“Building Community One Bike at a Time”

The Beltline Bike Shop is a neighborhood-driven organization that provides the opportunity for kids to earn a bicycle through community service. During this process, kids learn how to repair bikes, generate self-confidence through helping others, and develop lifelong relationships with members of their community.

Challenge

Every year, Matchstic and some of our wonderful partners gift a rebrand to a deserving non-profit that is making our city a better place. Our 2011 recipient, the Beltline Bike Shop, posed some unique challenges. With an existing logo that seemed to completely change in almost every application in addition to the need for a logo that is able to accommodate the potential of opening additional locations, the Beltline Bike Shop needed a flexible mark that symbolizes the Atlanta beltline, community, and hard work.

Our Primary Inspiration

A Few of Our Sketches

Solution

The contained mark echoes the way the Atlanta Beltline contains our city. As a visual capsule, the gear’s rivets represent multiple members of a community that, when combined, create a unified presence. Two wrenches, the most commonly used tool in the shop, come together and form the bicycle's tires. The typographic choice is inspired by the industrial space that the shop lives in and is subtly rounded to match the curves of the gear. Overall, the combination of color and shape creates an ambitious mark that is supported by a subtle 3-dimensionality.

Primary Brand Mark

Supplementary Marks

Rave Card. Special thanks for our printing partner Standard Press!

T-Shirt. Special thanks for our printing partner Zoink!

Stamp

Cupcakes by Becky

Website. Special thanks to our friends at Hybrid Design, Tastemaker Communications, and Ries & Ries.

App Website

iPhone App (Free Download!). Special thanks to Highgroove.

Hand-Painted Sign

This weekend, the Beltline Bike Shop will be hosting Adair Park’s 2012 Spring Porch Crawl. Proceeds from the Porch Crawl will aid the shop and it’s a great way to get to meet members of the Bike Shop and hear stories from the community it has impacted through the years. There will be snax & libations! Visit the Beltline Bike Shop Blog to learn more.

At our last Creative Mornings, Matt Rollins from Iconologic shared a little about an initiative called Good Thinking Atlanta. This is a new "volunteer creative service organization that provides communication tools to qualified NPOs that provide health, education and/or welfare services to Greater Atlanta families."

Last year on a school field trip, I heard Erin Huizenga of gravitytank talk about EPIC, a stratagem for social change in Chicago. They have designed a process of eight week project rallies that bring together a conglomerate creative team to design deliverables for nonprofit clients dedicated to education, children and families.

A friend of mine did a tour with Project M a few summers ago. This is a unique, design-centric spin on Rural Studio founded by Samuel Mockbee. It is "a program for creative people who are already inspired to contribute to the greater good, and are looking for a platform to collaborate and generate ideas and projects bigger than themselves."

The School of Visual Arts has an intensive workshop on the subject of design in social advocacy. I took a class last summer at SCAD called The Role of Design in Social Awareness. Design Ignites Change is a Worldstudio program which supports designers and architects who desire to use their skills for social change.

In an age with such high value on social activism, it is not surprising to see a general consciousness around how design might be leveraged for social betterment. However, the proliferation of these programs (and many more) beg the question, "what are best practices for giving away of energy, time, and talent?"

What processes should guide the work you do in order to ensure sustainability and solid results?
What boundaries need to be in place for the sake of the benefactor as well as the cause organization?
What benefits are derived from practicing this type of charity?  What are the dangers?

And Most curiously, What is the innate human drive to give away what we do best?

As much as I love the work of Jessica Hische, her Should I Work for Free? flowchart only gets me so far in answering these questions.

One of the things I respect most about working here at Matchstic, is that there is always a push to make things better. This goes for On the House. Over the years and looking into the future, this is the primary way that Matchstic gives back to deserving non-profit clients. (Be on the lookout for a case study of 2011′s recipient, Beltline Bikeshop).

I am excited to see how the process improves as we tee up 2012 and hope to get some answers to these questions as well.

Feel free to chime in if you already have the solution(s).

Oh yeah, to be more on brand, Happy Valentine's Day.

#9 – WE WILL MAKE OUR CITY A BETTER PLACE TO LIVE

Ultimately, as a creative agency we hope that everything we do makes a difference and will inspire others to do the same. Here at Matchstic we have many unique gifts. On top of creativity, empathy and a taste for forward-thinking solutions, we also have a deep interest in using our talents to improve the human experience.

How can we improve the conditions of where we live and contribute to the cultural vitality around us? By becoming involved in solving important problems, we have the deepest impact as our creations and choices can shape peoples' habits and values.

We take pride in our city and love where we live. Through our annual pro-bono campaign,  On the House,  our continued relationships with local clients, and the recent addition of an Atlanta chapter of CreativeMornings, we are helping to build a rich, creative industry in Atlanta.

Past Beliefs:

• #1 – We hold each other's feet to the fire.

• #2 – We follow through on our word.

• #3 – We rise and fall as a team.

• #4 – We know the difference between a career and a life.

• #5 – We will be profitable; this is not a social club.

• #6 – We recognize that it's their flag, not ours.

• #7 – We know our clients aren't always right, but neither are we.

• #8 – When in doubt, we will fight for relationships.

We were welcomed to a campus filled with all the ways the new brand was being lived out – everything from a new school sign that was clearly visible from the road, to new pictures on the wall, print pieces, school shirts, pencils, and on. They greeted us with quotes from parents, a framed picture, and the best part – an entire booklet of hand-drawn notes to us from one of their classes. Here is just a sampling of what the students did:

So incredible.

Pro bono can be hard, but seeing that kind of tangible impact made every bit of the year-long process a rewarding one.

Thanks to Swift School for treating us to an amazing and rewarding day. I look forward to seeing what's next in store for them!

And for a preview of what's going on with this years 2010 On The House winner, check out Blake's recent post on the Atlanta Mission rebrand.

Brief Overview

Our 2010 On The House recipient, The Atlanta Mission was founded in 1938 and today is the city’s largest organization fighting to end homelessness. The Mission serves as many as 1,070 men, women and children every day of the year with emergency shelter, residential recovery and transitional housing. However they are not just a hand out- but a hand up.

Challenge

In 2008 the organization brought in new leadership which led to big changes and a new flag needed to be flown. After being selected for our 2010 On The House program, our first step was conducting a brand audit (stakeholder interviews, marketing audit, language audit, and an competitive audit) for the mission, which led to three major objectives: 1. Increase Organizational Alignment (both internally and externally) 2. Clarify who the mission serves 3. Evolve the current Brand Identity. Any brand that has been in existence for 70+ years should be approached with kid gloves as it does not take change lightly and needs a careful measurement of current perceptions & equity before moving forward.

Solution

The Name

We first tackled the name and tagline with our On The House partner and good friend Laura Ries of Ries & Ries. A name is a huge asset for a brand and should be memorable and portable (which includes using it naturally in conversation). Our first observation was that the "Atlanta Union Mission" uses three incredibly generic words that create an awkward phrase to use in conversation which results in using an ackronym (AUM) or simplifing the name to just "The Mission". With this in mind we explored the two possibilities of a name change, revolutionary (start from scratch) and evolutionary (use what you've got). Revolutionary, although it would allow us to create the perfect name, wouldn't be a wise decision due to the risk of loosing years of vested stakeholders and brand recognition, but an evolutionary route helps us solve our portability problem.

The three current words are all generic but they are not all created equally.

Atlanta is the focus. It is the biggest differentiator and keeps the power of the local organization without having to compete nationally.

Union is most ambigious and least significant of the three. Original translated as "Non-Denomination", now it has lost all meaning in this context.

Mission is the most powerful word of the three. It is the action, the calling, the purpose. It is crucial to the heart of the brand.

That leaves us with…

The new name is still not the perfect name and retains some generic qualities, but it is simplified, easier to say, and more specific. Most importantly is solves our problem of portability.

The Tagline

Again with the help of Laura Ries, we uncovered our word for the Atlanta Mission, "homelessness". It is unique to the organization, own-able, and specific. In everything we do we want to reinforce that word and build meaning into the brand, including in the tagline. The simplest way to include "homelessness" into the tagline was to describe what the Mission is doing about it; Powerfully put, "Ending Homelessness.". It is specific, clear, and packs a punch.

The Mark

The old symbol, a stationary lamp post, is now replaced a mobile lantern. The concept of "Shining The Light" is core to the Atlanta Mission brand and is retained while putting a new spin on the meaning. Instead of waiting for people to come to it, it will now go out and bring the "light" to those who need it. The mark also now includes a simple cross at the heart of the lantern representing Christ as the foundation of the Atlanta Mission.

Test Applications (Not final designs)

Still to come…

Official External Launch Day September 28th, 2010

Website redesign

Additional Marketing Materials

Motion Design

Video Promotion

We have really enjoyed working with the Atlanta Mission team and looking forward to long relationship together. Their courage and faith have been inspirations to all of us at the ‘stic.

For years the desire to give back lived in a reactionary mode responding to several heart-felt stories with several short-lived solutions, resulting in little significance for the organization. As a branding firm, we evangelize the power of focus, and decided it was time to practice what we preach. On The House is the strategy of saying several "no's" in order to say one really big "yes" and radically transform one deserving organization per year.

Since starting the On The House program in 2008, we have transformed two organizations with a third on the way, resulting in over $250,000 in donated services. But most notably we have ignited an ever-growing flame of passion and impact on our city and on three incredible causes.

We can't do it alone. On The House Partners.

Matchstic offers a full brand identity over-haul, including brand strategy and design implementation, but that only goes so far. We have assembled some of Atlanta’s leading experts, including public relations, photography, trademarking, writing, printing, web development, and motion design, to join the cause and make an even greater impact. Our current 2010 partners are:

Ries & Ries

SeeSparkGo

Standard Press

Battle Axe

Stephen Hunton Photography

Bottlecap

Green Tricycle Films

Branderfield

Zoink

Foltz Martin

2010 On The House Recipient- Atlanta Union Mission

The Mission serves as many as 1,070 men, women and children every day of the year with emergency shelter, residential recovery and transitional housing, as it is the city’s largest homeless initiative. With a new leadership team it is primed to have an even greater impact on this city with a brand over-haul. Homelessness is an overwhelming issue in the city of Atlanta that few dare to take on but the mission IS changing lives and ending homelessness.

We are currently under way in the branding process and will soon be announcing the brand new Atlanta Union Mission. In the mean time, watch this video on the Mission for more information:

2009 On The House Recipient- Swift School

Swift School works to prepare children with dyslexia and related language-based learning differences to be successful in life. Swift School is where success with dyslexia starts.

Matchstic positioned the SWIFT School brand around the term dyslexia. Dyslexia is an umbrella term referencing most language-based learning differences. It was also easier to remember and gave SWIFT some much-needed focus. Matchstic also removed the word “The” in the title from “The Swift School” to just “SWIFT School.” “The” was unnecessary and only weakened the more important words.

SWIFT School believes potential is more powerful than dyslexia. Matchstic chose to visually depict the hope that parents need. SWIFT School is synonymous with hope for kids with dyslexia and helps them to be successful in life. A star represents hope, belief, achievement and success. The color choice of blue is more appropriate than the original hunter green for aligning with hope. The star is unique to SWIFT and contains a hidden “S” inside of it communicating the idea of hidden potential.

SWIFT School’s rebrand has been featured in various local Atlanta outlets including the Atlanta Business Chronicle, Good Day Atlanta and Cox Curry & Associates Review. The new brand identity was officially launched at the International Dyslexia Association-Georgia’s “Dimensions of Dyslexia” conference on February 20, 2010.

2008 On The House Recipient- City Church

City Church was birthed out of a desire to build a strong, service-oriented church in eastside city neighborhoods in Atlanta, just down the street from the Matchstic house. Twenty years ago when it seemed everyone left the inner-city, several churches that served the city went away also. In 2006, the city of Atlanta grew for the first time during that long period and the need for churches that serve the community became apparent. After sifting through many applications and interviewing three candidates, Matchstic voted and chose City Church Eastside as the first ever On The House pro bono client for 2008.

The vision of City Church-Eastside is not to be a big church, but to be a local serving church that grows and multiplies as neighborhoods grow and multiply. Matchstic consulted on the church’s name, created a brand identity and helped formulate the brand strategy that would tie the church to its community.

Matchstic's goal was to develop a brand identity that fit the vision of the City Church brand and create a name that is scalable to multiple locations.

The strategy was to chose a logo that represented a neighborhood. The cross is actually a small picture of two cross streets with houses at each end.

Since then City Church has been dedicated to serving the neighborhoods in East Atlanta. Just an example of their commitment, they held a neighborhood garage sale bringing in $3,000 during one Saturday alone to benefit a local fire station that was suffering economically.

If you are interested in being a partner, getting more involved, or learning more about On The House email us at here. Here's to transforming the city on brand at a time!

Battle Axe is the occupational moniker of one of Atlanta's most talented (and charasmatic) motion designers, Adam Plouff. We recently helped create his Battle Axe brand identity with one goal, set out up front by Adam, to simply "Melt Faces". More so, we wanted to create the usual suspects of good design, simplicity, distinction, and memorability, in the logo mark that could easily translate into multiple applications. Influenced by big, bold, and "awesome" Viking styles we formed the simple "B" monogram with an aggressive "axe-chopped" letter mark. Below are some "proof of concept" images on how the system would translate into multiple appellations. To view our presentation pdf click here.

Battle Axe, fresh off the matchstic process itself, will chop away to help add a much need spark to the Atlanta Union Mission identity. Stay tuned for more On The House partners announcing soon!

Stephen- Ha. Things are good. Actually, that's a shot for Home Depot in an '08 olympics TV campaign.

Blake- Oh, right- I was confused, sorry about that. Lets get started. Why don't you share a bit with how you got started in photography?

Stephen- I first got into photography back in High School.  It was awesome because we got to work in a darkroom, which I thought was super cool.  I loved trying different things with the chemicals which today would look a lot like post-processing digitally.  But, my camera broke in college and I was too lazy to save up the money to fix it, so I literally just fell away from photography all together.  Then, 3 or 4 years later, in October of 2006 we found out we were having our first baby and I knew the point-and-shoot cameras wouldn't do the trick.  Thankfully, my parents bought me my first Digital SLR camera a month before he was born and I got sucked in.  I was terrible though.  It was like I'd forgotten everything, but I was so hungry to get better that I just kept snapping away, trying new things and learning how to make an image. That's the best thing about digital photography… you can mess up over and over and over, for FREE!

Blake- That's cool, Sounds like you've worked hard to get better (and it worked, cause you're pretty freaking talented), Why did you decide to partner with OTH and give away your "hard-earned" craft?

Stephen- I love that Matchstic puts an emphasis on pro-bono work.  I just believe that we all have talents and time to give to the needy, whether it's a physical person or an organization.  Last year, when I started this journey as a "professional" I got hooked up with Atlanta Union Mission and made them my ‘pro-bono' Client in Atlanta.  I just felt that I could give back through this craft of mine to help an awesome organization build their brand.  It was amazing, and extremely eye-opening to walk around the AUM facilities and meet people who had found hope and were overcoming huge obstacles in their lives. So, when you shot me an email to see if I'd be interesting in partnering with them through OTH, it was a honor and quick "yes" because I'm excited to see how working with Matchstic can take Atlanta Union Mission in a whole new direction creatively and strategically.

Blake- Yeah, It was a natural fit since you already have a heart for the mission and have done so much for them. Last question, What role do you think photography plays in building a charismatic brand? More specifically how will if effect the new AUM Brand?

Stephen- I think photography can play a huge role in building a brand.  It has the power to tell stories without words and create emotions within viewers that speak exactly in the voice you're trying to give a brand.  More specifically, with Atlanta Union Mission, photography has the ability to portray the hope that AUM can provide to the homeless in Atlanta.  Homelessness, is such a serious issue here, and a lot of times we see images of people laying in the street or standing under a bridge holding a sign asking for money.  They get objectified too easily and people forget that a homeless person is, before anything else, a person.  Photography can put a more "human face" on the homeless in Atlanta, and hopefully make the issue more relatable to a city full of busy people who don't always have the opportunity to see it as a serious issue.

Blake- That is so true, great point. Well, on behalf of everyone at Matchstic, thank you for partnering with us on this endeavor, and we can't wait to get started.

Stephen- Absolutely. Thanks again for considering me for this.  It's going to be alot of fun.

For more on Stephen Hunton photography click here

Laura Ries is a world-renowned branding strategist, speaker, and author.  She is also a neighbor of ours here in Atlanta.  As a partner in the On the House project, I recently asked Laura if she wouldn't mind being a guest blogger and talk a little bit about what she does and what her involvement will be for The Swift School.

Pop on over to her blog for more great insights and don't forget to pick up her newest book just released, War in the Boardroom.

So, without further ado, here is Laura Ries.

CRAIG JOHNSON: How did you hear about On The House?

LAURA RIES: Blake, Craig and I were all chosen as Top 40 Under 40 award winners by the Atlanta Business Chronicle in the Fall of 2008.

Few of the winners were in branding (a lot of lawyers and real estate executives), so we gravitated towards each other. They guys had read some of my books and I was intrigued by Matchstic.

Sometimes you just click with people and that is what happened with me and the guys. After spending an hour or so having coffee with Craig talking about branding and life he mentioned the On The House project. I instantly signed up.

CRAIG JOHNSON: Why did you want to be a part of On The House?

LAURA RIES: I wanted to work with Matchstic. I wanted to give something back to the local community. And I wanted to keep busy during this recession.

CRAIG JOHNSON: What makes The Swift School a perfect candidate for On The House?

LAURA RIES: The Swift School is the perfect candidate because they have everything but a brand. They have a wonderful school that nobody knows about with marketing materials that don’t do it justice.

The school is well respected by experts, lead by fantastic teachers, filled with thriving children and supported by loyal parents. But nobody has heard of it, the logo is dated, the positioning unclear and marketing materials in need of investment.

Like many non-profits all the money has gone into running the place. Many see the investment in branding frivolous. But nothing could be further from the truth.

After the On The House team gets finished with Swift, I think it will serve as a great example of how a focused brand well executed can succeed. Branding means owning something in the mind.  And for Swift strengthening and defining its brand will allow them to sell less and teach more, by making it easier attract students, teachers and donors.

CRAIG JOHNSON: What types of clients do you normally work with?

LAURA RIES: We work with a wide variety of clients from Fortune 500 companies like Microsoft, Frito-Lay and Disney to entrepreneurial companies like The Republic of Tea and Papa John’s Pizza. We don’t specialize in any industry or company size. Our specialty is branding. We help companies to focus. A focus is the key to building a brand in the mind.

You are going to be providing a brand strategy session for the Swift School. Tell us about what you’ll be doing during the session.

My partner/father Al Ries and I are going to lead one of our brand strategy sessions. This is the core of what we do. We don’t have long term clients we only work on a one-day basis. This is the opposite of the way most consultants work. Most consultants study the situation, figure out the solution and present it to the client. We work together with the client to find the answer. That way everybody has ownership of the idea and understands how we got there. Many times there is internal conflict about what the brand is or should be, we help to resolve conflicts and get everyone focused and enthusiastic about the strategy.

CRAIG JOHNSON: What will The Swift School walk away with from that session?

LAURA RIES: The Swift School will walk about from the session with a marketing plan. Swift will have nailed down its brand focus and the exact verbalization of the idea.

CRAIG JOHNSON: What do you think is the most important rule in branding?

LAURA RIES: The most important Law of Branding is the Law of Focus. The way to build a strong brand is by having a narrow focus and owning a word in the mind. Ex. BMW owns driving. Volvo owns safety. Red Bull owns energy drinks. Target owns cheap chic. Zara owns fast-fashion. Nordstrom owns service. FedEx owns overnight.

CRAIG JOHNSON: How can non-profits organizations benefit from a well thought out branding strategy?

LAURA RIES: Non-profits benefit the same as for-profit companies from a strong brand. Strong brands are more successful. They have the ability to generate donations/support/volunteers/PR easier.

Even if you are doing good work it isn’t easy to get attention for it these days. We live in an over-communicated society. We are bombarded daily with thousands of images, sales pitches and charity requests. The only way to get above the clutter is with a focused brand and message. It is the same whether you are selling cars or curing cancer.

CRAIG JOHNSON: What’s your favorite thing about what you do?

LAURA RIES: My favorite thing is being able to work with my Dad. We have been working together since 1994 and he has taught me so much about branding and life. I love being able to travel around the world, meeting new people, learning about different business and helping them to succeed.

CRAIG JOHNSON: What’s the one piece of advice would you give a non-profit that doesn’t have resources to hire a brand strategist?

LAURA RIES: Many companies especially non-profits hesitate to focus their brand and message. They want to make there message as wide as possible. But this is a mistake. Your message and brand needs to be focused in order to get into the mind. You don’t have to include everything you do in your message.

On The House Finalists Interviews 6- 10 from matchstic on Vimeo.
The ministries featured in this video are:

#6. AIGA Atlanta: aiga-atl.org
#7. Redeemed Ministries: redeemedlove.org
#8. Ministry Ventures: ministryventures.org
#9. Essential 2 Life: e2lonline.org
#10. Myles Apart: mylesapart.org

To see the first five interviews click here.