appeal to the age-appropriate audience of children, so I selected a playful yet easy to read display font and cheerful colour scheme. I also created the icon of a book and inset it into a modified clip art sun icon to provide an easily recognizable association to books and summer. 

I developed a few logo variations until I came up with four that worked well, then selected the one that looked like it would have the highest technical reproduction integrity, as well as what I hoped would have strongest potential for remaining fresh and have staying power — perhaps one that could last for another 25 years! The final mark is shown here in its two options, full colour and black/white. 

Final logo files were passed to the client for using on documents and publicity that they created. The only application of the new identity I used it on was a web banner posted on the library website, seen below.

Web banner ad used for library website.

Marketing Designs for a New Library Grand Opening Event

Roadside sign announces opening of new library after opening day.

Invitation (folded) was printed on card stock, two invites per 8.5x11 inch page.
Event program (lower right) was also printed in the same manner, but not folded.

Grand opening public service 
announcement ad.

In 2011 the Alachua County Library District received permission from the city of Gainesville, Florida to build a new branch library. After that agreement and until they could build a permanent building, a mobile trailer was used as a functioning library. Finally, in 2013, work on the permanent structure began and leading up to its opening, the library wanted to get word out that a grand opening celebration would take place.

I looked back at previously designed marketing collaterals for the mobile unit's grand opening as a basis for continuing the theme of "building the future." That series of collaterals made use of a blue print background, a rainbow, and a few architectural tools such as a t-square. An announcement for ground breaking on the new permanent location site used a shovel silhouette along with the rainbow as part of the handle. You can see samples of those materials in my earlier blog posts here http://librarygraphicdesign.blogspot.com/2011/12/cone-park-library-branch-grand-opening.html and here http://librarygraphicdesign.blogspot.com/2013/04/library-groundbreaking-ceremony.html .

Post grand opening public service
 announcement ad.

Now that the permanent building had architectural renderings, I decided to use the architect's elevation drawing as line art for the basis of the new permanent building's grand opening design collaterals. I combined the elevation drawing with a sepia-toned wood grain image to add colour to it and to become the central art element on all collaterals. For purposes of continuity from piece-to-piece of the new collaterals, I made use of the same wood grain texture as a border treatment and within outlined text of the words "Grand Opening."

Website home page banner ad.

The first marketing piece to be distributed was an invitation, printed two up on a full page, then trimmed and folded down to be a quarter-paged sized card that could be opened. The 300 physical copies would be conventionally mailed out to recipients. A second invitation version saved as a .jpg would be embedded as an image into emails invitations sent out to additional recipients.

8.5 x 11 inch sign to post
in existing branch before
transfer of materials into
 the new library branch.

Two television broadcast public service announcement ads were created. One for announcing the grand opening event, and a second one for long term use after the grand opening. A 23x34 inch poster was also created for use in a free-standing frame to be displayed in the Headquarters Library lobby.

Closer to the grand opening day, a website banner ad and a secondary blog icon image would also appear on the library website to announce the grand opening and link to a blog post for details.

Because the mobile library unit would still be in operation during construction of the new permanent building, a time would come when materials from the mobile unit would need to move to the permanent site. A sign was created to provide advance notice for that disruption of service on the days that transfer of materials would happen. 

Library lobby poster.

Roadside yard signs were also created to be used along the stretch of road that passed in front of the new library location. One designed set appeared to announce the grand opening event, a second designed set appeared the day of the grand opening, and a final set appeared after the grand opening day to announce that the permanent library building was now open for business. The 24x29 inch signs were printed on large format paper and laminated for protection from inclement weather.

For the day of the grand opening, an event program was created, printed front and back on card stock, two programs to an 8.5x11 inch page. A diagram of the building's floorplan was also created to help visitors navigate the new space. And lastly, a pair of certificates were designed to present to the Library Foundation and Friends of the Library organizations for their generous support in helping to make the new library possible look and function to the highest of expectations.

Email invitation image.

Photos of the grand opening event can be viewed here:

https://www.flickr.com/photos/acld/sets/72157638731665456/

Event poster showed floorplan 
sections of new library.

Items created for publicizing the new library: 

300 copies: Grand Opening Event Invitation

1 copy: Grand Opening Event Email Invitation

1 copy: Grand Opening PSA #1

1 copy: New Library Open PSA #2

1 copy: Grand Opening Event Website Banner

Donor certificate.

1 copy: New Library Open Blog Icon

4 copies: Library Closed (during collection shift) 8x11 inch Signs

1 copy: 20x30 inch Grand Opening Announcement Lobby Poster

3 versions / 6 prints each: 24x19 inch Yard Signs for Pre-Grand Opening, Day-Of Grand Opening; and Now Open Post Grand Opening

Donor certificate.

100 copies: Grand Opening Event Program

Floorplan

1 copy: Grand Opening Event Colour Coded 

24x19 inch Poster

1 copy: Cake Decoration Image

1 copy: Grand Opening Event 11x8.5 inch Appreciation Certificate for Friends of the LIbrary donor

1 copy: Grand Opening Event 11x8.5 inch Appreciation Certificate for Foundation donor

Event program front and back.