Inspire Business Community
Branding, Voice, Copywriting
Located in downtown Lancaster, PA, Inspire is a tight-knit coworking hub of 30+ members. With plans to grow membership and offer more resources to the local business community, Inspire needed more than just a logo.
The challenge was to build off the existing logo to create a brand that speaks to creative entrepreneurs just starting their journey, without alienating more experienced business owners.
Member Research
After conducting a survey of current Inspire members and analyzing interviews in the member magazine, a few trends emerged. These insights contributed to two personas based on real data — the condensed, “short-hand” versions of two key member types Inspire aimed to target: one fledgling entrepreneur (80% of use cases), and one established business owner (20%).
Visual Research and Inspiration
One obvious visual starting point was the rich history of Pennsylvania Dutch design around Lancaster county. After exploring quilt and barn “hex sign” designs, the patchwork concept emerged as a useful visual metaphor for the wide variety of businesses that make up the community at Inspire.
One of a series of custom patterns is the patchwork grid, which draws inspiration from hex symbols as well as iconic downtown Lancaster architecture.
Visual Branding
The new Inspire brand reflects the warmth, artistry, and natural elements of the Inspire coworking space. A revised color palette ranges from refined to playful while interacting with either structured or organic custom patterns.
The Inspire Circle
The prior Inspire brand used bold fields of red and black, which felt at odds with the promise of a calming coworking experience. In the reorganized color palette, Inspire Red now takes on a smaller, punchier role as a playful circle motif, supported by a backdrop of neutral colors.
Brand Voice & Messaging
The Inspire brand voice reflects the business coaching style of its founder, Rhonda: calming, intuitive, and encouraging. Inspire speaks to fledgling entrepreneurs, acknowledging the common business struggles they face while offering hope for figuring it all out — and reassurance that they don’t have to do it alone.
One of Inspire’s key messages is growth: not overnight success, but purposeful, personal growth that fuels a business owner’s passion.
Website Copy Wireframe
Before sending the website off to the design and development team, it was time to put the new messaging strategy into practice with a website wireframe. Besides providing headlines, body copy, and calls to action, the wireframe helps organize content and establish typographic styles.