Case Study: Real Client Branding Project

To start, I researched the demographics for the area and who the competition was. Spark Lab's target market are kids from the ages of 8-18 that are attending school in suburban areas. They would be middle to upper class because they need to have disposable income to pay for the classes. All genders and races are ideal. 

 

Next I really wanted to understand what the brand wanted to feel like. So, I held a meeting with my client and discussed brand nouns and attributes to make sure I could complete their vision. 20 brand nouns were decided and were microscope, telescope, rocket, gear, robot, magnet, lab flask, test tube, breaker, bolt, toolbox, notebook, battery, nut, light bulb, DNA spiral, brain, tool belt, hammer, and screwdriver. The top 5 brand attributes were community-minded, craftsmanship, scientific, creative, and problem-solving.

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After figuring out the brand nouns and attributes I then created three different mood boards that my client could choose from. As shown below. The first one was earthy and slightly moody. The second one was playful yet professional. The third one was retro and had a super science feeling to it. I met with my client and they chose mood board #2. 

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Now that a mood board had been picked, I could start logo design. I started sketching different ideas that came to mind using the brand nouns, attributes, and mood board. I made 3 word marks and 3 icons to start.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Using my 6 starting points I made 3 potential logo options. I did this by combining some of my ideas into one. I decided to really focus on a mix of playful yet modern type to help sell the mood board feeling. Once I was satisfied with the 3 options I made a presentation to present the 3 logos along with two mockups of each logo to help sell them. After my meeting my client gave me minimal revisions which I made and ultimately chose the first logo. ​

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To complete this project I made a style guide for my client. I included all of the brand overview, demographics, mission, vision, logos, patterns, what to do and not to do, sizing guides, color palettes, and typography to follow. This made sure that the client knew all the information they would need and keep a consistent branding look.

 

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This project taught me a lot. Starting with how to conduct a real life client branding meeting. I learned professionalism, important steps to creating a brand, using nouns and attributes to save time and resources, and just being creative and having fun with the process. For me, it was super exciting to see everything come together and how each person has a different idea of what they want. This project means a lot to me and I will remember what is has taught me.