The Mid-American Regional Center Branding

Business Card
Front (left) & Back (right)

Folder Outside
Front (right) & Back (left)

Folder Inside
(One Pocket)

Inside Content
Page 1

Inside Content
(Pages 2-3)

Inside Content
(Pages 4-5)

Inside Content
(Pages 6-7)

Projects Card
(Housed in Back Pocket)

Envelopes
9"x12" (left) & #9 (right)

Letterhead

Branding: The Mid-American Regional Center

The Mid-American Regional Center, or TMARC, is a group of lawyers that sets up and supports foreign investments in American companies. This new partner company of Taft's is set to launch in the late spring of 2014. As a part of Taft, its marketing department was tasked with branding the fledgling company. My boss, Maria Porter, designed TMARC's logo before I became an intern. However, the rest of the branding, including the business card and collateral items above, was left up to me. 

While associated with Taft, The Mid-American Regional Center is its own entity. To show this, I utilized a combination of strong diagonal and horizontal lines as key design elements. The diagonal lines promote this companies' connection by mirroring the flag's slant in TMARC's logo as well as reflecting the backslash in Taft's logo. In contrast, the horizontal lines reflect the flag's stripes, a design element unique to TMARC.

This project taught me a new skill, branding. While working with in-house marketing teams has given me a lot of experience upholding and designing within a pre-established brand image, this was my first real world experience creating something from scratch. Translating the TMARC image across multiple media presented challenges, allowing me to employ my design problem solving skills. While the project is still underway, it's rewarding to be the driving force behind TMARC's brand growth.

Spa Day Invite

Final Design

Runner-up 1

Runner-up 2 

Web Design: Spa Day Invite

Each year, Taft's Professional Women's Resource Group invites all its members to a spa day, free of charge. This year, I was assigned to create three invitation designs, the best of which would be sent to each of Taft's guests via email. First, I looked for images that evoked the feeling of inner-peace, serenity, and balance. These traits, commonly lost in the shuffle of every day life, are often restored as a result of a spa visit. Therefore, an invite should reflect them as well. 

Runner-up 1 features a right-side-heavy background image, providing balance to the copy on the left. The white and yellow text and opaque boxes give a the invite a softness, a calming effect. Runner-up 2 features an image as well, but is more graphic heavy than Runner-up 1. The lines not only mimic the bamboo, but are inspired by the patterns on Japanese folding and sliding screens, another element commonly associated with the zen and balance. The winning design, Final Design,  is a variation of Runner-up 2, as it utilizes the same image and a similar layout. However, rather than Japanese screens, it's inspired by the yin-yang, the Chinese symbol of balance. The circles reflect not only the yin-yang symbol, but the shape of the rocks as well, smooth and circular. In addition to the circles, the image and text layout contribute to the overall feeling of balance and serenity. The use of red, the footer, and logo keep the overall design well grounded in the Taft brand image. In combination, the invite has both the essence of the spa and Taft.

New Hire Announcements

Print Version

Web Version

Graphic Design: New Hire Announcements
Every time a lawyer becomes a part of the Taft family he/she receives an announcement, for both print and web. The announcement's information, provided by the new hire, includes a brief description of the position the new hire is filling, his/her contact information, and Taft's website. In the case of Marianne, there is also a brief description of Taft, its office locations, and practice groups. My role in announcement production included an exercise in information design across multiple platforms. Aside from making it look pretty, I was expected to present the information in an organized fashion that allowed its audience do easily distinguish which information is most important. Utilizing font size, color, weight, and line spacing, I was able to create flow, leading the audience through the information hierarchy with ease. These elements work with the image and border to create a dynamic, yet professional, announcement that falls within Taft's overall branding.

Fourth of July Envelope

Fourth of July Card

Final Envelope

Runner-Up Design

Stationery Design: Fourth of July Envelope
While the while the Fourth of July card was pre-designed, I was tasked with creating an envelope to match. First, I laid out the information necessary for a functioning envelope, such as the address lines, return address, and Taft's logo. Next, to make the separately designed pieces appear as a cohesive set, I borrowed design elements from the card, such as the blue stars and fireworks.  Finally, I arranged all the elements to create two dynamic design options, expressing the familiar fun atmosphere the fourth of July delivers.