Blue Marble has been a key partner throughout the development of the product/Ux and brand communications for both EdReady and its parent organization (NROC) going back over 12 years…learn more.
From launching a new brand and website in March of 2020 through the first few years of growth with many different projects, initiatives, and events, we’ve provided creative/technical services and guidance…learn more.
Blue Marble has been a key partner throughout the development of the product/Ux and brand communications for both EdReady and its parent organization (NROC) going back over 12 years…learn more.
From launching a new brand and website in March of 2020 through the first few years of growth with many different projects, initiatives, and events, we’ve provided creative/technical services and guidance…learn more.
When NROC's founder, Gary Lopez, first told us about his vision for EdReady in 2012, NROC had recently secured funding from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to build EdReady. The big goal for EdReady was to help vastly more Americans complete college. EdReady would be a free online tool with a more advanced and customized version used in educational institutions nationwide. The app would allow students to self-assess for math and English readiness and then follow a personalized study path to fill in their knowledge gaps.
EdReady needed to appeal to a broad spectrum of people. Imagine a student headed to a rigorous college STEM program, or an adult with math anxiety striving to earn a G.E.D. A project like this requires the involvement of many stakeholders. Blue Marble was engaged to handle design for EdReady, both UX design and the brand identity and marketing materials.
Christine Fisher and John Watson of Evergreen Education Group discuss EdReady with high school students during a day of user testing.
NROC is unique in that their work is guided by a national network of educational institutions. Therefore, the need to get buy-in from students, schools, and other education leaders is embedded into its business model.
Blue Marble helped with focus groups to test our assumptions and gain valuable insight into the user’s experience with early prototypes. Within the first three months, the interface underwent three major revisions based on feedback from students and teachers. We observed a wide spectrum of attitudes about math and college, learning our target audience's own language so we could gain their trust and engagement.
EdReady is currently being used by institutions across the U.S. including some entire state systems such as Montana, Hawaii, Utah, Idaho, Nebraska, Tennessee, North Carolina, and others.
A short documentary (about Montana) is available to show what a statewide implementation of EdReady looked like in 2015. Blue Marble was involved in the production of this film, conducting the interviews and providing feedback during the editing process.
EdReady has matured from the concept stage to become a fully functional product with a coherent brand and story that continues to unfold.
Based, in part, on the value EdReady brings to educational institutions, NROC has been able to increase membership and is working toward becoming a self-sustaining project.
Blue Marble produced this first explainer video in 2014, including script, storyboards, illustration, voiceover, motion and sound design. Due to our careful planning the video serves a variety of needs and has been customized for multiple states and school systems.
In 2015 we produced a six-part online toolkit for education leaders to promote EdReady within their own institutions. A variety of customizable materials and a complete style guide were included.
The toolkit was also shared as a credit-card-sized flash drive in conference bags. Our work has included designs for conference signage, name tags, and collateral.
A suite of reports allows administrators and teachers to support students using EdReady. How is Ms. Sandoval's Algebra 1 class performing? How has Elizabeth been spending her time inside EdReady? How did Jonathan reach his target score so quickly? Blue Marble helped NROC to create a system that answers questions like these based on research into the needs of EdReady's administrative users.
The "study path" where a student can learn about topics they need to study, then check their knowledge to improve their scores. Students can learn and assess themselves at their own pace in a low-stakes environment with constant feedback.
The NROC Project
Interaction/interface design
Customer/user experience
Brand and message development
Multimedia campaigns
Print and digital publication
Illustration, photography, video production, motion graphics
“I think of Blue Marble as part of our team. Without their vision and creativity we would not have a fraction of the success we have enjoyed. Blue Marble took the time to understand the students and instructors that we serve, as well as the challenges we face. They committed creatively and emotionally to both our business success and our mission success.”
– Gary Lopez, Ph.D, Founder and CEO, The NROC Project
“We’ve got many students falling out of higher education. The work NROC is doing in technology and education could not be more important.”
– Martha Kanter, Former U.S. Department of Education Undersecretary
Hundreds of education leaders have contributed time and expertise to this project and the underlying learning resources. It is truly a labor of love for many.
To learn more about the organization behind EdReady, and to hear what education leaders are saying about EdReady, see the above video. You can also learn more about our work on The NROC Project.
Energia Eficiente (EE) is a consulting firm focused on helping entrepreneurs invest in energy efficiency through a unique combination of technical and financial assistance. The company runs Programa Pro Hoteis (PPH), an initiative aimed at helping the Brazil hotel industry implement energy efficiency measures. When Energia Eficiente took over PPH — which had received start-up funding from the International Finance Corporation (IFC) — the program was successful at completing energy-efficiency audits, but struggled to convince hotels to implement the recommendations outlined in the audits. Energia Eficiente had the technical and business skills to take the program to the next level, but it lacked marketing expertise. That’s when a member of the leadership team reached out to Blue Marble for assistance with developing the marketing strategy.
Blue Marble conducted an in-person BluePrinting workshop at our White Salmon, Washington office with one of the EE leaders. We spent nearly three days combing through presentation materials, visualizing the future, and discussing audience objections. We brought clarity to Energia Eficiente’s sales and consultation process. We helped EE’s leadership team get clear on the perspective of their ideal hotel customer through each stage of the process, and documented our conclusions with a customer journey map. We also created audience profiles, and a mood board which provided direction for a new brand and aesthetic, and we outlined the messages for a new sales presentation. As a last step in this process, we executed a redesign of both Energia Eficiente's visual identity as well as that of Programa Pro Hoteis.
Clearly communicating the value of energy efficiency
With clarity about how to explain the PPH program, Energia Eficiente is experiencing greater ease in their communications and confidence in their business development efforts. Its leadership team has a map showing where the team can make incremental changes to improve its customers’ experiences over time. After training in how to use their collateral, members of Energia Eficiente’s leadership team have been able to update presentations and sales materials on an ongoing basis.
Energia Eficiente
Customer/user experience planning
Brand and message development
“Definitely the work we did together and the several inputs received are being of great help to the development of our business.”
– Thiago Simões, Energia Eficiente
