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I'm Jenna, and I design brands and websites with thoughtful strategy and sparkling personality. Besides nerding out on all things digital marketing, I'm also an avid Bravo watcher, exercise junkie, makeup enthusiast, wrangler of my boys, and drinker of coffee until it's acceptable to drink wine. Is it 5 o'clock yet?

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Branding

Cozy Brand + Website for The Currently Reading Podcast

September 4, 2020

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I'm beyond pumped to show you the delightfully bookish new branding + web design for The Currently Reading Podcast!

The Currently Reading Podcast is dedicated to the love of books and reading. Bookish friends discuss what’s on their nightstands, in their earbuds, and on their Kindles right now, in addition to books they’ve loved forever, and a variety of other readerly topics. If you're looking to add to your TBR (To Be Read) pile, give it a listen for tons of fantastic book recommendations!

I've actually worked with one of the Currently Reading hosts for years. Meredith is the CEO of Here Comes The Guide—and has been one of my most trusted friends and mentors for over a decade now. We worked together 2 years ago to bring The Currently Reading Podcast to fruition—and now that it's a bonafide hit, they were ready to level up their branding to create something classic and clean and cozy and beautiful to really reflect the way they wanted Currently Reading to exist in the world.

Their visual branding includes a circular primary logo, a dreamy color palette of cool blues, and a mix of serif and script fonts that are utterly to-die-for when paired together. I also created a custom brand pattern that interlaces some of their brand elements with phrases that have been coined on their show.

One of our goals was to translate this branding to their readerly merchandise, which includes coffee mugs, sherpa throws, shirts, and tote bags. We wanted to come up with book-related merchandise that wasn't kitschy or outdated; but sophisticated and fresh.

We then updated every brand touchpoint to match—from their Squarespace website, to their Zazzle store, to their podcast art, to their Instagram highlight covers...and so on and so forth...to achieve a beautiful and recognizable consistency across the board.

It was an honor to work with Meredith and Kaytee to bring this updated vision to life. To say I'm delighted with their new brand identity is an absolute understatement. #insertallthehearteyeshere

Check out their mood board, branding, and some of my fave coffee mug designs!

Currently Reading Podcast Brand Mood Board by Absolute JEM

Mood Board image credits from top left: Book clutch • Etsy | Books + mug • Creative Market | Book + Glasses • unknown | Book print • Merry + Grace Design Co. | Eucalyptus • Woods & Ivory | Market collection: Magnolia

Currently Reading Podcast | Brand Identity by Absolute JEM
Want to see more custom merch? Click the image to go their store.

And a Q&A Interview With Meredith About The Process:

What do you do?

We have a podcast about books and reading.

 

Why did you want to rebrand your business?

In the two years we’ve been doing the show, our style had come more confident and we were clearer on the way we wanted to present ourselves. Also, we’d seen an opportunity to sell related merchandise and a re-brand was needed to take that income to the next level.

 

What was your favorite part of the rebranding process?

Working with Jenna is always great, but I think getting our very first style/brand board was my favorite. It’s so exciting to see the look you had in your imagination begin to take shape in reality.

 

What was the most challenging part of the rebranding process?

The run-up to the end was the most stressful, just because we’d been building buzz and I felt we were really on a tight turnaround. No one’s fault - deadlines - and expectations - just make me nervous.

 

How did you feel before we started working together?

Like Jenna would read my mind. We’ve worked together before, so I knew the magic she could create.

 

How do you feel now that your site is launched?

We have been overwhelmed with the response we’ve gotten to the re-brand. Our initial merchandise sales 4x our lifetime sales to that point. And that was all down to the new look.

 

Did we achieve the look and feel you were going for?

100%. I smile every time I see any part of it. It’s really allowed me to think confidently about taking our business to the next level.

 

What's your favorite part of your new branding, website, or products?

The mugs are my favorite. But, weirdly, that darn email signature is so nice and professional. I didn’t expect to be so jazzed by that.

 

What are the next steps for your business?

We hope to expand our listenership and our merchandise sales. I’d love to see us form a partnership with a brick and mortar store that sells books we recommend or talk about on the show alongside our merchandise.

 

Currently Reading Podcast Website Design by Absolute JEM

hop on over to www.currentlyreadingpodcast.com to see the full website!

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seo

business

website

portfolio

design

Branding

CATEGORIES

SEARCH

*everything you need for a
professional, cohesive brand!

FOR SMALL BUSINESSES

BRANDING CHECKLIST

FREE 6-PAGE

LET'S BE FRIENDS

I'm Jenna, and I design brands and websites with thoughtful strategy and sparkling personality. Besides nerding out on all things digital marketing, I'm also an avid Bravo watcher, exercise junkie, makeup enthusiast, wrangler of my boys, and drinker of coffee until it's acceptable to drink wine. Is it 5 o'clock yet?

hey friend!

© 2020–2024 Absolute JEM • All Rights Reserved  | Design: Jenna Miller of Absolute JEM |  Brand Photos: Jennifer Casey Photography + Abidoodle Productions