Led the development of a county-wide brand identity system for Nevada County, creating a unified visual framework to support a major website redesign and improve clarity across public-facing services.
The Challenge
Nevada County was preparing for a website redesign but lacked a centralized brand system. With only the County seal in place, departments had developed their own logos and visual styles over time, creating confusion for residents trying to navigate services.
The project required defining a unified identity that could scale across departments with different needs and limited capacity. I approached this by developing and presenting a set of directions, then refining a selected concept into a flexible system for the website and broader communications.
Approach & Role
I partnered with County leadership and the communications team to define a unified brand vision, grounded in flexibility and ease of use. The goal was to establish a foundation that could scale and adapt to a wide range of departmental needs. We identified the need for a modular system that could be adapted for different departments and use cases.
I led the development of the logo system and a comprehensive style guide to support consistent use across teams, aligning the brand for web and print communications. I also collaborated with the CivicPlus team during the website build, providing direction on brand implementation and photography to ensure the identity carried through in the final experience.
Impact
Established a cohesive visual identity across Nevada County communications, improving clarity and recognition for residents. The system provided departments with a consistent framework for ongoing use and supported the launch of the redesigned website.
Established a cohesive visual identity across Nevada County communications, improving clarity and recognition for residents. The system provided departments with a consistent framework for ongoing use and supported the launch of the redesigned website.
Below are selected pages from the County's final style guide, which was used to guide the website re-design and provided to all County staff members as a reference tool for navigating their new identity system.
