🕊️ Crafting a Cohesive Identity: The NYC PCA Brand Style Guide
Lorena Alvarez
Description
The NYC Peace Corps Association is a non-profit organization that supports returned Peace Corps volunteers in the New York City area. They approached me to design a new visual identity that would help them better communicate their mission and values and to create a brand style guide to ensure consistency in their visual communication.
My Role
I helped New York City Peace Corps Association by giving coherence to their visual identity through a new style guide. This visual brand guidelines/style guide included specific colors, primary and secondary typefaces, sizing and buffer space guidelines for their logo, examples of incorrect logo usage, and any other graphic design elements, to guide users in print and digital communications materials. This also included an icon package to enhance and supplement their social media and branding products.
Goals: The main goals for this project were to create a visual identity that:
- Reflects the organization's mission and values
- Appeals to their target audience (returned Peace Corps volunteers and supporters)
- Differentiates the organization from other nonprofits in the same space
- Is versatile and can be used across different mediums (print, digital, merchandise, etc.)
Process: To begin the project, I conducted research on the NYC Peace Corps Association's mission, history, and target audience. I also researched other nonprofits in the same space to get a sense of the visual landscape and to identify any opportunities for differentiation.
Based on my research, I developed several design concepts that explored different visual directions. I presented these concepts to the NYC Peace Corps Association team, and we worked together to refine the chosen concept.
Once we had a finalized concept, I created a full visual identity system, which included a logo, color palette, typography, and imagery guidelines. I also designed a brand style guide that outlined how the visual identity should be used across different mediums.
Brand Style Guide: The brand style guide I delivered to the NYC Peace Corps Association included the following sections:
- Brand Story: A brief overview of the organization's mission, history, and values.
- Logo Usage: Guidelines for how the logo should be used across different mediums, including size, placement, and color variations.
- Color Palette: A reference of the organization's color palette, including RGB and CMYK values.
- Typography: Guidelines for how typography should be used across different mediums, including font sizes and usage examples.
- Imagery Guidelines: Guidelines for how photography and other visuals should be used across different mediums, including tone, style, and content.
- Application Examples: Examples of how the visual identity could be applied across different mediums, including business cards, letterhead, social media graphics, and merchandise.
The Outcome
After discussing the branding goals, target audience, and preferred design elements with the NYC PCA Director I drafted the visual branding guidelines, which featured a mission statement, a specific set of colors, fonts, correct logo usage, and any custom graphical elements to be incorporated into future communications. I incorporated feedback and prepared the final version. Then, I provided the completed high-resolution assets for digital and print use. This project is estimated to save them $4,212, allowing them to continue to do internal process work.
Results
The NYC Peace Corps Association was thrilled with the new visual identity and brand style guide. They felt that the visual identity accurately reflected their mission and values and that it set them apart from other nonprofits in the same space.
