Waldo County General Hospital recently launched a direct mail and advertising campaign to increase community awareness of health center services and the availability of primary care providers in Waldo County. “Quality Care, Close to Home” is the main message of the campaign. Health Center resources include priority sick visits, on-site lab work, friendly staff, and programs for qualifying patients that can help to pay for doctor visits and prescriptions.

Hospital staff managed the implementation of the campaign working closely with Pica Design on strategy, photography, copywriting and design. Local photographer, Margaret McKenna, provided the photography for the campaign, which ran in local online and print news channels. The new campaign ties into the hospital’s new website (also developed by Pica Design), which helps track response to the new campaign.

Highlighted in the campaign were primary care doctors in Waldo County and the Hospital’s physician referral service. The Health Centers featured include: Arthur Jewell Community Health Center, Donald S. Walker Health Center, Lincolnville Regional Health Center, Searsport Health Center, and Stockton Springs Regional Health Center. A second campaign focuses on the Hospital’s Physical and Occupational Therapy programs. To view the Primary Care campaign artwork, visit: www.picadesign.com. To learn more about the Hospital’s service offerings, visit: www.wcgh.org.

On a Friday in early June, the Pica Design team took a road trip to Portland to attend Abstract Maine 2011. The conference was hosted by AIGA Maine and their supporting sponsors. Abstract brought together six heavy hitters from the design community to talk about editorial design and its future (psst…it’s digital): Florian Bachleda of Fast  Company, Dirk Barnett of Newsweek, Scott Dadich of Condé Nast, Arem Duplessis of The New York Times Magazines, Luke Hayman of Pentagram and Gael Towey of Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia.

We got an inside look at the process behind putting a Newsweek cover together;  staging a photo shoot with Conan Obrien; blow-drying Martha Stewart’s Hens for a photo shoot; and rebranding the New York Magazine with Pentagram. More than that, we got an inside look at where the editorial world is heading and, yes, it has to do with the iPad and the tablet computer. We took a sneak preview at InDesign 5.5 with the good folks from Adobe and saw some of the digital tools they are building into future versions. Exciting stuff, to be sure.

Stepping outside of the daily goings- on around the office and listening to some great talks was both refreshing and inspiring. Overall, we brought home more ideas and inspiration than our brains could carry from some of the top professionals in our industry. The day was topped off by excellent food and conversation in Portland’s Old Port. Many thanks to AIGA Maine for putting together an excellent conference.

Pica Design is pleased to welcome RHR Smith & Company, C.P.A.s to our Client roster. In early November, RHR contracted us to provide Email Marketing services through Pica eNews™, a simple yet robust tool that allows RHR to create and deliver email campaigns on the fly. RHR Smith & Company, C.P.A.s is a full service, Maine-based accounting firm, which specializes in building client relationships. Their Development Services division offers consulting and other strategic expertise to clients. Its staff includes a former executive director with 20 years of experience in nonprofit management, and extensive knowledge in business and governmental organizations. To learn more about RHR Smith & Company, you can visit their website here: www.rhrsmith.com. To learn more about our Email Marketing Service, Pica eNews™, visit: success.picadesign.com/eNews.

What makes a great ad? We just raised this question at Pica Design when brainstorming new advertising ideas for VillageSoup. We decided to compile our thoughts and share them here on our blog. As you will see, our responses were varied, but they also overlap. A common thread is the understanding that great advertising grabs our attention, and we know a good ad when we see one. We invite you to delve into our responses and share your own thoughts by posting a ‘Reply’ under the blog.

+ a connection to the audience. If an ad connects with me–through humor or imagery or an element of surprise–it will be memorable. I’ll look up a website to learn more.

+ a concise message delivered in a bold and different way.

+ making the most of beauty. Beauty is inspiring and it’s memorable. If an ad inspires you, you remember it.

+ a great company, product or service. Then, it’s about clear communication and spot-on execution. So, it’s a great idea + useful design; that’s what makes a great ad.

+ authenticity, creativity, ingenuity and uniqueness.

+ few words. It makes the essential points and directs us to learn more.

+ a great marketing plan.

+ a great visual. I think one great visual is better than three not-so-great ones. Great advertising is simple and uncluttered.

+ knowing the difference between advertising and marketing.

+ standing out in a crowd.

+ immediacy. When an ad incorporates an offer to take advantage of right now, I pay attention.

How would you finish the statement, ‘A great ad starts with…’ ?

Need to jumpstart your marketing plans for 2011? Update your website? Develop a company logo? Redefine your brand? We offer a FREE one hour consultation at our design studio in Belfast. Call us today at (207) 338-1740 or email us at info@picadesign.com to schedule your meeting with our creative team.

www.picadesign.com

Downeast Lakes Land Trust (DLLT) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization founded in 2001 by local residents of Grand Lake Stream, Maine. They contribute to the long-term economic and environmental well-being of the Downeast Lakes region through the conservation and exemplary management of its forests and waters.

Pica Design answered a request for proposal from DLLT in April of 2010 and was chosen to redesign the organization’s outmoded web site. We reorganized content and designed a website which would be a resource for visitors, both for conservation news and as a guide to recreation opportunities in the region. A home-page slideshow features photos that capture the beauty and wildlife of the Grand Lake Stream area. We also built in new functionality: a blog, event calendar, and social networking tools. The site is optimized for search engines and traffic analysis. And–last, but not least–what would a non-profit be without its supporters? The new website allows visitors to contribute online; donors can direct a donation to a specific project, or donate in the name of someone special. We are excited to see how the site performs, so we’ll be checking in through Google Analytics and Google Webmaster Tools. In six months, we will analyze the site’s performance in search engines, part of our effort to optimize DLLT’s online visibility and help DLLT staff and volunteers do what they do best: Conserving Forests and Lakes – For People – Forever.

Downeast Lakes Land Trust Website: BEFORE Downeast Lakes Land Trust Website: AFTER

Check out the new site @ https://www.downeastlakes.org

Waldo Community Action Partners (WCAP) has a new website–a dynamic, information-rich site that will be updated and maintained by WCAP staff.

Waldo Community Action Partners’ mission is “to create opportunities for people to improve their quality of life.” They aim to make a big impact on Waldo County citizens by expanding opportunities for health, comfort, and financial and personal development. The site provides information and contacts for public transportation, education programs, energy services, emergency resources, health programs and community projects.

Using revolutionary web techniques, Pica Design programmed the site so that users with disabilities can navigate it without the use of a mouse. Site visitors can also follow quicklinks and visual icons to intuitively locate the content they need. We consulted WAI* and Section 508** to understand the needs of the disability community, then created solutions that we implemented across the site. The site also includes a private website for the WCAP staff to communicate and share documents between departments.

To check out the website or to learn more about how Waldo Community Action Partners supports our community everyday, click here: http://www.waldocap.org

* Pica Design developed navigation for the site to be WAI Compliant for Accessibility. WAI stands for Web Accessibility Initiative and their mission is to work with organizations around the world to develop strategies, guidelines and resources to help make the Web accessible to people with disabilities (for more information, visit www.w3.org/WAI/).
** “508 Compliant” refers to respect for and adherence to Section 508, which requires that Federal agencies’ electronic and information technology is accessible to people with disabilities.

Pica Design is pleased to announce the new redesign of Waldo County General Hospital’s website at www.wcgh.org! Waldo County Healthcare, Inc. (WCHI) serves the healthcare needs of Waldo County residents through Waldo County General Hospital, five rural health centers, home health and hospice services, public health nursing, physicians’ offices and educational programs.

Waldo County General Hospital (WCGH) is a not-for-profit community hospital committed to providing excellent care for patients and their families in a friendly, caring atmosphere in line with its mission to be the BEST. Services are provided as efficiently as possible with an eye on the future and in collaboration with other community-minded agencies. All services are provided regardless of ability to pay in accordance with the hospital’s financial assistance policy.

In early March, Pica Design was selected to redesign and redevelop the hospital’s new website working within the brand standards outlined by MaineHealth. The goal of the new website design was to remain accessible and intuitive to a broad-range audience while incorporating the newest tools and technologies to allow the hospital to enhance their existing communications and open new channels of communication. In addition, the new website needed to offer the ability to allow Hospital staff to manage every aspect of the website. Over the past six months, we have worked closely with the Hospital’s administrative staff to implement and test all of the site’s new functionality, including:

• a search-as-you-type feature to help people locate Doctor specialties that are difficult to spell
• built-in web accessibility tools for the handicapped (for example, the site can be navigated without a mouse)
• a find-a-doctor feature for specific medical needs
• news features & resources: subscribe to RSS news feeds, newsletters (InPulse & Journey to Health), and the news blog

One of the bigger challenges for our team was to code the new website to work on every browser and keep the website as accessible as possible. Should a website break occur, the user has the ability to ‘Submit a Website Problem’ through a link located within the footer navigation.

In addition to developing the new website, Pica Design is providing hosting services as well as consulting on web and social media strategies to help the Hospital get the most out of its online presence. To learn more about Pica website development and social media strategies, contact us by phone at 207-338-1740 or email at: info@picadesign.com

We’d like to welcome Downeast Lakes Land Trust as a new Client. In early June 2010, Pica Design was awarded a contract from Downeast Lakes Land Trust (DLLT) for the design and development of their new website. DLLT is a community-based 501(c)(3) non-profit founded in 2001 in Grand Lake Stream, Maine. Their mission is to contribute to the long-term economic and environmental well-being of the Downeast Lakes region through the conservation and exemplary management of its forests and waters. To learn more about their initiatives and the land that they are conserving, visit: http://www.downeastlakes.org

To learn more about Pica Design’s partnership benefits with other non-profits like Downeast Lakes Land Trust, contact us today at: info@picadesign.com

I often wonder what the future of Web Design will be. Is the information superhighway going to become an infrastructure just like our roadways and city’s are designed. A place where every page has the same navigation structure and always leads to the same intersection. In theory it would be great if say for instance every state run organization shared the same navigational structure. This way we could all find the information easier without having to learn how to navigate each site. On the other hand it wouldn’t be great if every tattoo shop had the same look and structure. They would then lack the originality and character that attracts people to certain shops.

WordPress themes and others like it are changing the way the landscape looks and creating an economical option for small companies. The benefit is that it gives start-up companies an option to get online without breaking the budget. The risk is that your business might not stand out from the rest.

I am not sure what the future holds for web design but I am sure that WordPress themes will be around for a while. Please choose wisely.

What a better way to celebrate the holidays than to help spread peace through Blueberry and Strawberry Preserves. Peace Preserves, a Client of Pica Design, is a local business that was created to provide an array of unique fundraising items to nonprofit organizations and the retail market. Products were developed as a vehicle to express the simple message to “Spread Peace, Peace Works”. When you buy their products, you send funds directly to youth organizations who are working towards achieving peace in our world today. To learn more on Pica Design’s involvement in helping Peace Preserves to develop their brand identity and packaging, click here. To purchase Peace Preserves for gifts or for your holiday enjoyment, you can visit a variety of local establishments such as the Farmers Fare, the Belfast Co-op, Whole Foods in Portland or directly through the Peace Preserves website . Enjoy!