Stephen Gates Personal RSS Feed http://www.behance.net/sdgates http://www.behance.net/Gallery/Nationwide-Insurance-Life-Comes-At-You-Fast/229495 http://www.behance.net/Gallery/Nationwide-Insurance-Life-Comes-At-You-Fast/229495 Tue, 19 May 2009 19:31:11 -0500 The core of every Subaru automobile and their brand is their all wheel drive (AWD) technology. I was challenged with creating a microsite that would be a high engaging interactive experience that could explain the complexities of their All-Wheel Drive systems to both car novices as well as hard core driving enthusiasts. Subaru needed to clearly articulate the difference in their technology, the heritage and why the consumer should care about what Subaru AWD really meant to them. I started with research the technology by going to Subaru headquarters to drive all of their cars and build an AWD system from the ground up with their master technicians. This lead to the realization that the best way to explain the technology was to strip out all the 3 letter acronyms and use plain English and simple visuals. The visual design of the site was done with unique interfaces, animation and a sophistication but simplicity that matched the technology it was explaining. The resulting site drove a huge awareness and knowledge lift in Subaru consumers and won numerous major design awards. http://www.behance.net/Gallery/Subaru-All-Wheel-Drive-Microsite/97280 The core of every Subaru automobile and their brand is their all wheel drive (AWD) technology. I was challenged with creating a microsite that would be a high engaging interactive experience that could explain the complexities of their All-Wheel Drive systems to both car novices as well as hard core driving enthusiasts. Subaru needed to clearly articulate the difference in their technology, the heritage and why the consumer should care about what Subaru AWD really meant to them. I started with research the technology by going to Subaru headquarters to drive all of their cars and build an AWD system from the ground up with their master technicians. This lead to the realization that the best way to explain the technology was to strip out all the 3 letter acronyms and use plain English and simple visuals. The visual design of the site was done with unique interfaces, animation and a sophistication but simplicity that matched the technology it was explaining. The resulting site drove a huge awareness and knowledge lift in Subaru consumers and won numerous major design awards. http://www.behance.net/Gallery/Subaru-All-Wheel-Drive-Microsite/97280 Wed, 04 Jun 2008 16:41:13 -0500 http://www.behance.net/Gallery/LuxuryCollection_com/229191 http://www.behance.net/Gallery/LuxuryCollection_com/229191 Tue, 19 May 2009 10:18:26 -0500 Subaru was launching two completely redesigned car models, the 2005 Legacy and Outback, that represented a shift in the brand strategy and positioning from a strictly utilitarian and practical vehicle, to a car people would really desire. One of the most successful ad placements was on Edmunds.com where we were able to expose consumers who were looking for cars to add to their consideration set as well as doing pre-sale research. We took advantage of their featured car placement that allowed for the creation of large format, rich media experiences that went far beyond the typical ad unit. For the Outback launch customers were able to scroll through different headlines that correspond to different informational areas about features on the car giving customers everything they needed to make a smart, well-informed purchase. The ad and the microsite it supported led to the best sales year ever for the company. http://www.behance.net/Gallery/Subaru-Edmunds_com-Advertising/97571 Subaru was launching two completely redesigned car models, the 2005 Legacy and Outback, that represented a shift in the brand strategy and positioning from a strictly utilitarian and practical vehicle, to a car people would really desire. One of the most successful ad placements was on Edmunds.com where we were able to expose consumers who were looking for cars to add to their consideration set as well as doing pre-sale research. We took advantage of their featured car placement that allowed for the creation of large format, rich media experiences that went far beyond the typical ad unit. For the Outback launch customers were able to scroll through different headlines that correspond to different informational areas about features on the car giving customers everything they needed to make a smart, well-informed purchase. The ad and the microsite it supported led to the best sales year ever for the company. http://www.behance.net/Gallery/Subaru-Edmunds_com-Advertising/97571 Thu, 05 Jun 2008 14:30:52 -0500 Subaru was launching two completely redesigned car models, the 2005 Legacy and Outback, that represented a shift in the brand positioning from a strictly practical vehicle, to a car people would really desire. One challenge was to create and maintain enough consumer interest around this new car launch to drive traffic into dealerships when the cars finally arrived at dealers. Another challenge was to shift consumer perception of the vehicle nameplate and create appeal not only among the core auto enthusiasts who are often interested in Subaru but also the broader audience of new car shoppers, who might not usually consider the brand. The third challenge was to design and launch a site with minimal assets since photography of the U.S. models simply didn’t exist when I first began work on the project. The site was the focal point for the launch, drove thousands of highly qualified sales leads and led to their best sales year ever. http://www.behance.net/Gallery/Subaru-Legacy-_-Outback-Launch-Microsite/97276 Subaru was launching two completely redesigned car models, the 2005 Legacy and Outback, that represented a shift in the brand positioning from a strictly practical vehicle, to a car people would really desire. One challenge was to create and maintain enough consumer interest around this new car launch to drive traffic into dealerships when the cars finally arrived at dealers. Another challenge was to shift consumer perception of the vehicle nameplate and create appeal not only among the core auto enthusiasts who are often interested in Subaru but also the broader audience of new car shoppers, who might not usually consider the brand. The third challenge was to design and launch a site with minimal assets since photography of the U.S. models simply didn’t exist when I first began work on the project. The site was the focal point for the launch, drove thousands of highly qualified sales leads and led to their best sales year ever. http://www.behance.net/Gallery/Subaru-Legacy-_-Outback-Launch-Microsite/97276 Wed, 04 Jun 2008 14:55:02 -0500 In 2005, Mitsubishi Motors was faced with many challenges including declining sales, falling brand favorability and increased competitive pressure. They needed a new campaign to launch the re-designed Eclipse and capture qualified leads they could talk to through the launch and ultimately drive them in to a dealership. The online campaign had an additional goal to create an interactive experience with the consumer and engage them so additional time was spent with the brand, beyond viewing a print ad, 60-second television spot or online ad unit. The work is fun and visual to get consumer to simply “Go”. http://www.behance.net/Gallery/Mitsubishi/126905 In 2005, Mitsubishi Motors was faced with many challenges including declining sales, falling brand favorability and increased competitive pressure. They needed a new campaign to launch the re-designed Eclipse and capture qualified leads they could talk to through the launch and ultimately drive them in to a dealership. The online campaign had an additional goal to create an interactive experience with the consumer and engage them so additional time was spent with the brand, beyond viewing a print ad, 60-second television spot or online ad unit. The work is fun and visual to get consumer to simply “Go”. http://www.behance.net/Gallery/Mitsubishi/126905 Tue, 16 Sep 2008 10:25:56 -0500 http://www.behance.net/Gallery/Subaru--Lance-Armstrong-Online-Campaign/228519 http://www.behance.net/Gallery/Subaru--Lance-Armstrong-Online-Campaign/228519 Mon, 18 May 2009 10:42:55 -0500 When I worked at T:m interactive it was an extremely successful but fairly unknown interactive shop that was the interactive arm of Temerlin McClain advertising. We knew we needed to get our name out there so I was asked to create a completely unique site that would be based around a compelling concept and not just the boring portfolio site that is seen time and time again for interactive agencies. The concept was that at the end of the day our advertising was selling time with consumers for the brands we worked for. What if you were able to buy Customer Time like product you would buy in any retail store? I developed and design everything to bring this concept to like including packing design for the Customer Time box that we used to present our work to new clients and the site that was created as the instruction manual for how to correctly install customer time with customers. The site was a huge success that nearly doubled our RFP requests and won many major design awards. http://www.behance.net/Gallery/tm-interactive/126868 When I worked at T:m interactive it was an extremely successful but fairly unknown interactive shop that was the interactive arm of Temerlin McClain advertising. We knew we needed to get our name out there so I was asked to create a completely unique site that would be based around a compelling concept and not just the boring portfolio site that is seen time and time again for interactive agencies. The concept was that at the end of the day our advertising was selling time with consumers for the brands we worked for. What if you were able to buy Customer Time like product you would buy in any retail store? I developed and design everything to bring this concept to like including packing design for the Customer Time box that we used to present our work to new clients and the site that was created as the instruction manual for how to correctly install customer time with customers. The site was a huge success that nearly doubled our RFP requests and won many major design awards. http://www.behance.net/Gallery/tm-interactive/126868 Tue, 16 Sep 2008 09:27:06 -0500 The challenge was to take the Mariloff brand from a regional diamond and jewelry retailer to a nationally known brand and the heart of the strategy was the to create a world-class e-commerce site that needed to be designed and created from the ground up to accommodate the needs of the project. Work on the visual designs began in conjunction with the user experience design because of the complexity of the site and the fact that the the goal was to create a site that was high functional and informational but those aspects were presented in a way that didn't feel too cold or cluttered. The design of nearly 200 pages took 6 months to perfect the pages templates and create an overarching brand image that could then be tailored to appeal to all of the different user personas. In addition to the consumer site there was also an entire private area of the site that was built so it could be customized for Mariloff's other business segment where they would sell directly to employees of large corporations at an even larger discount. http://www.behance.net/Gallery/Mariloff-Diamonds-Site-Design/97326 The challenge was to take the Mariloff brand from a regional diamond and jewelry retailer to a nationally known brand and the heart of the strategy was the to create a world-class e-commerce site that needed to be designed and created from the ground up to accommodate the needs of the project. Work on the visual designs began in conjunction with the user experience design because of the complexity of the site and the fact that the the goal was to create a site that was high functional and informational but those aspects were presented in a way that didn't feel too cold or cluttered. The design of nearly 200 pages took 6 months to perfect the pages templates and create an overarching brand image that could then be tailored to appeal to all of the different user personas. In addition to the consumer site there was also an entire private area of the site that was built so it could be customized for Mariloff's other business segment where they would sell directly to employees of large corporations at an even larger discount. http://www.behance.net/Gallery/Mariloff-Diamonds-Site-Design/97326 Wed, 04 Jun 2008 17:04:47 -0500 The design needed to create an online community that would be powered by dynamic content, allow deep community participation and completely capture the spirit of the organization. The spirit was evident as soon as the home page loaded with a number of irreverent sayings that set the tone of the site and organization. The largest addition to the site was the creation of a series of visual chat rooms that where designed to appeal to the groups core audience and it let members create their own avatar and then chat and interact with other community members. This section was by far the most impactful as the global community used it to hold meetings, counseling sessions, support groups and just have fun interacting with each other people who were in similar situations. An online store was also added to help raise funds for the groups various activities. The final results of the re-design were that it became even more of a centerpiece for the organization and it's members who lived all over the world and found a way to interact and give the finger to cancer. http://www.behance.net/Gallery/Planet-Cancer-Site-Design/97323 The design needed to create an online community that would be powered by dynamic content, allow deep community participation and completely capture the spirit of the organization. The spirit was evident as soon as the home page loaded with a number of irreverent sayings that set the tone of the site and organization. The largest addition to the site was the creation of a series of visual chat rooms that where designed to appeal to the groups core audience and it let members create their own avatar and then chat and interact with other community members. This section was by far the most impactful as the global community used it to hold meetings, counseling sessions, support groups and just have fun interacting with each other people who were in similar situations. An online store was also added to help raise funds for the groups various activities. The final results of the re-design were that it became even more of a centerpiece for the organization and it's members who lived all over the world and found a way to interact and give the finger to cancer. http://www.behance.net/Gallery/Planet-Cancer-Site-Design/97323 Wed, 04 Jun 2008 16:56:39 -0500