Background

A group of volunteers had set up a Facebook page called ‘Mature Engagement’ during the first Covid-19 Lockdown in the UK, the initial idea behind the page was to ‘encourage engagement from mature people who are isolated and anxious’. The purpose of the page was to provide a virtual space for mature people to be able to come to in order to meet new people and create connections that would lead them to feel less isolated during lockdown.

I was brought into the project in order to create a visual identity for the page through producing a profile and banner image as well as offer any design or style advice that the group may need throughout the process.

 

Restated Brief

Deliverables:

• To design a banner image for the Facebook group
• To style the site, based on the graphic recommendations above, choosing fonts and images to complement the messages
• To assist with the development of the Facebook group with design and style advice

The idea behind the group changed as I attended initial meetings with the clients as they chose to widen their audience by changing their name and change from being a Facebook page to a group. However, this meant that they then had a better understanding on how they wanted to present themselves and what was going to be shared on the online platform.

 

Research

I was provided information on what the clients wanted the group to represent and provide for people from meetings I attended with them. The idea of a Facebook page changed to being a group, meaning that I only needed to design them a banner image, they also changed the name of the group to ‘Reach Out and Connect’ in order to sum up their idea better.

I was invited to regular group meetings in order to gather a better idea on what the volunteers wanted to be included and shared in the group. Along with their ideas and information they provided me with I also conducted research into other Facebook groups to see how they used the platform as well as defining the terms ‘reach out’ and ‘connect’ in order to think of other visual representations that could be associated with the words.

 

Design Development

I faced difficulties with the clients as they were undecided on how they wanted the banner image to look, this left me to come up with ideas that I felt most appropriate to the brief whilst trying to include the initial ideas they had mentioned to me. The process became easier when I began to show the clients initial designs I had created and providing small colour and typographical variations so that they were able to see what they did and did not like.  I maintained contact with my supervisor, finding that it was important to ‘provide clients with a controlled set of variations so that you only show what you think is your best work to avoid working on a project you no longer find enjoyable’.

As the design process went on, I attended meetings to keep in constant contact with the clients in order to discuss what was happening with the Facebook group and how I could help in any other way, as well as keeping tabs on the ideas they had for me to add to the graphic elements I was creating. The clients and I appreciated the constant contact so they could see what I was working on for them to make changes as well as for me to understand what the group was becoming. As I was able to present approved ideas to the clients they remained happy with my progress and enjoyed the ideas and discussions that I was able to share with them.

Final Outcomes

After providing the clients with design developments and ideas we all finally came to a set of ideas that were most appropriate for the group, once the group had decided that the puzzle banner image seemed to fit the idea and purpose of the group, they requested that the other designs I had created be turned into square images that they could use as posts in the group. After providing them with the final images, they were able to upload them onto their page and provide the group with a visual identity.

Reflection

Throughout this project I have come across small challenges such as adapting to the clients changing brief as well as ensuring that I stay on track with the message behind the group they were trying to create. I was lucky in not needing to produce any physical deliverables, meaning I did not have to work with print deadlines or costs. Due to the longer deadline on this project was also a positive as it meant I had time to keep in contact with the clients and my supervisor to ensure I was on track and to fully understand what was required from me in order to complete this job.  When the clients had uploaded the banner image they also posted how happy they were with the final outcome in visualising what the group represented.

Overall, I had a great time working with my clients and have been able to grow in confidence when working with new people and learnt how to contact and have meetings with clients. This has been a fun small project to work on and has allowed me to be able to learn how to organise myself to work on an extra project alongside my third year modules.