Wagner Design Associates Blog

Wagner Design Associates, an Ann Arbor, Michigan web design and advertising firm, recently created an improved web site for Bonanza Creek Country Ranch. Designed to be user-friendly and visually engaging, the new site depicts the rugged beauty of the Montana guest ranch with professional and amateur photography throughout. Visitors easily navigate information-packed pages to learn more about Bonanza Creek’s activities, history, amenities, and surrounding attractions. Testimonials from recent guests offer deeper insight into the ranch.

In addition to an engaging new design and expanded content, the Bonanza site was fully optimized for both humans and search engine spider visitors.

“We’ve received many compliments on the new site from both our guest regulars and new visitors,” said June Voldseth, owner of Bonanza Creek Country. “But even more satisfying is the significant increase in the number of visitors and the length of their stay on the site. Inquiries and reservations are up!”

Located in Montana, Bonanza Creek Country Ranch is part of a historical family ranch on 25,000 acres with 1,500 head of cattle. Along with daily opportunities for horseback riding, guests enjoy fishing, hiking, or pampering with massage and hot tub. Bonanza Creek has been honored by Travel+Leisure Magazine as “One of Montana’s Magnificent 7 Guest Ranches”. Visit the website at http://www.bonanzacreekcountry.com/ to learn more.

Wagner Design provides a full range of creative design and advertising services to 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.

Ann Arbor, Michigan – Wagner Design Associates has completed several new marketing initiatives for the Michigan Institute for Clinical & Health Research (MICHR). The creative firm developed and coordinated branding for posters, presentations, social media graphics and e-mail marketing campaigns. Wagner Design, in conjunction with Barclay Consulting, also redesigned MICHR’s web site creating a clear, accessible interface that highlights resources available to U-M researchers through all stages of study.

MICHR’s mission is to enable and enhance clinical and translational research. It was created by the Regents of the University of Michigan in 2006, and received a Clinical and Translational Science Award from the National Institutes of Health in 2007, making them part of a national consortium of 55 research institutions sharing a common vision. Today, MICHR is moving medicine forward to improve health treatments and find cures by offering 360º support for U-M research teams conducting clinical studies.

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, and web design, and has been featured in various design publications.

Contact:

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:

Ann Arbor, Michigan – ­ A variety of marketing projects, including new logo and identity package development and web site design were recently produced by Wagner Design Associates for Premiere Land Services (PLS).  The newly created pieces will enhance marketing efforts and upgrade the company’s look to more accurately showcase the breadth of the company’s services. The new website can be viewed at www.plsco.com.

With recent expansion and company development, PLS now specializes in unparalleled resources, solutions and expertise for clients in the telecommunications and energy industries. PLS’s network of highly qualified professionals provides consulting services, oil and gas leasing, title research and curative, site acquisitions, surveying, and ROW permitting throughout the United States.

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:

Ann Arbor, Michigan ­ Marketing materials recently designed by Wagner Design Associates for the Lenawee Economic Development Corporation (LEDC) have been awarded first place in the 2009 MEDA Marketing Competition. Collateral pieces won in the category for “printed materials for the population of 50,001-100,000.” The print pieces included letterhead, LEDC’s identity package, capabilities brochure and first annual report.

MEDA, an organization whose mission is to lead Michigan’s economic development through education, networking and advocacy on economic development, sponsored the fourth Annual Marketing Competition for local economic development marketing materials. The competition provides Michigan economic organizations an opportunity to have professional reviews of their marketing materials. First- through third-place ribbons were presented at an awards ceremony, held in Kalamazoo on August 20th.

Lenawee Economic Development Corporation (LEDC) is a non-profit organization dedicated to economic and business expansion throughout Lenawee County. In addition to business attraction, retention and start-up activities, LEDC provides services to support business growth including access to funding sources and talent enhancement.

Wagner Design provides a full range of creative design and advertising services in Ann Arbor 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 and electronic communications and has been featured in various design publications.

Contact:

Kathy Roeser-Nordling
Wagner Design Associates LLC
T: 734.662.9500
F: 734.662.6590
E: kathy@wagdesign.com

Jim Gartin
Lenawee Economic Development Corporation
T: 517.265.5141
F: 517.265.6056
E: jim@onelenawee.org

“Keep it Simple, Stupid.” This is how I heard it. I believe I was in about eighth grade and it was English class with Mr. Morwick, and I had a run-on sentence, much like this one, with way too many adjectives and repetition, just like this one. You get the point. The principle acknowledges that in good graphic design, it’s not the complexity of the design that makes it work, but what remains when the accessories are eliminated. I didn’t realize in eighth grade that this was a design principle, crossing many design fields. It can be compared to Occam’s razor, and Albert Eistein’s Maxim, “everything should be made as simple as possible, but no simpler.” Even Colin Chapman, founder of Lotus, urged his designers to “Simplify, and add lightness.” Disney animators follow the principle as well. Here at our graphic design company in Ann Arbor, we follow this principle too.

There are variations on the phrase, which weren’t familiar to me, but maybe you heard it one of these ways: Keep it simple and stupid. Keep it small and simple. Keep it sweet and simple. Keep it speckless and sane. Keep it sober and significant. But my favorite is, keep it super simple. But, if we really wanted to take out the complexity, shouldn’t we just call it Kis?