RCBA Dispute Resolution Service, Inc.

Project

Live Website

Challenge/Opportunity

Founded in 1995, RCBA Dispute Resolution Service, Inc. (DRS) is a non-profit public benefit corporation that provides private alternative dispute resolution (ADR) services in Riverside County and surrounding areas. DRS also administers five court mediation programs funded by the Dispute Resolution Programs Act (DRPA) through Riverside County. The DRS panel is comprised of experienced attorneys who have practiced law for 10 or more years and have met other experience requirements established by the DRS Board of Directors.

In 2013, DRS wanted to make improvements to its communications initiatives and activities in order to better meet its business goals and the needs of its diverse range of audiences. The organization sought to meet the following business goals:

Increase the volume of private arbitrations and mediations facilitated by DRS
Reduce civil case backlog in the Riverside County Courts
Recruit and retain competent ADR professionals to serve on the DRS panel
Build and maintain a standard for professional excellence in the ADR field in Riverside County
Maintain and grow two primary revenue streams in order to accomplish the business goals as outlined above

Scope of Project

The scope of this project included an organizational analysis that informed a Targeted Communications Plan. Guided by our findings in the Targeted Communications Plan, we designed and developed a new logo, an informational website, and several brand artifacts for DRS. We also wrote several profile articles, and templated, organized and copyedited nearly 100 panelist biographies for the DRS website.

Solution

In May 2013, we conducted an organizational analysis for DRS and delivered a set of recommendations in a Targeted Communications Plan.

From there we moved onto to creating a new look and feel for the brand, starting with a new logo design. Two messages that appeared consistently throughout the organization’s communications included: “You be the judge” and “You control the outcome.” These messages convey the benefits of using ADR services to settle disputes. We arrived at the gavel illustration with the acronym “DRS” underneath for the icon. The words “Dispute Resolution Service” are written in a bold serif font, with “RCBA” appearing in a thinner sans-serif font for less emphasis.

The navy blue and gold color scheme was borrowed from the larger affiliate organization, the Riverside County Bar Association. It is an elegant, traditional color scheme that conveys unity, trust and stability.

Next, we produced several brand artifacts that brought consistent messaging and design across all of the communications channels, these included:

Tri-Fold Brochure
Business Cards
Letterhead
Envelopes
Magazine Display Ads
Event Flyers (as needed)
Panelist Biography Template
E-mail Blast Templates
Informational Website

We also templated, organized and copyedited the biographies for the nearly 100 DRS panelists and added their bios in a searchable directory to the informational website.

Additionally, we wrote periodic featured mediator profiles that were cross-published on the DRS website and in Riverside Lawyer Magazine in order to promote DRS and the individual panelists.

Third-Party Contributors

None

Tools

Adobe Acrobat Pro
Adobe Illustrator CC
Adobe InDesign CC
Adobe Photoshop CC
Constant Contact
Microsoft Word

Collateral

	Logo Two messages that appeared consistently throughout the organization’s communications included: “You be the judge” and “You control the outcome.” These messages convey the benefits of using ADR services to settle disputes. We arrived at the gavel illustration with the acronym “DRS” underneath for the icon. The words “Dispute Resolution Service” are written in a bold serif font, with “RCBA” appearing in a thinner sans-serif font for less emphasis. The navy blue and gold color scheme was borrowed from the larger affiliate organization, the Riverside County Bar Association. It is an elegant, traditional color scheme that conveys unity, trust and stability.
	Tri-Fold Brochure This general tri-fold brochure was designed to quickly inform readers about what is DRS and its value propositions.
	Business Cards We designed a generic business card for the office as well as individual business cards for the DRS Board.
	Letterhead The letterhead was provided in a Word document template so that it could be easily and conveniently used internally for the frequent letter correspondence from DRS.
	Envelopes We designed a standard envelope with the logo and office address.
	Magazine Display Ads We designed magazine ads for Riverside Lawyer Magazine and for Inland Empire Magazine .
	Event Flyers We designed event flyers for an annual continuing legal education event held by DRS for its panelists.
	Panelist Biography Template We designed a branded template to use for all of the panelist biographies. The completed biographies were then made available for download in a PDF format on the DRS website and also appeared in a hard copy binder at the office.
	E-mail Blast Template We designed an e-mail blast template for Constant Contact for the periodic correspondence sent out from the organization to its mailing list.

Other Deliverables

	Business Website We develop business websites using the powerful technology of our website hosting platform, Blue Core CMS™. Built specifically for business owners, Blue Core CMS™ includes all of the website features and components that most businesses need.
	Routine Website Maintenance and Updates We provide ongoing website maintenance and updates as well as support services.
	Targeted Communications Plan Our team conducts a series of interviews with your company in order to identify and document your business model, value propositions, target markets and communications objectives. From this process we develop messaging, content and design that will help you leverage the website as a communications vehicle for your business.

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