Step by Step Graphics
September/October 2001
Profiting from Nonprofit Work
Pro bono projects gone wrong tend to linger in the memory like bugs stuck to the grill of the car. You just can’t get rid of them. But it doesn’t have to be that way. Pro bono work should feel good. It’s a chance to step outside the boundaries of one’s everyday work and an effective way to build relationships and disseminate
a designer’s (and/or firm’s) name in the community.
Just ask the creatives at New York-based Langton Cherubino Group. The firm takes on one or two pro bono projects each year, and thanks to careful attention to selection, commitment, and collaboration the firm and the recipients find the experiences rewarding.
Firm principals David Langton and Norman Cherubino cite a recent newsletter redesign as an example
of a pro bono project gone right. Cherubino was aware that the Lesbian and Gay Community Services Center was looking to redo its newsletter as part of an overall rebranding campaign. Together, Langton and Cherubino identified the project as an opportunity to challenge the nonprofit organization to determine its needs and challenge themselves to apply corporate design strategies to achieve cost savings. This satisfies the first edict of successful pro bono endeavors: Select projects that engage the hearts as well as the minds of the creative team. “The point is to give something back. Believing that what you’re doing is going to make a real difference to someone makes this work special,” says Langton.
Another element of the firm’s selection process is the nature of the job. “We usually pick projects that are somewhat different from our client work, for a change of pace,” Cherubino says. “Something that has the potential to be really fun to work on. The Center’s newsletter presented an intriguing challenge in that it needed to both serious and social.”
With the project selected, fitting it into the firm’s busy schedule becomes paramount. “We treat these projects like any other job. Deadlines have to be reasonable and there has to be a commitment to meet them on both sides,” says Cherubino.
Although the client is getting the work free of charge, he or she has to be willing to invest in the project by way of staff resources and thoughtful interaction with the creative team. “A pro bono client needs to understand that we’re not giving work away. There’s this pervasive idea that graphic design is easy and therefore not valuable. Most people have no idea what goes into good design,” Langton explains. “Client education about the role of design is an integral part of the process.”
One of the goals for the redesign was to address the fact that of the two publications the Center was sending out, recipients were keeping and referring to only one. Langton Cherubino design director James Keller used that information to propose a design that combines the most important parts of the two original publications. “It’s two 11 x 17-inch sheets folded differently,” Keller explains. “It’s printed two-up on both sides, and folds down to No. 10 envelope size for mailing. It’s still one color, but tints give it dimension.”
“This design meets several objectives,” says Langton. “Costs were immediately reduced by eliminating an entire mailing. The “Center Happenings” portion (the calendar of events) can be detached and used independently as a poster, and the layout is very flexible. We also whittled the Center’s expense by helping them choose a new printer that offered a better package and specifying an oversized format that uses paper that maximizes the available press size.”
“The original newsletter was very text heavy,” Cherubino adds. “Up to 12 stories per issue that no one was reading. We recommended reducing that to five, with columns that appear in each issue. The editorial was redirected to match what readers in the focus groups told us they were interested in and we changed the types of photographs they collect, as well, to show diversity and fun. The new nine-week lead time makes
the process easier on everybody.”
Dan Willson, director of communications for the Center, reports that the redesigned newsletter bolsters a greater sense of pride for the Center and its members. “We learned through focus groups that almost 30 percent of 55,000 households receiving the newsletter had never been to the Center,” he says. “The newsletter launched just before our new building opened, and it’s no coincidence that our Homecoming
in 2001 fund-raiser exceeded all expectations.”
For the design firm, the rewards are equally evident, if not so tangible. “We definitely profit from our pro bono work,” says Langton. “It gives added value to what we do as a career, boosting the personal satisfaction
of everyone who is involved.”
“It’s rewarding to see the whole studio work together on a project,” adds Cherubino. “It’s a team-building exercise. The renewed energy shows in our other projects.”
Reprinted with permission from Step-By-Step Graphics, ©2001, Vol. 17, No. 5; 6000 N. Forest Park Drive, Peoria, III. 61614; 800/255-8800
