The Brief
Just a handful of years before 2009, the area that would become America’s largest urban arts district was home to a group of dilapidated warehouses. But, by October 2009, over $325,000,000 of construction was wrapping up to form The Dallas Arts District.
As the agency of record, Odyssey produced an aggressive six month campaign starting on opening day, beginning with a new brand, and continuing with numerous programs and advertisements. Odyssey developed a specialized mobile version of the website targeted to on-site visitors which focuses content to drive foot traffic to all district venues.
The New Standard
Our first initiative was to set a standard brand in place. The district had been using variations of elements, colors, styling, and applications for its first year in existence. When we were engaged as agency of record, we saw the brand as the logical place to start.
The Story
Dallas Arts District Brand Guildelines
We did a study of available assets, which led us to the red square with the words “The Dallas Arts District” stacked and reversed out in white. It represents the physical boundaries of the district, and creates a recognizable, unifying symbol for all participating organizations to rally around.
In the first phase of a comprehensive rebrand and marketing effort led by Odyssey, The Dallas Arts District — the largest entertainment district of its kind in the nation — was in dire need of a way to engage visitors on the go: a site that carried the same feel as the rebranded full desktop version, but crafted for a growing mobile audience.
Amplifying Awareness
Following the brand launch, Odyssey extended the branding into events and venues in interesting, unique and diverse ways. We created an aggressive launch campaign to grow awareness while simultaneously building the District’s first sponsorship program.
Today, The Dallas Arts District has fulfilled its objective – distinguishing Dallas as an international destination for arts and culture.
