Archive for the ‘Identity Design’ Category

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MA Bank Rebrand

Posted by Chris Spurlock

Macon-Atlanta State Bank is Now MA Bank

After a 127-year history and recent changes in products and services, Macon-Atlanta State Bank realized it was time to reposition itself as a modern community bank. The brand would need to attract new customers while reassuring existing customers that this is still their bank — still their banking team. Revisiting a recommendation we proposed a few years ago, it was decided to change the name to MA Bank and create a new brand identity.

Project Highlights

Brand strategy

Identity design

Marketing strategy

Content strategy

Business collateral

Web & digital strategy

Video

Moving a Legacy Forward without Losing Its History

Inspired by their agricultural roots and symbolizing bounty, the mark illustrates a wheat stock in a classic gold tone. Rendered in bold, geometric lines, this logo also symbolizes the stability of the bank and its role as a pillar of the community. The shorter MA Bank name was inspired by vernacular in the community and offers a more authentic presentation of this friendly brand.

Communicating Changes to Their Neighbors

Breaking ground on a new branch in neighboring Monroe City, Mo. expedited the need for this new brand position and a rollout strategy. Magnetize developed a campaign that clearly communicated the changes to the region in a reassuring and informative tone.

Federated Church

Posted by Chris Spurlock

A Forward Thinking Approach

Looking towards the future of their faith community, Federated Church saw the need to refresh their brand in a way that would better represent their pillars of love, acceptance and inclusivity. Our team spent focused time in discovery with the congregation and church leadership. The result was a brand position and messaging strategy that looks to the future while maintaining the legacy of Federated.

Project Highlights

Brand strategy

Identity design

Messaging strategy

Launch strategy

Collateral design

Live Your Faith

Their new brand identity focused on a mark with a stylized “f” icon. The mark consists of three parts representing the Father as the foundation of the icon; the Son as the cross that forms the arms of the “f,” and the Holy Spirit as the flame that forms the crook of the “f.” Federated utilized the brand to differentiate its four areas of focus, making them more accessible to the broader community alongside their new empowering tagline, “Live your faith.”

Bank of Franklin County Community Campaign

Posted by Chris Spurlock

Being There For Each Other

Many small businesses have feared for their survival amid the COVID-19 pandemic, relying on the PPP loan program to keep them afloat. And while some big banks dropped the ball, community banks stepped up to the challenge. Assisting with more than 350 loans during the first wave, Bank of Franklin County wanted to launch an awareness campaign that would highlight the positive impact community banks like theirs have been able to make during these turbulent times.

Project Highlights

Campaign strategy

Content strategy

Copywriting

Web & digital strategy

Campaign development

Video

A Focus on Community

The campaign’s creative and messaging strategy acknowledged and embraced the evolving nature of relationships these days — physical distancing, mobile banking and virtual meeting. That even across these distances, Bank of Franklin County is who they’ve always been: a personal, community bank. Testimonials and photography from real businesses provided proof of the important role they played in supporting others in their community.

Reaching the Right People

It was important to get this message out into the region Bank of Franklin County so proudly serves. Utilizing a mix of traditional and digital channels, targeted and intent-based tactics, the campaign met current customers and the community where they were, with messages tailored to each unique audience journey.

“2020 presented a unique opportunity for community banks to shine. Magnetize helped us seize that moment with a campaign that put our brand promise in front of the right audiences, at the right time.”

Lesley L., Marketing Director

St. Andrew’s Charitable Foundation

Posted by Chris Spurlock

Replacing Traditional Fundraising

Seniors are some of the most vulnerable members of our community, and unfortunately, sometimes their needs for safety, security and comfort are forgotten. St. Andrew’s Charitable Foundation provides vital services to these individuals, who are even more at risk in the face of COVID-19. With its major fundraising events canceled, the organization had to adjust quickly to ensure funds were in place to continue supporting seniors when they needed it most. Instead of pursuing a virtual event platform, the organization opted to develop a multi-channel Campaign for Seniors, to remind the community that when they give, these seniors are remembered.

Project Highlights

Fundraising Campaign Strategy

Campaign Identity

Social Media

Campaign Management

Messaging Strategy + Copywriting

Video Production + Photography

Website Development

Meeting Donors Multichannel

Ensuring multiple touch points was key to the campaign’s strategy, providing a variety of avenues to share the stories that would inspire people to give. With the pandemic evolving almost daily, it was important that the tactics could too. Our team was able to safely capture individual senior stories via video, which were distributed via email/digital channels and connected to St. Andrew’s donor management system. Other traditional appeal efforts like direct mail were also employed, to optimize donor audience interaction with the materials.

Remembering Our Seniors, When It Matters Most

The campaign’s creative and messaging platform was inspired by the many roles older individuals have played throughout their lives: friend, caregiver, coworker, neighbor and more. The campaign line “When you give, I am remembered,” embodied this idea, and all the ways they’ve impacted our communities. By using a confident color palette and multi-layer pattern, we embraced this concept in both the visual elements and storytelling, celebrating everything that seniors are and continue to be.

Supporting Our Supporters

An important component of the fundraising campaign involved empowering St. Andrew’s board members and advocates to grow their network, and ultimately, fundraising opportunities. To support this effort, Magnetize developed a toolkit for each individual, which included a custom campaign website page that featured their photo and testimonial. We also created a communication playbook and templates to enable success through personal connection. Ultimately, these tactics were responsible for more than 80% of the campaign’s revenue.

“We had to act quickly to make sure we could support our seniors when they needed us most. Magnetize responded with a thoughtful and beautiful campaign that helped us exceed our goal. We’re very grateful to their whole team.”

Linda S.
Chief Development Officer, St. Andrew’s Charitable Foundation

Recreation Council Brand

Posted by Chris Spurlock

Recreation For All

For more than 30 years, the Recreation Council of Greater St. Louis has connected regional residents with physical and mental disabilities to activities and programs that enhance their quality of life. To better align their brand and communication platforms with their mission, our team developed an approachable brand identity that transcended audience type — appealing to a wide range of program participants and beautifully illustrating the value they provide to the St. Louis region.

Project Highlights

Brand Strategy

Messaging & Positioning

Identity Design

Website & UX Development

Leisure Without Limits

Inclusivity and access is at the heart of what the Recreation Council provides its clients. As we were developing the aesthetics of their brand, we also collaborated with the council to create a positioning line that felt both aspirational and immediate. The connection and joy that people get from recreational activities isn’t exclusive to able-bodied people, and “Leisure Without Limits” captures that spirit.

“The Magnetize & OrgStory team really understood how to blend smart creative with all the technical functionality we needed for our site — ensuring anyone who needed access to these programs would have it.”

Susan F., Executive Director

UX Built for Accessibility

A primary function of the council’s new website allows users to search for relevant activities and programs in their area. To ensure the highest levels of accessibility and an easily navigable site, our team made sure the design and user experience met the highest ADA standards. This included incorporating high levels of color contrast and adding keyboard accessible functions with clear hover states.

NewGround Strategic Communications

Posted by Chris Spurlock

Built for Banking

Originally the Bank Building Corporation, NewGround has evolved to become a design-build leader in the banking industry. Along the way, the industry has undergone drastic changes that have made a big impact on architectural trends and retail banking experiences. For nearly a decade, NewGround relied on our team to help craft their B2B communications with sophistication and brand savvy. Working directly with NewGround senior leadership, we helped shape narratives and design compelling digital, experiential and print marketing communications. Our work helped to ensure their team was engaged at the earliest and highest levels with banks seeking new ways to meet the needs of modern banking customers.

Project Highlights

Brand strategy

web & digital strategy

messaging strategy

strategic communications

advertising

Adapting to the Market

As with every facet of the banking industry, NewGround constantly evolved their focus to ensure they were meeting the needs of their customers and partners. This required our team to pivot on a variety of communications and messages to ensure their teams had what they needed to make powerful connections.

Macon-Atlanta Bank Checking Accounts

Posted by Chris Spurlock

For Any Point in Your Life

As Macon-Atlanta State Bank continues to evolve its product offerings, they look to Magnetize to develop product designs that align with their brand. Their new line of checking products was all about deposit accounts that meet customers wherever they are in life. Inspired by the bank’s “Drop Pin” brand icon, our team created a line of product names that are not only closely tied to the bank’s brand, but reflect a key aspect of each product.

Project Highlights

Brand strategy

messaging strategy

advertising

graphic design

Rolling it Out

Our creative work went beyond product naming, developing a wide range of consumer-facing communications, published across channels that included in-branch signage, and traditional and digital advertising. The result is a product line designed around brand cohesiveness and purpose that shows the proof of this bank’s promise in its products.

Macon-Atlanta Bank Brand Strategy

Posted by Chris Spurlock

Making 1893 Fresh Again

Over its 125+ year history, Macon-Atlanta State Bank has cemented its role as a true community bank in northeastern Missouri. As larger national and regional banks began to encroach upon their market, they wisely adapted to the times, offering their customers all of the modern banking conveniences necessary to compete. But they needed a brand makeover that would resonate with new customers — and they requested we do this without changing their legacy logo.

Project Highlights

Brand strategy

messaging strategy

advertising

graphic design

It All Happens Here

The Magnetize team conducted research and a competitive analysis to create a strategic framework for the brand. Our findings revealed an approach to doing business that just simply could not be found anywhere else in the community. It began in the 1890’s when founder Jett Dearing rode on horseback to sell bank stock to area farmers. And that community spirit continues today as the Macon-Atlanta team makes financial recommendations based on how well they know their customers. Our creative team recommended a brand position that celebrated this relationship, which inspired the tagline “It All Happens Here.”

Bringing Community Back to Banking

Soon after the rebrand, Macon-Atlanta State Bank acquired a branch from a regional competitor in the nearby community of Monroe City, MO. The first order of business was to create a “bank branch transition toolkit” for existing employees who would now be working for Macon-Atlanta State Bank. The Magnetize team put its extensive employee communications expertise to use, creating a guide that would help the new team feel like valued employees and trusted brand ambassadors. We also developed a comprehensive suite of branch communications to support the bank as it arrived in this new community.

Missouri Valley Brand Strategy

Posted by Chris Spurlock

A Wealth of Expertise

When Bank of Franklin County created a new wealth management team, they needed their own brand identity. As an Ameriprise provider, this team of financial advisors offers wealth management expertise and services rooted in the friendly and approachable way that Bank of Franklin County does business. For operational reasons and because this team would serve an audience within and beyond the bank’s normal service area, our client requested a brand identity set apart from the main bank.

Project Highlights

brand strategy

advertising

identity design

Franklin Mortgage

Posted by Chris Spurlock

Autonomous, but Aligned

Shortly after we created a new brand position and communications system for the Bank of Franklin County, the marketing team reached out for brand support with a new mortgage services subsidiary they planned to launch in O’Fallon, MO. The bank’s leadership wanted an identity for the mortgage group that would feel somewhat autonomous, but also have subtle connections with the main bank.

Project Highlights

brand strategy

messaging strategy

advertising

web & uX design

business collateral

Bank of Franklin County Marketing

Posted by Chris Spurlock

Cohesive Campaigns

A strong brand narrative should rely on its collective communications, built on a cohesive platform that leaves room for targeted visuals and narrative when needed. From promotional campaigns to advertising efforts, we’ve worked closely with Bank of Franklin County to deliver engaging materials that serve up their brand promise across multiple channels throughout the community.

Project Highlights

campaign strategy

messaging strategy

digital marketing

advertising

Cross-channel Branch Expansion

A community bank brand relies on multiple tactics to ensure continued exposure to their target audiences. As Bank of Franklin County continues to adapt and expand its physical presence, we in turn re-align our strategic recommendations to include a variety of traditional and digital channels to maximize exposure to their markets.

Bank of Franklin County Brand

Posted by Chris Spurlock

A Brand New Bank

Founded in 2000, Bank of Franklin County sought a new brand position that highlighted its friendly values, modern conveniences and ongoing commitment to the community. Our team began the project by conducting research and brand analysis. Based on our findings, we crafted “Nice to Know,” an approachable and confident tagline that reflects the culture of this community bank.

Project Highlights

Brand strategy

web & digital strategy

content strategy

advertising

event marketing

illustration

video

Sharing a Story

Expanding on the friendliness and warmth of the tagline, our design team created a new brand look that uses inviting fonts and colors alongside interesting patterns. The mix of traditional and contemporary cues results in a comfortable brand experience anchored by modern banking amenities. Beautiful original photography and thoughtfully crafted collateral tell the story of the authentic relationships the bank staff have with their customers, while whimsical animation in TV and social video assets captures their friendliness and easy way of doing business.

To Be Frank

True community banking is all about relationships, so we created “Frank,” the Bank of Franklin County mascot. This friendly young face beneath the “F” styled hair is the brand avatar that personifies the “Nice to Know” promise in retail merchandising and digital communications. Our creative team continues to develop Frank’s character to support the bank’s deepening engagement in the communities they serve.

“Magnetize has been instrumental in the creation of a full design and brand identity project for our bank. The quality of work and, most importantly, the personal attention and customer service we receive makes this a true partnership.”
Lesley L., Marketing Director

Friendly & Approachable

In Franklin County, Missouri, banking is done differently. Tellers remember your name. Bankers are your neighbors. To embrace that philosophy, we chose a warm and inviting color palette for the brand, one that reflected the warm and friendly environment Bank of Franklin County offers its customers.

Covenant Place

Posted by Chris Spurlock

Comprehensive Senior Living

In 2019, Covenant Place, an established senior living community, embarked on an ambitious plan to expand their St. Louis County location. This included a beautiful new residence facility anchored by a modern community center that boasts a café, medical offices, theater and event spaces.

Project Highlights

Brand & Messaging Strategy

UX Design

Coding & Development

Copywriting

One Mission, Three Identities

Generous donations made all of this a reality but also required a brand identity system that created both autonomy and unity for the three main entities: Covenant Place (the senior living facility), HJ’s Café (the restaurant) and Mirowitz Center (the community center). The Covenant Place logo was a refresh of the legacy brand, using an updated expression of the Chai, the Jewish symbol for “living”. Each identity followed a pattern of clean, friendly typography highlighted by a singular green element. Bright, bold colors were chosen to evoke energy and life.

Designed for Everyday Life

The brands were designed to reflect the vibrancy of the community but also for ease-of-use by our client’s internal team. To help with this, we provided a range of communications templates and built the three websites in WordPress to make updating them easy. Given the age of many end users, accessibility was a key factor in determining the brand aesthetic on print and digital communications.

Pathways to Independence

Posted by Chris Spurlock

Finding Potential

Pathways to Independence is an organization that helps people with developmental disabilities navigate life. More so, it’s a social network and support system for people who deserve to go out and thrive but simply lack the tools or confidence to do so. Once we understood how the vital role the organization plays in helping them connect with the world and realize their potential, our focus quickly shifted to the word “to” — the least assuming yet most mobile word in the organization’s name.

Project Highlights

Brand & Messaging Strategy

UX Design

Coding & Development

Copywriting

Speaking the Brand Language

As we soon discovered, the word “to” unlocked a verbal and visual brand narrative that is an expression of the journey Pathways to Independence members take. Superimposed on photographs that exhibit a wide range of program activities, these messages serve as constant reminders of what’s possible. As part of a comprehensive brand guide, we crafted an extensive list of goals and outcomes inspired by the organization’s mission for the client to mix and match into these brand statements.

Make It Ownable

Early on, we established two non-negotiable creative rules: The brand needed to be accessible, and it needed to look cool. Our team looked to fashion, music and a wide range of other pop genres for design inspiration. But more importantly, all designs were measured against accessibility best practices. The result is a visually stunning brand that’s inclusive, confident and reflective of potential.

This especially bears out in the highly functional and engaging website we developed for Pathways — which also met key operational objectives. These included accommodating a new program category for young adults, creating a nimble UX to support further program expansion, and developing an interactive activity calendar to promote events and attract new participants.

Hoyleton Youth & Family Services

Posted by Chris Spurlock

Organized for outreach

As one of the largest providers of child welfare and family support services in Illinois, Hoyleton sought an updated web presence that would highlight the impactful stories of the people they help, while positioning Hoyleton as a full-service and holistic provider of care. The resulting site blends approachable and friendly entry points with a robust platform that can support donation and outreach campaigns; built with structural flexibilities that will allow it to grow along with the organization.

Project Highlights

Brand Strategy

UX Design

Web Development

Content Development

“I just spent some time on our new website, I think I might just have the best nonprofit website in the State. I can’t thank you and your great team enough.”

Chris C., President & CEO

Content with purpose

Hoyleton has important thought leadership and resources to share with clients, partners and lawmakers. Our team developed a robust web platform to organize and share this important content with their audience, creating a user experience that made their extensive database easily searchable.

Gulf South Clinical Trials

Posted by Chris Spurlock

Multiple Owners & Audiences

This multi-institution effort, which is funded by a federal NCORP grant, is led by Louisiana’s four leading cancer research and clinical institutions, brought together by the mission of expanding access to the latest advancements in cancer care. Magnetize worked within this complex stakeholder environment to develop an approachable, accessible site that integrated robust database functions and resources.

Project Highlights

Brand & Messaging Strategy

UX Design

Coding & Development

Copywriting

Data-Driven Design

A cornerstone of the NCORP grant’s mission is to provide patients and physicians with an efficient way to search available clinical trials near them. Working within a large-scale, complex national database, we created a user-friendly experience for both audiences that allows easy searching and sorting.

“We had a complicated mission for this website, and the Magnetize team really took the time to make sure each decision served that larger purpose. The end result is just great.”

Eileen M., Program Manager

Friendly science

The most significant positioning challenge for Gulf South was developing a messaging strategy and supporting aesthetic that would appeal to both physicians and patients, with varying levels of education and understanding of clinical trials. The result was a warm and straightforward tone, supported by a friendly color palette and diverse library of images — making the science more human.

Ranken Jordan

Posted by Chris Spurlock

Purposeful storytelling

As a pediatric bridge hospital, Ranken Jordan has a unique story to tell — providing therapy services and inpatient care for children transitioning from an acute hospital setting to home. Because families could spend a significant amount of time in the facility, they’re often apprehensive about the process. Partnering with Ranken Jordan’s development and operational teams, we created a series of videos that tell the story of existing patients and families to ease the mind of incoming patients, as well as educating donors and partnering health care facilities.

Project Highlights

Videography

Video Production

Animation Design

Content Strategy

“Magnetize has been able to tell our story in a way that appeals to both families of patients and potential donors, which isn’t always easy to do. They’ve done an excellent job understanding our vision and collaborating with our team.”

Steve L., Chief Development Officer

Concept > Reality

Magnetize worked alongside Ranken Jordan’s marketing team to provide comprehensive support for the video production — from initial concepts, storyboarding, script writing, interview facilitation, videography and art direction to animation and final production.

WashU PACS

Posted by Chris Spurlock

Recruiting with Purpose

A strong talent acquisition strategy is valuable to any employer, but it’s also becoming increasingly important in the competitive world of higher education as they recruit top students to their universities. For the audiology and deaf education programs at the WashU School of Medicine, they needed a platform that would not only sell their hands-on approach to learning but also the St. Louis community as a whole. The resulting position “Passion into Practice” and its associated materials leveraged the strong WashU brand while giving the programs their own voice and recruiting platform.

Project Highlights

Brand & Messaging Strategy

Talent Engagement

Graphic Design

Content Development

Photography

“We have a unique story to tell, and Magnetize captured it beautifully. It’s going to be a great vehicle for our recruiting efforts and we couldn’t be happier with their work.”

Beth E., Director, Finance and Student/Academic Affairs

The Wilson School

Posted by Chris Spurlock

Educating your audience

When the Wilson School needed to drive increased enrollment numbers, they sought a refreshed brand platform and message that would help them standout in a highly competitive St. Louis private school landscape. We created a fresh, vibrant look that added a level of sophistication to their materials, while still appealing to potential students and their parents.

Project Highlights

Brand Strategy

Messaging Strategy

Digital & Print Advertising

Marketing Materials

More through the doors

St. Louis parents have a lot of choices for their children’s education. How do you make one school’s message stand out? We developed a digital advertising strategy that paired tailored messages with specific audiences. This served as a hardworking extension of their elevated brand platform, leading to increased open house attendance and general inquiries.

North County, Inc.

Posted by Chris Spurlock

Authentic & Inspiring

Working alongside regional development organization North County Inc. and its multiple stakeholder groups, Magnetize developed an engaging and fresh brand platform that embraced the authentic stories of people and places that define North St. Louis County. After an in-depth discovery and research phase, we developed a creative, messaging and marketing strategy that aimed to inspire existing residents, while working to attract new residents and businesses to North County St. Louis. This involved collaborating with a wide variety of NCI’s existing vendor partnerships, to ensure the project stayed on track, on time and in budget.

Project Highlights

brand & Messaging strategy

Web & Digital strategy

messaging strategy

Photography

Video

Event Marketing

Branding a Place

Ultimately, one of NCI’s primary goals is to attract new businesses and residents to the area — to find their “True North.” By telling authentic stories that highlight stories of community, tourism, neighborhoods and commerce, a genuine and positive narrative will begin to emerge.

An illustrated map was developed as an anchor campaign image and graphic. The custom hand-drawn icons represent places and attractions that are special to the communities in North County, which when combined  with the authentic stories of community members and businesses paints a diverse and dynamic picture.

Spread the Word

One of our desired outcomes of this campaign was to develop a position that was broad enough to speak to a wide variety of personas and audiences, and evolve along with the campaign over several years. Using a mix of owned and paid campaign channels, we built specific, sustainable frameworks to spread the True North message. This included a variety of digital and traditional mediums, with the goal of driving the best possibility for exposure.

“Magnetize did an incredible job of navigating our complex stakeholder environment while providing spot-on creative and strategy. We’re confident the campaign they developed is going to help drive a fresh narrative.”

Rebecca Z., NCI President & CEO

The Healthy Schools Toolkit

Posted by Chris Spurlock

Finding People, Systems & Messages that Matter

As part of its mission to make communities healthier, inclusive and more sustainable, The Health Equity Works team at WashU’s Brown School wanted to help schools establish the best ways to support the health and well-being of their students and families. Magnetize partnered with the client to develop interactive ways to make 100+ pages of content engaging and user-friendly, to ensure the resulting document would be a highly useful tool for educators.

Project Highlights

Print Design

Content Strategy

Illustration

Publications

Interactivity

“Magnetize helped us transform a static, content-heavy document into something educators will really want to use and engage with. We couldn’t be happier with the result.”

Emily K., Project Coordinator

Systematic, Purposeful Design

Magnetize created a design framework and iconography system for the toolkit, in order to develop a visual language that would resonate with the user, providing natural engagement points throughout the document that would easily translate into web and other digital environments.

SWMW Law

Posted by Chris Spurlock

Breaking the corporate mold

SWMW Law has recovered more than $500 million on behalf of the victims of asbestos and other harmful products. As the firm continued to grow, they sought a refreshed brand that supported their mission to put people and families first. Magnetize developed a modern, crisp brand and identity, that paired seamlessly with their position “Because People Matter,” leveraging existing equity while exploring a warm, people-centric aesthetic that would set their brand apart from their corporate and traditional competitors

Project Highlights

Brand Strategy
Marketing Strategy
Content Strategy
Advertising
Photography
Video
Web & Digital Strategy

National Reach & Engagement

To help the firm identify more people that could benefit from their specific experience, Magnetize built a national, multi-channel marketing and advertising strategy that utilized a broad mix of traditional and digital media to create a comprehensive engagement platform. By developing specific personas and corresponding messages, the resulting tactics were targeted and robust.

Because People Matter.

Magnetize also worked with the firm to expand its mission statement into a strong messaging platform that focused on the people they help and their families. They do what they do every day Because Accountability Matters, Justice Matters, and most importantly, Because People Matter. This hierarchy enabled a broad range of uses for the message, and ensured a cohesive brand voice across platforms.

Listen to radio spots below.

 

Geeding Construction

Posted by Chris Spurlock

Family Forward

How do you evolve a family brand into a corporate entity without losing its culture? Magnetize worked with Geeding Construction to solve this challenge — refreshing their look and messaging to leverage their existing equity while pushing their brand forward. The gritty and bold aesthetic paired with the confident “Pipeline Focused. People Driven.” line promises to attract new customers and partners.

 

Project Highlights

brand strategy

identity design

business collateral

Love, Metro

Posted by Chris Spurlock

Show the Love

Keeping tenants happy (especially during major construction projects) requires smart and  engaged thinking. When Metropolitan Flats began its full-scale renovation of its 200+ units and common spaces, they wanted a creative and fresh approach to the “under construction” message. Our solution? A transition brand that wooed the tenants, letting them know it would all be OK.

 

Project Highlights

brand strategy

identity design

environmental design

business collateral

illustration

Metropolitan Flats

Posted by Chris Spurlock

Rising to the Occasion

Positioning starts with knowing your audience. When the Metro Lofts residential development in bustling Central West End in St. Louis needed a refreshed brand to align with its updated name and finishes, Magnetize worked to elevate the property’s appeal — with a modern look that would complement the textures of the building and attract young professionals who work on the adjacent health care campus.

 

Project Highlights

brand strategy

identity design

environmental design

business collateral

illustration

Grand Flats

Posted by Chris Spurlock

Authentically Urban

This new residential development, nestled in one of St. Louis’ busiest entertainment corridors, needed a fresh and vibrant brand to attract young professionals. Magnetize created a look that embraced the simple, clean lines of the building and the modern amenities of the units. The fresh and vibrant colors and strong typography accent the structure’s bold and modern statement.

 

Project Highlights

brand strategy

identity design

environmental design

business collateral

illustration

The Dorzé

Posted by Chris Spurlock

Past, Meet Present

Design-build firm Blackline challenged Magnetize to create a brand and identity for its new residential development that would celebrate the building’s unique history and its new, modern interior. The ornate stonework of the building inspired the brand’s linework, while the name of the property, The Dorzé, drew inspiration from the building’s original occupant, the Dorr Zeller Catering Company.

 

Project Highlights

brand strategy

identity design

environmental design

business collateral

illustration

Grace Hill Brand & Communications

Posted by Hannah Miller

Everyday Opportunity

As a nonprofit focused on creating a strong, self-sustaining St. Louis, Grace Hill wanted a brand refresh that would engage and inspire neighbors, families and potential donors alike. We started by developing the line “Everyday Opportunity,” which captures the mission and possibilities this important organization provides. The accompanying logo works as a natural extension of this brand position, inspired by hope and promise of a better tomorrow.

Project Highlights

brand strategy

web & digital strategy

publications

Content strategy

identity design

photography

fundraising

Collaborative Communications

Our team has collaborated with Grace Hill on a broad range of multi-faceted, ongoing communications to support its programs and fundraising efforts. This work has included social/digital campaigns, direct mail and publications. One highlight is their Annual Report to the Community, which celebrates the year’s successes with messages and images of hope. The bright colors, candid photography and bold typography are all a seamless extension of their brand — inspired by the positive impact Grace Hill has on so many families.

A Growing Understanding

In order to have anyone buy into an idea, especially one that calls for monetary giving, they have to understand who we are, what we do, and why their help or donation is impactful. We used a local approach, as Grace Hill serves those throughout the St. Louis city, but we also presented a big picture idea with Grace Hill’s partnership with Head Start, a national organization. Specified targeted allowed us to target a variety of people (ages, locations, affinities, etc.) while keeping our demographic relevant and wide spread based on likelihood to donate.

Facebook:
New Page Likes: 88
Average Post Likes: 38

 

Instagram:
New Followers: 12
Average Post Likes: 127

Total Giving:
545% increase over previous appeal

“You have always taken great care to understand the nuances of our mission and values, and give our brand that same level of thoughtful attention.”

Laura K., Interim President

Arterra

Posted by Chris Spurlock

An Urban Standout

When Altus Properties began development on Arterra, a luxury high-rise in Kansas City’s Crossroads Arts District, they sought a compelling brand that would complement the vibrant, eclectic neighborhood. Our team immersed ourselves in the environment, ultimately crafting the position Authentically Urban, reflective of the building’s unique architecture and dynamic surroundings. Inspired by an artist’s signature and by constructing a mixture of mediums — photography, pastels, paint and ink — into a distinct brand pattern, the result is an aesthetic that blends local art and urban culture with relaxed sophistication.

2020 National SMPS Marketing Communication Award Finalist

Project Highlights

brand strategy

identity design

environmental design

business collateral

illustration

“Magnetize really took the time to consider the larger context of this project and how to best connect with potential tenants. They delivered a highly functional, beautiful brand that helped make this property a standout.”

Josh U., Managing Director, Development

Enterprise Car Sales Recruiting

Posted by Chris Spurlock

Let Me Talk to My Manager

The car sales industry isn’t what it used to be. Once the target of unflattering jokes, today’s salespeople are career professionals, focused on customer service. Enterprise Car Sales needed an impactful campaign that erased these lingering misconceptions and increased awareness of the exciting career opportunities within this reformed and growing sector of their business.

Project Highlights

Content Strategy

web & digital strategy

identity design

internal communications

recruiting

We Don’t Just Sell Cars

Enterprise Car Sales is a significant business unit within Enterprise Holdings. While rental or corporate are historically viewed as the most attractive divisions in which to work, Car Sales experienced double digit growth in 2015, and has continued on an upward trajectory. A career in Car Sales comes with the opportunity for tremendous growth, and the division needed a way for potential recruits to understand that with immediacy in this campaign.

External Message to Internal Mantra

From the beginning, our goal was to build a campaign that not only resonated with an external pool of candidates, but also established a framework for consistent and impactful internal communications and recruiting efforts. Previous materials were dated and disjointed, and didn’t properly align with the success, professionalism and consultancy of the Car Sales team.

A Hard-Working Campaign

Starting with a communications audit and stakeholder interviews, the result was a modular messaging platform that enabled immediate understanding of Car Sales career benefits — as well as tying into their concurrent consumer marketing campaign. Our creative made use of actual sales consultants and their personal stories. The photography is confident, direct and bold; and the subjects represent both the demographic of Car Sales associates and goals of potential hires.

We then extended the messaging and aesthetic across all channels and tactics, developing presentation materials, posters, event invitations, email marketing, and a comprehensive, downloadable guide for prospecting talent. Bonus: Car Sales elevated their division brand among broader Enterprise Holdings audiences, offering career opportunities and movement that aligned with Enterprise Holdings “promote from within” philosophy.

Siteman Cancer Center Expansion

Posted by Hannah Miller

Caring for Communities

Siteman Cancer Center has relied on members of our team since opening their first facility in 1999. Now a recognized national leader in cancer research and treatment, Siteman has expanded with satellite locations across the St. Louis region, furthering its mission to bring accessible, world-class care to its patients. For each of these efforts, Siteman partnered with Magnetize to create a campaign and messaging strategy that would engage with each specific audience about the new facilities.

Project Highlights

brand strategy

identity design

event marketing

advertising

video

Environmental design

Barnes-Jewish Hospital Brain Works

Posted by Chris Spurlock

Brand for Thought

Washington University and Barnes-Jewish Hospital’s annual BrainWorks event is a fun and informative evening that celebrates all the complexities of the human brain — and the innovative technology and therapies their leading neurology team offers. We developed a look that aligned with this innovative feel, using modern colors and graphics that translated into engaging digital, motion and print materials.

Project Highlights

event marketing

Identity design

video

illustration

Graybar Communications

Posted by Chris Spurlock

Making It Modern

Graybar Electric Company wanted their communication materials to reflect the innovation and efficiency they deliver to customers. Magnetize responded with a simplified and modern design system, enabling this industry leader to communicate with agility and confidence.

Project Highlights

Brand Strategy

Identity Design

Advertising

Publications

Illustration

Content Strategy, Reinvigorated

Reworking Graybar’s existing content strategy, our approach was to create a compelling, consistently engaging narrative. Using this framework, our team has successfully weaved their mission, vision and values throughout every page. This often overlooked yet so important message is no longer just highlighted, but guides the reader through the narrative. We pair this reinvigorated content with striking photography of Graybar employees sharing stories of how they live the mission, vision and values in their everyday work.

Celebrating a Rich Tradition

Graybar’s Outlook is one of the oldest internal company publications in the country — its first issue printing in 1936. Magnetize redesigned this employee-loved quarterly to have a more “chunky” content style that invites readers to pick and choose sections of interest, versus reading long-form narrative front-to-back. Each spread is designed to provide a compelling entry point into the magazine, although we hear many employees still enjoy reading Outlook front-to-back. The reimagined publication was also recognized by the Hermes Creative Awards, an international design competition, as 2016 Platinum Winners.

“As an employee-owned company, the Outlook is a critical part of Graybar’s culture. The team at Magnetize continues to help improve the quality of the magazine while preserving its legacy at our company.”

Tim S., Corporate Communications Manager

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