Claremont McKenna College Engages Tripepi Smith for Branding Support
Tripepi Smith was engaged by the Soll Center for Student Opportunity at Claremont McKenna College (CMC) in February 2017 to develop a logo and identity system, to build a library of internal stock photography and to rewrite, redesign and publish the 64-page Career Guide, six-page Opportunities brochure and four-page Outcomes brochure.
“The Soll Center for Student Opportunity engaged Tripepi Smith to create an entirely new identity system for this brand new Center. Along with a new logo, which clearly connected to Claremont McKenna College as a whole, we asked for a refresh of our Career Guide and creation of two new publications, Outcomes and Opportunities,” said Michelle Chamberlain, Associate Vice President and Dean of Student Opportunities at CMC. “The entire suite of publications look terrific and connect to one another seamlessly, while maintaining a strong connection to the brand.”
The scope of work for all of these projects included multiple meetings to collaborate on details and vision for final content, high-level creative direction and project oversight, writing and design services and delivery of final, production-ready files. Tripepi Smith also staffed three eight-hour days of photography, one onsite at the College and two offsite at internship locations in Los Angeles, Santa Monica and Pasadena, including AirMap, Trust Company of the West and Anthos Capital.
The graphic identity system component of the project was two-fold: First, Tripepi Smith adapted the Center’s logo and brand to reflect its unique range of service offerings within the context of Claremont McKenna College’s larger brand. Second, Tripepi Smith created a complex infographic that served as a base for presenting the Center’s menu of career interest clusters. Executed by Melanie James, Business Analyst, with creative direction from Katherine Griffiths, Director of Operations, the infographic featured prominently in the Career Guide and also served as the basis for a series of one-page handouts and posters detailing the Center’s offerings; elements of the illustration were integrated into every piece in the suite, adding to the cohesive whole.
“The previous interest-cluster design was an isolated, hexagonal grid that did not illustrate the interconnectedness of the areas of academic and career focus,” said Griffiths. “It was important to both me and Melanie that our model demonstrate that each student’s academic and career path has the potential for interdisciplinary engagement, which is the hallmark of a liberal arts experience.”
The interest cluster infographic draws on a cog concept that represents areas of academic and professional focus as wheels within a larger apparatus. Each cluster features a custom icon that provides viewers with a quick glimpse of the content within that area. The color palette draws on the primary, secondary and tertiary options within the identity system, assigning a unique color to each cluster that provides viewers with another resource for rapid identification of areas in which they are interested. Outside of the primary infographic, the cog element and icons reappear to frame and illustrate a pie chart in the Outcomes brochure and to spotlight sponsored student internship areas within the Opportunities brochure. The color palette and icons also were used for directional signage during an on-campus career fair.
Another notable feature of the publication suite is the use of a pocket-folder cover to wrap the Career Guide, allowing for modular and time-sensitive content to be packaged with more evergreen interior pages.
“Integrating a pocket-folder element into the design of the Career Guide cover allows for timely, relevant inserts to be included with the larger piece,” said Griffiths. “When publishing a document of this size, cost can be an issue. By focusing the interior pages on content that is more static and directing of-the-moment resources to be placed in the pocket folder, we empowered the client to extend the life of the publication and to run more copies at a cost-effective rate.”
With an eye toward capturing students’ attention at a glance, both Outcomes and Opportunities brochures were designed in horizontal, rather than vertical, formats, and emphasize strategic and compelling data presentation along with fresh, high-quality photography.
“Following Katherine’s vision, as well as Melanie’s tireless attention to detail, Tripepi Smith captured photos with CMC students both on campus and throughout Los Angeles County, designed images for our eight interest clusters, and wrote copy for many of the publications,” continued Chamberlain. “We also received assistance with data visualization and overall layout. It was a fabulous partnership and we are thrilled with the results.”
About the Soll Center for Student Opportunity at Claremont McKenna College
As a collaborative, student service-focused hub, the Soll Center for Student Opportunity partners with academic, co-curricular and extracurricular resources across the depth and breadth of the Claremont McKenna College community—both on campus and beyond—to help students recognize, cultivate and translate their interests and strengths into meaningful and exciting real-world experiences. These experiences range from internships and fellowships, to graduate and professional programs, to employment and career enrichment.
About Tripepi Smith
Tripepi Smith is a marketing, technology and public affairs firm located in Orange County, CA. Its clients include for-profit, nonprofit and public agencies throughout the state of California. Its unique mix of marketing and technology prowess provide a competitive advantage for organizations seeking to leverage the Internet to achieve their communication goals. The firm also provides full content creation services, including: ghost writing, collateral development, photography, video production, search engine marketing, search engine optimization, email marketing campaigns and website design and execution. Tripepi Smith clients include: City of Culver City, City of Rolling Hills Estates, City of La Puente, City of Tracy, City of Cupertino, City of Duarte, City of Millbrae, City of Daly City, City of La Cañada Flintridge, City of Fountain Valley, City of Paramount, Rowland Water District, Valley Water Company, California Contract Cities Association, California City Management Foundation, League of California Cities, Institute for Local Government, Renne Public Law Group, Avenu Insights and Analytics, Inland Empire Utilities Agency and Climatec Energy Services.