Graphic Design That Works

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Job:12-84823 Title:RP-Graphic Design That Works

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plainspoke

Thinking about Flexibility

This flexible and easy-to-update promotional brochure

gives prospective clients a glimpse into the strategic

thinking behind the design work of Plainspoke. “I wanted

to have a little compact portfolio presentation that we

could send out to clients,” art director Matt Ralph

remarks. “We had been sending samples out, but it got

to be cumbersome. It just made sense to try and corral

some of our best work together in one piece.”

The most challenging aspect of the brochure was

developing the descriptive text for each project. “To

distill our creative thinking behind a project into a little

paragraph was difficult but important for the client to

see,” notes Ralph. “We always try to really think about

each project and what it communicates. I wanted people

to have background knowledge about the work we do,

rather than just showing a bunch of pictures.” The art

director also worked very closely with the photographer

to make sure that the composition on each shot was just

CLIENT:

Plainspoke is a graphic design

firm that specializes in educational

and cultural work.

FIRM:

Plainspoke

ART DIRECTOR/DESIGNER:

Matt Ralph

PHOTOGRAPHER:

Brian Wilder

ABOVE: The piece is fashioned to

have the feeling of an old ledger.

The semiwraparound cover not

only conveniently hides the spine,

but also adds to the overall

dimensional quality of the piece.

It is sent out in a matching

envelope, along with a proposal

folder, when necessary.

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Job:12-84823 Title:RP-Graphic Design That Works

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right—varying the images from full bleed shots to

more traditionally cropped views. “In the pacing, I

wanted to break up the sequencing a bit,” explains

Ralph. “It was just too repetitive to have everything

looking all the same.” The text also alternates in

placement from front to back.

Two sets of inserts were printed, drilled, trimmed, and

stored in sections. Because the pages are loose and

not permanently bound, the design firm can customize

a brochure to fit any prospective target audience. “We

can skew it more towards identity or publication projects.

It gives us a lot of freedom and flexibility,” adds

Ralph. The handy and compact brochure can be easily

taken apart by disassembling the Chicago screws,

which are usually used on horse bridals. Silver is used

as an accent color throughout, tying the screws into

the overall color scheme.

ABOVE: Each presentation

page is printed in six

colors—four-color process,

silver, and light gray. Spot

varnish is also used on

Potlatch McCoy matte

finish 65-lb. cover stock.

What Works

By providing prospective clients with a glimpse into

the strategic thinking behind each project, the design

team was able to highlight their ability to effectively

communicate ideas in a visual way—making the

brochure much more than a mere portfolio presentation.

Designing the pages to be interchangeable made the

promotional brochure extremely useful in the firm’s

marketing efforts. According to Ralph, “It has generated

many more projects for us.”

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