Darcy Briks

Brooklyn, NY USA
Website: http://www.secondlanguagedesign.com
Contact

Professional Experience

I specialize in branding, print and web design. In my ten years of experience I have launched national print and web projects, shopper marketing campaigns, and corporate identity systems for independent and national businesses. With my network of industry specialists I have the ability to handle a wide array of creative projects through my creative firm Second Language Design – www.secondlanguagedesign.com. We specialize in branding, print and web design, marketing and communications.

Expertise

Art Director
12 Years
Graphic Designer
10 Years
Web Designer
8 Years

Specialty

Food
7 Years
Consumer Products
12 Years
Beauty
7 Years

Industries


Advertising, client side
10 Years
Marketing (firm) - Fortune 1000 corp. clients
5 Years
Online/new media
8 Years

Total Media Industry Experience

12 Years

Media Client List (# assignments last 2 yrs)

Rubenstein PR (10+), SWPR (1-2), Burns McClellan (1-2)

Corporate Client List (# assignments last 2 yrs)

Everyday Health (6-10), FM Home Loans (6-10), CBS Sports (3-5)

Other Work History

Previous: Founder/Creative Director of Rubenstein Creative, a division of Rubenstein Public Relations; Jr. Art Director at IN Marketing Services, a division of Advantage Sales & Marketing.

Technical Skills

Adobe Creative Suite 6: Illustrator, Photoshop and InDesign.

Foreign Language Skills

Intermediate Spanish, French & Italian

Computer Skills

Adobe Creative Suite 6, Microsoft Office, Quark XPress

Equipment

Macbook Pro

References

upon request

Awards

American Inhouse Design Award; American Package Design Award; American Graphic Design Award

Associations

Art Directors Club

Showcase

Web Design

Assisi Animal Health came to us for a website overhaul. They wanted to update their robust e-commerce site to a new look and feel with a UX that was in line with today’s best practices. We consulted on the re-structuring of their site, along with the best path forward for user experience, working closely with our developer and SEO teams. Then, we provided inspired designs for a completely custom site that features: responsive designed WordPress site that is easy for the client to manage; web store with WooCommerce integration, targeted pricing for different user types (and automatically-applied discounts), and the ability for a user to upload a prescription; login capabilities for different user types stored in database; On-site SEO (retainer), including audit phase, conversion-based keyword strategy, real-time updates to keywords, meta tags, and title tags, and implementation of redirects for a successful relaunch; and extensive content migration from the old site.
I provided a completely redesigned website for a high end personal training company that reflects their elegant aesthetic and provides a user-friendly experience. I designed the site as a custom Wordpress site that is responsive and SEO optimized.
My team and I designed and developed a new, completely custom WordPress website for Burns McClellan, one of the leading life sciences PR and IR firms in NYC. I created a design that was in line with the company’s corporate nature and clientele, but that also had style by pairing black and white NYC imagery with a blue and gray color scheme and modern fonts. We also built a site that is user-friendly when viewed from any type of device – mobile, tablet or desktop.

Branding

I gave a complete overhaul to the corporate identity of a major NYC-based PR firm. I modernized their existing look by choosing updated fonts and type treatments, choosing a more interesting color scheme by incorporating a light blue with the existing navy, and redesigning their iconic "R" logo.
Over the past year I had the pleasure of giving a rising, semi-national mortgage company a complete re-brand with a new logo, corporate identity system and marketing collateral. Aside from creative, my company also provided them with copywriting, message development, PR and online marketing, SEO, and web design and development (still in progress). We provided naming services, market analysis & brand strategy, then tagline and message development. Once we established their core values, messaging and name, we moved onto branding. Their goal was to have a logo that reflects historic banking documents, while incorporating a modern sensibility to show both their knowledgable background and awareness of the current trends in their field. And from there we provided design to their marketing collateral and more.

Graphic Design

I created several looks for an invitation to an Arts & Culture Breakfast conference for Crain Communications (Crain's New York). Then, once the client chose a preferred look, I developed several web banners at different sizes to be used on their website to advertise the event.
I leveraged the 2009 national look and feel to create shopper marketing collateral featuring Carson Kressley. I designed two easel back counter cards, a brochure with a body shimmer sample, and a mirror take-home gift.
I worked with my team to develop a direct mailer that doubled as a Beauty Advisor POP display, including coupons, samples, a beauty advisor letter, and security shroud. We leveraged the Pond's national look and feel and worked in the Mamma Mia! partnership. The client chose my look.

General

Everyday Health is a leading source of trusted health and wellness content online. I support their online marketing efforts by providing design services, including the creation of marketing funnels, online graphics and web banners and ads.