Overview
Any candidate running for public office puts effective promotion at the top of their list of campaign needs. While solid website design, social media, printed materials, and events are all key elements to the goal of winning an election, a campaign message that is accessible, comprehensive, and easy to understand is critical.
Business owner Nick Quinn lost his recent bid to become the new magistrate for Kanawha County, yet he praises the website design and other contributions by Jamie and the Bricks Without Straw team. Jamie’s design expertise exceeded Nick’s expectations with how effectively all the aspects of his core campaign message were communicated online and out in the community.
Some History & The Vision
Nick and Jamie had known each other for several years and were associated professionally even before Jamie designed Nick’s campaign website. The owner of a busy tattoo studio located in Charleston’s Downtown Historic District, Nick offers a bit of history that very simply, yet perfectly, explains what prompted him to approach Jamie to design his campaign website: “Jamie built the website for my tattoo studio.” That website was impressive, showcasing the scope of work performed by a variety of talented artists. Their artistry and passions were featured in a way that caught the eye and interest of any prospective customer who visited the website.
As a tattoo artist, Nick boasts, “I have some design skills myself, so there are some things that I can pretty easily do on my own.” But he’s also aware of his limitations. While he had a good idea of the specific content he wanted included on his website, it was Jamie’s eye for design that Nick recruited to create the vision, i.e., the overall look and feel of the website.
Jamie brought that vision and he was largely responsible for the site’s branding as well, which included creating a campaign logo. “I made a couple minor adjustment to the logo,” says Nick, but because of Jamie’s expertise, he notes, “Overall it was a pretty quick and easy process.”
Jamie’s vision included bold fonts and inviting colors, along with Nick’s core message and an easy Q&A that dove into details without going “information overload.” Jamie embedded a minute-long video in which Nick engaged directly with the viewers as prospective Kanawha voters, and these website visitors could fill out a simple contact form, donate financially, and connect directly to Nick’s social media pages to follow his campaign.
An Effective Process
When asked what he felt was most effective about his website, Nick pointed to the feedback he received. “Based on the overall sentiment of what I heard from folks, the site was very straightforward, easy to use, links were provided and highlighted — I mean, it just wasn’t complicated at all for folks to grasp. It was aesthetically pleasing and readable.” In addition to the website, Jamie designed and printed select campaign materials, incorporating the logo he designed onto signs, a flag, and a large banner.
Nick gives major kudos to Jamie not just for his expertise, but for his professional work ethic. “He gave me exactly what I was looking for,” which included not only a finished campaign website and printed materials, but a level of responsiveness that made the process easy. Even though Jamie was traveling out of the country while designing Nick’s website, he always responded quickly. “Honestly, a lot of Jamie’s work was to wait on me to get back to him! And as soon as I sent over content or other information that he’d requested, Jamie got the work done. It really just blew me away how quick and effective and efficient everything was.”
Continued Confidence
Whether Nick decides to run for magistrate or other public office in the future, he’s so confident in Jamie’s skill and outcomes that Jamie will be his “go-to” whenever he needs a design professional. “I’ll continue to use Jamie for pretty much any design work I need that falls outside of my own abilities.”
