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- BrandingA brand is more than a name, it’s an association between the product and the consumer and the expectations of the consumer towards that product or service. A good brand can help position the product/service within the market, embody the product/services’ values and ultimately make it appealing to the consumer. How you communicate to your intended audience through your brand is one of the keystones used to differentiate yourself from competitors. Designers on the Run design with the ethos and values of your business in mind, whether it be a logo design or a wider branding campaign that involves the logo and other design elements (see below), we can create the perfect branding strategy for you. We understand that behind every logo there is a set of values that you need to promote and that the logo is the first point of reference when establishing your brand values, ideas and personality. We can help design the following as part of your branding campaign: Livery – vehicle designs that incorporate your branding Logo Packaging – incorporating your brand Promotional goods – incorporating your brand Signage and displays – incorporating your brand Stationery – including letterheads, compliment slips and envelopes For a complete branding exercise Designers on the Run will provide accompanying usage notes and guidelines to allow for the consistency of the brand across all your design collateral. We also supply you with a complete set of industry standard file formats suitable for web use and for domestic and professional print output. Please get in touch with us via our contact page to discuss your branding and logo design needs. If you would like to view some of our previous branding and logo work then please go to our work page.
- Web DesignDesigners on the Run treat web and multimedia design as an extension of your branding and graphic design to create a consistency of style and values across all your marketing campaigns. Your website is your shop window to the world so it’s of prime importance that you leave a good and lasting impression to all your visitors. Whether this is the first time you have considered a website or if you already have an existing web site but feel that it could do with a badly needed redesign, Designers on the Run can satisfy your needs. Below is a list of the services we provide and have created to improve your product/service. Content Management Systems (CMS) – to allow for more user feedback and results. Can develop back-end support according to your needs E-books – an effective marketing tool that can be adapted to take the form of a brochure, menu, photo album etc. E-commerce web design – developed using a variety of methods and tools depending on your personal and budgetary needs Flash website design – interactive and visually stunning, developed according to your needs Flash based/XHTML websites – the best of both worlds offering a combo. of skills to allow for stylish, interactive and user-friendly sites XHTML/CSS web sites – creation of user-friendly, stylish sites that are W3C compliant We also provide banner advertising and can develop original flash games, for more information about these additional services please go to our advertising page. Designers on the Run offer advice and useful information with regards ethical and green web hosting and can find a suitable supplier for your web hosting needs. For more details please go to our green web hosting page.
- Graphic design
- ArtworkWe can advise on a variety of styles and methods to incorporate within your marketing strategy and on commision. Below is an outline of these techniques. Illustration – incorporating a variety of styles to suit your needs. We can develop the right style for you. Use of stock imagery also. Photography – we can use stock photography and/or according to your budget get photographs exclusively created for you. Art direction – we can manage your project from the initial idea through to the staged design.
- Email marketing
- Green Design
- Green businessAt Designers on the Run we offer green design solutions to all our clients. We make the whole design process easy from the outset and always on hand to help, we will never leave you in the lurch and value each and every relationship with our clients. Going green with your creative requirements shouldn’t be difficult and we have outlined some useful information on the benefits of why should consider going green and set us up with your design requirements. How will going green benefit my organisation? At Designers on the Run we can help you manage the way that your brand operates as part of your wider strategic sustainable development. We believe that our services can further enhance a brand’s green credentials and reputation, help differentiate your brand from your competitors and also help reduce your impact upon the environment (please see our carbon footprint page for more information). Partnering with us could even see you winning new businesss as increasingly procurers are looking to green their supply chains and that means you need to demonstrate your own green credentials in order to win business. We can help make the transition to eco friendly commnunications easy and give you a leg up in the face of any existing and future governement policy on sustainable development for business and industry. (For more about information about Environmental legislation please go to www.netregs.co.uk) Managing your environmental impact makes good business sense whatever size your organisation is. Will this increase costs for my organisation? It certainly shouldn’t. Sustainable materials are often comparable in costs to traditional materials. Additionally, this effort is about limiting unnecessary waste, not making more of something that would increase costs. Is the quality of my design going to be compromised? No, it’s just a different way of looking at the projects we work together on. SUstainable thinking doesn’t demand that we start wearing hemp sack cloths. It just asks us to work smarter and think about our impact on society and the environment more carefully. We will be more targeted in our efforts and focus on your goals more expressly. We have to think strategically instead of traditionally. I’m already a client so how will this change our working relationship? In many respects things will stay similar to how they are now. However, we will scrutinise projects to find methods of achieving the greatest result with the smallest environmental impact. We’d also like to work closely with you to help make sense of all of these changes. We feel this is one more way that we as designers can give you greater value. I need to demonstrate my eco credentials how can you help? You probably already use eco friendly suppliers who share your ethos so why stop when it comes to your communications? If you need to demonstrate your eco creditinials and are in the public or private sector, then Designers on the Run will be the perfect match for you. By using us we can give you further credence, add value to how you operate and can create the perfect eco-friendly creative campaign for you. I don’t fit into either of the above categories, how can you help me? If you like what we do and think that you could work with us then please get in touch – we strive to provide a valuable and informative service and give everyone an eco friendly option and fill a much needed gap in the market. Our design services are best employed when they are not used in isolation but are part of your own efforts to become the most sustainable that you can be. Please note we will always offer a green alternative if there is one and if not we will offer the next best possible option. Does this mean you are experts in sustainability? No, we’re still just designers. In our spare time we try to educate ourselves but there’s always going to be something new to learn, and we’re working together to understand a challenge that few have the definitive answers for. Why should I care? The risk global warming presents is huge and its impacts can be devastating. As the main contributors to this crisis, we all have a major responsibility and as business owners we all affect society at large. If that’s not motivation enough, we should also note that most major brands have added sustainability to their business agendas. They recognize it as a competitive advantage and as a key to continued success. New government legislation will also stipulate that industry start to clean up their act so from a position of self-interest alone, you really have to start thinking green.
- Green printing
- Recycled PaperDesigners on the Run promote printing on recycled paper, fsc certified papers and other eco friendly materials. Recycled Paper Recycled paper is the greenest option overall – it uses up waste paper and its production requires less energy and fewer chemicals. Plus, it provides a market for paper waste in the UK and encourages more recycling. Why use recycled paper? It uses less energy and creates fewer emissions than virgin paper It supports UK recycling companies and provides a market for UK paper waste It reduces the amount of waste paper going to landfill It is the only way to be sure that your paper hasn’t had a detrimental effect on any forest environment What is recycled paper? Superficially it’s quite straightforward: waste paper and board is collected, sorted and then purchased by paper mills to be re-used. However, there are varying definitions of genuine recycled paper. General thinking is to encourage the highest post-consumer recycled content whenever possible, providing that ‘fitness for purpose’ and performance criteria are taken into consideration. Look out for the percentage of post consumer recycled waste when choosing a paper. The quality of the original waste fibre will dictate how it is re-used – good quality white waste will be re-used in high quality recycled or part recycled papers; at the other extreme, low-grade recycled packaging will be re-used (again) for packaging materials. Printing on Recycled Paper – FAQ If you are considering printing on recycled paper here are the answers to frequently asked questions. What about Quality and Performance? Improvements in the quality of the recycled paper grades now available mean that their quality and performance is equal to that of virgin paper, particularly if choosing top of the range recycled papers made from 100% de-inked waste, such as the 9lives and Revive brands we use. Recycled Paper is More Expensive – Right? Wrong! Recycled paper has aligned with conventional paper prices in recent years due to increase in demand, refinement of the papermaking process and the significant reduction in energy and water needed to make recyled paper compared to conventional paper. What is Post-Consumer Waste? This is paper that has been used by the consumer and returned for recycling, thus keeping it out of a landfill. The more post-consumer waste that is incorporated into recycled material the better! What is Virgin Fibre? Virgin fibre is new fibre that has never been used by a manufacturer before to make paper or other products. What is Pre-Consumer Waste? Pre-consumer waste is the material that occurs as a by-product to the printing process, such as off-cuts and unused copies which may have been over-ordered. Also known as post-industrial waste. What is acid free paper? Acid free paper has had the acid removed from the pulp leaving it with a neutral pH of 7. Should I choose recycled papers? Choosing to use recycled paper is an ethical issue and down to either personal or company attitudes towards CSR – Corporate Social Responsibility. However, using recycled paper will:- 1. Reduce landfill – using recycled paper diverts waste paper from entering landfills. Landfills are a source of methane emissions, which are a contributor to global warming. What is equally important is that landfills are rapidly becoming full, and fewer new sites are available. 2. Continue the demand for recycled materials – recycling is only viable if end-markets are created for the products made from recovered waste paper. 3. Place less strain on global forest resources – paper recycling optimises the use of a valuable material and reduces the amount of virgin pulp required. Although forests are increasingly managed in a sustainable way there is a need to reduce wastage by using more recycled content FSC Certified Papers – an Eco Alternative to Recycled Paper If you don’t want recycled paper then a paper certified by the Forest Stewardship Council – FSC Certified Paper is for you. Going Green with the Forest Stewardship Council The Forest Stewardship Council – FSC – is an international non-profit organisation founded in 1993 to support the world’s forests. FSC members comprise a diverse group of representatives from environmental and social groups, the timber trade, paper industry, forestry profession, indigenous people’s organisations, community forestry groups and forest product certification organisations from around the world. It is their job to ensure that the forests are managed to protect wildlife habitat and respect the rights of local communities. The FSC Principles of forest stewardship include consideration for Indigenous peopleÕs rights, Environmental impact and Maintenance of high conservation value forest. Responsible, Auditable and Unrivalled Using FSC Papers for your printing is an effective way to demonstrate your commitment to sustainability. Many companies are increasingly specifying FSC Papers as their pledge to a greener world. Why don’t you? FSC Certified Paper tells you exactly what you need to know; that the recycled or virgin fibre content of the paper comes from sources that meet FSC international standards. FSC certification is widely accepted to be the most stringent. Unlike other schemes, the emphasis is on tracking fibre all the way from the forest to the end use, so the user can be certain of the fibreÕs origins. This is why FSC is the only certification system supported by environmental organisations such as the World Wildlife Fund, Rain Forest Alliance, Greenpeace, Woodland Trust and Friends of the Earth. What can Designers on the Run do for You? Designers on the Run can make ‘going green’ easy whether it’s recycled papers or FSC Certified paper you’re looking for, we can arrange cost-effective printing with our supplier who provides excellent value for money and who can deliver printed products to conform to FSC standards.
- Green Web HostingCan a website be green? …yes it can! Designers on the Run recommend the use of Green web hosting to all our clients – this website is currently hosted by Green ISP. Currently there are a good choice of green web hosting companies out there, offering various packages and pockets to suit. Why choose a green web hosting company? It takes a lot of energy consumption to maintain servers for a web host so one easy way of making your website more eco-friendly is by opting for a green web hosting company. Their green credentials all vary but most can be differentiated by the method by which they power their operation. From using renewable energy such as solar power to carbon offsetting you will also generally find that these companies tend to be more socially responsible with some holding non-profit status and giving a percentage of their profits to good causes. We host our own website and some of our clients websites on Green web host which are non-profit, carbon offset, will plant a tree on your behalf, have solar powered offices, and can also offer solar powered hosting. Are they reliable? From our own personal experience of hosting with Green ISP we have never experienced any down time on their servers, they claim to have an average system uptime of 99.6% – 99.7% on their website. You will aslo find that the customer service tends to be above average especially when dealing with a smaller hosting company. Solarhost who use solar powered energy also claim to “making this service available with 100% uptime, 100% reliability and at a price which is very affordable.” You’ll also find that most web hosts powered directly by renewable energy have generators as backup and still have some connection to the grid in case of a total disaster so that there are very slim chances of your website going down. The following is a list of some green web hosting companies that we found: Green web host – Since 2003 we have been taking responsiblity for our effects on the environment and society. We travel to our solar powered offices on public transport and we plant trees to assist the offset of our CO2 emissions by “sequestration” or “Carbon Fix”. We encourage environmentally friendly practices, social responsibility, and sustainability, we promote and support organisations who do too… Solar Host – Solar Host now provides a reliable web hosting service at a fair price using 100% solar energy. Our purpose built data center has gone above and beyond the call of duty to ensure the most eco-friendly service possible. With packages starting from just £25 we are confident that you will be delighted with our cost effective, environmentally friendly service. Solar Energy Host – Use 100% Green Solar Energy, Beyond Carbon Neutral, Nearly 100% Uptime.
- Ethical PolicyDesigners on the Run have a green and ethical policy in place to encourage positive and less harmful methods of designing. We hope that groups and individuals are encouraged to look at their own environmental footprint and join us in producing effective design solutions that don’t cost the earth. [dropcap]F[/dropcap]rom the initial design meeting to the final design solution, Designers on the Run endeavours to work in a way that minimizes our and your impact on the environment. Working with you: [box] All journeys are made on public transport or bike wherever possible Our resources are made available electronically with our clients, minimising landfill We encourage the use and practise of environmentally friendly design methods and materials If you are an eco-friendly organisation we can provide you with a wealth of invaluable resources [/box] Our suppliers: [box] Web hosting is with a company with green credentials We have established links with printers who are ISO14001 certified with some being audited to CarbonZero status All printing is done using recyled, FSC approved papers and use of vegetable inks only If a courier service is needed we can provide one with eco credentials and vehicles that run on natural gas [/box] Our studio: [box] Is housed within the Out of the Blue, Drill Hall, an Arts and Education Trust based in Edinburgh We walk, cycle or use public transport to get to work Use energy saving lightbulbs All paper and stationery is either recycled or from pre-consumer waste sources Printing is done using both sides of the paper Reuse our printing cartridges Support of Fair Trade through purchasing Fair Trade tea, coffee, sugar and bananas! Use of mugs instead of disposable paper cups (every little bit helps!) [/box] Our waste: [box] Creation of waste is minimised through bulk buying, avoidance of packaging and considering purchases carefully We recycle all recyclable waste including paper, plastic and glass We donate all obsolete equipment, furniture, books etc. to Charity shops and/or recycling schemes [/box]
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