Visual Marketing: 99 Proven Ways for Small Businesses to Market with Images and Design

27. A Picture Speaks a Thousand Words: Creating a Visual Interpretation of What You Do in an Industry Known for Facts and Figures

Market research firms aren't known for visual creativity: They tend to be all numbers and analysis. That's why Topic 101, a leading research firm with expertise in the college market, decided to make its site unlike any of its competitors. The company needed a site that reflected its positioning as not just another stuffy research firm, as well as one that spoke to its target audience of marketing directors, advertising agency creative directors, and graphic designers.

Why It Works

Topic 101 brought on Visual Dialogue for the task of visually interpreting who they were as a company. The design firm created a visual metaphor for the survey process used by Topic 101 by using evocative photos and videos that can be interpreted in different ways.

The design emphasized Topic 101's cutting-edge, relevant approach to research, which drives creative strategy (as opposed to competitors who just supply reams of data).

“Upon visiting the new site, potential clients' first reaction is ‘I love your site!’ This sets the tone for the whole partnership,” says Susan Battista, president of Topic 101.

“The site now,” Battista said, “tells Topic 101's story and conveys its ...