REALTOR^® University and the National Association of REALTORS^® partnered with Sandstorm’s Drupal development team to build their first ever master’s degree program. The web site was developed through a combination of marketing messaging, copywriting, tagline development, user interface design and implementation of the Drupal 7 CMS. Featured on the homepage are rotating graphics emphasizing the core advantages the university offers. We are so excited to announce this launch!

Not too long ago we explained why your logo is not your brand. However, sometimes there is a brand so strong the only thing missing is a logo.

Consider human rights. It is a cause that touches every part of the world yet lacks a single symbol to represent it. Until now, of course. The human rights logo design competition has come to a close and the winning logo is beautiful. It brilliantly blends two universal symbols for humanity and peace: a hand and a dove.

The new identity is reminiscent of the peace symbol, which does not belong to any company or organization, but rather stands as the symbol for all things peaceful. Only time will tell if the world adopts the human rights logo with the same enthusiasm.

Learn more about the Human Rights Logo Design Competition and download the logo.

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Sandstorm Design is a Chicago user experience agency that builds intuitive web sites, interactive web applications and creative marketing campaigns leveraging a user-centered design methodology.

We may have lost our electricity, but we certainly did not lose power as our web design company’s office is still moving full steam ahead! The power outage that hit Chicago with Monday’s storm left our office on Chicago’s north side dark, muggy and ever so quiet without the hum and buzz of the computers. So we packed up and got to work at Sandy’s house, where sandwiches, pop, chips and a very popular pasta salad awaited us.

The whole situation reminded me of a recent post on brand strategy that discussed how your company’s brand should carry over into every aspect of your business. What a great example this makes! We often talk about the “Sandstorm Way” around the office—which refers to ensuring any aspect of a project is up to our professional standards. Because this is at the core of who we are, it’s a key part of our brand. And isn’t this a perfect manifestation of the Sandstorm brand in the culture of the company? Electricity or not, we are still committed to delivering the strategic and creative results we’re known for.

Some people like to put their brand identity on business cards and letterhead, others prefer choppers. That’s right—choppers. One of our partners, Aaron Equipment, got a custom branded bike from Orange County Choppers and appeared on their TLC show American Choppers.

The bike now sits proudly at their Bensenville headquarters. Of course, after visiting their office and seeing the bike, we had to take pictures. And who wouldn’t? This is really a great example of creative marketing—getting your brand out there by connecting with your audience on their interests.

Now that summer is in full swing in Chicago and the festivals have taken over the weekends, it’s a perfect time to get creative with your marketing. And “creative” could be anything from a custom chopper to a clever sidewalk chalk stencil. If you need a little help brainstorming some creative marketing ideas, let Sandstorm Design give you hand!

A recognizable voice and tone is as important to the brand identity as the logo. Think about Allstate, for example. You always know an ad is theirs long before you see their logo. That’s the brand in the copy. On your web site, blog, brochure and other marketing materials, the copywriting should capture your differentiator in the marketplace. Your content should reflect any marketing objectives and initiatives currently in place. (Are you reaching out to new audiences or offering new services? Is your voice changing to speak more directly to these new objectives?) And, of course, the voice and tone should be consistent.

To insure we build a complete brand, our copywriters are vital members of the marketing and creative teams here at Sandstorm Design. They work directly with designers during the branding phases, giving each company’s unique identity a unified presence—in the visual elements, the marketing copywriting, and everything in between.

So, what makes an elevator pitch good enough to win a contest­—or for many of us, good enough to win business? First off, it should be conversational. It should clearly point out the need you are filling, the competitive solution you are offering, and how the solution will be carried out. And it should be short, sweet, and to the point. The student competition at MIT called for 60-second pitches. At Sandstorm Design, we do ours in 30… but maybe our elevators are just faster here in Chicago!

You never know what opportunities could be opened with the right pitch. Whether the challenge is a competition or a new client, this part of marketing is always fun and exciting. Learn more about our take on marketing strategy.

Check out our favorite marketing elevator pitches from MIT’s YouPitch contest:

Twitter will become increasing vital for networking and maintaining relationships with your overseas contacts, just as well those in the States. On top of that, it offers another valuable (and free) avenue for marketing your brand online (in seven languages, perhaps?). As you know, we kind of have a thing for marketing and branding.

If your company doesn’t already have an account, get one. And if you have one but you’re not using it, start now. If there were ever a time to jump on a bandwagon, this is it.

Sandstorm Design is thrilled to kick off the new year by launching a new web site and brand for Gregg Communications! What started with a web site has grown into a full on partnership to reinvent Gregg’s brand. And it has been so wonderful to have a client as enthusiastic about the process as we are! With a new web site and identity, the Gregg brand is now aligned with the quality service and expertise of their staff. We are so proud to announce this launch and look forward to more growth with Gregg!

Sandstorm Design is so excited to announce the launch of a new web site for a new firm, Partridge IP Law. Having the opportunity to work with this unique law firm from inception has been such a privilege. We created their new identity and brand, starting with the logo and print work before moving to the web. And while the firm might be new, the attorneys are experienced. Their new web site showcases this expertise with detailed bios and a very active blog. We absolutely loved working with Partridge IP Law, and couldn’t be happier to announce this launch!

How do you improve upon something you already feel is absolutely, fantastically wonderful? With Sandstorm Design’s annual Guac-Off approaching this Sunday at 4:00pm, this question keeps nudging its way into my head.

Let me make this clear: I love guacamole. I am a frequent visitor of the many awesome Mexican restaurants all over Chicago, and I have yet to try a guacamole I didn’t like. The flavors and textures span such a wide range with so few ingredients – smooth avocado, sweet onion, bold cilantro and tangy lime paired with salty corn tortilla chips. How could I possibly enhance such a winning equation in order to win our marketing firm’s Guac-Off?

And as the newest member of the team at Sandstorm Design, I must say, I am certain my competition is steep. Creativity is, after all, how we use marketing and web design to improve upon already excellent brands. Even as a newcomer it is quite apparent to me that taking something great and making it better is what our marketing firm does everyday. So I can only imagine what this team can do with a couple avocados!

Lucky for me, I love guacamole just a smidgen more than I love winning. So even if my dish doesn’t win, my tummy most definitely will.

Our inspirational quote will appear on our own calendar page (September 22) with our company name and  url. What a great way to increase our visibility and get a little free publicity. I love PR and marketing, and I love to win. This is such an honor. And a fun way to share a little insight about our marketing firm and the people who work here.

So you might be wondering, what was our winning quote and inspiration: “To become an exceptional leader, take the time to help others achieve their dreams” The extra special part – I found out today, on my birthday.

For years we have been working on going for the gold, striving to make that emotional connection, and helping our clients do the same. Strategic marketing and strong branding can’t necessarily help silver medalists, but it can help companies who are tired of hearing from their sales team that a competitor just won their business, again. With strong positioning, a consistent brand, and a strategic message, marketing can bring a brand to life, clearly demonstrate added value, and in the end, be that one “gut” feeling that makes your company win the gold (over and over again). Ready to start training for that gold medal?

The Web Marketing Association has honored us with the 2009 WebAward For Outstanding Achievement in Web Development and Design for National Association of Realtors’ Green REsource Council web site. The Green REsource Council was founded to make the knowledge of green real estate practices available to everyone and is the only environmental real estate designation addressing multiple specialties for agents and property managers.

We are very proud to be recognized for our green design work, and continue to strive to build intuitive online user experiences.

So I heard a presentation about how people learn: kinesthetic learning, auditory learning and visual learning. (I am a kinesthetic and visual learner – go figure). While in the presentation, it dawned on me that powerpoint fails for most of us because it relies so heavily on an auditory learning style, and some ridiculous low percentage of people are auditory learners.

Many people ask me where Sandstorm came from. I should come up with a highly conceptual meaning, but that’s not how it happened. Sandstorm was a nickname of mine from college so I went with it because it was fun yet strong, spontaneous and energetic. Plus my maiden name was very difficult to pronounce, spell and remember. When I started the company in 1998 I had no idea that someday I would have an incredible agency filled with Sandstormers. Still wows me today.

Congratulations to… ME! (OMG – this is my official first time winning and my staff now thinks I cheated). And here’s why. It’s all about my super secret ingredient where they think I swayed the judges and the user experience. My super secret ingredient I talked about for weeks, and tested up in Lake Geneva about a month ago with friends and family to perfect my recipe. My super secret ingredient that no one was worried about because last year it was dill and I lost miserably. My super secret ingredient was… tequila. (he he he).

The most fun thing about guacamole is that is really does taste so different depending on what you decide to put in. This year’s samples included mayo and sour cream to apples and jalepenos. Zak even brought a dessert guacamole which was my personal favorite (I didn’t vote for myself as I don’t personally like tequila) – he added raspberries and raspberry jam to be eaten with cinnamon crisps. Yum! And Zachary made guacamole for the first time ever.

So for the next year I get to be the “Guacamole Queen at Sandstorm”. A title I am most proud of considering I can’t cook very well to start off with. Not sure what my super secret ingredient will be next year. Better watch out Zak.

Coming to our web site soon. :)

I’m talking web site copy for the clients of our marketing and web design firm. We’ll beg, we’ll plead, we’ll keep our fingers crossed – just for the opportunity to write the content. And here is the number one reason why… so we can hit our deadlines.When we meet with a new client and they ask “What do you see that will hold up our deadline?” I’ll respond, start writing your content.

To help with this, we’re starting to put together content templates to help mitigate the random copywriting we get when multiple SME’s write for the same company. Erin Kissane wrote a great blog entry on content templates that goes into detail on how to use them. Thanks Erin!