Design Challenge

Problem

The Muskegon Museum of Art approached us with the requirement of devising informative print materials that tell the story of the upcoming museum expansion, but at the same time, also drove the initial round of donations from influential members of the community. Being for an artistic venue, we wanted the pieces to have a minimalistic look, modern feel, and creative messaging that honored the museum’s 100+ year history. Coming up with a concept that not only told their story of upcoming changes, but did it in a way that adhered to the Museum’s artistic credibility was no easy task.

Opportunity

When you hold the printed pieces in your hand, the silky-smooth paper stock is reminiscent of satin. It physically feels superior to other standard paper stocks.  It certainly achieved the “Wow Factor” effect we were going for. As far as the design goes, the client liked it so much that they adapted the timeline we created and are using it on the walls throughout the interior of the existing museum. The story that we told with the copy was written to be reminiscent of the museum’s history – as the museum evolves, so does its collection, patrons, and physical space.

The Solution

Strategy

Because the initial round of fundraising was going to be accomplished by mailing and hand delivering the piece directly to donors and community members, we strategically designed the assets with physical feel in mind. To match what was described to us as “clean lines” regarding the architectural design of the new expansion, we strategically decided keep the design clean, minimalistic, and modern to represent the direction of the new expansion, and efficiently tell the story using very calculated messaging. By telling a brief synopsis of the history of the museum, we wanted to focus on how continuous change and development is what has, and always will, make the Muskegon Museum of Art a jewel of the West Michigan community.

Execution:

As mentioned before, we strategically designed the pieces with physical feel in mind. When you hold the printed pieces in your hand, the silky-smooth paper stock is reminiscent of satin. It physically feels superior to other standard paper stocks. It certainly achieved the “Wow Factor” effect we were going for. As far as the design goes, the client liked it so much that they adapted the timeline we created and are using it on the walls throughout the interior of the existing museum. The story told with the copy was written to embrace the museum’s history – as the museum evolves, so does its collection, patrons, and physical space.

Marketing Results

Delivery

The overall concept for this project was to create collateral that had a feel to match the clean lines and modern approach to the expansion. New School is proud to call this project a success. The client shared with us that two-months before announcing the capital campaign to the general public, the printed pieces we developed had already helped generate over 70% of the total ($9.9M) fundraising goal. We relate this early success to the physical feel of the pieces as they were pulled from the envelope in the hands of the donors and the story that the main piece conveyed through well thought-out graphic design and messaging.

$9.9M

88

70%

200

6

Say What?

“Working with the New School team has been a good experience. You took us out of our comfort zone and the results were terrific. That’s measured by major donor’s reactions to the marketing materials. Sometimes they wanted to talk more about how cool the campaign materials were then the expansion.”

-Kirk Hallman, Executive Director @ The Muskegon Museum of Art

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