Che Simpson

0413 171 058

Department of Veteran’s Affairs – Open Arms rebrand

  • Who: Department Of Veterans' Affairs - Open Arms
  • Product: Website, business cards, poster, fridge magnets, t-shirts, banners, flyers, brochures, visual style guide
  • Why: Organisation wide rebranding
  • Activities: UX, UI, information architecture, visual design
  • Tools: Sketch, Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign,
  • Role: UX designer

Overview

Open Arms is a branch of the Department of Veterans’ Affairs. Open Arms is Australia’s national mental health service for current and former Australian Defence Force (ADF) members and their families, offering free, confidential counseling, support programs (individual, couples, family), peer support, crisis support, and online tools to help with trauma, depression, PTSD, anxiety, and relationship issues, available 24/7 via phone or online.

Problem

Open Arms was in the process of changing their name from Vietnam Veterans’ Counselling Service (VVCS). Open Arms needed their websites redesigned, their style guide updated, and a range of print materials developed.

Solution

I developed the style guide by:

  • extending the colour palette using colour theory principles, 
  • added to the typography section, 
  • defined further details such as photography usage, and
  • applied the design to a stationary set which included t-shirts, business cards, ppt slides, letter heads and more.

I designed a series of assets including:

  • post-cards, 
  • email signatures, 
  • brochures, 
  • posters, 
  • pull down banners, and 
  • fridge magnets.

In designing the Open Arms website, I:

  • applied the visual style defined in the style guide,
  • used exisiting and new photography to reflect the content,
  • proof read and defined page structure for over 20,000 words of content, 
  • conducted card sorting with users to define the information architecture, and
  • conducted user testing to confirm design.