How OMR Found the Right Tool for Brand Management
Chantal Seiter9/28/2023
Our Head of Design reveals how the Frontify implementation went at OMR and has tips for your brand management ready.
Table of contents
- What is Frontify?
- Actually, it was just about feedback
- The tool must be fun
- "There is not the one tool that unites everything"
- If already new design, then properly
- According to the Head of Design, this new process is already being very well accepted at OMR despite small hiccups: "It just needs to solidify." And then the intense time in the run-up was also worth it. "We are very grateful for the close cooperation with the agency Arndt Benedikt, with which not only the entire design refresh process ran super efficiently and was a lot of fun, but which also supported us greatly in implementing Frontify.","Especially important: Current design guidelines and logos of the individual OMR units","Chris’ tips for your Frontify implementation","Chris knew exactly what he wanted at the beginning of his search and tested different tools intensively. That's the best way to find out if a software really fits you and your workflows. Chris then had the Frontify team show him additional use cases that resemble the daily business of OMR. Once your decision has fallen on the tool, you should think about things like user guidance and the preparation of your assets in advance, so you can use the brand management platform optimally.
- take over? "At OMR, we are currently using the connection with
How does a brand like OMR actually manage its appearance? The design for the individual units and the big picture is one thing. The other are the rules: When does which logo come into use and in which case do we use which typeface? What was long written down in a PDF document somewhere in our Google Workspace is now regulated by a tool called Frontify. Our Head of Design Chris Albert reveals how he came across the tool and what advantages it not only brings to the OMR design team. He also explains how the transition from "This works out somehow with Google Drive" to smooth brand management took place, what's still on the agenda and with which tips you use Frontify in your company.
What is Frontify?
Frontify is a cloud-based brand management platform that allows companies to manage their brand assets and guidelines. In this way, all brand content and their updates are accessible to all employees in one place. This ensures a consistent brand appearance across teams and locations. The integrated Digital Asset Management (DAM) enables the efficient organization of all digital content such as images, videos, presentations or logos.
Actually, it was just about feedback
The OMR design team is busy every day dealing with many requests from various units. Here a White Paper, there a study report or festival banner: As a rule, the tasks come in via a Typeform form in Asana and the colleagues start working. What comes next are feedback loops, content adjustments or additions. At OMR, this was handled in different ways, such as quickly at Slack or via comments in Google Drive. This can quickly lose the colleagues' overview and feedback processes become unnecessarily long and opaque. That's why Chris went looking for a visual feedback tool that not only his team, but all colleagues at OML should be able to work with.
"I had already introduced such a tool to our team, but it had stopped its services", says Chris, who then looked for an equivalent substitute. "It's super helpful for everyone who gives feedback, when you can put your points directly on the design. The designers then have a checklist that they can work through." So Chris got into the depths of the software world and tested many feedback tools to find a replacement for the old one. "Then we started our project 'Design Refresh' last year together with the agency Arndt Benedikt and Frontify came across my path", remembers the Head of Design.
The tool must be fun
For what Chris had in mind, Frontify was actually too extensive. In the course of the Design Refresh it was clear: "When the refresh is through, there should be a proper Brand Portal and no boring PDF." While he and his team were already testing PageProof Frontify actually offered the best all-round package. According to Chris, PageProof is stronger for feedback processes, but it was more sensible to switch to a single platform and bundle feedback and assets in one place. "Also, such a tool has to be fun", says the Head of Design. An inviting user interface and an intuitive user guidance were just as important to him as the evaluation of assets. And Frontify convinced him with the first test runs.
In the OMR Brand Portal, all employees find the information and assets they need for the brand presentation.
"There is not the one tool that unites everything"
Chris started looking for a new feedback tool on his own. He tested them, spoke to colleagues from OML Reviews, where Frontify has the best ratings in its category, but also looked around on other comparison platforms and simply googled. "That was not so easy for this special, creative workflow", remembers the Head of Design. "This sector, when it comes to creative collaboration tools, simply is not very large yet. There were not many reviews back then, at most for the big enterprise tools. But there are also many smaller tools, which you have to find first." According to Chris, PageProof is doing a lot right in this area and many other software are also doing a lot right. "But there's not this one tool that unites everything."
To ensure that the 20-strong design team is well equipped, Chris eventually involved it in the search. "It's even easier in small teams to introduce something like this", he says. "That's why I was also open to other suggestions." Instead of a dedicated task force like for the OMR-wide HubSpot implementation, in the search and decision process for a new creative tool only a handful of colleagues were involved for a long time. And then there was suddenly Frontify: "At that time we had already used PageProof in the team for several months as a test phase", remembers Chris. Actually, it was soon to be available for all colleagues at OML. "There was then also a small transition phase and if that could do everything we were looking for, that would have been great." The team used PageProof and Frontify in parallel in the daily business for one month. "And then we noticed that Frontify also offers everything we need and moreover looks a bit better and is easier to use", says the Head of Design.
If already new design, then properly
You may have noticed that OMR presents itself in a new garb since the Festival 2023. Chris and his team have been working closely with the agency Arndt Benedikt on the Design Refresh since early 2022. After an intense festival phase, it continued in the summer, until the new design was finished in early 2023. This was also the time when the colleagues together with the agency started to fill Frontify and prepare it for the OMR-wide implementation. After another festival hiatus - we remember OMR23"," - the process was completed after a total of two months. According to Chris, Frontify came at the right time: "It is more of a Brand Hub, a place where we present our Corporate Identity both for our team and for outsiders." The many features make Frontify very extensive, which is why it doesn't go into depth in many places according to Chris. However, it was the best solution for his team's requirements and especially with regard to company-wide use. In addition to the possibility to comment on assets directly in the tool and to store important brand guidelines, Frontify offers a design tool, which according to Chris resembles
Canva Pro"," and a comprehensive Digital Asset Management System. "We're working on that right now, while the design guide is already online." The DAM system is supposed to enable all teams to find finished assets, designs, photos or templates easily and always up-to-date. "The team will also cope well with that and find their way around easily", Chris is sure. While the colleagues still have to get used to the new feedback tool - "They all have to understand that first. But we're also a young company and many are good at handling tools", says the Head of Design - the brand portal is more like a simple website that one quickly understands."That was an intensive time"Choosing and implementing a new tool in addition to running tasks and festival preparation is no easy task. That can easily take several months. "We're still in the process", says Chris. "We're starting now to use the feedback tool also with the teams. But there's still room for improvement." Until all colleagues have become used to the new tool and integrated it into their daily routines, some patience is needed. "You have to point out to people that we have the tool", Chris knows. "The way to go is: A request comes in via the Asana form and the feedback is given in Frontify." That there is a fixed workflow that everyone adheres to is important for Chris, especially for new, big projects.
According to the Head of Design, this new process is already being very well accepted at OMR despite small hiccups: "It just needs to solidify." And then the intense time in the run-up was also worth it. "We are very grateful for the close cooperation with the agency Arndt Benedikt, with which not only the entire design refresh process ran super efficiently and was a lot of fun, but which also supported us greatly in implementing Frontify.","Especially important: Current design guidelines and logos of the individual OMR units","Chris’ tips for your Frontify implementation","Chris knew exactly what he wanted at the beginning of his search and tested different tools intensively. That's the best way to find out if a software really fits you and your workflows. Chris then had the Frontify team show him additional use cases that resemble the daily business of OMR. Once your decision has fallen on the tool, you should think about things like user guidance and the preparation of your assets in advance, so you can use the brand management platform optimally.
Clarify responsibilities and think about who should work with the tool. This way you can bring all participants on board in time and familiarize them with the new software.
Deal with the functions of the tool and think about which already used software Frontify needs to communicate with. Is there for example an API or can a software like
Zapier
take over? "At OMR, we are currently using the connection with
Asana"," and
- Slack
- . We also want to see if we can connect Frontify with Google Drive"," so we can mirror folder structures", says Chris.Think in advance about the structure of your Brand Portal. Since it is built like a website, a logical user guidance helps here, with which your colleagues can find everything quickly. Since Frontify works according to the modular principle, you don't need any programming knowledge for this. "Preparation is important, but the tool takes you by the hand and there are also pre-made templates", says Chris.Prepare your assets well by naming them correctly and building your planned structure outside of Frontify. This way, you can import them more easily at the end.Talk to the customer service and get extensive advice. "Rather do one more meeting", is Chris' tip. Especially for his application case it was important that the employees of Frontify had a few cases ready, which at least partly resemble the special workflow of OMR.That the search for new software is not a one-man show is confirmed not only by the results of our Study on Software Decisions. Also Chris noticed at some point that a little more support would have helped in the decision-making process. "I did a lot on my own, but should have brought in someone earlier who supports the process and helps that the colleagues can familiarize themselves with the new tool early", says the Head of Design.Meanwhile, we are on a very good track at OMR to incorporate Frontify into our daily business. Also Chris is, despite the missing depth of the tool, generally satisfied with his decision, which was also helped by the ratings and insights on OMR Reviews. He also knows that no software is perfect. If it can be a wish anyway: "I wish that they would take a look at a few features of PageProof. There is already a lot going on there and if Frontify would have all these features as well - that would be excellent."
- Mache dir im Vorfeld Gedanken über die Struktur deines Brand Portals. Da es wie eine Website aufgebaut ist, hilft hier eine schlüssige Nutzerführung, mit der deine Kolleg*innen alles schnell finden. Da Frontify nach dem Baukasten-Prinzip funktioniert, brauchst du hierfür keine Programmierkenntnisse. „Vorbereitung ist wichtig, aber das Tool nimmt einen schon an die Hand und es gibt auch vorgefertigte Templates“, weiß Chris.
- Bereite deine Assets gut vor, indem du sie richtig benennst und deine geplante Struktur schon außerhalb von Frontify aufbaust. So kannst du sie am Ende einfacher importieren.
- Sprich mit dem Kundenservice und lass dich ausführlich beraten. „Mach lieber ein Meeting mehr“, ist Chris’ Tipp. Insbesondere für seinen Anwendungsfall war es wichtig, dass die Mitarbeitenden von Frontify einige Cases parat hatten, die dem besonderen Workflow von OMR zumindest teilweise ähneln.
Dass die Suche nach neuer Software keine One-Man-Show ist, bestätigen nicht nur die Ergebnisse unserer Studie über Software-Entscheidungen. Auch Chris hat irgendwann gemerkt, dass ein wenig mehr Support bei der Entscheidungsfindung geholfen hätte. „Ich habe viel selbst gemacht, hätte aber eher jemanden mit reinholen sollen, der beim Prozess unterstützt und dabei hilft, dass die Kolleg*innen sich frühzeitig mit dem neuen Tool vertraut machen können“, sagt der Head of Design.
Mittlerweile sind wir bei OMR auf einem sehr guten Weg, Frontify in unser Daily Business einzubauen. Auch Chris ist, trotz der fehlenden Tiefe des Tools, im Großen und Ganzen zufrieden mit seiner Entscheidung, bei der ihm auch die Bewertungen und Einblicke auf OMR Reviews geholfen haben. Dass keine Software perfekt ist, weiß er zwar auch. Wenn es trotzdem ein Wunsch sein darf: „Ich wünsche mir, dass die sich ein paar Features von PageProof abgucken. Da passiert schon echt viel und wenn Frontify diese ganzen Features auch noch hätte – das wäre hervorragend.“
Author
Chantal Seiter
Chantal ist Redakteurin bei OMR Reviews. Wenn sie gerade mal nicht in die Tasten haut, betreibt sie Café Hopping oder erkundet neue Städte. Am liebsten beides zusammen. Vor ihrem Start bei OMR Reviews hat die Eigentlich-Kielerin in Kreativagenturen und als Freelancerin gearbeitet. 2022 hat sie außerdem eine Weiterbildung zur Fashion Stylistin abgeschlossen.
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