Who are we? Meet the Name and Identity Group

The name and identity group (Carla, Stan, Jacob, and Jamie), like the grid group, have been working hard since the first day of class. The decisions and ideas that this group puts forward help create cohesion and unity throughout the magazine. They have to work quickly, because many other pieces of the magazine depend on their creation. They also have to do high-quality work because they are representing the magazine, this class of information designers, and the discipline of information design as a whole. Here is a little more about how they decided to tackle this task.

So, what was your job?

Essentially, our job was to create the logo and tagline for the magazine. We make decisions about branding, colours, and how the logo should be applied. Our goal as a group was to create a logo that represented our class, as well as the information design program.

You chose Effekt. What is the meaning behind that name?

Effekt represents what information designers do best: make information as effective as possible. We design things to be usable and easy to understand-- for us, that what being effective is. We chose to spell Effekt with a “k” for a couple of reasons. First, it is the Swedish translation of “effect” and since our class is interested in intercultural communication, we thought this reflect the interests of our class. Second, the “k” is eye-catching and added some quirkiness to our logo.

What was your strategy? What methods did your group use to tackle this task?

It was important to us to remove all of the limitations to our brainstorming. One of our strategies was to use quantity to find quality. So, we did a lot of brainstorming, both as a group and individually. We developed a concept together, then broke off to come up with some ideas on our own. When we came together, we looked at each others names and tried them in different languages to see if they worked. Then, we presented our four favourite ideas to the class, and had them vote on their favourite. This way, everyone had a say in the name of the magazine, not just our group.

Stan explaining wordmark options to the class

Four variations of the Effekt wordmark

How did you manage to work as a group to create one name and identity? Who did what?

We did a lot of working together during class, then broke off to do our own thing. During class, we bounced our ideas off of each other and made any decisions that needed to be made. This worked well because we had the space to explore on our own time, and we could confirm that we were all on the same page during class. 

Our group meetings were also creative times that inspired our future work. For example, one of us suggested “effektive,” which is the Swedish spelling of effective. After seeing this, another member suggested shortening the name to “effekt” and put a new spin on the meaning. 

Carla and Stan, working together!

What challenges did you run into when you were working on this? What worked? 

Nothing went particularly badly, but we did find a few things challenging. First, 8am classes were hard for us...we’re not morning people. Second, we really wanted to find a name the reflected all the different aspects of Information Design, as well as the diverse nature of our class. Finding one concept that fulfilled that was difficult. Making decisions about which design to go with was also challenging. We had to leave our personal connections to the names we suggested out of the process; just because you are attached to a name doesn’t mean it’s the best choice for the class.

Lots of things went well. First, we were really good with our constructive criticism. We were honest with each other about names and designs. If we thought something didn’t work with a team member’s design, we told them. And no one took it personally. We handled this part of the process really professionally.

Another thing that worked well was presenting options to the class. We did two class votes: one on the name, and one on the wordmark. We really liked that everyone was involved in choosing the name and identity for their magazine. It was really democratic. 

If you could give advice to the students who will be doing this next year, what would you tell them?

A few things...

1. Get outside the classroom, because the classroom limits your thoughts. Our best ideas came up outside of the classroom while we were just fooling around. Remember, you are representing more than just yourself; you are representing the group of designers. 

2. Get the class to vote on your ideas. Get each member to present their best idea, and have the class vote on their favourite. This involves everyone in the process, because ultimately this is about all of us, not just the branding group.

3. Don’t get hung up on your individual ideas and designs. Open your mind up to criticism. 

Where are you at now? What is there left to do?

We are more or less done. We have to tweak the logo a little, and we are exploring some variations in terms of colour. We are working on creating a visual identity guide, but we are trying not to be too limiting with the rules. We are thinking of adding a homemade element to the magazine, like a sticker. Other ideas we are exploring are painting the logo right on the cover, or getting a special envelope to put the publication in.

Make magazines, not war: the magazine lab

This is where the magic happens.

In project management terms, this kind of space is called a war room. The project war room is a space dedicated to discussing issues and completing work related to a specific project. For us, the magazine lab is the physical focal point of our project. It is a great space for all of our many groups to meet, compare work, and share ideas. It’s in a convenient location (in the Communication Centre) and is easily accessible. Every Monday (and sometimes Wednesdays) we have stand-up meetings in this room. A stand-up meeting is a meeting where everyone remains standing to make the meeting feel informal and brief. We discuss the schedule, our short-term goals, and any issues that we need to address. 

This space is set aside specifically for our magazine, so our class feels a sense of ownership over it. We store our files here, keep resources, and even have a coffee maker. A lot of us like to work in this room on our own time, so it's also a great space for team bonding.

There are many features of our war room, as labeled in the photo above. One of the most notable features is the corkboard on the right. Each week, we post the latest iteration of our features and other magazine pages on this board. So with every passing week, we see our magazine nearing closer and closer to completion before our eyes. There's also a large Gantt chart on the back wall. We've indicated our target schedule, and each week we fill in where we are actually at. This way, we will have a better idea of how long the tasks we are working on actually take. 

Here are a few photos of the magazine lab and some of the things that happen there.

Flipping through one of the hundreds of resources available to us.

Laura and Elizabeth going over guidelines at the print production station with Ben.

Our wall-mounted Gantt Chart, with target dates and actual progress indicated. The paper on the right lists everyone according to their group.

Natasha, sketching for the magazine's front cover.

Our corkboard looking a little empty during the early stages of our feature production.

Sara adding a new iteration of her feature to the corkboard.

We have just completed our third draft of our features and posted the colour versions up in the magazine lab. The page development groups will be posting their concepts very soon. Our production groups are in full swing. The marketing group will have their social media pages up soon, so keep an eye out for those and make sure to show your support!

Colour drafts of our features... our magazine is beginning to take shape.