Critical Reflections of Design Project A

Click to enlarge

Click to enlarge

Click to enlarge

Click to enlarge

I believe great design can change the world. It can persuade and motivate the community to act in the interest of others. With this belief in mind, I chose to structure my Design Project A around a brief created for the 2010/11 Royal Society of Art’s Student Design Awards entitled Giving and Getting. At its core, the brief asks the student to design something that will help an existing charity increase its fundraising abilities. It states, “Make it easier for people to give, or make it easier for charities to ask – or both.” Obviously, the solution could come in many shapes and sizes.

Choosing the charity for my project was simple. The Blue Cross is a notable animal welfare organization operating in Great Britain. Helping animals has always been a cause that I have personally supported and having just gained part-time employment at one of the charity’s facilities, I knew I would be able to access the resources needed to conduct quality research to help make the project a success.

To kick off my research, I began reading informational publications produced by The Blue Cross. I brushed up on its history and took stock of its services and evident communication methods. I then organized these notes into a research map, a process that helped me digest the mountain of information and uncover further questions to direct my research. From there, I continued my secondary research by looking into other animal welfare organizations operating in Britain as well as the theory behind classic charity marketing tactics including identity and positioning.

With all of this information stuffed into my brain, I prepared to conduct my first stage of primary research – an interview with a member of The Blue Cross’ communications staff. My conversation revealed that though a significant charity, The Blue Cross is neither the largest nor the most recognizable animal welfare organization in the country. The charity is aware that its current branding does not assist in making its purpose and services clear and they are beginning discussions on how to make the brand more appealing to a wider audience. I was also given a key piece of past research the company conducted – The Blue Cross Supporter Donor Profile – which outlines who typically gives to the organization, how and why. It showed that the majority of current donors are female – which is typical of most charities. Those leaving large cash donations are typically older (age 65 to 74) and those leaving repeated smaller donations are typically middle aged (age 35 to 44).

To further my primary research, I tested the conclusions of the Supporter Donor Profile on a small sample set of friends. Those who I surveyed fell within the age range that was found gave least to the charity. I slowly revealed The Blue Cross’ current logo to the participants, asking them which associations they made with the symbol, color, name and tagline. The majority did not realize that the organization assisted animals until the tagline, “Britain’s Pet Charity”, was disclosed.

At this point, the purpose of my project was beginning to take shape. I had as a topic an animal charity that many people did not recognize because of its wide array of services supported only by a generic name and branding. Renaming the charity completely was an option however, its existing title does have communication benefits. With over 50 years of history built into it and an automatic association with one of the most well known charities operating today – The Red Cross – I decided that keeping its current name would be best and that my design challenge was to inject meaning into it visually.

With guidance from tutors and classmates, I proposed to meet the original design brief by developing a practical and visually appealing brand identity for The Blue Cross. By giving the charity these necessary communication tools, it would be able to create more awareness of its services and therefore entice the public to give. Though the overall branding would need to appeal to a general public audience, I also proposed to develop an advertisement campaign that would germinate with an audience the organization wasn’t currently reaching effectively – young adults age 18 to 34.

With my project proposal nailed down, I dove into sketching and concept development. I began exploring typography and color options and illustrating a new animal-related symbol for the logo that still incorporated the cross. For the advertisement campaign, inspiration came early on when I began investigating an idea that was brought up during the survey process. The cross symbol could also be interpreted as a plus sign. I began illustrating pictograms in several different styles and composing them into equations. The equations could visually communicate a service The Blue Cross offers or a call to action for the community.

Throughout the concept development process, I sought input from lecturers, classmates, friends and coworkers. My university colleagues were able to provide excellent advice to strengthen the overall design, while my friends could provide insight into how the target audience would react to the advertisement campaign. The views of my coworkers were equally as important because, as employees of The Blue Cross, they would ultimately be relied upon to implement and support the new brand platform. These collective opinions helped me to narrow down the options and I was able to settle on a logo using the cross sign as a plaster on an animal paw, a monochromatic blue color palette, and a whimsical, simple and inviting set of pictograms for the equations. I also designed a system by which the color palette and illustrations could be used to categorize communications detailing different aspects of the charity, such as adoption services, volunteering, pet care, etc.

Conclusions

When I reflect back on the finished product, I am reminded of the challenges and surprises I faced while developing my work. Before this project, I had rarely ever illustrated so expanding upon my skills and style was a challenge, but also a rewarding learning process. It was also difficult to not let my own subjective design ideas overwhelm the overall design and alienate certain audiences. Creating many options and ideas and taking input from others allowed me to find common ground between the two and create something that would appeal to both me and the target audience.

What I found most surprising during my project was all the different aspects that have to be considered while developing a brand platform. An effective visual identity has to be relevant, versatile and practical enough to be applied in all the applications an organization needs to communicate within. In addition to this, it has to be eye catching and beautiful. Reaching a solution that successfully ticks both of these boxes is no easy task. Luckily, and this is perhaps the greatest lesson I learned from this module, employing a thorough and complete research process from the inset of the project can help to reveal a clever, effective and informed design solution.

Bibliography

Battersea Dogs & Cats Home. Battersea Dogs & Cats Home. Web. November 2010. http://www.battersea.org.uk.
Bennett, Audrey, ed. Design Studies: Theory and Research in Graphic Design. New York: Princeton Architectural Press, 2006.
Bhaskaran, Lakshmi. Size Matters: Effective Graphic Design for Large Amounts of Information. UK: RotoVision, 2004.
Blue Cross, The. Annual Review 2009. 2009.
Blue Cross, The. Blue Cross Supporter Donor Profile. 2010.
Bruce, Ian. Charity Marketing: Meeting Need Through Customer Focus. London: ICSA Publishing, 2005.
Dogs Trust. Dogs Trust. Web. November 2010. http://www.dogstrust.org.uk.
Get to know a dog – Staffies. RSPCA. Web. November 2010. http://www.rspca.org.uk/getinvolved/campaigns/rehomeadog.
Give Animals a Voice. RSPCA. Web. November 2010. http:www.giveanimalsavoice.org.uk.
Khan, Sophia. Interview with Julia Nickerson. 1 November 2010.
People’s Dispensary for Sick Animals. PDSA. Web. November 2010. http://www.pdsa.org.uk.
Political Animal. RSPCA. Web. November 2010. http://www.politicalanimal.org.uk.
Roberts, Lucienne and Julia Thrift. The Designer and the Grid. UK: RotoVision, 2005.
Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. RSPCA. Web. November 2010. http://www.rspca.org.uk.
Survey of Blue Cross Identity. Survey by Julia Nickerson. November 2010.
The Blue Cross. The Blue Cross. Web. November 2010 – January 2011. http://www.bluecross.org.uk.
Well-Vetted Gifts. PDSA. Web. November 2010. http://www.wellvettedgifts.co.uk.

Thoughts down on paper

I spent a lot of time last week playing around with and combining typography, color and illustration to see what could work and what wouldn’t work as the new Blue Cross identity. I’m coming up with concepts for a revised logo and also brainstorming various presentation ideas – the most successful of which I feel will be “the equation”. Through the use of eye-catching pictograms, I’m hoping I can develop a series of equations using the cross as a plus sign. Ideally they will attractively and clearly communicate various Blue Cross calls to action – donate, volunteer, adopt, learn more, etc. The following are some placement tests of the various illustration styles and logos I’ve developed thus far.

Click to enlarge

Click to enlarge

Click to enlarge

Click to enlarge

Click to enlarge

Click to enlarge

Takin' care of business

To ensure I stay on track to meet the Jan. 20 deadline for the RSA/Design Project A, I created this timeline and corresponding check list.

Click to enlarge

Click to enlarge

Click to enlarge

What's in a name?

My research for Design Project A to date has led me to one clear problem – The Blue Cross is not understood by the general public because of the ambiguity infused within its name and branding.

This week, I spent quite a bit of time reading through a very helpful text entitled Charity Marketing: Meeting Need Through Customer Focus by Ian Bruce. In it, Bruce delves deep into what makes a successful charity brand. To determine this, one must examine the organization’s “presented identity” including the name of the charity itself. Bruce states that a well-positioned name must be distinctive, relevant, memorable and flexible. Using this as criteria, I’m going to evaluate Blue Cross’ current name and branding scheme by giving a small visual survey to a small sampling of people.

Readers of my blog can check out the survey here and leave their responses in the comments field below.

Proposition - Design Project A

Below is a quick snap shot of my proposal for the RSA project - giving and getting.

Research progress - Design Project A

This week I met with a member of The Blue Cross media relations team and made general inquires about the organization’s general communications strategy and how the fundraising and communications departments are structured. She was able to give me a general overview and suggest other departments and employees I could meet with to learn more. She was able to provide a key piece of past research the company conducted – The Blue Cross Supporter Donor Profile – which outlines who typically gives to the organization, how and why.

I have written up key issues discussed but will not post them here in case they consider the information classified.

Also, this week I conducted some secondary research into other top animal charities in Britain and noted their apparent branding and messaging tactics. I noted what about them made them clearly recognizable as an organization for animals. I observed their use of social media and whether it appears successful or not.  I also researched other organizations with similar names that could highlight the causes of some of the confusion behind Blue Cross’ purpose.

I then took a look at how these organizations approach their messaging. Many, like the Blue Cross, take a conservative approach. Imagery is typically an animal suffering. This may or may not be followed up by images of the animal rehabilitated.

Dogs Trust:

Dogs Trust YouTube page:

PDSA:

PDSA "Well Vetted" online gift site:

RSPCA:

RSPCA "Give Animals a Voice" site:

RSPCA "Political Animal" site:

RSPCA "Think Pig" Facebook application:

The only one that clearly deviated from this strategy was the RSPCA. Though they discuss very serious issues, they are able at time to approach it in a humorous way. To quickly illustrate the different impacts – check out the overview videos of the Blue Cross and RSPCA.

Further research to be done:

Primary:

• Follow up with members of the Creative Services and Direct Marketing teams that were suggested. Request informational interviews
• Investigate other Blue Cross facilities (shelters, shops, etc.) in the area to visit and meet staff
• Continue observing everyday interactions of clients and staff at Blue Cross Victoria hospital
• Try to get in touch with communications team of other charities researched to get a firm understanding of whether strategies noted above have been successful or not

Secondary:

• Research animal charities in other parts of the world and note their communications strategies – are they similar/different?
• Read up on the psychology that fuels giving. Do those that typically give to other charities match the profile of the average Blue Cross supporter?
• Read up on the psychology behind companion animals. Why do people love their pets? What here can be exploited in messaging?

Research map - Design Project A

The brief I’m exploring is “Giving and getting” and I chose to kick off my research by looking into a specific animal charity in Great Britain – The Blue Cross. I researched the organization via it’s corporate website and other online sources – taking note of its resources and evident communications methods.

I then organized these notes into a research map that would help me better digest them and uncover further questions. The map I created is organized into who, what, where and why sections. As in:

• What can be donated? What are the resources the organization needs from the public in order to function?
• Who donates or could donate? Who should be targeted?
• Why do people donate? What are the motivations?
• Why don’t people donate? What are the barriers?
• Where can people donate? What are the touchpoints between organization and public where resources are donated?

I drew lines between the list of resources and the possible motivations and barriers associated with each one. For example, those without the proper living environment would not be inclined to adopt an animal while those with spare time (i.e. students or retired persons) might be inclined to volunteer.

Around the map, I noted various methods by which the organization could reach the public with information. Those noted in red were ones I wasn’t sure existed or I thought might need improving. I also included a small key at the bottom of the map and the key goals of the brief to refer back to.

I placed notes throughout the map to identify missing information that is specific to the organization (in orange) and further research that needed to be done on my own (in pink). I came up with the following questions:

Individual research questions:

• What typically motivates people to give?
• What typically motivates people to give to animals?
• The role companion animals play in society. Why do people love their pets?
• Do other animal charities require different resources?
• Have other animal charities attempted to overcome barriers listed? Were they successful?

Questions for organization:

• What demographic gives most and who gives least?
• How are various demographics targeted differently?
• Has any formal research been done by Blue Cross (i.e. focus groups, case studies) to uncover target audiences or barriers to giving?
• Media relations: what outlets are typically targeted (i.e. print, TV, radio, online)?Have timely barriers occurred due to recent economic changes? How have they impacted the organization and how have you changed your communications strategy to accommodate?
• What current partnership relationships exist and are they being exploited to their fullest potential?
• What outreach method works best in encouraging giving and which doesn’t work at all or needs to be reworked?
• Is paid advertising an outreach method or can you obtain donated space or work with partners/sponsors on joint campaigns?