KAleiDOsCoPe DATa

Start with research! Because research informs the design. First step was to get to know the mission and vision of Kaledoscope Data. I read and reviewed all information provided. I was then ready to get a little more personal, and conducted interviews with the partners because interviews are the best way to get to know an organization. Since Kaleidoscope Data is small, it was easy to book time and interview the three partners. The interviews was a series of questions and a card sorting exercise.

To understand the company's position better, I research their competitors. I also started to think of ways to differentiate Kaleidoscope Data from their competitors.

Brand core and brand values. brand core is a description of the organization, it's mission, postion, and vision. It is aspirational. brand values starts with three words that capture the organization. It serves as the touchstone for the logo and continues to provide guidance for all future communications.

Brand words are essential. Brand words describe the brand's personality. and inform all collatoral and communication brand identity is the special sauce for your business that sets you apart. Brand identity shape your company. Brand words inform the visuals to paint the full picture of a brand story. Brand identity is the collection of all elements that a company creates to portray the right image to its consumer. Brand identity is different from “brand image” and “branding,” even though these terms are sometimes treated as interchangeable. Brand is the perception of the company in the eyes of the world.

I referenced the brand words as I came up with three concepts.

A logo is the cornerstone in brand identity. I like to start with a strong logo that carries into the design system. There were three ideas I focused on for the concepts that I thought had a very unique and distinct point of view. The three ideas are:
1. Treasure
2. Slice
3. Forms + Patterns

I began sketching and searching for ways to convey the three concepts visually that aligned with a logo, and could be developed into a brand identity system.

During the interviews, an interesting idea came up from the founder: he thought of the data as a treasure – much like picking up a rock and seeing something interesting and new underneath. Kaleidoscope Data works with companies to uncover data that is waiting to be uncovered and polished. The more nuggets you find, the more defensible your business becomes, thus the more 'sticky' your product becomes.

I also like that this logo option has three sides with a hidden message: DO DATA.

Another interesting objective of Kaleidoscope Data is that they slice through lots of data reveal something and elevate it. This logo concept also includes a little bit of mystery since the data collected can be considered abstract, in the form of the transpararent letters in the word 'data'. Another interesting point about the transparency in the logo, is that Kaleidoscope Data partners with organizations and makes their whole process of collecting data clear and direct to their customers.

Keleidoscope is Latin for "observation of beautiful forms". This is the only concept of the three that has a custom typeface. Inspired by Chalet New York, I spent the most time on this logo concept. THis concept is the simplest, and most versatile. It provided a good foundation for building a design system – it has lots of shapes to work with!

The dot over the letter 'i' became an important idea. During the partner interviews, one of the partners spoke about this mythical, floating data cube – much like the Bit (binary digit) in the original TRON movie that was depicted as a polyhedral shape.

This logo option also has the initials of the three partners first names hidden within it: K A G (which is why the D in DATA is rotated.)

I presented the logo concepts to the founders of Kaleidoscope Data. I gave brief explanations about each concept, so they understood how the research data informed the designs.

For each concept, an alternate logo and logo tests were presented. The alternate logo provided the founders with an option for smaller spaces, like LinkedIn and Twitter accounts. The logo tests included a white version of the logo and the 1 inch logo test. The 1 inch logo test, or the Piccolino test, measures if a logo is legible when reduce to the smallest size. Piccolino is Italian for “tiny” and just like the two “C’s” in the word, your brand’s logo must include creativity and clarity. Of course, we expect a logo to be creative, but the logo’s clarity allows it to be read easily and be recognized even at small sizes. This also helps test the simplicity of a logo's design.

After a difficult decision (I was told), the founders decided to go with Option 3: Forms + Patterns, with one adjustment. We decided to rotate the D in DATA to it's correct position. The logo loses the hidden descender for the G, but this decision makes the logo cleaner, straightforward, and readable.

After the choice, I cleaned up the logo and got it pixel perfect! I also finalized the alternate logo, after a few more explorations. And then began exploring colors and finally the design system.

Since we went with Forms + Patterns, I had many shapes and colors to work with as I built out the design system. Colors were chosen based on the brand words, as well as a way to differentiate Kaleidoscope Data from its competitors. The shapes in the logo were assigned its own color, and were used to create the design system.

THe base concept for the design system is the 'Power of Three'. Since Kaleidoscope Data has three founders/partners, three became a guiding number. The shapes from the logo were grouped, with the octagon from the letter 'i' in each of the two groups. These shapes were placed inside an octagon and rotated to create dynamic placement of the shapes.

I created all versions of the main logo (black, white, gray, and color), and in all file formats (PNG, JPG, and SVG). The alternate logo has six different color versions, with the purple being the main color.

Other assets included the shapes for use in the design system. Examples of imagery, marketing collateral, such as business cards, stickers, and t-shirts, are also included. From these design assets, brand guidelines are provided.

Once I finalized the design assets, brand guidelines were created to make sure the assets are used in the right way. This document – which outlines the design assets, when and how to use them, as well as any design do’s and dont’s for the Kaleidoscope Data brand – will ensure that any future design is in line with the brand identity and generates the right perception with its audience.

Consistency is key to create a strong brand identity. Brand identity touches everything in an organization to help customers identify and trust Kaleidoscope Data. A consistent brand look and feel also communicates professionalism.

The brand guidelines cover all the different elements of the brand identity. This enables Kaleidoscope Data to build brand recognition and brand loyalty in the long term.

Download Kaleidoscope Data Brand Guidelines↗️

For Option 3 of the logo, I created a custom typeface. I started with the typeface Chalet New York as the foundation and made all of the characters for Kaleidoscope Data. For fun, I continued explorations and playing with shapes to create a whole alphabet.

The Kaleidoscope Data typeface is very stylized so I recommend using it sparingly. It works great for short words and headlines.

Please download and use these fonts. Included are ttf and otf file formats.
Download Kaleidoscope Typeface OTF↗️
Download Kaleidoscope Typeface TTF↗️