EMPLOYEE WELLNESS

Branding and Marketing Campaign and Project Management

for

Durham County Government: Public Health

 

Willa Robinson

Public Health Education Program Mgr

wrobinson@dconc.gov

414 E Main St Durham, NC

919-560-7771

 

 

 

Socialotus’ Mission: Build brand for Employee Wellness and the Health Initiatives under that umbrella.

 

 

 

Important Goals and Objectives:

(Brand Employee Wellness Initiative as a whole and subsets of that initiative such as, Employee Wellness *Main Umbrella*, Fitness Centers, Choose to Move, Wellness Clinic) to include:

• Logos,

• Banners,

• Stationery or printed media

• Video Promos

• Graphics for Lobby and Desk Screens and NYCU and News Alerts

 

 

Willa Robinson is the main contact with additional resource support coming from Meghan O’neal. Willa has requested that Bobbiette Palmer of Socialotus Media Group assist with the following:

 

Employee Wellness

 

TO DO:

3 Project Agreement and DCo Contract with Deposit  | Project Board | Executive Photo Shoot  |  Meet Team |

 

 

 

Deposit Info

 

 

 

Meeting Notes

 

2. MyEC - My Employee Central:

Employee Wellness Intranet Platform Content and Management (Go Live Date is June 1st, 2016)

 

Goal : To re-introduce the MyEC New Employee Intranet Platform and begin collaboration on the initial articles and functions (i.e. Make a Wellness Appointment) that will be added to the Landing page and subsequent desired pages for Employee Wellness, to get ready for the Go Live date in June. Content Planning to begin March 7th.

 

Please bring desired topics of what you want to see transferred from the present intranet to the new MyEC platform including any new functionality you would like to see built in. After launch you and anyone you designate will gain access to the page to update as you see fit.

 

All content will be put into a Word Document and sent to Hudson for the initial build out.

 

We can then set a subsequent meeting that you may invite Janna to for a pre-go live training /follow up meeting before the Go Live June 1st date.

Content Planning to begin by March 7th.

 

This meeting will take approx 60-90 minutes.

 

 

 

NEXT: SCOPE OUTLINE & TIMELINE

 

 

 

 

NEXT STEPS:

 

Design Brief - 3 -6

Before you get started with creating the concept for the logo, you want to manage client expectations. You need to understand what it is exactly that they need the logo for.

 

First off, you may want to know what a design brief is. A design brief is something that is vital to any design project as it will provide the designer(s) with all the information needed to exceed your expectations.

 

What you’re going to be doing

You can do it through an interview in a meeting (or via email) or with a questionnaire you let them fill in. The more detailed answers you get, the better. You have to understand the client’s limitations, and be synced with them regarding what exactly you’re going to do for them.

Here are the questions you want to get answers for:

1. What is the purpose of the logo, and where will it be presented/used?

2. What exactly is the product/service that this business is providing?

3. What is the company’s history?

4. What is the deadline for the logo to be ready?

5. Who’s the target audience?

6. Who are your competitors?

7. Are there any restrictions (e.g. PG-16 or NSFW)?

8. How many revisions/concepts would the client want to see before they approve the logo – one? Three? More? *

9. What formats are required? Print or digital? Note sizes and file formats too.

How To Write An Effective Design Brief

If you answer these questions below in an ordered and detailed fashion, your design brief will be 90% done… the other 10% will come from further questions from the designer after you submit your brief.

Have fun answering the questions and remember, provide as much detail as possible! This does not mean one line answers.

What does your business do?

Tip: Never assume that the designer will know anything about your company. Be clear and  concise  and avoid jargon when replying.

• What does your company / organisation do?

• What is your company’s history?

What are the goals?  Why?

• What is the overall goal of the new design project?

• What are you trying to communicate and why?

• Are you trying to sell more products or get awareness of your product / service?

• How do you differ from your competitors?

• Do you want to completely reinvent yourself or are you simply updating your promotional material?

Tip:  You should also provide old promotional material to assist the designer.

Who is the target market?

 

• What are your target market’s demographics & psychographics? ie. the age, gender, income, tastes, views, attitudes, employment, geography, lifestyle of those you want to reach.

Tip: If you have multiple audiences, rank them in terms of importance.

What copy (text) and pictures are needed?

Tip: The copy and pictures used in a design are as crucial as the design itself and you should clearly state who is going to be providing the copy and pictures if needed.  You may need to look into getting a professional copywriter / photographer – ask your designer for some recommendations.

• What copy needs to be included in the design? Who is providing the copy?

• What pictures / photographs / diagrams etc need to be used? Who is providing these?

What are the specifications?

• What size is the design going to be?

• Where is it going to be printed / used? The web, business cards, stationery, on your car?

• What other information should the designer know in regards to specifications?

Have you got a benchmark in mind?

• You should provide the designer with some examples of what you consider to be effective or relevant design even if it is from your main competitors. This will set a benchmark for your designer.

• Provide the designer with things not to do, and styles that you do not like or wish to see in your design. This will give the designer an idea of what to avoid and will avoid disappointment on your behalf.

What Is Your Budget?

• Providing a budget prevents designers wasting valuable time and  resources when trying to maximise your budget.

• Providing the budget upfront also allows designers to know if the project is going to be worthwhile to complete. Make sure you are worth their time.

What is the time scale / deadline?

• Give the designer a detailed schedule of the project and set a realistic deadline for the completion of the work. You should take into account the various stages of the design project such as consultation, concept development, production and delivery.

Tip: Rushing design jobs helps no one and mistakes can be made if a complex job is pushed through without time to review, however, there are times when a rush job is needed, and in these cases you should be honest and upfront about it.

 

________________________

How long it’s going to take

It doesn’t matter if it’s via email or in a personal meeting – this part takes time and you should charge for it. You will sometimes prefer to do this part before you close the deal, since only after getting those answers you could really know how to price this project. But even so, you still want to include these hours in the work total – just like any other work you’re doing for this client.

2-4 hours minimum.

 

'A bullet point list makes it easy for your client to skim through, which also allows them to assess the project and make any changes needed before you begin. This also acts as a tick-list you can follow whilst designing, and a reference point to refer back to when presenting designs.'

________

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Research 4 - 8

What you’re going to be doing

If your client has an existing business, that means they might already have clients and branding. It could be professional branding they hired another designer or agency to do for them, or branding that was created by the sum of the interactions of this business’ product and clients. The brand might already have some history and style that your client will want to preserve.

 

If this is a business-to-be, however, research is even more essential. You really need to know what your client has in their head, what’s their visions and dreams are. They might not even know how to put it into words – maybe they need your help as a designer for that.

 

In this phase you’ll want to understand who the business’ clients are – existing or potential ones. What the interactions are between them and the business. What  style your client wants to convey.

You need to talk to your clients about that, but you shouldn’t assume they know all the answers. You should try and read about the business online, try to better understand the product they are selling – the business model behind it, and the culture around it. You should even try to talk to different workers at the business: they might get you more ideas and new angles.

 

You also need to know who their competitors are, and what the uniqueness of this specific business is. You need it in order to make sure you create a logo that stands out and emphasizes  the right thing.

Finally, you want to find references. Learn the current trends and styles that are related to this business and its product/service. Look at successful brands in this area and try to understand what works and what doesn’t with the logos they have.

How long it’s going to take

It’s hard to estimate or even limit research time. But remember, your client didn’t hire you for a full branding job (at least not yet), but for a logo design, and someone needs to pay for these hours of research, so be kind and limit yourself. With time you’ll know how to do this research faster and faster (and also charge more for it).

Minimum 4-8 hours.

Pro tip

Ask your client to send you references to other logos he or she likes, or to other businesses with logos they can connect to. It will save you some headache and help you get into their minds.

 

Concept 4 - 8

 

In this stage you’re going to be creating concepts around what you’ve learned from the design brief and from the research.

What you’re going to be doing

You will probably have a few ideas you could already start sketching to see what works and what doesn’t. You want to have a few ideas, not just one, that you can test with someone you trust or with someone from the target audience if possible. Getting feedback takes time as well, don’t forget. At this point I wouldn’t show the client the sketches. Most clients don’t have the required imagination needed to see how your sketch can turn into a beautifully designed logo.

Most people can’t sit a million hours in a row sketching logos, so take into account that you’ll need some breaks – either to get inspired, or to procrastinate (how many cats can one person play with? You’ll find out soon enough) You can even see what other designers are doing right now, just try not to want to kill yourself when you see so many amazing things at once.

After you have a few versions you like, you need to dig deeper and think of the ways in which this logo is going to be used. On a website, business cards, FB page, etc. Some logos might look awesome on a square, but really bad when you need it in a landscape format. Your client might need both sizes so you need to think whether that’s going to work with your idea.

How long it’s going to take

How much time is needed for getting inspired and providing sketches? You know your way the best.

Remember to include time for testing the sketch2es, getting feedback, and client presentation.

Minimum 4-8 hours.

 

Presentation + Revisions 4 - 8

Now you’re getting ready to create a few versions of the logo and show them to your client to get feedback. As a nuSchooler I must remind you that it is YOUR responsibility to explain and convince the client that what he or she sees fit their needs (assuming you’ve done your job right).

What you’re going to be doing

Choose one or two directions with your client, go back home, and start working on more revisions.

There are two ways you can proceed after the revisions are ready. You could do the whole presentation again, or just send your client the new versions in email. It all depends on how the first meeting went. If the client is already in love with one of your ideas (and you are too), then only small changes are needed, and no need for another big presentation again. But if they didn’t like any of your ideas, and you’re back to square one, then I suggest you create a whole new presentation from scratch, and pitch again.

How long it’s going to take

Depends on how many revisions you and your client have agreed on.

 

Delivery 4 - 8 

After you and your client have decided on the logo, you need to make sure you provide it in all needed formats, shapes and sizes.

What you’re going to be doing

Make sure you recheck with your client where they’re going to use this logo, and provide them with whatever they need – digital or printed.

Usually your clients don’t have a  clue what formats and shapes they need. All they know is to say: “I need it for my FB page” or “I want it to appear on the website both for desktop and mobile version” or “I need to put it on a green menu”, etc. So don’t be a dick, help them with this, but also remember that it takes extra time to figure out these things.

How long it’s going to take

2-4 hours minimum.

 

Management Overhead 5 - 10