Visioning is where every RSM Design project starts. We research the market, study the audience, and identify what makes a place distinct. From there, we build a narrative and vision that shape the brand's tone, essence, and positioning.
Brand Development
Envisioning stories, crafting experiences
Building brands that are tailored to thoughtfully channel the essence of an experience into print, digital and the built environment.
Sub-services
Vision & Brand Strategy
Naming
Logo Development
Identity System
Leasing & Printed Collateral
Brand Guidelines
At RSM Design, brand development begins with visioning, the strategic foundation for every project. Through market and competitive research, audience insight, and a careful study of what makes a place distinct, we write a clear narrative and vision that defines the tone, essence, story, and positioning of the brand. Stakeholders and community members take part through surveys and guided conversations, so the people who use a place help shape its story. When a project calls for a name, we look at how location, history, nature, and culture can shape a vocabulary, then refine those ideas into a name that resonates. From there, we build an identity that pairs visual elements like logo, tagline, color, and typography with a verbal voice, tone, and messaging, creating a brand grounded in local character that stands apart from its competitors.
Because a well-developed brand needs to work across every platform, our team draws on 25 years of experience to take brands from concept to reality in print, digital, and architectural environments. That includes leasing kits, brochures, stationery, websites, social media, and creative content, along with brand standards manuals that document the identity, keep it consistent, and help team members become brand ambassadors. Where RSM Design stands out is in bringing the brand into the built environment. Working alongside architectural teams, we translate the brand into three-dimensional space through placemaking, wayfinding, and signage, creating a consistent experience that builds trust, guides how people move through a place, and gives them a sense of belonging.
Branding Services
Brand Vision & Narrative
Visioning provides a strategic foundation for a successful project. Utilizing market and competitive research, identifying audience needs and completing a careful study of the characteristics unique to a product a place, we articulate a succinct narrative and vision for each project, defining the tone, essence, story and positioning of the brand to serve as a guide for developing compelling and effective design.
Naming
Few aspects of brand identity are more personal, important, or engaging than the development of a brand name. Serving as one of the most distinctive and foundational cornerstones on which a brand is built, brand name is the first impression, and the highest level expression of what a place, product, person, or company is all about. We explore how location, history, nature, contemporary cultural influences, and aspects of place shape the development of meaningful vocabulary, evolving these ideals into a name that resonates.
Brand Identity
Brand identity encapsulates the essence of a brand and expresses its values and and purpose through a unique combination of visual elements, such as a logo, tagline, color palette, and typography, and verbal communication, like voice, tone, and messaging. A well-crafted identity infuses the brand with soul and energy, creating a presence that speaks authentically to its audience and leaves a lasting and timeless impression that not only reflects the brand’s vision and narrative, but also makes it memorable and distinct in the competitive landscape of the modern day.
Brand Guidelines
A brand standards manual serves as a comprehensive reference that catalogs all elements of the brand vision and identity. It communicates the vision and purpose of a brand, converting team members into brand ambassadors, and outlines a set of rules and standards to keep your brand consistent, from marketing channels to the built environment.
Print & Digital Collateral
A well-developed brand is versatile and can be seamlessly applied across various platforms. Our team specializes in taking brands from the conceptual to the concrete, creating award-winning activations in print, digital and architectural environments. With 25 years of experience in all aspects of design, our team is well-versed to bring your vision to life in any media, from printed matter, such as leasing kits, brochures and stationery sets, to digital environments such as websites, social media and creative content.
Branded Environment
Our speciality at RSM is the synchronization of the brand into the built environment. We focus on crafting brands that tell the unique story of a place, as well as have a strong ability to translate in compelling ways into three-dimensional space. In collaboration with architectural teams, our skilled designers work to seamlessly integrate the brand into the environment through thoughtful placemaking, wayfinding, and signage design.
Projects
Loveland, Colorado
Avenue South
Lone Tree, Colorado
High Note Regional Park
Tucson, Arizona
Uptown Tucson
Mansfield, Texas
Staybolt Street
Las Vegas, Nevada
Hylo Park
San Antonio, Texas
North Rim
Frisco, Texas
The Monarch at HALL Park
Irvine, California
The Canopy
Thousand Oaks, California
The Oaks
Allen, Texas
Bravo Park
Whittier, California
City of Whittier
Longboat Key, Florida
CW Prime at St. Regis Longboat Resort
Clients & Collaborators
Topic series
Media & Thought Leadership
Exploring the Brand Connection
Join Cody Clark and Suzanne Redmond Schwartz, Principals at RSM Design, as they team up for an in-depth conversation on the branding process, finding design inspiration, and leadership in our design studio.
5 Key Strategies for Building a Brand
Every strong brand starts with the same groundwork: vision, audience, mission, core values, and personality. RSM Design's brand design principals break down how those pieces come together to build one.
Branding & Wayfinding Used to Create a Strong Community
Home means something different now—and RSM Design is watching residential brands adapt. From consistent digital-to-built narratives to logos that carry a place's full story, here's what's standing out in multi-family and master-planned design right now.
From strategy and identity to bringing brands to life in print, digital and the built environment, our team has 30 years of expertise to meet all of your project needs.