Brand Development Case Study: BlackStarTech
BlackStarTech originally came to me in 2020 through my contacts at Constellation Energy. BST had been developing emergency power and resiliency solutions for nuclear power stations. They were ready to begin marketing and needed a video, which is how I came recommended. But first, they needed a brand identity. Each question asked that began with “Do you know someone who can…”, my answer was, “Actually, I can.” And so began our journey.
They had already explored one of those logo-creation services, but the results were not hitting the mark. I began my process by asking a lot of questions about the products, the markets, what was important to the customer, what does BST want to be known for, etc. From those explorations came the essence of the brand: solid, substantial, reliable, resiliency, lightning-fast, safety. After some more targeted logo experiments and tweaks, what emerged was the logo and brand direction you see here. I created the usual variants, including special uses such as badges, social media icons and eventually product nameplates. I eventually developed a Brand Identity and Style Guide that defines BST’s brand essence, proper logo and color usage, typography, literature and messaging hierarchy, and more.
“Do you know anyone who can do logos too?”
Print design and production is something I’ve brought to the table since my college days. For BST, we’ve created a Messaging Hierarchy to segment our literature. This includes:
Master Brand Assets - market sector brochures, industry trade articles and ads, company profiles, product family brochures, white papers, case studies, and more.
Product Line Assets - product brochures, solution briefs and fact sheets.
Technical Documents - installation and user manuals, technical spec sheets and bulletins.
All documents are hard copy printed and are available as interactive (where applicable) and email-able PDFs.
Print and Literature Design
My trade show and event design, support, and logistics experience date way back to my first corporate job in the early ‘80s. BST had an existing hardcase, backlit 10’ backdrop that was cumbersome and limited in its application. We needed to develop a booth presence that was modular, easy to set up and modify (from a 10x10 to a 10x20), and did not need additional services to set up and break down.
Once we decided on a style and supplier, I used my 3D animation program to build size-accurate models of the backdrops, tables, and accessories so we could experiment with the placement of all components as well as the imagery that would be printed onto the panels.
The final set includes two 8x10 modular panels with lights, a 3x10 offset video monitor wall, a 3x10 side wall, an 8’ banner stand, and two 8’ table skirts. The entire booth can be assembled by a single person if necessary and ships in only four wheeled cases. I even created custom assembly instructions for each panel.
Trade Show and Special Venue Design
I’m also tasked with creating and managing many of the nuts-and-bolts imagery that goes into our branded work. This includes:
Photo/Video Acquisition - in addition to my own production work, I’ll work with other suppliers to ensure their work is produced within our brand guidelines.
Original Illustration - using my engineering and creative backgrounds, I create visualizations of the technical aspects of BST products and deployments.
Presentation Support - from PowerPoints to panel discussions, I’m often tasked with creating/restructuring our materials for public forums
Jack of All Trades - I sometimes get asked to provide a creative/brand perspective to BST product badging and UI.
All in a day’s work.
