Strategy/Writing/Design | Connecting your message with your markets
Indiana/World Skating Academy provides a place to learn and have fun, providing elite coaching for world-class ice-skating competitors from around the work and family togetherness for local residents. Since it opened its doors in 1987, I/WSA has nurtured talent, added ongoing revenue to the City of Indianapolis, and donated ice time to other community organizations. … Continued…
[Please note: I’m only allowed to share the scripts of these spots and can’t identify the client’s location.] ——————– Lake Shore Community College attracts non-traditional students including single parents, 30- to 40-somethings who find their career prospects blunted by the lack of a degree, and recent high school graduates who want to complete general education … Continued…
The emerald ash borer first reached the United States in the 1990s, stowing away in wooden shipping crates bound for Michigan from China. In the emerald ash borer’s native habitat, many trees display natural immunity to it. Not so in the U.S., where thousands fall prey to the insect’s devastating effects every year. At historic … Continued…
The Phoenix Theatre, an Actors’ Equity member institution, presents diverse plays, including recent Broadway hits (which it’s often the first Midwest theatre to stage) and new works by Hoosier playwrights. It mounts its productions on two stages in a renovated church that’s been its home since 1988. Faced with ongoing needs for updates to its … Continued…
At Crown Hill Cemetery, the third-largest non-governmental cemetery in the U.S., one of its most famous of its memorials honors Mary Ella McGinnis, who died on August 6, 1875, at the age of six. If you stand in just the right spot at the right time of day, her monument appears to return your gaze. … Continued…
Naming a new company means creating an identity that’s not already registered for online use, which explains some of the (in my humble opinion) downright goofy names you see. For a tech-tutorial website concept focused on graphics software, I suggested the name “Undon’t” as the opposite of “Undo,” and created this logo to highlight the … Continued…
When the accounting firm of Lee R. Ford & Associates wanted a new logo, I created a two-color identity design featuring a trio of interlocking plus signs, symbolizing the mathematical underpinnings and precision of the firm’s practice. An optical illusion produces one of the plus signs out of the void between the other two, giving … Continued…
At the same time that Indiana educational trends pointed to rising high school dropout rates, many Hoosier college students who wanted to pursue teaching careers sought other opportunities because of the widening gap between teacher pay and the compensation in other professions. The Congressional Choice for Educational Excellence scholarship program was designed to help would-be … Continued…
[Please note: I’m only allowed to share the scripts of these spots and can’t identify the client’s location.] ——————– Most people mistrust used car sales operations, often with good reason. Many use high-pressure tactics to sell substandard vehicles at inflated prices. Aubrey’s wanted to use humorous depictions of customers’ worst fears to differentiate itself from … Continued…
For a technology-oriented company that specialized in providing computer systems and services targeting the graphic arts, I created a typographic logo that matched up precisely geometric letter forms with a swirling, graceful ampersand. The combination of hard-edged and curved shapes echoed the focus of the client’s business, aptly named for its products and its customers.
The Indianapolis Senior Center supported residents ages 50 and older with an extensive menu of services focused on independent living, good health and well being, intellectual and cultural enrichment, and travel and tourism. Its quest for a better alternative to its long-standing facility ended with the determination that buying and renovating its current facility offered … Continued…
[Please note: I’m only allowed to share the scripts of these spots and can’t identify the client’s location.] ——————– Lonnie’s customers describe their experiences at other vehicle repair shops, including franchises and dealerships, as a source of frustration. “How do I know whether the price is fair and the repairs are necessary! I’m not a … Continued…
ARCA racing team WebeRacing needed a high-visibility logo for its primary car, one that would be easy to prepare on a computer-driven vinyl cutter. My design highlights the “W” in the team’s name (also the last initial of its driver) with a look that spells “speed.”
Networking, IT, and civic-surveillance experts AllThingsIT wanted a set of sell sheets that presented the essence of some of its core services, establishing a personality for what otherwise might seem like an impersonal, intimidating part of business technology and infrastructure. I created a series of pieces that my client could print either in house or … Continued…
My client Thurston Springer’s logo printed using either four or five spot-color inks, including light gold, dark gold, dark blue, black, and an opaque white ink behind it when it appeared on dark backgrounds. I knew that reducing the number of inks required to render the logo would reduce my client’s printing costs, but the … Continued…
The Alliance of the American Dental Association is a national organization of dental spouses who support their life partners’ profession with community-education and legislative initiatives. AADA launched an outreach program called Senior Smiles, targeting the dental health of older adults. I created the campaign logo, along with a brochure designed to fit into kits of … Continued…
How do you set yourself apart in a crowded field? As B Plus C Communications, I wrestled with that question until I realized that my cat’s successful bids for attention achieved the same results as a successful marketing campaign. Solution to the capabilities brochure problem: Showcase the cat and tell his authentic story. Use his … Continued…
Automotive Sales Training Systems teaches vehicle salespeople to understand the needs and psychology of prospective buyers, creating the kind of trust that can guide transactions—and careers—to success. Less-effective but more-common training methods lead to sales-staff turnover, a widespread problem in the industry. After one year, ASTS graduates remain on the job at more than twice … Continued…
Crown Hill Cemetery embarked on a Master Plan to support this historic not-for-profit institution’s restoration, preservation, and community-partnership needs. Following up on the opportunities and challenges identified in this document, the Crown Hill Heritage Foundation used direct mail to reach its donor audience with a message about the cemetery’s origins. Titled “From Strawberry Hill to … Continued…
For Orthopaedics Indianapolis and its Eastern-Indiana practice, I wrote a pair of ads that used allover background images to showcase its clinicians’ expertise with routine injuries and those resulting from athletic competition. The athletic-themed ad targeted families. The more-general ad equated orthopaedic excellence with the artistic performance of a symphony orchestra. View or download the … Continued…