class
VCD 8: Design for Social Good
client
Wayfinder Advisors
role
Lead Designer
professor
Robert Sedlack
I partnered with Theresa Sullivan, founder of Wayfinder Advisors, to work on an identity system for her startup life coaching business. After starting as a life coach to redirect dissatisfied adults toward a happier career, Theresa is in the process of shifting her business to focus on helping high school students “discover who they were born to be."
1 // Conducting intake interviews and initial ideation
During our initial intake discussions, Theresa mentioned that she wanted her brand to appear approachable, yet professional. She used the words “spa,” “peace,” “personal,” “simplicity,” and “comfort” to describe its ideal look and feel. After our conversation, I gathered inspiration and began my logo sketches.
2 // DEVELOPING THE BRAND SYSTEM
The winning mark featured a more organic aesthetic, using water droplet shapes to form a compass. The color palette was derived with “spa” in mind, with pale blue hues at the center, complemented by a leaf green and plum purple. The typography maintained the organization’s sense of professionalism and sophistication.
3 // DESIGNING THE BRAND ELEMENTS
After developing the brand system, I started to apply it to stationery and marketing communications pieces, as well as some proposed pages of the Wayfinder Advisors website.
“Laurel designed my company’s logo, Facebook page, website graphics, letterhead and business cards. Though she was still a student at Notre Dame, she did professional quality work - it was amazing what she produced. She asked me great questions in the beginning that helped uncover what I wanted and it was evident she was a good listener, because the logos she designed had exactly the look and feel of the tone I wanted to convey. She was fun and easy to work with and I will continue to hire her for more projects. She would be an asset to anybody looking for beautiful, creative design.”