Casey Peterson Brand Identity
Brand Identity • Design Systems • Print • Illustration
Casey Peterson, LTD is a CPA and financial advisory firm providing accounting, auditing, tax, and wealth management services for individuals and speciality industries including healthcare, agriculture, government, nonprofit, tourism, and construction. I was brought on to support the marketing team in developing a new identity system and brand collateral to ensure that clients have a cohesive experience across every touchpoint. Since the nature of the work is often highly technical and rife with industry jargon, our challenge was to create materials that were more human and engaging, while maintaining a level of world-class professionalism.
Creative Direction
Jessica McEntaffer
Design & Production
Laurel Antonmarchi
Copywriting
Hillary Dobbs-Davis
Laurel Antonmarchi
01: Logo
Iconic mark silhouette comparison, before and after
Prior to my joining the team, the Casey Peterson brand had been completely overhauled. Since this work was completed in-house, the mark had been developed relatively quickly, and I saw a lot of room for improvement.
For the brand refresh and buildout, we decided to refine the existing mark as it had been received well by clientele and the public.
Existing mark
Red lines show where refinements were made to the vector mark
First, I removed the iconic mark’s drop shadow that was causing legibility issues and muddiness when scaled down to small sizes. Next, I identified other problem areas needing more refinement in order to improve overall legibility. End points were thickened, more space was added to the upper gap between the letterforms, and the weight was redistributed for more balance throughout the vector drawing.
I refreshed each logo lockup with the revised mark and established clear space guidelines to separate the logo from other elements, including text and the edge of printed materials. The minimum required clear space is defined by the width of the iconic mark.
02: Color
Along with a logo refresh, we revised the existing color palette with more warmth and confidence, along with added flexibility in the varying tint percentages. The new palette emphasizes the brand’s friendliness, while remaining professional and succinct throughout all communications.
03: Typography
The brand uses a mixture of three typefaces that feel friendly but not overly familiar—Gotham, Program Narrow, and Beloved Script. Specific use cases were established for each typeface depending on the tone, context, and medium.
04: Iconography
This is a small subset of icons that I designed to visually express objects, actions, and ideas in our branded materials. Since financial advisory and accounting is often highly technical and complex, iconography is used throughout print and digital collateral to add visual interest to call-outs and other areas to grab a reader’s attention. Stylistically, icons should have rounded caps and corners; line strokes must remain a consistent weight and be balanced throughout.
05: Collateral
In the brand collateral, we utilized the bold, confident color palette and geometric patterns to make a statement that Casey Peterson aren’t your average number crunchers. Geometric shapes also often represent numbers when converting data and figures into a visual form. We also created a compass element to pair with the brand tagline “Lead the Way,” which points optimistically to the future and helps lead the way with your finances.
I pulled the arc elements from the swooping movement of the iconic mark, as well as the negative space within. Arcs can be utilized as accents, textures, or graphic elements throughout collateral.
Projects included letterhead, client folders, report covers, stickers, core values badges, envelopes, one sheets, spot illustrations, notepads, and more.
