USA Today
A brand refresh
In 2017 I joined USA Today's team during a pivotal moment — a full brand refresh that would define how one of America's most recognized news brands showed up across digital and social video. Our team researched how leading digital publishers like Vox, CNN, Vice, and AJ+ were approaching motion graphics, then used those findings to develop a new visual system built to work across two distinct markets: local and national.
Credits
Senior Art Director: Glenann Godden.
Designer: Peter
Verastegui, Dylan Glenn.
Introducing new visual elements
City maps, geometric shapes, and new colors
Gannett's business has two markets, a local and a national. The refresh had to work with both markets. In our research we found that local content needed warmth and specificity: city maps, familiar geography. National content needed authority and scale: clean geometry, a bold use of color.
Local
National
Video Graphics
Video editing guide
Social media styleguide
We documented the system so any editor could apply it consistently — without a designer in the room.
