1. DESIGNING OBAMAPOST PRESS

2. DESIGNING OBAMA A CHRONICLE of ART DESIGN from the 2008 PreSIDENTIAL CAMPAIGN Sco |omC op y right 2 0 1 0 by S C O T T T H O M A S NOTICE OF RIGHTSAll rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form by any means,electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior written permission of thepublisher. For information on getting permission for reprints and excerpts, contact permissions@thepostpress.com.NOTICE OF LIABILITYThe information in this book is distributed on an As Is basis without warranty. While every precaution hasbeen taken in the preparation of the book, neither the author nor Post Press shall have any liability to anyperson or entity with respect to any loss or damage caused or alleged to be caused directly or indirectly by theinstructions contained in this book or by the computer software and hardware products described in it.TRADEMARKSMany of the designations used by manufacturers and sellers to distinguish their products are claimed astrademarks. Where those designations appear in this book, and Post Press was aware of a trademark claim,the designations appear as requested by the owner of the trademark. All other product names and servicesidentified throughout this book are used in editorial fashion only and for the benefit of such companies withno intention of infringement of the trademark. No such use, or the use of any trade name, is intended toconvey endorsement or other affiliation with this book.ISBN-13 978-0-615-28419-4 ISBN-10 0615284191987654321 Printed and bound in the United States of America vii 3. P O S TP R E S SFind us on the World Wide Web at:www.T H E P OST P R E SS .comT o r e p o rt e r r o r s, p l e a s e s e n d a n o t e t o :e r r ata @ T HE P O ST P RE S S.co mPOST PRESS IS COMMITTED TO PRODUCING FINE BOOKSAND REINVENTING PUBLISHING IN THE 21ST CENTURY. 4. |eA C K N OW L E D G E M E N T SI decided to compile and create this book not just to document and acknowledge all thepeople who inspired and propelled the Obama for America campaign, but also to illustratethe great potential of this country. The entire experience is proof that if people from differentbackgrounds and competing interests can come together, put aside their differences, andsacrifice their politics, truly remarkable things can happen. Barack Obamas optimism andemphasis on creativity being the solution to many of our problems will forever guide mywork. I must first thank him for taking the difficult step of leading and, more than anything,following his own true will.There are so many people I wish to thank for inspiring and helping to create this book. First,Kori Schulman for compiling much of the artwork in this book. Joe Rospars, Michael Slaby,Stephen Geer, Scott Goodstein, Chris Hughes, Dan Siroker, Kate Albright-Hanna, MaconPhillips, the Obama for America new media team for the opportunity to work with you. Thedesign team: John Slabyk, Matt Ipcar, Jessica Schlueter, Walker Hamilton, Carly Pearlman,Kyle Crouse, Will Wan, Jess Weida, Ryan Myers, Karen Backe, Kinjal Mehta, Wade Sherrard,Gray Brooks, Zealan Hoover, Paul Schreiber, and Nick Piazza for all of the inspiring workand dedication during the campaign. The Post Family, Sam Rosen, Allison Jones, Ina Weise,Charles Adler, Kickstarter, and the many backers of this project, for your support & encour-agement. Ben Speckmann, Andrew Musch, Gus Gavino, Elaine Fong, Steven Heller, MichaelBierut, James H. Ewert Jr., Mia Sara Bruch, Julie Van Keuren, Fabra DiPaolo, Jay Stewart &Capital Offset, Acme Bindery and Universal Engravers, for helping in the production.xi 5. For art establishes the basichuman truths which mustserve as the touchstonesof our judgment. The artist,HOWEVER fa i t h f u l t o h i spersonal vision of reality,becomes the last championof the individual mindand sensibility against anintrusive society and anoffICiouS state.John F. KennedyAmherst College in Massachusetts October 26, 1963 xii 6. |eA RT I S TSChristina Alexandra, Aaron Allen, Chuck Anderson, Aesthetic Apparatus, AaronAxelrod, Oliver Barrett, Shana Barry, Ales Bask Hostomsky, Billy Baumann/Jason Teegarden-Downs, Greg Beauchamp, Christopher Beaumont, Melinda Beck,Leon Bedore, Evan Bench, Todd and Cain Benson, Michael Bierut Gui Borchert,Mr. Brainwash, Thomas Brodahl, Sam Brown, Kendall Bruns, Burlesque of NorthAmerica, Nick Campbell, David Carson, Frank Chimero, Phillip Clark, MargaretCoble, Christopher Cox, Adam Culbert, Doug Cunningham, Antar Dayal, SteveDeer, Delicious Design League, Jeff Domke, Adam S. Doyle, Marlene Dumas,Eddie, Tristan Eaton, Ron English, Jason Esser, Max Estes, Mason Fetzer, BrianFlynn, Michael Forbes, AG Ford, Sofia Fridman, Alex Fuller, Emily Gallardo,Ren Garcia Jr., Don Garcia, Amanda Gentry, Zara Gonzalez, Derek Gores,Robert Haining, Wade Hampton, Justin Hampton, Scott Hansen, Shawn Hazen,Melvin Heng, Derek Hess, Todd Hirsch, Jonathan Hoefler, Cody Hudson, DanIbarra, Felix Jackson. Jr, Michael Jacob, Andy Keene, Billi Kid, ChristopherKirk, Caleb Kozlowski, Jimm Lasser, Armando Lerma, John Locke, RafaelLopez, Amy Martin, Aaron Meshon, Chad Mize, Renan Molin, Van Monroe,Shannon Moore, Jason Munn, Michael Murphy, Aaron Nagel, Kishore Nallan,Ray Noland, Judy North, Jason Noto, James OBrien, Michelle Page, Marco Pece,Deroy Peraza, Gugger Petter, Frank Plant, Reuben Raffael, Carlos Ramirez, JorgeRodriguez-Gerada, Larry Roibal, Zilly Rosen, Camm Rowland, Zina Saunders,Marc Scheff, Paula Scher, Martin Schoeller, Rick Sealock, Sol Sender, Erika IrisSimmons, Graye Smith, Christopher Smith, Ratha Sok, John Sokol, ManickSorcar, Ben Speckmann, John Steins, EMEK Studios, Charis Tsevis, RalphUeltzhoeffer, George Vlosich III, Greg Vlosich, Annie Weatherwax, James Widener,Lance Wille, Herb Williams, Wes Winship, Josh Wisdumb, Lance Wyman, BrettYasko, Russell Youngxiii 7. |eCONTRIBUTORS 4))S)I)L)V)E)R))$Shaun Abrahamson, Joe Alexander, Hans U. Allemann, Susan Aronson, Karen Backe, JustinPruszynski Bacon, Askar Baitassov, Sietse Bakker, David Bias, Kurt Bielema, Elizabeth Bone,Bill Bonnell, Philippe Bossin, John Bowles, Greg Boyd, Brian, Darin Ten Bruggencate, TimBrunelle, Andrea Butler, Javier Caada, Mark Scott Carroll, Brooke Castro, ChristopherA. Celeste, Jade Cheah, Jodi Chen, Lance Chiu, Phivos Christofides, Traci Moore Clay,John Click, Jim Coudal, Kyle Crouse, Daniel Crowell, Dafyd, Lee Dale, Antar Dayal,Brian Desrosiers-Tam, Michael Dila, Tese Dineen, Morgan Drew, Jeff Easton, Eric Eggert,Josh Ehart, David Elwell, David Elwell, Aaron & Kari Evanson, Christine Fajardo, RachelFouche, Chris Gallevo, Abeni Garrett, Marcelo Gastaldi, Marc Gendron, Megan Gillette,Scott Goodstein, Jeremy Gordon, Aimee Gromowsky, Mandy Corrado Gutwaks, Hans,Nabil Harfoush, Laurence Hegarty, Jeromy Henry, Michelle Hobbs, Mat Honan, CodyHudson, Jennifer Idol, Mark Jablonowski, Jellyhelm, Jill, Jason Jones, Arthur S. JordanJr., Ray Kanani, Arno Karrasch, Gareth Kay, Paul Kelley, Kijeren, Ross King, JonathanKopp, Nishant Kothary, Michelle Koza, David A. Knowles, Bee Kwan & Eric Chia, KarimLakhani, Thomas Law, Jennifer Linton, Barry Lohman, Vincent Lopresti, Anna Lu Lane,Keorattana Luangrathrajasombat, Majinboo, Cj Maupin, Emily Mcluhan, Kelly Mcniece,Chris Messina, Erik Moe, Anne Moertel, Luigi Montanez, James Murgatroyd, Eric WayneNorlander, Oliver Oike, Jose Olide, Nick Onken, Leasha Overturf, Jennifer Pahlka, JonParker, Dave Pauls, Alex Paulson, William Peng, Jesse Perry, David Peters, Tessa Posnansky,Oliver Pospisil, Marilynn Preston, Steve Price, Thomas Quinn, Matt Quintanilla, EvanRapoport, Robert L. Rausch, Aitor Garcia Rey, Mig Reyes, Robbie, Scott Robbin, JasonRobinette, Zilly Rosen, Josh Rossman, Therese Rowley, Julia Ruzich, Lee Salisbury, JohnSantiago, Andrew & Sasa (Culturengine), Jaime Schwarz, Juan Secin, Christopher Seet,Stefan Seiz, Seulggie, Chip & Dorothy Sommers, Denice Shuba, John Sly, Kelley Smith,Steller, Brent Stickels, Studio-E, Bryan J. Swift, Jade Tang, Tantek, Kathy Taylor, LeeThompson, Brian Torres, Duc Tran, Michelle Mccarrick Truett, Vanbremeersch, Lisa Vogt,Ian Wharton, Dave Winkler, Ryan Wold, Sean Yendrys, Paul Yole, and Steve Yoonxiv 8. |eCONTRIBUTORS 4))))G)O)L)D))))$Charles Adler, Norish Lee Adams, Anastasiya, Vincent Argiro, Cosovan Attila,Gregory Beauchamp, The Behance Team, Colin Bodell, Daniel Bremmer, SarahBrodahl, Terje Brodahl, Cee Scott Brown, Erik Van Bruggen, Sylvain Bruni, GaryBurke, Paul Burton, Chris Cacioppe, Jade Cheah, Jennifer Anne Corgan, PeterCortez, Christopher Covert, Scott Dadich, Leanne Dare, Enrique Davis Mazlum,One Design Company, Derek Dukes, Tristan Eaton, Carla Echevarria, Pamela Ecker,Elesbao, Crystal English, Matthew Ephraim, Lindsay Eyink, Alonzo Felix, DavidFieding, Brad Fleming, Amy Gropp Forbes, Roger Ford, Kevin Franklin, Jason Fried,Tobias Grtner, Gelaskins, Ricardo Gertrudes, Debra-Ellen Glickstein, Greenz.jp,Walker Hamilton, Dawn Hancock, Matt Haughey, Nelson Herrera, Lisette Herrera-Hall, Lillian P. Hall, Angela Hill, Jeremy Hill-Brooks, Erik Holmdahl, Chris Holtand Emory Bevill, Ben Hood, Ryan J. Quinlan, Disa Johnson, Mikkel InumineqJrgensen, Andres Lopez Josenge, Sacha Judd, Yasutaka Kageyama, Jeffrey Kalmikoff,Bruce Kluger, Evan Kreeger, Rob Kubasko, Aaron Laberge, Dan Lau, Serge Leathead,Laura Lockwood, Hiromi Matsubara, Sean McDonald, Maya McNicoll, ScottMeinzer, Erik Michaels-Ober, Jose Miguel Pereira De Bessa Machado, Craig Mod,Aesthetic Movement, Tim Murakami, Jake Nickell, Stefan Nitzsche, Dan Norton,James OBrien, Owocni.pl, Push Offices, John W. Palmer, A.P. Lee, Dana Renninger,Reynaldo Roman, Sam Rosen, Joe Rospars, Steven Ryan, Paul Schreiber, Leslie Scott,Sol Sender, Sam Shelton, Dan Siroker, Jennifer Sisson, Slipstop, Felix Sockwell, GregStorey, Al Stuart Mayo, Greg & Susie Smith, Patricia Tapp, Karan Thomas (I loveyou mom), Reeve Thompson, Pedro Utzeri, Bob Vanderet, Stephanie Vardavas, MatsWedin, Hal Elliott Wert, Lee Wilkins, Jaime Willis, Jin Yang, & Nicholas Zembruski |ank you xv 9. xvi 10. DEDICATIONTo our rights of life, liberty, the pursuit of happiness.xvii 11. TABLE of CONTENTSF OREWORD THE REST IS EASY Wrien by Mchael BierutF OREWORDO Design: What Helped Obama Run Wrien by Steven Heer INTRODUCTION DESIGNING A PRESIDENT Wrien by Sco |omTHE SYMBOL O F THE MOVEMENT . . . . 1THE TEAM. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .33THE CHALLENGE. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43THE VISUAL VOICE . . . . . . . . . . . . 77AN AMERICAN TYPE F ACE . . . . . . . . . 99VOTE F OR CHANGE . . . . . . . . . . . . .103ARTISTS F OR OBAMA. . . . . . . . . . . 127ART O F THE GRASSROOTS. . . . . . . . 149 12. THE REST IS EASYTHE INGREDIENTS OF A BRAND By Michael BierutI was talking once with a group of graphic designers. The Like every other graphic designer I know, I watched the subject was good work: not doing it, but how to get itlive images of campaign rallies from Toledo to Topeka to accepted. Designers like to complain. We cast ourselves Tallahassee with a growing feeling of awe. Obamas oratoricalas embattled defenders of good taste and inventive ideas;skills were one thing. But the awe-inspiring part was the wayarrayed against us are armies of insensitive clients, determined all the signs were faithfully, and beautifully, set in Hoefler &to thwart us, whose pigheadedness can be defeated only byFrere-Joness typeface Gotham. Trust me, I told Newsweekdedication, cunning, and guile.back in February 2008, Ive done graphics for events and I know what it takes to have rally after rally without someoneWe traded war stories for a while, but one seasoned designer in saying, Oh, we ran out of signs, lets do a batch in Arial. Butour midst was silent. We finally asked him what tricks he used it isnt just strict standards and constant police work that keepsto get good work published. Well, I guess Im lazy, he said. an organization on brand. Its the mutual desire for everyoneI just make sure all my clients are smart people with unique to have every part of the effort look like The Real Thing. Atmessages and good products. The rest is easy. the height of the campaign, my daughter asked me if I couldThe rest is easy. Looking back at the design work that contrib-design a flyer for a friends Obama benefit party at a little bar inuted to Barack Obamas historic victory in November 2008, IHoboken, New Jersey. We took the text and reset it in Gotham,wonder if that was the trick. Although much has been made downloaded the O logo, and put it together in minutes.rightly so of the ingenious and adaptable O logo developed Wow, my daughter said. It looks like Obamas actually goingby Sol Senders team, Obama himself was his own best logo. to be there! Exactly.Young, African-American, charismatic change wasnt just a The same thing was happening all over the country. In a worldmessage, it was the candidates very embodiment. When it was where access to digital media and social networks is becomingall said and done, Barack Obama was a smart guy with a unique increasingly ubiquitous, Obama 08 became the first openmessage and a good product. And what designer wouldnt wish source political campaign. Shepard Faireys Hope poster anfor that in a client? icon thats destined, if you ask me, to occupy the 2008 slot ofSelling change isnt easy in a world that tends to prefer the com- any historical timeline drawn up a hundred years from nowfort of the familiar. We all know what a revolution looks like: sits at the top of an astonishingly vast collection of posters,handmade signs, scrawled graffiti, the voice of the people. Butwebsites, buttons, YouTube videos, and even pumpkins, someObamas campaign was the opposite. Reportedly, the candidate generated by professionals, some by ordinary citizens, allresisted at first. He did not initially like the campaigns bluemotivated by the urge to create a sense that their candidate wasand white logo intended to appear like a horizon, symbol-actually going to be there.izing hope and opportunity saying he found it too polished And it worked. Political operatives will study this campaign andand corporate, reported The New York Times. But David its design program for years, trying to unlock its secrets. ManyAxelrod and his team prevailed. They must have known that will copy it, but few will capture its magic. It seems so simple,the revolution, when it finally came, would have to be wrapped doesnt it? A good logo, consistent typography, get everyoneup in the most comprehensive corporate identity program the to join in. Theyll have all the ingredients in place except thetwenty-first century has yet seen. hardest one: a smart person with a unique message and a good product. Then, like the fellow said, the rest is easy. xxi 13. O Design:W hat H elped O bama R un By Steven HellerEveryone I know agrees that Barack Obama won the made visible. Senator Obama has been noted for his eloquence,design race. Whatever the reason, his campaign knew so its not surprising that someone so rhetorically gifted wouldearly on that coordinated graphics were beneficial andunderstand how strong typography is and how it helps bringthat modern typography would signal change. his words and his campaigns message to life.Whether or not O Design will totally alter the clichs andHeller: The other campaigns are less typographically success-conventions that dominate election graphics, only time willful. Is maintaining a strong design program really so difficult?tell. Nonetheless, the splendid art direion of this campaignhas raised the bar. Collins: I think the real story here is less about typogra-phy than it is about discipline. Political campaigns are theDuring the campaign many designers waxed admiringly aboutBrigadoon of branding. Theres a compressed amount of time toObamas sophisticated typographical design scheme, particu-tell a candidates story before the race is over and the campaignlarly the consistent use in much of his graphic material of thevanishes. During that window, the campaign must make suretypeface Gotham, designed by Tobias Frere-Jones. So when Ithat everything it produces everything it touches deliverswas writing about graphics for the Campaign Stops blog onthe candidates message in a meaningful way. No opportunityThe New York Times website, I called Brian Collins, an expertto amplify that story should be missed. The Obama people haveon branding, to get his thoughts on what this good designused design to take that discipline to a whole new level.means for the candidate.Barack Obama is running the first real transmedia campaign ofthe twenty-first century. His people not only understand howHeller: As a branding expert, can you tell me what it is aboutmedia has splintered, but how audiences have splintered, too.the typographical scheme of Senator Obamas campaign that isCell phones, mobile devices, websites, e-mail, social networks,unlike his challengers?iPods, laptops, billboards, print ads, and campaign eventsare now just as important as television. The senators designCollins: John McCains, Hillary Clintons, and Barackstrategy has given these diverse platforms (and their differentObamas campaigns all make good efforts to brand their mes-audiences) a coherence that makes them all work together.sages consistently. And thats incredibly hard to do. Just imag-Ive worked with giant, global corporations who dont do itine the thousands of volunteers and endless elements they mustthis well.orchestrate from town to town, state to state. But as a result oftheir approach to design, the Obama campaign really standsHeller: What is it about the typeface Gotham that addsout. From the bold Change signs to their engaging websitepersonality to the Obama brand?to their recognizable lapel pins, theyve used a single-mindedvisual strategy to deliver their campaigns message with greaterCollins: I dont think that Gotham adds any personality toconsistency and, as a result, greater collective impact. The useSenator Obamas brand. I think it just amplifies the personalityof typography is the linchpin to the program. Type is languagexxiii 14. thats already there. In fact, the typeface would work just as wellIn another installment of Campaign Stops, I contacted thefor John McCain or Hillary Clinton, for that matter. designer who helped establish its primacy. At the end of 2006, Mode, a motion design studio in Chicago, approached SolWith that said, though, theres an oxymoronic quality to Sender, a graphic designer, to create a logo for Barack ObamasGotham, which is why I think its become so popular. It has presidential campaign. The resulting O became one of thea blunt, geometric simplicity, which usually makes words feel most recognizable political logos in recent history. I spoke withcold and analytical (like Univers), but it also feels warm. Its Sender a few days after the election to discuss the evolution ofsubstantial yet friendly. Up-to-date yet familiar. Thats a tough his design. Here is an excerpt:hat trick. And Gotham has another quality that makes itsucceed: It just looks matter-of-fact. But perhaps any typeface Heller: How did you get the job of designing the Obamainspired by signs at the Port Authority Bus Terminal in New logo?York City as Gotham is will look like that. Sender: We got the job through Mode. Steve Juras, a class-Heller: Do you think the typographical style actually makesmate of mine from graduate school, is the creative directora difference?there. They have a long-standing relationship with AKP&D Message and Media, a campaign consulting firm led by DavidCollins: You bet I do. Style equals accuracy. Put the word Axelrod and David Plouffe, among others.change in Comic Sans and the idea feels lightweight andsilly. Place it in Times Roman and it feels self-important. In Heller: I have to ask, since many agencies that do politicalGotham, it feels just right. Inspiring, not threatening. In the campaigns are simply doing a job, did you have strong feel-end, typography makes a real difference when it delivers words ings one way or the other for the Obama candidacy?and ideas that are relevant to people. And for many, that seemsto be the case here. Sender: We were excited to work on the logo and energized by the prospect of Mr. Obamas campaign. However, we didnt pursue or develop the work because we were motivated exclu-Collins insight was consistent with other design pundits. But sively by ideology. It was an opportunity to do breakthroughtypefaces alone do not make a successful graphics campaign.work at the right time in whats become a predictable graphicThey serve only to frame the content. Whats more, the publiclandscape.requires a mnemonic that will further perpetuate the good feel-ings towards the brand, product, or in this case, candidate. ThatHeller: How many iterations did you go through beforevery trait was manifest in the Obama O, the most ubiquitousdeciding on this O? Was it your first idea?logo of the year. Sender: We actually presented seven or eight options in the first round, and the one that was ultimately chosen was amongxxiv 15. these. In terms of our internal process, though, I believe the Heller: Do you think the O had any major contributionlogo as we now know it came out of a second round of in this outcome?design explorations. At any rate, it happened quite quickly, all Sender: The design development was singularly inspiredthings considered. The entire undertaking took less than two by the candidates message. Like any mark, the meaning andweeks. impact really come from what people bring to it.Heller: Did Barack Obama have any input into the symbolat all? With the logo in place, this information-saturated digital ageSender: None that was directly communicated to us. I believe demands instant and constant communications through thehe looked at the final two or three options, but I wouldnt be Internet (or Interweb as someone once called it). Websitesable to accurately portray his reaction. are the storefronts of the digital age. And like those classic neighborhood campaign offices, they are often cluttered withHeller: What were you thinking when you conceived this idea? visual junk. The sites for John McCains and Barack ObamasSender: When we received the assignment, we immediatelypresidential campaigns may feature different content, but theyread both of Senator Obamas books. We were struck by theshare the same basic stuff online attributes that are clear andideas of hope, change, and a new perspective on red and blue confusing. Being more involved with print than web, I asked(not red and blue states, but one country). There was also a various interaction designers and information architects to tellstrong sense, from the start, that his campaign representedme what they thought were the strengths and weaknesses ofsomething entirely new in American politics a new day, sothe candidates sites. To summarize, based on their findings itto speak.is clear that there are two kinds of virtual campaign offices: Mr. McCains is messier and at times folksy a bit like a storefrontHeller: Did you have any qualms about this symbol? Did on Main Street while Mr. Obamas was cleaner and moreyou ever think it was too branded and slick? cosmopolitan, like a top-end retail emporium.Sender: We didnt, though there were certainly instances In addition, the Obama campaigns signature transparencywhere we sensed a need to be careful about its application. We emerged from the site. It is a trait that his White House teamnever saw the candidate as being branded, in the sense ofappears to have extended into his presidency. It seems thathaving an identity superficially imposed on the campaign. Thewhatever can or will be said about the Obama years, designidentity was for the campaign, not just for the candidate. And does matter.to the degree that the campaign spoke to millions of people, itmay have become a symbol for something broader some havetermed it a movement, a symbol of hope. xxv 16. I n t h e fa c e o f wa r , y o ubelieve there can be peace.In the face of despair, youbelieve there can be hope. Inthe face of a politics thatsshut you out, thats told youto settle, thats divided usfor too long, you believe wecan be one people, reachingfor whats possible, buildingthat more perfect union.Senator Barack ObamaPresidential Announcement Speech February 10, 2007xxvi 17. DESIGNING A PRESIDENT INTRODUCTION By Scott ThomasO n a cold day in February of 2007, a junior U.S.problems. Obama needed to do more than note the challenges Senator from Illinois announced to tens of thousands facing America. He needed to offer a divided and insecure of supporters that he was beginning a campaign toelectorate something more something they could be inspiredbecome the president of the United States of America. Whenby and aspire to. At this trying moment in American history,Barack Obama took the podium on that day in front of theBarack Obama offered the county a message that told usOld State Capitol in Springfield, Illinois the same place where that we could do better: a message based on the principles ofAbraham Lincoln had delivered his House Divided speechchange, hope, and unity.more than a century before he was no political celebrity:In the face of war, you believe there can be peace. In the face ofHe was a recently re-elected second-term senator and the onlydespair, you believe there can be hope. In the face of a politics thatsAfrican-American in the U.S. Senate. Though his stock had beenshut you out, thats told you to settle, thats divided us for too long,rising in the Democratic Party ever since his keynote speech atyou believe we can be one people, reaching for whats possible,the national convention in 2004, no one in the crowd couldbuilding that more perfect union.imagine the impact his campaign would have on the course ofAmerican history. enator Barack Obamas presidential campaign announcementSspeech, February 10, 2007Obama had not raised the millions of dollars or accumulatedthe name recognition of his opponents. But what he lacked inAs we now know, Obamas campaign became a historic vic-conventional political experience, he more than made up for intory. An unlikely candidate who began the race with littlecandor, intellect, charisma, and compassion. To most politicalname recognition outside of his home state and with meagerinsiders, he was merely a long shot, who might at most tem- campaign coffers went on to become the first African-Americanporarily upset the projections of political pollsters in primarypresidential nominee by a major American political partystates. But to his earliest supporters and to a rapidly growing and, a few months later, Americas first African-Americannumber of Americans he was the candidate the country hadpresident. But on that winter day in Springfield, none ofbeen waiting for.this was even remotely self-evident. Obama was saddled withObama entered the national political stage at a time of deepmajor disadvantages. He had a limited public profile, a smallcynicism and uncertainty among American voters. A volatilecampaign treasure chest, and an unconventional politicaldecade of terrorism, costly wars on two fronts, economicpersona. Neither a panderer nor a populist, he was unabashedinstability, and inaction in the face of environmental crisis about his intellect, his multiracial heritage, and the complexitytested Americans faith in their future, and heightened schisms of the problems facing the United States. He was a new kindamong voters divided about how to face up to these formidable of candidate, and if he was going to succeed, he needed a newkind of campaign.xxvii 18. A N Kind of CampaignewWe recognized that to communicate what made Obama spe-cial, we needed to create a campaign that was just as singular asIn September of 2007, the Obama campaign hired Johnour candidate. Obamas compelling approach to politics madeSlabyk and me as full-time new media designers. Our staffit both necessary and possible to translate and popularize hisand our network of grassroots volunteers began to build amessage in a way that would not only embody his vision, butcampaign strategy that went against the grain of the contem-also make it accessible and tangible to voters.porary American political landscape and was very much atodds with conventional ground rules of how to win election to Our approach to these challenges made history. But what madenational office. We knew we faced several daunting challenges:our campaign unique wasnt just Obamas racial heritage or theWe needed to appeal to voters in a way that would overcomedistinct quality of his message. Our campaign made history bytheir unfamiliarity with Obama, overcome their skepticism recognizing that a comprehensive design strategy would be justabout the nations prospects, and overcome their sense that as important as rhetoric in conveying our message, and that apoliticians were disconnected from the needs and beliefs of critical part of this strategy would be integrating the Americaneveryday Americans. people into the electoral process by forging a reciprocal anddynamic relationship with our grassroots supporters.Rather than trying to compensate for Obamas disadvantages,we decided to draw upon his strengths. What made this pos-As veterans of the advertising world, neither John nor I hadsible was the character of our candidate. Obama didnt need tomore than an inkling of what to expect, but it didnt takebe sold as something he wasnt, nor made palatable by a flurrylong for us grasp the magnitude of the task ahead of us. Weof spin and crafty marketing. His life story, as recounted in quickly discovered the full scope of our mission: to create ahis two memoirs, embodied the American dream: As he often comprehensive visual message that would be a clear and directremarked, his life could only have been possible in America.visual translation of the candidates rhetorical message. WeObama was also resolute in his commitment to a well-defined would do something no campaign had ever done: Create aset of values that resonated deeply with many American voters,visual structure and aesthetic that provided a unified templateparticularly those who felt alienated or disgusted with politicsfor the campaigns many departments. While we were hiredas usual. He didnt see politics in tired partisan terms, and heas new media designers, our role was not limited to creatingdidnt see Americans as divided in the zero-sum game of red the campaigns website, its email graphics, and the banner adsstates and blue states. He believed in the fundamental unity of that served as our online presence. We also needed to create athe American people, in the accountability of elected officials consistent, compelling, and unified visual message for fliers,to their constituents, and in the need for transparency and merchandise, information graphics, policy documents forresponsiveness by the people who had been entrusted withmass distribution and the posters, tickets, banners, podiumpower. He believed in the potential of individuals to create asigns, and placards for high-profile events where our designsdifferent future for America. And he believed that hope was the would work in concert with Obamas speeches, sending a visualbest way to bring Americans together and harness the unify- message to reflect and magnify his words to the audiences anding power of optimism, rather than the cynicism of division news cameras.and hostility. xxviii 19. In developing our design strategy, we acknowledged sev- Public relations and marketing are, of course, old standbys ineral truths about contemporary America: Our society is an the American political repertoire. John F. Kennedy, Richardimage-driven society, and new technologies of reproduction, Nixon, and Ronald Reagan all orchestrated successful market-communication, and distribution have placed design at the ing campaigns to win elections. Each featured carefully craftedcenter of American culture. Design was no longer the domain commercials, strategic public appearances, and maneuvering ofof the elite. It had become a critical part of how people under-the press and media to make voters see them as the best manstood their identities and their choices. At any Target store,for the job. But this approach to strategy emphasizes spin ratherAmericans could now buy toilet brushes designed by Michaelsubstance; it is not expected to stand for anything. The ObamaGraves and clothing designed by Isaac Mizrahi. Design was not design strategy did something much different: It created aan afterthought or an affect; it was now part of everyday life, message that was a direct expression of the candidate and wasand it was the primary means of communication in a societyaligned with his message in all its scope and sophistication.driven by the power of images.We accomplished this by placing design at the center of thePrevious presidential campaigns had used design to a limitedcampaign and by bringing our knowledge of how to make ideasextent in choosing typefaces for bumper stickers and lawn visible into the realm of politics. As Newsweek noted in the heatsigns, but those images were marginal and easily forgotten afterof the primary season:the election was over. The web had only become a significantIts not just the message and the man and the speeches that areforce in presidential elections in 2004, but it had been limitedswaying Democratic voters though they are. Its the way theto a relatively minor role in Bushs and Kerrys overall cam-campaign has folded the man and the message and the speechespaign strategies. Joe Rospars, who worked on Howard Deansinto a systemic branding effort. Reinforced with a coherent,campaign for the 2004 Democratic presidential nomination,comprehensive program of fonts, logos, slogans and web design,saw the webs potential as a campaign tool. Drawing on hisObama is the first presidential candidate to be marketed like aexperience in the new media division of the Dean campaign,high-end consumer brand[It] transcends the mere appropriationhe became a defining force in taking the Democratic Partyof commercial tactics to achieve the sort of seamless brand identityonline after the election. On the Obama campaign, he broughtthat the most up-to-date companies strive for.on Chris Hughes, the co-founder of Facebook, to explore hownew media could be used to bring ordinary Americans intoAs this observation reveals, the Obama design strategy drewthe political process and to mobilize supporters. As designers, on branding techniques, but it was no conventional brandingJohn and I worked with them to create tools for organizingcampaign. Just as design wasnt used simply to make thingsand engaging our supporters that were both beautiful andpretty, branding techniques were not used simply to makeusable and usable because they were beautiful. Together,Obama stylish. Rather, they were used to incarnate a messagewe created something new: an innovative and comprehensive and to convey ideas. The campaigns aesthetic was created tovisual strategy for Obama that connected him with his sup-operate in perfect symmetry with both the other elements ofporters and made his message instantly recognizable, resonant,the campaign and the candidate himself. Its success lay in theand versatile both within the official campaign and beyond. fact that it was exactly what it set out to be, both embodying xxix 20. and reflecting all the things the candidate wanted to commu-Political campaigns are first and most immediately perceivednicate to the American public. Never before had design been through color. Americans have come to know red as asuch a critical part of a candidates victory, and never before had Republican color and blue as a Democratic color. These colors,design played such an integral role in representing and diffusing along with white, combine to represent our nations mostthe candidates message.recognizable symbol the red, white, and blue of the Americanflag. Although many campaigns have attempted to break theEvery choice we made, including such details as color, pro-mold by using other colors, such as Edwin Muskies purple andportions, font, configuration, and text size, was part of theorange in 1972 and Jesse Jacksons red, yellow, and blue rain-strategys success. The campaigns visual message became abow in 1984, they struggled to establish the connections andunified, consistent design strategy that extended to every aspectassociations that the colors of the flag convey so effortlessly andof the campaign and every iteration of Obamas presence in thedirectly. Beginning with the logo and extending throughoutpublic sphere, ranging from the campaigns logo, to the postersevery element of the campaigns graphics, the Obama campaignthat supporters waved at rallies, to the tools that organized sup-used red, white, and blue to draw on our most elementalporters on the campaigns website, to the art created by profes-symbol of national unity. We rejected the divisive color schemesional and grassroots artists inspired by the candidates message.of red states and blue states, but still used blue as the dominantcolor theme to appeal to and draw on the Democratic base. The Politics of DesignFormThere are a few key elements that designers rely on in creating Form is essential to creating a profound and indelible relation-work which were fundamental building blocks in guidingship between an image and an idea. Visual symbolism was thethe campaigns creative process. As with any design project,only means of communication in pre-literate societies, andwhether its designing a soda brand or a presidential campaign, it retains a power that is more immediate than what can bedesigners need to understand the role of color, form, and communicated with words alone. Frequently, the language ofcontent in the hierarchy of human cognition. The human brainsymbols is more efficient and effective than the language ofinterprets color first, form second, and content last. word. For example, the face of an iPod shows everything youneed to do to select and play the music you want to listen toColor without using a single letter. You dont need to speak Englishor even know how to read to know what the icons say even aColor is crucial in communicating on the most primitive andchild could operate it.basic level of cognition. Imagine a streetlight. With a minimumof processing, we immediately know that red means stop, This technique of tying visual symbols with both ideographicgreen means go, and yellow means caution. This examplemeaning and with tangible goods has been a leading practiceis simple, but it exemplifies the importance color plays in of corporate marketing during the twentieth century. Thehuman communication. golden arches, the swoosh, and an apple with a bite out of it allxxx 21. serve as visual cues that make us recognize McDonalds, Nike,The imagery we see on television is often edited together withand Apple. However, until the 2008 election, it was rarely footage from days or even weeks before. So while the talkingemployed by presidential candidates. Sticking to conventionheads are analyzing current events, you may see four completelyhas its advantages, but nothing about the Obama campaign different rallies on four different subjects in four differentwas conventional. The campaign went beyond the standardcontexts that send four completely different messages all inpolitical use of visual elements such as flags, stars, and stripes,one four-second clip.all of which instantly connote American patriotism, history, Accordingly, the Obama team realized that our campaignsand unity. These symbols are indisputably American and are message would live or die on the design that supported it.immediately recognizable as distinctive icons. Their shape and While the talking points of the campaign may change dailyform communicate ideas instantly and effectively in a way that or even hourly as events unfold, our message would retainis more powerful than words, and they evoke thoughts and stability and consistency if the design elements that delivered itfeelings that can be accessed only visually. The Obama visual remained constant and imperturbable. As designers, we knewmessage integrated these elements in a newly effective way, how to hone every element that creates the images that we see,using the flag, stars, stripes, and other American icons to gener- and how to finesse basic design principles to ensure that everyate an emotional response that reached far beyond the limits of detail such as the discerning use of various fonts and fine-rhetorical messages. tuned choices about exactly what shade of red and blue to useContentand when contributed as effectively as possible to the overall look of the campaign. A design that successfully served as aA frequently used phrase in political campaigns is control themultifaceted visual representation of a campaign would drawmessage, which means retaining control of how the candidate from a precise and well-crafted conglomeration of images andis presented and discussed in the public sphere. While the visual cues, rather than being dependent upon a single imagecontent of the ideas the candidate is communicating may be that may or may not be shown on television that night. If wethe most important aspect of a campaign as far as traditionalwanted to control the message, we had to create and maintainmessaging is concerned, it is the least important when itan effective design.comes to making choices about design. Content is a difficult To meet these demands, we created a visual strategy thatdesign element to utilize in a political campaign because of utilized the fundamental principles of color, form, and contentthe lightning-quick responses and reactions demanded by the in a way that fused beauty and consistency with political savvyrelentless pace of the campaign trail. The 24-hour news cycle and grassroots responsiveness. We became the visual voice ofrequires sudden shifts in messaging to specifically communicate the campaign, offering millions of supporters a way to listenand address daily talking points. Those shifts in messaging with their eyes and see that Barack Obama was a candidate foroften accompany abrupt changes in color and typography of every citizen of the United States of America.placards, mailings, and campaign literature. This is especiallytrue for television and print-based coverage of the campaign.This book is the story of how it happened.xxxi 22. Designed by Sol Sender, Amanda Gery, & Andy Keene 23. SYMBOL OF THE MOVEMENT CHAPTER ONEhe Obama O logo, with its blue O rising over aSender began by thinking very broadly about how to create astriped field of red and white, was the campaigns firstlogo that matched the man it stood for. He read Obamas twodesign element. It was also the aesthetic point of origin books and quickly realized that in order to reflect Obamasfor nearly every component of design created by the campaign. distinctive qualities as a candidate and make the most of whatBeyond the candidate himself, the logo was the most visible he had to offer, the campaign would bear little resemblance toand recognizable element representing a political movement. traditional political races. In the past, presidential campaignsAs a watermark, it stood alongside Obama every step ofhad applied design as an accessory piece to the substance ofthe campaign trail and offered a powerful opportunity for other conventional forms of political messaging. Past Americanvisual messaging. campaign logos banked primarily on name recognition ratherthan the full spectrum of design tools, and their role was largelyIn the flurry of activity leading to Obamas official announce-limited to lawn signs and bumper stickers.ment of his candidacy, David Axelrod, Obamas chief strategist,and David Plouffe, Obamas campaign manager, knew that theAs a designer, Sender saw that the Obama logo could be muchlaunch of the campaign would be incomplete without a logo.more effective in ways other than the usual names in red orThe logo would be a baseline image that served a wide variety blue. To do this, Sender and his colleagues, Andy Keene andof practical functions: It would help make Obama a compel-Amanda Gentry, established three basic criteria as points ofling and credible candidate, and would demonstrate that his departure for their design:campaign was already organized around a consistent messageThe logo would tell a simple, authentic story.and platform. It would be immediately accessible to supportersThe logo would be stylistically resonant.to demonstrate their excitement about the campaign. And itThe logo would demonstrate impeccable execution.would serve as a visual signature in coverage of the campaignthrough the media a key tool for a candidate who was work-After establishing these requirements, the team started sketch-ing to increase his visibility and name recognition.ing ideas. They picked up two specific themes from Obamasmessage that they wanted to explore in detail: unity and hope.Longtime clients of the Chicago-based motion design studioSenders team began exploring possible ways to communicateMode, Axelrod and Plouffe contacted Steve Juras, Modesunity in a visual symbol that retained the essentials: Obamascreative director, to help them find the right person for thename and the election year. How, for example, could the redjob. Juras contacted an old classmate, Sol Sender, and askedand blue of the political parties blend together, and how mighthim to submit a few proposals for the upcoming campaign. Inthey be used in relationship to the red, white, and blue of thelate December of 2006, Sender began to lay the groundworkflag? How could the O in Obama and the 8 in 2008for the Obama logo. After sending in a handful of samples forinteract with each other? What if a group of diverse hands camereview by AKP&D Message and Media, Axelrod and Plouffestogether to form a patriotic star?consulting firm, Sender was awarded the project and began theprocess of designing the symbol.3 24. Symbol of the MovementLogo ConceptsTogetherThis was an early concept representing people of differingdiversities coming together to form a star in the negative space.4 25. UnificationThese concepts explored the intersection of red and blue, activating thecandidates passion for finding common ground: red states and blue statescoming together.Another theme that Senders team drew out for further explora-tion was diversity. They experimented with different ways torender the word hope emerging from the horizon. The teamalso considered using the O as a window that served as aporthole, using different photos within it to represent differentconcepts or demographics. They experimented with speechbubbles representing the many voices of America.It was this idea that led the group to the concept of telling amore open-ended and broadly accessible story: a sun rising onthe horizon, representing the hope of a new day. The team wasimmediately keen on the idea for its simplicity and its abilityto convey a number of possible narratives in one image. Sendernoted that early on, we were very interested in how it mightfunction as an independent symbol that perhaps, at somepoint during the campaign, it would not require the use of thecandidates name, which would be very unique.5 26. Symbol of the MovementLogo ConceptsVoiceThis was the runner-up. It was about change, the voice of the people.It captured the excitement surrounding the candidate and foreshad-owed a groundswell of support. The campaign team liked it quite abit. They felt it was something new and different. 27. Symbol of the MovementLogo Concepts 8 28. HorizonThis was one of the final logo options. It was more sophisticated thanthe other options (maybe a bit too sophisticated). The O8 reflectedthe Ob in a subtle allusion to infinite possibilities rising. 29. Symbol of the MovementLogo ConceptsWindow to Possibilities HOPEAt the intersection of the O and the 08 a view of a better tomor-row. Sender explored various types of images in the O. In differentcombinations, with different words, it activated messages of change,unification, and diversity. 30. 11 31. Symbol of the MovementLogo Concepts 12 32. Sunrise ConceptIn addition to the clear symbolism and a perfect intersection with the O of thecandidates name, this option was recommended because of its patriotic palette.It was new, but it was also traditional. Concerned with the possibility of attackson Senator Obama for being different, Senders group wanted to powerfullyreinforce Obamas intersection with the American dream. 13 33. The Symbol SpeaksIn light of its success as a campaign symbol and Obamas typeface designed by Eric Gill, was changed to Requiem, aelectoral triumph, the O concept seems like an obvious typeface designed by Jonathan Hoefler and Tobias Frere-Jones,choice. But this is clear only in retrospect. Politicians thrive which we modified to reduce the sharp pointed terminalson name recognition, and the possibility of omitting the that are the end strokes of a letters form. We also decided tocandidates most important message his name was a bold use small caps for the words instead of lowercase in order toand unprecedented move in the history of campaign graphics.create a barbell shape that made the wordmark appear more stable and masculine. And inevitably, much of the work wasSo why did it work so well? The Obama O was an effective redesigned once again when Joe Biden joined the campaign aspolitical logo precisely because of the qualities that made it a Obamas running mate.beautiful design. Without using a single word, the logo servedas a stand-alone narrative of American hope and optimism.As we wove the logo into the campaign and adapted it for everyIts stunning aesthetic simplicity allowed it to contain andaspect of the campaign, it took on a life of its own: It became aencompass rich possibilities for evocation and symbolism, andvisual icon that surpassed its ideographic meaning. Because theyet it was a clear and distinctive representation of the candidate.logo could stand alone and did not need the Obama 08 toThe O was efficient visual shorthand for the candidates name, support its message, it came to represent a wide swath of ideasbut also represented a sun rising up over the amber waves ofthat were keystones of the campaign while also offering roomgrain that recalled the stylized stripes from the American flag.for a variety of interpretations and iterations. Simple enough for nearly anyone to render it effortlessly, supporters raised theThe logo lived a number of lives throughout the campaign, logo high into the air, painted it on the sides of barns, baked itand its intricacies were among the many details polished over into cookies and cakes, and carved it into pumpkins. The logoa long campaign.In order to separate the two visual elements became a means to express support for the campaign in a waymore distinctly and to make the logo read clearly at a smaller that drew on individual creative expression but that was unitedsize, Senders original mark was slightly modified to include a by a basic visual unity, and it did so through the traditions andstroke or line between the blue horizon element and the red symbols that make us proud to be Americans.stripes. Senders original font for the Obama 08, the Perpetua14 34. A Logo Made for YouThe logo had many other lives as well. We created specificversions of it to function as visual identities for the manyconstituency groups who came together to support Obama.To create these specialized logos, we integrated symbolicforms that signified a demographics distinct qualities intothe visual centerpiece of the logo. These constituent logos ranthe gamut of the American social spectrum: Republicans forObama used the swinging trunk of an elephant to bring in thetraditional symbol of the GOP. First Americans for Obamamade the O into the center of the ritual object knownas a dream catcher, which represented Native Americanscultural and religious heritage. Students for Obama renderedthe logos waves of grain as lines on a notebook, and placedthe O among the equations and diagrams that are theterritory of students everywhere. The logos reflected one ofObamas signature campaign themes: In his words, There isnot a black America and a white America and Latino Americaand Asian America. Theres the United States of America. Thelogos were a visually tangible expression of the candidatesbelief in E pluribus unum: Out of many, one. All of them usedthe original logo as their visual common ground, combining itwith a variety of themes and symbols. This approach balanceddiversity with unity, using variety to highlight the powerof individuals while maintaining a unified and consistentvisual identity.15 35. Symbol of the MovementLogo VariationsLogo VariationsOne-color, two-color, and four-color variationsof the logo were designed for both white andblue backgrounds. 36. 17 37. Symbol of the MovementLogo VariationsLogo VariationsLogos were redesigned using a modified version of thetypeface Requiem. The Obama 08 was used during theprimaries, and the Obama Biden was released the dayBiden was announced as Obamas running mate. 38. Symbol of the MovementLogo Variations FULLTWO ONE COLOR COLOR COLORFULLMARKPREFERREDFULLMARKHORIZONTALLOGOMARKWORDMARK 39. FULLTWO ONECOLOR COLOR COLORFULLMARKPREFERREDSECONDARY MARKONLY TO BE USED UPONABSOLUTE NECESSITYLOGOMARKWORDMARK 40. Symbol of the MovementState LogosState LogosLogos for each state were designed using the Obama logoas the O letter form, and the stripes of the logo wereused to modify A, C, E, and P. 41. 24 42. Conitue LogosLogos were designed for the constituent groups,including the many Republicans supporting Obama. 43. Symbol of the MovementConstituent Logos 26 44. Symbol of the MovementConstituent Logos 28 45. Symbol of the MovementYes We CarveY We CarveCorrie Loefflers pumpkin, shared on the website yeswecarve.comorganized by Josh Horton, Jason Powers, and Josh Jeter.Photo credit: Kendall Bruns30 46. Cathy Wu cathywu.comGrand Prairie, Texas 47. Forming the TeamDepartment Diagram my.bosocial videoonlinenetworks ads& mobile designanalytics states email peoplemgmt blog 48. FORMING THE TEAM CHAPTER 2olitical campaigns often operate on the fly, and the organized operation a particularly important message to sendObama campaign was no different. Working with little given the need to enhance Obamas credibility as a candidate.money and staff, each department had to become scrappy and In the first months after Obama threw his hat in the ring,resourceful. Although David Axelrod had hired Sol Sender most of the design collateral was created by Michael Slaby, theand his team of designers to develop the O logo before the deputy director of new media. Though not a designer himself,campaign launched in Springfield, all the other campaign Slaby had a basic understanding of the graphic designersliterature and collateral was created by campaign staffers, standard toolkit, including Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop.none of whom were professional designers. The rapid pace While he had originally been hired to focus on the campaignsof the campaign and the lack of a full-time design staff led website, he quickly became inundated with work requests fromto mistakes that threatened to dilute the campaigns message. various departments because he was one of the only people onSenders O logo was unveiled at Obamas launch speech, the campaign who understood how to use the tools.where it adorned campaign standbys such as placards, stickers,and buttons. As Sender watched coverage of the speech back But while Slaby was a brilliant strategic thinker and understoodin Chicago, it didnt take him long to notice how easy it wasthe possibilities of design for strengthening the campaign, heto fail at properly implementing the design he had worked so soon recognized that his lack of a traditional design educationhard to create. On the front of Obamas podium was a logoor deeper knowledge of typography hampered his efforts tothat looked like the one Sender had created. But something give design a central role in the campaigns public image. Thewas askew: Somewhere along the way from Senders studio to hectic pace of a presidential campaign in an age of 24-7 mediaSpringfield, the white negative space in the center of the circlecoverage meant that the campaigns most pressing consider-had been dropped from the sign, leaving a dark void in place ation with regard to design was not aesthetic excellence butof the rising sun. expedience. In the effort to keep up with the frenetic environ- ment of the campaign, design materials were created andThis type of slip-up was no trivial detail. Inconsistent or modified ad hoc, with little consideration of visual impact. Allsloppy design sent the wrong message about the candidate and the bad effects in the book were cropping up: drop shadows,his campaign. The importance of visual information in how beveled edges, and other elements that professional designerspeople perceived the campaign and the candidate made design try to use at the very most in moderation.a key element in controlling the message. Consistency indesign was necessary to reinforce Obamas image as a serious To ensure the impeccable execution so prized by Sender whencandidate with a rock-solid set of principles indeed, when he created the O logo, the campaign began to realize thatthe Mitt Romney and John McCain campaigns abruptly in-house designers were needed to manage the creation andmodified their visuals to imitate Obamas design scheme, itproduction of future materials. As the campaign intensifiedsmacked of desperation. Consistent design was also necessary in anticipation of the primaries, Slaby wanted to focus onto reinforce the campaigns image as a professional and highly the campaigns new media strategy rather than coming up33 49. A view inside Obama HQJoe Rospars, director of new media, mastermindedthe team which revolutionized online campaigning.A founding partner of Blue State Digital and havingprevious worked on the Howard Dean campaign, Joe wasinstrumental in incubating the creative space that allowedmuch of the design work to materialize. 34 50. with off-the-cuff ideas for materials to complement another Id spent the previous few years working for a design firm inspeaking engagement. That summer, the early success of theChicago, creating advertising and other materials for clientscampaigns fund-raising strategy gave Slaby the opportunity such as Kohler and Patagonia. I had been wrestling with theto hire professional designers to improve the quality of thelack of passion I had for the work I was doing: After establishingcampaigns design work and to maximize the potential of a my career, I was tired of using my energy and skills to sell sinkscoherent design strategy. and refrigerators. I was originally trained as an architect, andeven after leaving the field Id retained the architects impulseSlaby began scouring the web for portfolios. He was seekingto sculpt society for the better. Slabys email presented the pos-multi-dimensional designers who were comfortable both onsibility of creating meaningful design for a cause I cared about.the web and in print, and who were comfortable working withI responded immediately:software tools like Illustrator and Photoshop as well as wran-gling the details of a website at any given moment using codingtools like HTML and CSS. Slaby didnt look for people withWow. I was just thinking about the Obama campaign and wouldpolitical experience; he was more interested in finding the bestreally love to talk to you. My portfolio has expanded far beyonddesigners and was willing to do whatever on-the-job trainingwhat is currently on my site, and I would love to help in your efforts.was necessary to attune them to the specific demands of aMichael, lets try talking tomorrow about this opportunity. Whatcampaign. He found two people who met his criteria: Johntime works well for you?Slabyk and myself. On August 26, 2007, I received an emailfrom Slaby with the subject line: An opportunity to join us. ScottScott:After a brief phone call, Slaby and I arranged a time to meetI found your portfolio online via Creative Hotlist and am in person the following day with Joe Rospars, the campaignsimpressed by the quality and breadth of your work. I am the Director of New Media. The next day, I left early from my jobDeputy Director of New Media for Obama for America and am and walked up Wacker Drive to the Obama campaigns nationallooking to expand our team. I dont know if you are looking for headquarters at 233 North Michigan Avenue.full-time work, but if youre interested in working in a fast-pacedI took the elevator to the 11th floor and was greeted by a youngteam environment with a lot of creative freedom and the chancestaffer who led me to the back corner of the office: the newto work toward something incredible, I hope youll get in touchmedia department, which consisted of a few cubicles and mis-with me. Im eager to discuss our needs with you.matched chairs that looked like they had just come from a thriftBest,Michael SlabyClick-thru the UnicornClick-thru is a giant pink unicorn and decorated member of the new media team. He stood strong, assisting in the creation of many smiles and much laughter throughout the campaign. 35 51. store. Scattered along the walls were Post-it Notes and scraps The next day, I received a formal offer to join the campaign. Iof paper scribbled with lists and ideas. The space was full of began working the following day, along with John Slabyk, theboxes that did double duty as makeshift tables for overflowing campaigns other new full-time designer. Slaby had paired usdesks. There was even an improvised basketball hoop, which I to complement each other: While my previous projects hadlater learned was the departments major source of recreation. focused on web design, Johns had been oriented toward printThe ramshackle setup of the office was endearingly at odds and branding. We both had little idea of what to expect, butwith the brilliant collection of minds working within it not it didnt take long for us grasp the scope and magnitude of ourleast because their goal was determining the next president of endeavor. After the primaries, the design team was expandedthe United States. and we could rely on a larger staff, but for now it was up to the two of us to take the O from here.Michael Slaby invited me into a glass-paneled office and intro-duced himself and Rospars. Rosparss office looked disheveled D e s t i n at i o n : N e w Y o r k C i t ywith writing and diagrams scribbled all over the glass andwhiteboards that lined the walls. As we discussed my interests Our first major task was to design graphics for Obamas Newand experience in design and politics, I mentioned that I wasYork City rally on September 27, 2008. The event was infrom Iowa and had caucused in 2004. Joe asked me whom Ithe backyard of our biggest opponent, Hillary Clinton, andcaucused for. My answer: Dennis Kucinich. He paused Joewas anticipated to be the campaigns biggest rally yet. Onhad played a major role on the Howard Dean campaign andSeptember 21, our video team uploaded a video of Senatorthe room erupted with laughter. He then began introducingObama asking the people of New York to come together forme to the rest of the new media team: Stephen Geer, whothe event: We can believe we can be one people. ... See you inheaded the campaigns email and online fund-raising, and New York. If we were working for a design firm with a conven-Chris Hughes, the co-founder of Facebook, who managedtional work schedule, a project the scale of the New York rallythe campaigns online organizing via its social network, would normally take monthsto develop. We had just about aMy.BarackObama.com. In another cluster sat Scott Goodstein,week. John and I quickly realized that our days of traditionalthe man behind Obamas successful social media strategy anddesign process were over. As Slaby had told me in my interview,its text message program. Kate Albright-Hanna, an Emmy-our mission was to build a plane in mid-flight.winning producer from CNN, sat a few steps away, surroundedWe were hoping for our largest crowd yet, and we had only aby loads of equipment and stacks of MiniDV tapes. Kate was few days to design posters, billboards, flyers, tickets, e-tickets,responsible for telling the story of the campaign through theT-shirts, email graphics, landing page graphics, feature graphicsvideos that would be featured on the website throughout thefor the homepage, a streaming live web page for the speech, andcampaign. After the interview and introductions, Slaby and I donation pages to take advantage of the rallys momentum. Asstepped outside, and he asked, When can you start? we plunged into the work, the original division of labor that36 52. Slaby had in mind for the two of us vanished. Distinctionsbetween print and web design became irrelevant because ofthe sheer volume of work we were doing in so little time, andbecause of how tightly we had to integrate our work on all theelements for the rally. We had to trust each other to make theright changes on any and all of our materials at any given time,both in print and online.Slabyk and I began sketching ideas, exploring possible paths,and eventually combining our concepts into one design. Ipulled from Milton Glasers famous I Heart NY piece asmy inspiration, replacing the symbol for love with ObamasO logo and making it function as a verb. Slabyk drew onthe techniques of classic 20th century European poster designand experimented with a Dutch angle positioning the textand image at an angle to the viewer. Over the course of theweek, our materials for the rally came together. Together, ourconcepts made a design that was sleek and stylish enough forNew York City. Before we had a chance to reflect on our workand decide how to proceed from here, the New York rallywas happening. 24,000 people the largest crowd to date forthe campaign gathered in front of the brightly lit arch ofWashington Square Park to hear Obama give a passionate andpersonal speech:There are those who are saying you should be looking forsomeone who can play the game better, but the problem is thatthe game has been rigged. The time is too serious, the stakes aretoo high, to play the same game over and over again.After we had finished live-streaming the event, Michael Slabylooked at me and asked, Did you ever think youd design anentire event in less than a week? I replied, Not like that.37 53. The Desk of John SlabykJohn surrounded his work space with images from thecampaign, inspiring graphics, and the many buttons hedesigned on the campaign. 54. Photocredit: Matt Ipcar 55. Photo credit: Matt IpcarWill Wan and Jess Schlueter (top),John Slabyk (bottom),A look inside the new media department, our deskscluttered with computer monitors, various liquids, andplenty of Obama art. 40 56. Photo credit: Matt IpcarMy desktop (top) from a birds eye perspective, gearing up for Election Day. Wade Sherrard (bottom)working on a print piece.41 57. The ChallengeI Obama New York logo42 58. THE CHALLENGE CHAPTER 3A s we turned our attention to the primary season, we it easier for us to collaborate and to explore different design faced the challenge of executing a 50-state campaign. directions. They also ensured that designs appeared consistent We would need to design official assets for organizersacross the several mediums we were working on when one newat every rally, large and small from materials at a neighbor-design would be distributed via print, email, and the web. Wehood cakewalk fund-raiser in Bettendorf, Iowa, to banners forbuilt the boards from large pieces of black foam core, and wethe national convention in Denver. We had to field requestscovered them with printouts of designs we were working on,from the various groups within the new media department as archived imagery we were collecting for our projects, and anywell as the other departments within the campaign. other ideas that could inspire our designs.It was clear to John and me that we were not going to have A major feature of our mood boards were design elementsmuch time to reflect on possible ideas for our projects. that were already familiar parts of Americas visual vocabu-Understanding the implications of not having the support lary. Redeploying images that were already engrained in thestaff typically afforded by advertising and design firms madeAmerican mind created an avenue for communicating ideasfor a tough transition to the world of a political campaign. and associations that both complemented and transcendedThere was no time for working out a concept, building brandwords. When using an iconic vocabulary, its possible tostandards, and extensively thinking through how we werefumble. At one point in the campaign, we designed a signgoing to roll out a product. Instead, we would have to designsimilar to the Presidential Seal for a governors summit. Aftera particular graphic in one day. We never saw anything wesome debate as to whether the design was a good idea in theprinted until it was in the field. The only printers proofs wefirst place, it was released and poorly placed directly in front ofhad were what we saw on breaking news coverage from CNN. Obama during the event, causing a flurry of criticism from theOur copywriters were the email team, and our clients wereright. In politics, these types of images have such potent mean-hundreds of campaign staffers requesting design help. Unlike ing that we needed to employ them in a way that was effectivemost traditional advertising campaigns, after creating a graphic but not gratuitous.or updating the homepage, a stream of comments would begin We developed an aesthetic that combined the past and pres-to pour in. Our work was going to have to change quickly and ent appropriately for our candidate. Obama aspired to be aevolve to the constant pressures of a presidential campaign. new kind of president, but he was also one who drew upon the American historical tradition. We implemented designCapturing the Mood of the Past and Present elements and typographic styles from the American politicalJohn and I were working so quickly that we needed a way to past, including the kind of detailing that marks objects assee the components we were doing separately from day-to-daypossessing authority and authenticity in the American mind,at a single glance. Our fly-by-the-seat-of-your-pants process ledsuch as scrolls used for certificates and elements of currency.us to use what are known as mood boards. The boards made We also remixed the classic Uncle Sam U.S. Army poster with43 59. The ChallengeChange We Can Believe In 60. his finger pointed at the reader with a smiling Obama saying Slaby had deliberately chosen John and me because we hadntI Want You to caucus. We issued reprints of Obamasbeen schooled in the conventions of political campaigns. Hespeeches using the kinds of lettering and embellishments knew we could raise the bar for the role of design in a politicalassociated with the Constitution. This kind of design used campaign, and that we understood that the same design prin-a common visual language that evoked American history in ciples that applied to products and brands could be applied tosimple but powerful ways.a political candidate. The initial results we were able to produce made the staff willing to let us work independently, and gave Q ua l i t y C o n t r o lthem confidence in our insistence that there was a better way to design a campaign than what they were used to. BecauseIt was no easy task for just two people to handle the entire of this trust, we were able to work without depending ondesign workload of a presidential campaign. Yet, despite the approval from the typical ladder of departments as with mostsmall size of our team relative to the scope of the operation, organizations a review and approval process that often leadsand despite our lack of time to employ the traditional review to less-than-consistent execution.process used by design firms, we managed to turn out workthat adhered to our standards with a level of consistency that Being able to work with and rely on just one other designer ledastonished outsiders. In an interview in Newsweek in Februaryto many late nights at the office. But being able to rely on andof 2008, designer Michael Bierut observed: I have sophisti- collaborate with just one person was precisely what allowedcated clients who pay me and other people well to try to keepus to maintain the consistency that was so key to effectivethem on the straight and narrow, and they have trouble getting visual messaging. Every single piece of campaign collateraleverything set in the same typeface. And [Obamas campaign]that incorporated design passed through our hands, and weseems to be able to do it in Cleveland and Cincinnati andwere able to diligently make sure that each of those items metHouston and San Antonio. Every time you look, all those signsthe standards that John and I had worked out together. Weare perfect. Graphic designers like me dont understand howdidnt even create an official style guide for the campaign untilits happening. Its unprecedented and inconceivable to us. Thewe expanded our staff for the general election. After somepeople in the know are flabbergasted. frustrations with outsourcing our printing to local vendors for events, such as inconsistent color, we decided to buy a large-Ironically, it was the very lack of time and resources that are format printer for our use in-house to create the hundreds ofusually available in the design process that made these high podium signs needed for events. This created more work forstandards possible. This was not design by committee, there us, but it also let us control the process to get the results thatwas no committee. The campaign was small enough that there so astonished Bierut.were no elaborate chains of hierarchy and approval so commonamong corporate clients. We also benefitted from the trust weOur consistent design standards and our direct link to theearned from the other staffers once they saw what we could do. people who were actually using and implementing our work45 61. on the ground also gave us another unexpected advantage.focused their attention on front-end programming that wouldWe couldnt respond to every individual email in our inboxmake the sites function as efficiently as possible.asking for a JPEG of the O logo or a file for the ChangeOur goal was to implement the principles of the campaign inbanner, and we couldnt hire someone just to distribute art. Wevisual form, and to employ the principles of the campaign intomade the decision to place all the design assets online, whereour design process. This posed a different set of challenges, oneanyone could download them and use them for their particularthat required equally innovative solutions.needs, context, and purpose. This wasnt an obvious solution.Coming from a corporate advertising design environment, this A M e ss a g e o f H o p eopen-source approach was a total shift away from traditionalthinking about visual branding, in which proper brand man-One of the ideas that formed the bedrock of the campaign wasagement means centralized brand control. This was especiallyreintroducing hope into American politics after years of deep-useful once we initiated the Artists for Obama campaign, when ening cynicism among potential voters. The Hope visual wasour design repertoire expanded to include the many artists whoiconic and beautiful in its simplicity, but we also knew it was awere inspired by the campaign and contributed their creativedifficult platform to run on. Hope could seem intangible andtalents to the cause. unrealistic especially to voters who were disenchanted by thelimitations of the American political system, the very peopleFor the general election, we decided that our small team ofwe were trying to reach. But while we were wary of the risksdesigners needed to expand to a larger group that would bethat came with placing hope at the center of the campaign,structured by a more distinct division of labor, with print,Obamas unique persona made it a successful strategy to winweb, and production handled separately. Our print team wasover hearts and minds. Obamas idealism was balanced by aresponsible for designing much of the printed materials beingsense of gravitas and pragmatism, and his focus on creativedistributed throughout the states and used for direct-mailproblem solving made hope seem real and sound-minded,campaigns, as well as many of the flyers, tickets, and posters fornot a pie-in-the-sky illusion. Instead of being turned off orevents occurring around the country. Our production team wasdismissive, people responded to Obamas call for a belief inresponsible for physically producing these elements, and spentnew possibilities.much of their time printing out design components, mount-ing the print to foam core, and cutting out the signs withThe theme of hope quickly took on a life of its own amongX-Acto blades. The web team spent their time designing online our supporters, and we were in no position to tell them not tocampaigns, working on general site maintenance and enhance- be hopeful. So instead of changing course, we embraced thements, and creating media-oriented microsites, including Fightmoment and took advantage of the momentum. Placing hopethe Smears, The McCain Record, and the Tax Calculator. Some at the center of our visual campaign tied in with Obamas mes-staff specialized in design and user interaction, while otherssage, bringing out the American longing for a plausible formof optimism. Hope also was a consensus-building tool: It didnt 47 62. The ChallengeInspiration48 63. have the partisan charge of words like security or life. Earlywith pride, and that they would feel was a direct statementon, we used the word hope as a message on yard signs, withby them. This would both create and reinforce participationthe o in hope replaced with the Obama O logo. Later, we within the movement, using design to create a unity of imagerealized that hope didnt have to be communicated just with and conviction.typography but could also be communicated through visualThe main way to do this was to make sure we kept ourimagery. Whether it came in the form of a white glow behindsupporters at the forefront of our decisions. Direct feedbackan image, a radiant sunbeam, or a graceful waving flag, visualfrom our supporters poured in through the comments on ourexpressions of hope could inspire people in a way that wassocial media projects, including the official campaign blogconcretely embodied in these forms and symbols.and My.BarackObama.com, as soon as any speech was over or We not Hewhen we made a new addition to the website. We paid closeattention to these comments, because they offered us a trueOne of the core goals of the Obama campaign was to engage measure of the effectiveness of our efforts without the mis-voters by making them feel like they mattered. We wanted to guided conclusions that often come with official focus groups.actively involve individuals in the political process to show Reading what our supporters had to say gave us ideas and guid-that they could make a difference, and we wanted to build a ance that made our campaign truly grassroots in character. Icampaign that had a reciprocal relationship with the grassroots could scout message boards to get the kind of helpful feedbackrather than being a separate entity removed from our sup- that normally would have required a bigger staff and a lengthyporters on the ground. As staffers, we didnt view ourselves as review process. When commenters noticed an inconsistentsuperior to the people on the ground; we saw ourselves as anserif font in our Veterans for Obama logo or thought thatextension of the grassroots. As we were brainstorming event our use of a rainbow in our Pride logo looked too childish, Ititles or developing specific campaigns, we sought to focus could implement changes immediately. Our commitment toour message on a theme of we, the people, rather than he, erasing the distinction between voters and the electoral processBarack Obama. didnt just make for good politics; it made for good design.We wanted to bring the movement we were creating intoT r a n s pa r e n c y 2 . 0the campaign. So we tried to use every opportunity we had,visual and otherwise, to welcome and engage everyday people The Obama campaign was also committed to opening upand to be inviting and empowering rather than isolated andthe political process from the top down. After eight yearshierarchical. We hoped that this kind of message would instill aof a secretive administration that made crucial decisionspride and loyalty in our supporters that would in turn reinforcebehind closed doors, we wanted to make our campaign openthe link between our supporters and our message. We wantedto the public and to make our choices open to scrutiny anda sign we designed to be something a supporter could hold discussion. The 2008 campaign came just at the moment thatFacebook, Twitter, and other forms of social media provided 49 64. new lines of communication among people and heighteneddesign process, they also drove the fund-raising process. As ourexpectations for the level of disclosure available from politi- interactive tools reached more and more people, design andcians and organizations.fund-raising reinforced each other.To bring the principle of transparency together with these newInteractive features like our campaign blog, the video diary,types of interactive media and to make the campaign a genuine and individual My.BarackObama.com microsites gave us agrassroots endeavor, we created a campaign headquarters blogway to make design decisions that were based on what votersthat generated the highest traffic of any part of our site. Bloggersreally wanted, as opposed to what we thought they wanted,Sam Graham-Felsen, Chris Hass, and Amanda Scott delivered or what we wanted to tell them they wanted. Combined withcontent that told the entire story of the campaign. Rather than web analytics, they gave us direct, firsthand information aboutmerely a daily diary following the candidate, the blog told the what worked and what didnt, and let our design process bestories of supporters across the country. The blog posts were driven by hard data about voters responses and opinions,followed by thousands of readers every day. They generatednot hypothetical speculations. Our design decisions could behundreds of comments that we could use to gauge what ourgenuinely responsive because we could pay close attention tomovement wanted to see, and that gave individual supporters both qualitative feedback and site traffic data, and avoid pre-another way to exchange thoughts and ideas. The popularityemptive spin in favor of actually listening to what people hadof the blog had a unifying effect, as our users interest in andto say. Voters had a voice that mattered.demand for more information required us to offer them newways get that information. The website also became our biggestfund-raising channel. The Obama campaign was built on smalldonations from individuals, and just as individuals drove the 50 65. 51 66. The ChallengePostersJohn SlabykWashington, D.C. 52 67. 53 68. The ChallengePostersJohn SlabykWashington, D.C. 54 69. 55 70. The ChallengeA More Perfect Union 56 71. The ChallengeA More Perfect Union Speech58 72. 59 73. The ChallengeA More Perfect Union DVD 60 74. 61 75. The ChallengeFlyersECDFECDFECDFECDFECDFECDFECDFECDFECDFECDFFDCEFDCEFDCEFDCEFDCEFDCEFDCEFDCEFDCEFDCEECDFECDFECDFECDFECDFECDFECDFECDFECDFECDFFDCEFDCEFDCEFDCEFDCEFDCEFDCEFDCEFDCEFDCEECDFFDCE FDCE ECDFECDFFDCE FDCE ECDFECDFFDCE FDCE ECDFECDFFDCE FDCE ECDFECDFFDCE FDCE ECDFECDFFDCE FDCE ECDFECDFFDCE FDCE ECDFECDFFDCE FDCE ECDFRALLYECDFFDCE FDCE ECDFECDFFDCE FDCE ECDFECDF FDCEFDCEwithBARACK OBAMA ECDFECDFFDCE FDCE ECDFECDFF R I DAY, F E B R UA RY 8 FDCEFDCE ECDFECDFFDCEKEY ARENAFDCE ECDFECDF305 HARRISON STREETFDCEFDCES E AT T L E , WA S H I N G TO N ECDFECDFFDCE FDCE ECDFECDFDOORS OPEN AT 11:00AMFDCEFDCE ECDFECDF FDCEFDCE F R E E A N D O P E N TO T H E P U B L I CECDF RSVP IS STRONGLY ENCOURAGEDECDFFDCE FDCE ECDFECDF FDCE YoucanRSVP ONLINEatFDCE ECDFECDFFDCE WA.BARACKOBAMA.COM/SEATTLEFDCE ECDFECDFFDCE FDCE ECDFECDFFDCE FDCE ECDFECDFFDCES PAC E I S AVA I L A B L E O N A F I R ST- CO M E , F I R ST- S E RV E D B AS I S .FOR SECURITY REASONS, BAGS are NOT ALLOWED INSIDE the EVENT. FDCE ECDFPLEASE LIMIT PERSONAL ITEMS. No SIGNS OR BANNERS ARE PERMITTED.M E D I A COV E R AG E : T H I S E V E N T I S O P E N TO T H E P R E SS .ECDFFDCEFOR CREDENTIALS PLEASE VISIT WWW.BARACKOBAMA.COM/MEDIARSVP FDCE ECDFPAID FOR BY OBAMA FOR AMERICAECDFFDCE FDCE ECDFECDFFDCE FDCE ECDFECDFFDCE FDCE ECDFFDCEFDCEFDCEFDCEFDCEFDCEFDCEFDCEFDCEFDCEECDFECDFECDFECDFECDFECDFECDFECDFECDFECDFFDCEFDCEFDCEFDCEFDCEFDCEFDCEFDCEFDCEFDCEECDFECDFECDFECDFECDFECDFECDFECDFECDFECDF 62 76. The ChallengeMotion Graphics63 77. The ChallengeCircles64 78. 65 79. Obama BuonsJess Weida created hundreds of buttons within campaignheadquarters for just about anyone who wanted one. 80. 67 81. The ChallengeT-shirts68 82. 69 83. The ChallengeYes We Can70 84. 71 85. The ChallengeSet Design72 86. 73 87. 74 88. 75 89. 76 90. THE VISUAL VOICECHAPTER 4ne of the campaigns most dramatic innovationsWhen we thought about the kind of campaign we wanted towas our formation of a successful political brand,create, we drew on our own belief in Obama and his ability toa type of messaging that had never been applied sochange politics and America for the better. Our design choicessystematically to politics. Branding is a scary word to apply were the direct result of our own emotions about the candidate,to a political candidate, because it suggests that electoral poli-not our purported expertise in branding. Our design schemetics has become just another consumer product. But branding wouldnt have struck a chord among millions of Americans ifisnt about creating a commodity. As Marty Neumeier notes init hadnt originated in a genuine set of feelings. Moreover, ithis book Brand Gap, branding is a persons gut feeling about would not have been compelling if the emotive elements of thea product, service, or organization. Branding, in other words, brand hadnt been reiterated on every level of the campaign.is essentially emotive and evocative. The Obama brand The designers who took pay cuts or did work for free on theconsisted of the full range of sentiments and associationscampaign did so because they believed in Obama and were notpeople had about the candidate, the feelings that he inspired manufacturers of the brand. Instead, we created an emotionalamong his supporters, and the emotions that those supportersvehicle that was affirmed and diffused by our supporters onsuccessfully conveyed to other people to make their case forthe ground. No slick campaign literature would have beenthe candidate.sufficient to create a message that would change minds. It waspeoples experience of the campaign their encounters withThis approach to branding reveals perhaps the most importantthe people who took the time to knock on doors and set upkey to the success of the Obama brand. It was not contrived ortables outside of supermarkets that ultimately conveyed themanufactured by a marketing team or by political operatives.brand. Our representation of Obama was a vehicle for thisRather, it was built on a reciprocal relationship between theemotional content, but it was not a replacement for it. Indeed,candidate as a human being and the sincerity and commit-it would have been nothing without it. Every voice in thement of his supporters. Branding naturally involved carefulcampaign was one part of a broad matrix, of which design wasand thoughtful choices about design: as Newsweek noted,one of many constituent elements.the campaigns design strategy was much more cohesive andcomprehensive than anything weve seen before, involving aThere was another critical element of the success of the Obamalogo, typefaces, and web design in a way that transcends thebrand: It had nothing to do with the smoke and mirrors usu-mere appropriation of commercial tactics to achieve the sortally associated with terms like brand management. Successfulof seamless brand identity that the most up-to-date companies branding creates symmetry between image and substance, andstrive for. But because of the evocative character of both brands work only when the organization corresponds to thedesign and branding, our design choices would not have been individuals it is working to organize. In certain respects,compelling if they had not been driven by the genuine passion our job was easy: We werent trying to convince anyone thatof the people who created them. Obama was something that he wasnt. The Obama brand 77 91. worked because it was an accurate and transparent rendering of Accordingly, we conceived and implemented every element ofwhat Obama stood for, not a distortion of who he was or a wayour design scheme to deliver a consistent experience. We knewto pander to voters. It conveyed Obamas key qualities in a waythat people tend to vote for people they trust, and we madethat was both effective and accessible without compromising hisdesign choices that would consolidate voters perceptions ofintellectual heft or his eye for complexity. Obama was eloquentObama as a candidate who was worth their trust. Becau