The Kentucky Experience
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The Bluegrass kicks... well, you know
Design, Logo, Photography, Print
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Lexington Brewing & Distilling Company set out to launch a campaign that expresses the spirit of what Kentucky is through the story of their beers, and share that with both the world and Bluegrass natives alike.
The idea was simple: to encompass a collection of Lexington Brewing & Distilling Company's most notable craft beers, show the customers what kind of journey they had in store, and call it 'The Kentucky Experience.'
We started with a blank slate but remained single-minded in our to vision to achieve something that was instantly recognizable, invoking the feeling of both Kentucky and home. We set out to re-introduce the rest of the world to Lexington Brewing & Distilling Company, and with that, create an unforgettable first (or second) impression.
During the sweepstakes, we executed all of the staples of a modern brand awareness campaign and giveaway, utilizing posters, flyers, table tents, magazine ads, coasters, social media ads, digital ads, etc. Each of these pieces of collateral was customized for maximum response within their specific avenues of interaction.
There’s no mistaking the southern aesthetic, Bluegrass inspired color palette, and bourbon-centered heritage of Kentucky Ale’s endeavor. These materials represent the culmination of careful design and preparation, unwavering dedication to perfection in both style and taste, and the most ambitious leap we’ve made in establishing Kentucky ale as the ‘Beer of Kentucky.’
Commonwealth Credit Union Branding
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We Better Design
Design, Logo, Web Design
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Commonwealth Credit Union, a longtime client of Oculus Studios, is a cooperative, not-for-profit financial institution owned and operated by its members exclusively to meet their financial needs.
Commonwealth CU sets out to better the lives in their communities every single day, so when they reached out for some branding updates, we were excited to dive in.
When you’re part of the Commonwealth CU family, you’re not just a number – you’re an owner. Even better? You’re treated like one. The community impact and outreach that Commonwealth CU carries out is unlike any other, thanks to their numerous contributions to bettering lives. Even their logo subtly reflects this, wherein the bold C shape ripples out into the surrounding areas, mirroring the positive impact that the credit union has on its communities.
Oculus Studios creates collateral that not only represents but also embodies the credit union’s community-forward philosophy. With bright, striking colors such as teal, yellow, and red, we draw the eye around both digital and printed collateral, livening up and brightening information about loans, savings accounts, membership benefits, and more.
Commonwealth Credit Union’s commitment is to bettering lives, and Oculus Studios strives for each piece of marketing collateral to reflect this goal. Clearly outlining benefits with people-first imagery and easy to both read and understand materials not only cements that this credit union ain’t a bank, it’s also led by the very people who use and depend on its services.
Church of the Savior
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Divine Design
Design, Logo, Photography, Print, Brand Development
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Oculus Studios was honored to assist Church of the Savior with their rebranding, updating their mark as well as grounding them in a timeless design that could serve new and returning members of the church alike.
Our rebranding of the Church of the Savior logo and other materials was focused around ideals and values of the church as they were given to us.
The updated logo uses prayer and outreach, two of the central themes they wanted to focus on, as the main inspiration. To accomplish this, Oculus utilized triangular arrow shapes that come together to create a cross in the negative space, essentially transforming that negative space into a positive shape. This represents not only the idea of evangelizing, but also of people coming together in worship, and how every person, every aspect, is important in the church environment. The mark strays away from what would be considered a “typical” or “expected” depiction of a cross with its bold, diagonal lines and strong edges.
We picked two colors to represent this client: a combination of a calm, more subdued blue in a light and dark shade that work together for a cohesive feel. This color combination carries a classic connotation while still managing to be modern, appealing to both the older and younger generations of the church. This ensures that the color scheme can be integrated into its predetermined environment seamlessly without disruption.
Oculus Studios developed an updated, fresh look for Church of the Savior that appeals to multiple age groups, stands out from the crowd, and employs striking, inviting imagery.
Overall, the brand became more iconic in hopes that it would establish not only an internal identity that could be applied to multiple pieces of design collateral for promotion of the church, but an identity throughout the community as well.
Lexington Distilling Co. Town Branch Relaunch
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Taking a shot at a relaunch
Design, Logo, Photography, 3D imaging
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The lineup of spirits offered by Town Branch are revered for their quality and taste. With a name born from the river that runs through its (and our) hometown of Lexington, Kentucky, we were beyond excited to have a chance to assist in their relaunch campaign.
For this relaunch, we needed to celebrate both the familiar and the extraordinary. Through custom 3D imaging and in-house composite photography, this relaunch brings Town Branch's robust and tasty Kentucky staples full circle: from the water, to the barrel, to filling up your glass with 'My usual,' whether you take yours neat or on the rocks.
The imagery compiled in the series of ads we created proved to be a challenge – but we always love a challenge. To complete these images, we worked with 3D artists to create a detailed bottle that interacts with the surroundings in a way that couldn’t be as easily captured with traditional photography. The flexibility of a 3D render allowed us to control such factors as weather, lighting, and maintaining the quality of the materials and labels on the product.
We created composite photos of a completed background using a rendered bottle, along with in-house photographed elements such as river rocks or a fully-stocked picnic table. A render allowed us to work with a bottle that was perfect. Every element was controlled and carefully planned, down to the clarity of the glass, the texture of the paper, and even the contrast of the metallic emboss. The final images we produced for this relaunch were created thanks to careful consideration of all elements: the background, product, labels, legibility, foreground, contrast, and depth of field. To create the ideal image, we composed each element separately, then pieced them together so that the final composition, and in turn the finished product, is seamless.
Thanks to this process, the spirits can be seen haunting their natural habitat – connected either physically, visibly, or conceptually. Each ad created for the campaign puts the Town Branch product front and center, eye-catching and unapologetic. Loud and proud, but only because of the meticulous efforts that built the scene for each of them. Across print and digital materials, social media, posters, magazine ads, and more, the Town Branch name takes root and blossoms across any promotional material it touches.
Doughdaddy’s Doughnuts
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A rebrand? We'll bite
Design, Logo, Photography
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When a local company that stands as a favorite in the community trusts you enough to come to you for a rebrand, it's both a humbling and energizing experience. When that company just so happens to create some of the tastiest doughnuts around? Well, then it's a no-brainer.
As with any rebrand, we're presented with what can sometimes be a uniquely challenging task: update and modernize without sacrificing the soul of the original design. The goal is to entice new customers to check out the brand without alienating the loyal fanbase that has developed throughout the years.
With Doughdaddy’s, we wanted to stay as true as possible to their current visual language by updating the parts that speak the loudest: their doughnut mascot. This friendly little personified doughnut received a subtle, but ultimately impactful makeover. With bolder lines, a stronger and more contrasting color palette, and a little bit more personality and life added to its eyes, we boosted the visibility of the mascot without taking away from any of the previous charm. We swapped out the previous iteration’s coffee cup for a darker color and arranged it at a more visually-believable angle.
This rebrand brought about other opportunities for updates as well. With the new mascot standing tall, we were able to design and create new collateral for digital signage, printed items available at gas pumps, a brand new canopy wrap for the gas station, employee t-shirts, and more.
This project stands as a delicious example of how a rebrand doesn’t necessarily mean a complete overhaul. An update to branding could be as simple as taking existing materials and updating them for newer clientele. Sometimes, all we need is an update by way of a little bit of polish, a bolder line, and a fresh doughnut (or two).
University of Louisville: Cardinal Cupboard
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Bettering lives, nourishing minds
Brand Development, Design, Photography
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The Cardinal Cupboard food pantry program is a student-run food pantry located on UofL’s Belknap Campus. The goal of this program is to give access to both food and health products in the Cardinal community at the University of Louisville in a combined effort to reduce their overall financial burdens students and faculty may face. The Cardinal Cupboard program was sponsored by Commonwealth Credit Union, in partnership with Dare to Care food bank and Kroger.
To celebrate the opening of the pantry, we were asked by Commonwealth Credit Union to design a look and feel that would be specifically tailored to the Cardinal Cupboard. By combining the colors of both UofL and Commonwealth CU’s branding, we created promotional materials and collateral that united both brands for this phenomenal cause.
We designed custom wraps and signage for directional purposes to work within the existing architecture. This allowed us to both catch the eye and direct faculty and students to the correct area without cluttering up heavy-traffic areas like hallways, stairwells, etc. Integrating this design into pre-existing architecture streamlines the process while also getting the word out with a vibrant and informational design.
The result of this collaboration of colors was a focus on Commonwealth CU’s bright and inviting teal color, with the bold and commanding University of Louisville red as an accent. By blending these colors for the printed and digital promotional and on-campus directional items, the message was clear: We’re all in this together.
Mixing Commonwealth Credit Union’s tireless work within their surrounding communities with UofL’s on-campus pantry to provide assistance for those who are in need resulted in a successful and eye-catching opening.
Doing Logo Design Justice
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Creating a Brand to smile about
Brand Development, Design, Photography
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Every company will reach a crossroads at some point with their brand. For Justice Dental, that came with the exit of one of their partners. Their existing brand was entirely built on those two partners, so logos, signs, website, and all branding materials had their old name. They suddenly had to handle what so many companies dread…complete brand restart.
To handle the task of protecting the business during this process, Justice Dental turned to Oculus Studios to create their new logo design in Lexington. This was a complete reboot from logo to name. Our team came on to design a brand new logo, produce printed materials, carry out photo and video sessions with our in-house photographers and videographers, and manage social media for Justice.
The Justice Dental team sought to upgrade their branding with a new logo, and the Oculus team set to work to encapsulate the entirety of the brand within a single mark. View some of our process below, as well as the finalized mark that we moved forward with for the updated branding.
With a new logo comes a bevy of new printed materials, graphics, and collateral. With that in mind, Oculus designed and developed a brand manual specifically for Justice Dental, which would guarantee that materials would be consistent and on-brand for this striking new look. By utilizing step-by-step instructions for how the logo and branding should be represented across a variety of media, we were able to create a comprehensive guide that could easily be followed.
By focusing on the warm interiors and inviting spaces within Justice Dental, we were able to show a side to cosmetic and general dentistry not often seen. Instead of the bland, sterile environment that many know (and some fear) of a typical dentist office, Oculus Studios captured the spa-like experience that Justice Dental cultivates.
Retail Marketing
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AD-ING SOME SPARKLE
Brand Development, Design, Photography
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Local Lexington, Kentucky store Sash and Bow, named after its owner Sasha Bowlby, is a high-end boutique that specializes in chic, sophisticated fashion and accessories for women. When it came time for creating marketing in Lexington, she turned to Oculus Studios to create in-store print materials, gift cards, product packaging and more to promote the boutique. We jumped at the chance to create something truly memorable that would stand out as a statement to reflect both Sasha’s shining personality and the items found in her store.
Since Sash & Bow had an already-established logo, Oculus Studios implemented it into a variety of printed materials that would not only help spread the word about the boutique, but would also represent it properly. By utilizing earring and clothing tags, as well as unique gift cards, we were able to create a more interactive way for the logo to be seen and distributed.
An unforgettable gift requires an equally unforgettable gift box. With this thought in mind, it was obvious to us that we would need to meticulously design and produce a custom-made box for Sash & Bow’s shimmery gift cards. Because we went this route, we were able to create a truly one-of-a-kind reversible gift box that would not only be unique, but would invite conversation and further inquiry into the Sash & Bow brand.
Marketing #likeaboss
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#Hey Karen
Branding, Video, Print, & Social Media
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During the cold winter of 2013, Oculus came together as a company to create the year long marketing campaign for Commonwealth CU with the underlying theme “We CU Differently.” We branded Commonwealth with this slogan because they truly see their members differently and run their business different than most other company we’ve come across. They are true to the core idea that members come first and no one is more of a champion of this attitude than Karen Harbin. If you have the opportunity to meet Karen, we highly recommend it. Beaming with positivity and confidence, she is continually leading her team at Commonwealth CU to new heights.
Doing marketing and advertising for credit unions is a learning experience. It’s not “just a bank with a funny name” as we said in one of our commercials. These differences are sometimes only explained with really long paragraphs that have to be approved by compliance through six rounds of revisions. So each time we try to figure out the core of a new program or service, we end up asking a really basic question and getting a really basic answer in return. At a round table discussion in the office, the statement was made “I wish we could just ask questions like this as a commercial. It would make life so easy.” Eureka!
We realized that nothing would be more valuable to people than to be able to ask their questions directly and simply. And who better to answer them than the president of the credit union? Thus, #heykaren was born. We pitched the #heykaren marketing campaign to Commonwealth CU and, to their credit, they immediately saw the allure. The only thing left was to see if people would have questions… cue the floodgates. Questions started pouring in through the website, Twitter, Facebook, phone calls, people walking into branches, the list goes on and on. We had hit a nerve that we think everyone can identify with: Why can’t we just get answers? Suddenly Karen was on 48’ billboards, radio, tv commercials, and social media like never before.
#heykaren has been a runaway advertising success for Commonwealth CU. It instantly struck a chord with members, the public, news outlets and more. In the first two months of the marketing campaign, Commonwealth CU was invited to speak at four different conferences to talk through the promotion. The Herald Leader wrote a piece about it as well. It’s amazing how the simplest idea can speak so loudly to people.
Of course the press is nice, but we’ve heard story after story of members contacting them in honest need and getting exactly the help they needed. Our favorite story was about a woman coming into a branch in tears saying, “Karen is my last option. If she can’t help me I’ll have to file for bankruptcy.” The wonderful conclusion of that was that they were able to help her and THAT is what they wanted. It wasn’t just to increase revenue or get new members, it was to show members that they “C” them differently… as people in need.
The longtime slogan for Oculus Studios has been “Your Business. Out Loud.” Which means there is nothing more rewarding as advertisers and marketing teams than to help a company send their purest message out to the masses. The wonderful thing about this campaign is that it’s true. If you don’t think they’re different, if you don’t think Karen will respond, hit her up. Texts, emails, tweets, or phone calls have gone out to everyone who’s shouted #heykaren.