Pixel Productions Inc.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am the communications specialist for Medford School District 549C. I am in charge of all forms of messaging, internal, and external.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Pixel Productions?

I am familiar with gathering and developing content, but not as much with design work. We do not have a graphic designer on staff. so we needed contractors to help do that. Pixel Productions helped fill that need.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Pixel Productions has done a number of projects for us. They actually started by developing our logo and launching our rebranding effort. Our first project was pretty large in scope. It involved taking information and then developing that into visual form as a logo for our organization. That information was gathered through a variety of focus groups with our stakeholders. Pixel Productions did a number of mockups, and we chose a few. We did some revisions, they did some revisions, and then we settled on the one that we have now been using for one full year. Now, they use the new logo to help us with publications and brochures. They've also worked with some of our schools to redesign their logos as well.

They have done a number of physical marketing materials for us. We're working on a magazine with them. For our most recent project, Pixel Productions designed 30 posters for us. Those posters were just printed [as of September 2016]. We use the posters not only to advertise the district but also the mobile app. We took some professional photography and some language to go with it, and then we launched a mobile app.

Pixel Productions is also on standby for another project that's underway. They did a template for a strategic planning document that we're calling Vision 2020. As soon as have more content for them, they'll plug that in. We paid for the initial design work and the framework and, as we have more content, we'll give it to them, and they'll develop additional pages.

How did you come to work with Pixel Productions?

I actually did some research for a local company. We're the Medford School District, and we wanted to use a Medford company. I went around and spoke with a number of designers in our area. I enjoyed talking with Paul [Hentschl, general manager] of Pixel Productions. He was very open to working with us and understood our needs and our budget.

How much have you invested with Pixel Productions?

We have paid $10,000 to $20,000 for Pixel Productions's services.

What is the status of this engagement?

Our collaboration with Pixel Productions started with the logo design. It went so well that we have continued to use them for other projects. We began embarking on the logo design process in April 2015. Now, we hire them on a project-to-project basis.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Could you share any evidence that would demonstrate the productivity, quality of work, or the impact of the engagement?

It's hard to measure metrics because we're a school district, not a corporation. The only metrics that we have are enrollments, but there are so many factors that play into enrollment. I only have heard word of mouth that there is much more talk about the district. People love the designs that Pixel Productions came up with, and we get great feedback on that – very positive feedback. The district is being viewed in a much more positive light now.

Our logo hadn't been redone for a couple decades. It totally did not represent our district. Now, people say that we're viewed as more professional, modern, and up to date. The new logo reflected the more innovative work that happens in our classrooms. When they create documents like our Vision 2020, they just look so professional. These documents go to our school board and to our constituents. I think that they reflect what we're doing in the classroom and with students in a much more positive light. Our image has improved quite a bit, and I definitely think that Pixel Productions' work has a big part to do with that.

How did Pixel Productions perform from a project management standpoint?

Pixel Productions has good project management. As soon as I email them, they get back to me promptly. They usually assign project work to Shannon [Crutchfield, art director at Pixel Productions] for us, and it's been great. I sometimes have tight deadlines, and Pixel Productions is always able to meet them. I have been pleased with the way things have been going.

What did you find most impressive about Pixel Productions?

I haven't worked with any other, so I wouldn't be able to compare, but I think that they are very accommodating. We're a school district, so they give us a rate that makes it able to justify spending money on advertising and marketing. That is not popular in the world of education at all. We're trying to get some marketing done because we believe that it's critical to our success. At the same time, we need to be able to do it at a cost that we can justify. Every dollar that we spend on marketing is a dollar that does not go into the classroom. Pixel Productions has been able to make it affordable enough that we can justify those purchases. That's been appreciated. I think they are very friendly, personable, and professional. I think that their product is very well done.

Are there any areas Pixel Productions could improve?

No – not really.