Print Ad Campaign - Columbia Sportsgear

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Project Brief - Print Ad in a Magazine for Columbia Sportsgear

Summary:

For this project, I was designing a print ad for a magazine for Columbia Sportsgear. I started by researcher the brand itself and creating a creative brief for the brand and company. This would help me better develop a print ad for Columbia.

Creative Brief – Columbia

• The nature of the brand or group:
-Outdoor sports gear
-Outdoors brand
-Promotes active lifestyle
-Known for jackets and outerwear

• The goals of differentiation and distinction
-Outdoor sportswear specific (hiking, fishing, camping, etc)
-80 years of outdoors – trusted, company history
-Gear technology is high tech
-Pacific Northwest heritage and indomitable spirit.

• A strategic brand personality
-High-standards
-Tough
-Active
-Ready for anything
-Not too flashy but effective and high quality

• The target audience
-Those that enjoy outdoors sports
-Those that live in a cold climate
-Those that money to spend on higher quality outdoors products

• What is important to the target audience
-Effect products that work in cold weather or for outdoor sports
-Apparel that performs and has sold technology

• Positioning
-Adventurous, can-do, outdoors brand that offers everything for you need to exceed in your active lifestyle.

Who?
-Founded by GERT BOYLE
-Geared towards men and women and kids (active families)
-Those that love the outdoors or do outdoor sports and have extra money to spend

What?
-Jackets, footwear, fleeces, tops, bottoms, apparel
-Products that perform in tough outdoor conditions

Where?
-Based in Portland, Oregon

When?
1970 Bert took over the business

Final Creative Brief:
Columbia is an outdoor sports and cold climate brand that promotes an active lifestyle. They’re known for their high-quality and high-tech, durable apparel products. Those that are active outdoors or have an active family with money to spend on high-performing products are their market. Columbia’s products are unique because they perform in tough outdoor conditions and cold weather.

The company has a long history and has been around for 80 years. The long history and can-do attitude of the company founder adds integrity and trust to the brand. The brand personality is tough, active, high-performing, and ready for anything. The company was founded in the Pacific Norwest, a place known for adverse weather, mountains, rain, and outdoor activities.

I started by sketching out different versions of the ad I had in mind. I experimented with different logo placement, taglines, imagery and layout.

Next, I narrowed down my sketches to my top 3 favorite designs. I then sketched out these designs.

Next, I took to the digital realm. I started gathering images I'd like to use in my ad. I wanted the images to reflect adventure, exploring the great outdoors, and rugged climates. I then started adding in ad copy and logos. Below are my 3 ad mockups.