Cocktails in Character
(Literacy Buffalo Niagara)
Fundraiser event promotional materials for a non-profit agency– including visual brand development, marketing materials & branded merchandise.
Literacy Buffalo Niagara is a non-profit that provides free adult literacy programs, including one-on-one tutoring sessions and health & digital literacy workshops to the WNY community. OtherWisz has worked with LBN for over 20 years, to help the organization promote their cause and messaging through a variety of fundraisers, from game nights to meat raffles and virtual events. This year, in celebration of the huge milestone of the organization’s 60 year legacy, LBN brought back a past event, Cocktails in Character, and asked our team to help promote it.
Revisiting this fundraiser, which originally ran from 2010-2014, allowed the OtherWisz team the opportunity to reimagine the event branding that we originally created over 10 years ago. This year, our visuals and marketing materials aimed to retain the heart of the original branding – vignettes of classic book characters – but with a fresh look.
Services: Advertising, Brand Identity, Digital Ad Management, Email Marketing, Event Marketing, Illustration, Logo/Identity Design, Poster Design, Print Management, Promotional Materials, Social Media Management, Website Design, Website Maintenance
The project began with a new logo design that would anchor the event’s branding. A combination of two typefaces balances both modern and whimsical aesthetics. The wordmark – paired with a cocktail graphic – reflects the playful nature of the event. The balance of the event’s visual branding was developed with bright color palettes, witty taglines, and illustrations inspired by famous literacy characters, making for a fun & eye-catching graphic package.
With this set of brand tools under our belt, we created the Cocktails in Character’s first marketing pieces. An event-specific website was designed as a single landing page, containing all necessary event information, a concise and informative place to direct potential attendees and sponsors. Early promotional materials included a Sponsor Request Form, a “Save The Date” direct mailing postcard, and a suite of social media graphics.
As Cocktails in Character approached, we ramped up our marketing efforts, designing a set of five 11 x 17” posters, one for each character-inspired illustration, to be displayed at local libraries and bookstores. Additional marketing material included postcard invites, tickets, email invites, Meta ads, and advertisements that ran in local publications. Invites and reminders were regularly sent to the target audience and additional calls for ticket sales and sponsors were posted to LBN’s social media accounts during the five months leading up to the event.
As the Cocktails in Character event was both a fundraiser and a celebration of Literacy Buffalo’s 60th anniversary, OtherWisz developed a collection of branded merchandise for fundraising on the big night and online. Event swag included a set of six decals, enamel pins, a book-worthy tote bag, and locally manufactured, custom felt pennants – all with messaging in support of adult literacy.
For the day of the event, we designed sponsor recognition posters and a large photo backdrop for the selfie stage, where attendees show off their literacy-themed costumes with individual and group portraits.
The Cocktails in Character event branding provided a variety of pieces that fit in a single, cohesive visual package. From print to digital, starting with announcement teasers a year prior and culminating with on-site signage, our team created a memorable and effective visual brand to promote this unique event, helping the organization to stand out among the many fundraisers this year.
Our team has designed branding and marketing materials to promote all types of events- from networking events and industry workshops to holiday art markets. If you are looking to promote an upcoming event with unique visual branding and marketing, our experienced team can help! Contact us today at 716-882-3803 or info@otherwisz.com.
