Wagner Design Associates Blog

In a competition of marketing materials for local economic development companies, Ann Arbor SPARK was awarded a first place win for its 2011 Annual Report designed by Wagner Design Associates. The win came in the category of “print marketing materials” for populations between 100,001 and 500,000. The competition, sponsored by the Michigan Economic Developers Association (MEDA), is in its 7th year.

All submissions were categorized by the size of the community represented by the economic development organization. Then they were evaluated based on creativity, graphic design and content. Judges noted that the annual report was “well organized and visually enticing” and praised its finish, color, size and shape.

Linda Fitzgerald of Fitzgerald Communications LLC contributed copywriting, editing and consulting services to the report. Fitzgerald Communications is an Ann Arbor-based company specializing in content development for business, health care, education, technology and the nonprofit sector.

MEDA, an organization whose objective is to lead Michigan’s economic development through education, networking and advocacy on economic development, will announce winners during its annual meeting on August 21-24 at Mission Point Resort, Mackinac Island.

Ann Arbor SPARK’s mission is to advance the economy of the Ann Arbor Region by establishing the area as a desired place for business expansion and location – by identifying and meeting the needs of business at every stage, from those that are established to those working to successfully commercialize innovations.

Wagner Design provides a full range of creative design and advertising solutions for a wide spectrum of industries including high technology, retail, health care, financial, and academic sectors. The firm has won recognition and awards for its work in print collateral, direct mail, electronic communications, and web design, and has been featured in various design publications.

Contact:

Kathy Roeser-Nordling

Wagner Design Associaties LLC

T: 734.662.9500

E: kathy@wagdesign.com

Jenn Cornell

Ann Arbor SPARK

T: 734.765.0174

E: jenn@jenncornell.com

Ann Arbor, Michigan – Wagner Design Associates, an Ann Arbor advertising and graphic design firm, received a Silver ADDY® in the Ann Arbor Ad Club’s 2010 ADDY Awards competition.

The ADDY was awarded to Wagner Design for Ann Arbor SPARK’s 2009 Annual Report. The brochure style annual report features the tagline “fast. forward.” on the cover and throughout, and describes SPARK’s ongoing contribution to accelerating the pace of business growth in the Ann Arbor area. Motion blurred graphics evoke the feeling of speed, complementing the theme.

Sponsored nationally by the American Advertising Federation and locally by the Ann Arbor Ad Club, the ADDY Awards Competition recognizes and rewards creative excellence in the art of advertising. Beginning at the local level, in 200 markets nationwide, the ADDY’s three-tiered competition is the largest and most representative advertising awards program in the industry.

Ann Arbor SPARK’s mission is to be the driving force in establishing the Ann Arbor Region as a desired place for business expansion and location by identifying and meeting the needs of business at every stage, from those that are established to those working to successfully commercialize innovations.

Wagner Design provides a full range of creative design and advertising services to organizations in the high technology, retail, health care, financial, and academic sectors. The firm has won recognition and awards for its work in print collateral, direct mail, electronic communications, and web design, and has been featured in various design publications.

Ann Arbor, Michigan – In a competition of marketing materials for local economic development companies, Ann Arbor SPARK was awarded two first place wins for materials designed by Wagner Design Associates. The wins came in the categories of “print marketing materials” and “website” for populations between 100,001 and 500,000. The competition, sponsored by the Michigan Economic Developers Association (MEDA), is in its 5^th year. In 2009 the Lenawee Economic Development Corporation was awarded first place for “print marketing materials” designed by Wagner Design.

MEDA, an organization whose objective is to lead Michigan’s economic development through education, networking and advocacy on economic development, announced winners at an awards ceremony held in Traverse City on September 16^th.  All submissions were categorized by the size of the community represented by the economic development organization.  Then they were evaluated based on creativity, content and branding.

Ann Arbor SPARK’s mission is to be the driving force in establishing the Ann Arbor Region as a desired place for business expansion and location by identifying and meeting the needs of business at every stage, from those that are established to those working to successfully commercialize innovations.

Wagner Design provides a full range of creative graphic design and advertising services to organizations in the high technology, retail, health care, financial, and academic sectors. The firm has won recognition and awards for its work in print collateral, direct mail, electronic communications, web design, and has been featured in various design publications.

Contact:

Wagner Design Associates has recently created a life science product development brochure for Ann Arbor SPARK, highlighting the advantages of working with a Contract Research Organization (CRO). Also called Clinical Research Organizations, CROs provide support to the pharmaceutical/biotech industry. They offer clients a wide range of independently contracted pharmaceutical research services to aid in the drug and medical device research & development process.

Services offered by CROs may include product development, formulation and manufacturing, clinical trial management, safety monitoring, toxicology and clinical laboratory services for processing trial samples, data management and medical writing services for preparation of an FDA New Drug Application (NDA), and many other complementary services.

Here in Southeast Michigan, a hub for life science research, life science product development companies are making connections and partnering with CROs. The advantages are many, including the speed to market for a product, which means quicker business success for entrepreneurs. Ann Arbor SPARK, an economic development company can get a successful product development cycle started for companies in the southeastern region of Michigan that will benefit from a partnership with a CRO.

Once established, don’t forget about creating a brand identity. Let Wagner Design Associates help by creating a logo, website, or collateral materials. We’re an award winning graphic and web design company in Ann Arbor with over twenty years experience.

Starting a business doesn’t have to be an intimidating process. Many people may have a fantastic idea for a start-up company, but not a whole lot of knowledge about turning that idea into a business. What does this have to do with Wagner Design Associates, an advertising company in Ann Arbor? Well, one of our clients, Ann Arbor SPARK, happens to be in the business of creating more business. They will help people in every stage of the process to guide companies toward business success.

SPARK Central, an Ann Arbor business incubator, and SPARK East, an Ypsilanti business incubator, offer professional, staffed business space, which includes private cubicles, meeting and conference space and all of the business amenities you would expect in grade A leased space. The Michigan Life Science Innovation Center, an Ann Arbor wet lab incubator, boasts state-of-the-art life science and biotech research space in a collaborative entrepreneurial environment with established tenant interaction and support. No matter what kind of business idea, there is a place for it in Ann Arbor.

Part of successful Web design nowadays is creating a blog to support it. As web designers in Ann Arbor, Wagner Design Associates has designed a variety of blogs for clients including Ann Arbor SPARK, Dataspace and of course, the one you’re currently reading. I, personally, really enjoy reading blogs and there are several I follow. But not everyone is like this. I’d venture to guess that just as many or more folks hit blogs only because they’re searching for specific information via Google. And to those folks I say, you’re missing out. Dan Gillmor, a guest writer over at one of the blogs I follow called Boing Boing, agrees.

He says that when you pick up a New York Times and glance at the front page, you notice not only that there are the obvious news stories, but also some stories that you think, “I didn’t know that I needed to know that until I read it.” So, we lack that “serendipity” by doing specific Internet searches. And with the fading newspaper industry, finding a good blog or two to follow, will help fill that void. You may also find that you connect with certain authors, or certain blog designs, or even begin to have the urge to start one of your own. Explore!