Advertising, Social Media
Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Illustrator
In this fictional advertising campaign for United Way BC, I created a new logo, and a series of three advertisements formatted for online and print use. I edited the images on Adobe Photoshop, then created the advertisements on Illustrator.
I began the process by collecting UWBC’s existing graphics and campaign materials. I noticed that the graphics are mainly in bright colors and have a friendly impression. On the other hand, the photographs are often in black and white, bringing the focus to the bright red color, which is United Way BC's visual identity.
Then, I revisited the goal of the campaign, which is to help raise awareness of financial inequity and connect people to services provided by UWBC. In the beginning, I wanted to create emotionally-driven imagery that bring awareness of the issue. The ad would target people affected by poverty and people who are not aware of the issue.
In my sketchbook, I came up with three different thumbnails. The first concept would advertise the features/ benefits (in this case, services offered by UWBC), the second and third concepts show two different realities faced by people who have access to resources vs people who do not.
In the end, I went with the comparison/ contrast concept that uses allegory to symbolize 3 different aspects of basic resources -- food, community resources, and opportunities/ social rights, which are represented by a plate of food, playground, and a ladder, respectively. In Photoshop, I used a gradient mask to create the transition from a desaturated image to a colored image, symbolizing that UWBC can bring change to their clients' lives. The tagline, "Because fairness is a human right" appeals to the empathy of the viewer and proposes that every member in society deserves basic resources because it is a human right. Like the existing campaign materials where color is limited to the organization's visual identity (bright red), I reused the new logo's colors (yellow and peach) to reinforce the viewers' memory and create a consistent look. A variety of font weights within the Arial typeface are used to indicate the hierarchy of the information on the advertisements. I chose this particular typeface because it is one of the fonts used by United Way BC.
Printed magazine advertisements
The third advertisement would be presented as separate pages, with limited text, to allow time for readers to take in the message and the imagery.
Instagram stories
Social media users would tap on the story and see the next page immediately after.
Social Media Posts
For the Facebook posts, I placed the image on the left and the text on the right because I wanted the viewers to look at the image first, then read the call-to-action for more context.
Outdoor Advertisement (Billboard)
I decided to make a billboard design because I thought the design would be more impactful when viewed at a larger scale.
Outdoor Advertisement (Bus stop)
Like the purpose of the billboard design, the bus stop advertisement would allow more potential clients to use UWBC's services.
In conclusion, the advertisements rely on adjustments in color and the gradual divide between the photographs to evoke thought. However, the symbolic meaning behind each item (the plate of food, playground, and ladder) may not be as apparent to the viewers without some explanation.