:: In 2021, I joined the marketing and design team at
RW Digital as an in-house designer. For over three years, I've helped to establish a new set of branding guidelines, enhance marketing efforts through impactful and educational design, and be part of the growth of a unique Canadian agency within a highly-competitive digital marketing industry ::
[ role: lead graphic & brand designer; web designer ] [ tools: various ]
// -- -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- -- //[ the challenge ]
RW Digital's analytics showed decent engagement via its website and a positive reputation through previous client work, but the agency's online presence and brand identity needed strengthening.
Prior to joining the agency, RW Digital already had a partially-established brand identity; after an audit with the agency principal, we discovered that the application of the guidelines was inconsistent and noted areas for improvement. Given the agency's main channels of communication are through its website and social media, we devised a goal to both improve the brand identity and make better use of social platforms to extends its reach.
[ goals ]
prioritizing agency needs
[ 🎨 Branding Guidelines ]
Create a new set of branding guidelines based on existing materials and media.
[ 💻 social media templates ]
Develop templates and visual guidelines for social media posts of varying types.
[ 📑 digital marketing content ]
Deliver acessible and high-quality content that educates viewers on digital marketing.
[ ✨ updated styling ]
Update and refresh the agency's website according to the new branding guidelines.
[ 📈 grwn clientbase ]
Encourage businesses to choose RW Digital as their primary go-to for digital marketing needs.
[ 🥇 industry leader ]
Establish RW Digital as a credible leader in the digital marketing industry through their services.
[ social media ]
Pulling the IG grid out of the toolbox.
One of the key goals with the brand refresh was to enact a new strategy for the agency's social media networks, supplemented by the new branding guidelines. Instead of relying just on the content, we experimented with using the Instagram grid layout to create a visually-appealing look for viewers. Our first strategy was to change the colour theme of posts every two months, shifting to the next hue in the spectrum and using organic shapes in the background.
While this strategy was successful, we found that it became difficult to connect the post themes to the colours outlined in the branding guidelines. After a second assessment, we created a new set of requirements for social media graphics:
[ 📑 digital marketing posts ]
Includes everything from GA4 guides to digital marketing news.
Colours: Shades of blue/teal.
Post Content: Follows sizing templates and adheres to accessibility guidelines for digital media.
Illustrations: Related to post topic.
[ 🤝 services testimonials ]
Highlights positive impact and results from agency services for clients.
Colours: Client branding.
Post Content: Uses testimonial template and adheres to accessibility guidelines for digital media.
Illustrations: Related to client.
[ 🎭 community events ]
Colours: Associated with event marketing.
Post Content: Primarily image-based.
[ 🎉 holidays ]
Style: Creative freedom provided to designer; can be easily identified as a holiday post by appearance.
This resulted in a more visually-cohesive social media presence, connecting businesses with an agency that prioritizes user needs and provides exceptional service.
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> digital marketing posts
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> services testimonials
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> sponsorships
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> community events
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> holidays
To view more of my work, visit RW Digital on Instagram →
@digital.rw[ agency website ]
the all-in-one site for services
Alongside the agency Principal, I was responsible for creating a new design for the agency website and apply the new branding guidelines to its structure. Given the agency's main channels of communication are through its website and social media, we devised a goal to both improve the brand identity and make better use of the website to extends its reach. We expanded the website to include service pages for the regions the agency serviced, simplified content to make it easier to understand for viewers, and performed usability checks for responsiveness and accessibility adherence. Additionally, we used language and copy that is easy to understand, encouraging and simplified — all while maintaining a level of professionalism and expertise that marks RW Digital as a leader in the Canadian digital marketing industry.
Using Google Analytics 4, we monitored key metrics to determine whether the website re-design had any impact on visitors looking for digital marketing services. We noted the following:
[ + 75% ]
Increase for scroll depth to 75% of pages on the website.
[ + 55% ]
Increase for scroll depth to 100% of pages on the website.
[ +++ ]
Increased visits to Testimonials page by prospective clients.
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[ visual ui ]
Approachable and modern
The styling of the agency website reflects the new branding guidelines, making use of Poppins as the primary typeface and a colour palette comprised of whites/blue/turquoise. Illustrations are hand-selected from the Cuate collection, depicting digital marketing and analytics scenes. We selected this visual style for its combination of playfulness and modernity, embracing the agency's adaptable nature to the shifting trends in digital marketing.
