Tim Macer masterminds ASC image makeover

18 September 2007

When the committee of the Association for Survey Computing asked meaning's MD Tim Macer to chair the organising committee for its fifth international conference in September 2007, Tim made upgrading the image that the ASC communicated a priority.

"For several understandable reasons, design had not been top of the list at past events," comments Tim. "But good design, in events as much as it is in software, is a powerful force in determining success today. Since the theme of this year's conference was 'The Challenges of a Changing World' it was vital to show our members and potential new delegates that the ASC itself was rising to the challenge, and not averse to change."

Tim, with help from other members of the ASC committee, worked with Andrew Park, partner at design company Cognitive Media, to come up with a bold set of conference imagery that could be used across the entire range of printed and display materials.

"ASC always runs multi-stream conferences, which means that delegates have to worry about not just picking out papers they want to see, but being in the right place at the right time. Our aim was to make the event as user-friendly as possible. We started from the programme and worked out from there. We used a number of visual devices, and then used this across all the materials, from the pocket timetable right up to signage across the venue," Tim explains. "Even the rooms had their own icons."

The other challenge was to do all of this on a very limited budget. "I think everyone was impressed with the results," Tim records. "I am pleased to say that well over half of what we produced can be recyled and used at future events, and ASC are now thinking of adopting the look for their other publicity too."

Picture: Tim Macer surrounded by the new-look ASC conference banners

Read Tim Macer's research magazine review of the conference

External link to the ASC Conference website