design, photography & messaging | triple-b-marketing-2

graphics, design & messaging

creating standards for graphics & communications

challenge:

Create a messaging and branding system, graphically and verbally, for the nationwide AT&T retail network. How to create graphic standards including; typography, color pallet and tone-of-voice for the purpose of maintaining consistency and integrity across a nationwide retail network of more than 20,000 points of distribution. Integration and consistency are paramount.

insights:

Adherence to graphic, tone-of-voice and branding standards/guidelines, is a very difficult task to monitor, enforce and maintain over such a vast retail network. In order to create and evolve a world-class brand there is a necessity to clearly articulated and integrate all brand elements (brand DNA). Through in-field research studies, it was concluded that field personnel (management and associates alike) were taking creative and communications liberties with the brand, thereby creating inconsistent branding and messaging. It was also concluded that these branding violations were creating confusion among consumers from region to region, state to state and location to location.

approach:

Immediate action was necessary in order to gain compliance, consistency and overall brand integrity including: weekly communications with field management, distribution of information regarding applications and acceptable branding, tone of voice guidelines and execution. A graphics and verbal identity system was created with support from senior leadership and cross-functional collaboration. A feedback and communications platform was created and utilized in support of this continually evolving and vital process.

old school design

results:

Specific graphic guidelines were created, to exacting standards, complete with visual and tone-of-voice examples - setting the bar for acceptability and execution:
- Photography types; editorial, lifestyle, etc. (see examples below)
- Messaging/tone-of-voice was updated to be approachable, friendly and inviting (se examples below)
- Specific color pallet and production guidelines were created and updated thereby insuring flawless production and replication.
A field communications representative was appointed facilitating weekly field web/conferences creating a platform for cross-functional field partnerships - some of the accomplishments realized were as follows:
- the timely sharing of acceptable graphics and communications, inciting dialogue, greater understanding of expectations and trust resulting in a the reduction of branding and communications violations by greater than 70%*.
- field personnel reported an increases in satisfaction with home office personnel, communications, processes and procedures by 25 percentage points (45 to 70*).
- with consumers, "clarity of product information" increased scoring 79% (up from 48%**) along with an increase in "the right level of information" scoring 72% (up from 46%**).