99 TECH
TYPE: Branding
CLIENT: 99 Tech Ltd.
DATE: Feb 2019 - Mar 2019
Background
99Tech is a is a rapidly expanding multinational corporation which welcomes talents with various skill sets in customer service and telemarketing. Company's mission is to empower our staffs with an unparalleled working experience, and indulge them in a healthy working environment, so that our staffs can find their identities and have a long-term career development in the Group.
As the Web Designer, I played a crucial role in the shift towards the company’s new design direction. A few of my top priorities included designing a new brand style guide, website design, marketing assets, social media design, and presentation templates.
Objective
To give the company a new identity system, such as a logo, website, multiple campaign media, and peripheral products. Aim to update their outdated old style, and breakthrough the lack of story of style.
Conducting Research
Owing to the company was establish from just several years, they don't have sufficient resources to make a company culture research. In other words, a startup has to operate the business and build a corporate image at the same time. Under this condition, I try to gather information by myself step by step.
Process
1. Understand the company's value
2. Developing / Clarifying strategy
3. Collected referable visual impression
1. Understand the company's value
First Step
I asked the employees' positioning of the company.
People at the company thought that they were mostly built up from some young age person, and always full of energy and enthusiasm. They provide some vocabulary to describe company, such as VIBRANT, YOUNG, COOL, FREE and so on. Another side, I asked some leaders of the company for another question which I want to talk about the disadvantage of the company in an anonymous way.
According to the key management opinion, obviously came out more unsatisfying points in terms of the policies of the company. The most part of them said the problem was the company didn't have steady discipline in public. For instance, the different departments had different leave work standards. The second was market positioning was not specific compare to another similar industry.
2. Developing / Clarifying strategy
Developing a brand strategy takes a combination of rational thinking and marketing strategy to create a powerful brand for the company internally and for its customers externally.
In developing a new brand strategy, it is important to look closely at the company in terms of how you wish it to be portrayed and also from the perspective of the customers; what do they want and whether the brand was satisfied their needs.
More often than not, a completed new brand strategy is not required, It may be that some of the elements are already defined and in place, and just need bleeding together to create a unified message and identity that needs to take through to the process.
The brand mission is the reason why the company exists or the thing it is working towards to achieve. A compelling enough mission will resound with people immediately and attract them towards the business.
I listed down several objective branding statements through conducting research.
The 99TECH's statement was “Touch the world, Accomplish the future.” resonates deeply with their target consumers and a wider range of people. All of their business practices reflect this mission.
One of the most successful endeavors to prove 99TECH missions is accurate SEO service, a program where customers can expose their web pages in the extending searching engine or efficient connect to relative keywords in different network platforms. An effort to decrease customer's marketing costs and promote sustainability converted rate. Easily leading clients to broaden their company to a world.
3. Collected referable visual impression
Having read the analysis and strategy report, I used my experience, intuition, imagination, and creativity to develop the strategy into a visual representation of the brand.
According to individual characters were put forward at the beginning, this gives me some connections in the way on the left graphic. I used my own way of thinking, but designing a corporate identity will involve time and patience, and will start by developing several ideas which over time, will be condensed down into one final concept.
When designing a brand identity, I look in detail at a number of key areas and whether they accurately represent the values and personality set out in the strategy. For instance, most people saw a bright color will be delighted and fill in energy, and that was what I want in an alternative direction.
The visual elements of the brand that convey who or what the business is. The company devoted to providing customers the best solution in a moment. That's the reason I used the straight-line vector , trying to use an imagery metaphor as a rapid movement. Start thinking about how the brand to be perceived through its website, graphic design, logo, advertisements, products, etc.
I avoided bogging down with technical details or a long list of meanings. My goal was determined to create an identity where the brand evoked creativity, innovation, rebellion, and a modern lifestyle. With reference to a bright color arrange to a dark background, similar to a beam of light irradiates into a dark room, while showed obviously contrast colors.
Designing Identity
Establishing Logo Outline
The design process begins by creating a logo, which will become the graphical representation of the brand. Colors, fonts, shapes, and icons are all considered to create something unique, eye-catching and illustrative of the brand.
An overall brand identity is also created to give a look and feel to the brand. On any marketing document for a brand, I should be able to cover up the logo and still know what brand it belongs to, just from the colors, imagery, typography, styling, etc. Therefore, I took advantage of linking graphics to symbolize that the company was good at teamwork and well connected to the client.
Some of my initial sketch.
Final Design
99 TECH went through a process of discovery before landing on an Individual, modern look. I went through several iterations and approached the design. I built upon the previous style guide and eventually updated it as an individual, modern as well as vibrant look.
This design is inspired by numbers nine, which means permanent and infinity in Chinese. The style of the icon is individuality, features a strong brand mark with a vibrant, brief style. Yellow evokes happiness, youth, and optimism, but can also seem attention-grabbing or affordable.
I choose bright yellow as a primary color, this helps consumers to quickly identify a brand. Then black and grey are other core colors of the brand and incorporated into a company’s logo.
I introduced a more saturated color into the website to make the product images pop. Use of negative space allowed for presentations to breathe simply and to be updated with a more professional look.
The same pattern was extended by the logo and combined with the background, this was one of my ingenuity. The streamlined graphics full of speed make the company's webpage more active.
The front and back of the business card were the main colors of the trademark. The logo was attached with a watermark effect and a glazing effect on the back in order to avoid a frivolous and unprofessional impression.
Through the existing frame of the logo, I changed the filling effect. I used a variety of slanted lines to compare the oblique angle of the logo. I also painted some delicate icons by myself, further added liveliness to the overall and give the audience imagination.
Hiring flyers and interior design.