A. Budgets

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Considerations

Venue: Selecting an appropriate venue involves considerations of type, location, and budget. Understanding included amenities, rental duration, and in-house services are essential to managing expenses.

Decor and Ambiance: The scale of decor, rental versus purchase decisions, and the logistics of installation and removal contribute to budget considerations.

Signage and Branding: Customized branding elements require careful budgeting, considering factors such as material durability, design costs, and reusability year to year.

Audio-visual (AV) Equipment: Choose between cutting-edge technology and basic equipment, considering for operator costs and potential expenses related to live streaming for online audiences.

Catering: Different types of cuisine, service styles, special requests, staffing needs, equipment, and licensing for certain items must be factored in when budgeting for catering services. Additionally, venues that offer packages may have minimum food and beverage requirements, i.e., a certain amount that must be spent towards catering.

Speakers and Entertainment: Consider professional fees, travel, and accommodation costs for entertainers, influencers, and key opinion leaders.

B. Crafting Cohesion

Branding

Color palettes are a quick, impactful way to create unity and identity across physical, digital, and event details. The following are good starting points for creating visually appealing color palettes:

• Monochromatic Palette: Consists of different shades (light or dark) and tones (intensity) of a single color.
• Analogous Palette: Uses colors that are adjacent to each other on the color wheel, creating a harmonious and unified look.
• Complementary Palette: Involves colors opposite each other on the color wheel, creating a high contrast and vibrant look. (Blue/Orange, Red/Green, Purple/Yellow)
• Split-Complementary Palette: Similar to the complementary palette but uses two adjacent colors to the complement, offering a bit more variety.
• Triadic Palette: Uses three evenly spaced colors on the color wheel, creating a balanced and vibrant look.
• Tetradic (Double-Complementary) Palette: Involves two complementary color pairs, providing more color variety and versatility.
• Square (Tetradic) Palette: Uses four colors together in the form of a rectangle on the color wheel, offering a rich and diverse palette.
• Rectangular (Analogous) Palette: Similar to the square palette but uses four colors in a rectangular formation on the color wheel.
• Triadic Split Palette: A variation of the triadic palette where one color is split into two adjacent colors, providing a more nuanced color scheme.
• Neutral Palette: Utilizes neutral colors such as whites, grays, and browns for a sophisticated and timeless look.
• Warm Color Palette: Focuses on warm tones such as reds, oranges, and yellows, creating a cozy and inviting atmosphere.
• Cool Color Palette: Emphasizes cool tones such as blues, greens, and purples, conveying a calm and tranquil vibe.

Typography, or the fonts, spacing, and other text properties used in designs, is another tool that is powerful for unified branding. The most important element of typography is legibility, or the ability to read text. Here are some key terms to know and consider for your text:

• Typefaces: A typeface is a specific design of type. Common examples include Times New Roman, Arial, and Helvetica.
• Fonts: A font refers to the specific size, weight, and style of a typeface. Although they are often used interchangeably, an easy way to remember is that Times New Roman is the typeface, while 12pt Times New Roman Bold is the font.
• Serif Typeface: Serifs are small lines or strokes attached to the ends of letterforms. They have little feet or tails and typically look more formal or ‘old-timey’. Times New Roman is a prime example.
• Sans Serif Typeface: Sans-serif, or ‘without the serif’ typefaces DO NOT have the small lines or strokes (serifs/feet/tails) at the ends of letters. Sans-serif fonts are often used for a modern, clean look. Examples include Arial, Helvetica, and Calibri.
• Script Typeface: Script typefaces mimic cursive or handwriting styles. They can convey elegance and informality, depending on the specific script font used.
• Decorative/Display Typeface: Decorative or display typefaces are highly stylized and often used for special occasions or to convey a specific theme. They are not recommended for important text. You may stylize a single letter for a logo or similar application.
• Monospaced Typeface: In monospaced (or fixed-width) typefaces, each character occupies the same horizontal space. These fonts are often used for coding or futuristic appearances.
• Hierarchy: Typography hierarchy refers to the arrangement and presentation of different elements based on their importance. Headings, subheadings, and body text should be styled differently to create a clear visual hierarchy.
• Leading: Leading, pronounced “ledding” like pencil lead, refers to the vertical space between lines of text. Proper leading enhances readability and prevents text from appearing too cramped or too spread out.
• Kerning: Kerning involves adjusting the space between individual characters. It helps achieve a visually balanced and harmonious appearance of the text. Applying kerning reduces uneven spacing between specific characters within a word (so only selected letters, not the whole thing).
• Tracking: Tracking refers to the overall spacing between characters in a block of text (so the whole thing). Adjusting tracking can impact the readability and visual cohesion of the text.

Logos are visual symbols that quickly communicate the identity you craft. Some events have unique brands, and it is not uncommon to find them for fashion shows. While they take a long time to sketch and create, some common types of logos are:

• Wordmarks or Logotypes: Logos based on the event name or initials.
• Symbols or Pictorial Marks: Logos consisting of a visual symbol or icon without accompanying text.
• Combination Marks: Logos that incorporate both a symbol/icon and the brand’s name.
• Emblems: Logos where the text is enclosed within a symbol or icon.
• Lettermarks or Monograms: Logos made up of letters, usually initials. Similar wordmarks, but more abstract and stylistic.

Consistency

Once the identity is established, it further creates unity through application across platforms. Many graphic design software packages offer branding kit options. However, these are often behind paywalls. For increased accessibility across committees, a style guide may be most helpful.

C. Accessing Adobe Products through the University of Arkansas

Option 1: Access the software on-campus at a Tech Spot Lab.

Option 2: Purchase a student license for $20 monthly.

Option 3: Use Remote Lab login.