Create Austin, a dynamic initiative programmed and produced by the Long Center for Performing Arts, aims to support and uplift Austin’s creative communities. By providing essential tools and resources, Create Austin fosters sustained creative innovation. The organization collaborates closely with the City of Austin Economic Development Department to administer key cultural funding initiatives, ensuring artists, musicians, educators, and organizers receive the support they need.
Upon Create Austin’s inception, they approached us due to our longstanding relationship with the Long Center. When the concept for Create Austin was introduced, Long Center CEO Cory Baker immediately contacted us to collaborate. Our initial conversations began months before the project officially started, involving brainstorming sessions to transform their concept into reality. Our role evolved from mere execution to envisioning and creating a comprehensive strategy.
Scope of Work
- Developing the brand identity and voice.Â
- Designing and building a feature-rich website with a resource center, event calendar, economic impact maps, cultural community surveys, and data visualizations of the demographics and impact of the City of Austin’s cultural funding initiatives.
- Establishing social media channels and a content calendar.
- Creating and managing paid ad campaigns.
- Design and layout of the Create Austin Creative Consortium business plan.Â
Establishing Create Austin’s Identity
Create Austin’s primary goal was to transform its concept – to support, strengthen, and uplift Austin’s creative communities – into the tangible reality of supporting the City of Austin in fostering the arts.
Specifically, Create Austin aims to support and assist The Economic Development Department’s Cultural Arts Funding Program grant applicants with bilingual resources and third-party integrations. Our full range of service offers aligned perfectly with this objective from the initiation of strategic planning and development of a comprehensive brand identity to content creation and promotion.
We faced several challenges, including the City of Austin’s frequently changing schedules of grant application windows and the need for authentic and collaborative narratives with the community. Create Austin’s small team was heavily focused on operations, which made it crucial for Seventh Scout to highlight the brand’s authentic voice. Balancing the influence of the Long Center while establishing Create Austin’s distinct identity was another significant challenge. We addressed these by supporting our thoughts with industry standards, real-time analytics, and building tools for the team to face these challenges head-on.
Phases of Collaboration:
- Branding and organization values.
- Concept and strategic planning and business development.
- Messaging creation for the public.
- Content creation.
- Platform development for information sharing.
- Reporting and validating work.
Creating meaningful impact through strategic collaboration has always been at the heart of Seventh Scout. As the former board chair of The Long Center, I am particularly proud of our work in championing initiatives like Create Austin, which not only received accolades from prestigious organizations like The Davey Awards and the American Marketing Association but also empower Austin’s vibrant creative community.
Holistic Strategy: From Concept to Execution with Create Austin
Brand Identity
Our branding efforts for Create Austin began with providing several logo concepts, each designed to create a modern, welcoming, and inclusive brand that resonated with Austin’s creative community. We facilitated conversations with artists and community members to gather feedback, ensuring the brand’s authenticity and alignment with the creative spirit of Austin. The brand identity needed to balance the legacy of the Long Center with Create Austin’s unique mission, requiring careful positioning to maintain integrity. This involved:
- Conducting workshops to understand Create Austin’s values and goals.
- Developing multiple brand identity concepts.
- Iterating on designs based on community feedback.
- Finalizing a cohesive visual identity, including logos, color palette, and typography.
I’m very proud of our work helping to launch Create Austin. Developing a new brand is a challenging, but rewarding process, and the collaboration between Seventh Scout and the Community Programs team at the Long Center was one of my favorite aspects of this project. Together we were able to build something that serves and advances Austin’s creative community, ensuring artists, musicians, and organizations are able to access resources and funding.
Website Development
We built a feature-rich website that serves as a hub for Create Austin’s resources and services. Key features included:
- A robust, bilingual resource hub with information to support creatives and organizations applying for grants. A calendar to showcase events supported by City of Austin Cultural Funding initiatives.
- An interactive map highlighting the economic impact of cultural funding in Austin’s city council districts.
- Data visualizations of the demographics and impact of the City of Austin cultural funding initiatives.Â
Working with Create Austin has been a really rewarding experience. As a web developer, I got to create some important parts of their website. I worked on the insurance quiz, built the resources section, and made the interactive maps with events. The insurance quiz helps artists and creatives understand their insurance options easily. The resources section is a go-to place for valuable information for grant applicants and the community. The interactive maps show cultural activities and their economic impact across Austin, making it simple for people to find and join local events. These features are designed to make the website more helpful and accessible for Austin’s creative community. It’s been great to see how these tools support and uplift local artists and creatives. I’m proud to have been part of making Create Austin a valuable resource for our community.
Storytelling and Messaging
Storytelling was central to our approach. We crafted a compelling narrative that articulated Create Austin’s mission and vision, connecting with both the creative community and partners at the City of Austin who oversee the resources available for the arts. Additionally, we ensured the brand voice was infused in all content pieces, from social media to resource articles. This included:
- Creating an elevator pitch that succinctly communicated Create Austin’s purpose.
- Developing key messaging points for various audiences.
- Crafting mission and vision statements.
- Producing content highlighting success stories and community impact.
- Hosting resources for various audiences on the Create Austin services and general community needs.Â
Through scrollytelling and dynamic multimedia content, we transformed their mission into an engaging experience that not only informs but also inspires. Austin is known for its rich history in the arts, and I’m honored to have a hand in preserving, protecting, and amplifying that cultural legacy. The arts can open our minds to the experiences and trials of others. It encourages social awareness, impactful conversations, and civic participation. It's been rewarding to see how our work has helped Create Austin amplify its impact, connecting with the community in meaningful ways.
Social Media and Content Strategy
We established Create Austin’s social media presence, developing a content calendar to ensure consistent and engaging communication with the community. This phase involved:
- Establishing social media accounts on platforms relevant to Austin’s creative community.
- Developing a content strategy that included multiple themes: regular posts, community highlights, and event promotions.
- Creating a content calendar to plan and schedule posts in advance.
- Engaging with our target audience on our social media channels for community building.
- Monitoring and analyzing social media performance to optimize engagement.
Getting to work on a project that directly impacts the community around me was impactful. One of the greatest aspects of Austin’s history is its bustling creative and arts scene, so to be able to work with a team that is dedicated to serving and positively impacting creatives and artists, helping them gain more visibility, funding, and resources to excel their work, is incredibly rewarding. I also loved the opportunity to take the brand from an idea to reality!
Paid Advertising
To expand Create Austin’s reach, we managed paid ad campaigns that targeted specific demographics within Austin’s creative community. This included:
- Designing ad copy and creatives that aligned with the brand identity.
- Managed and optimized ad campaigns on platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, and Google Ads.
- Monitoring ad performance and adjusting strategies to maximize reach and ROI.
Business Plan Development
We collaborated on the creation of a comprehensive business plan for the Create Austin Creative Consortium, to be presented to the City of Austin for future development. This plan included:
- Conducting market research and community feedback to identify opportunities and challenges.
- Developing financial projections and funding strategies.
- Outlining operational plans and governance structures.
- Creating a roadmap for future growth and development.
Reporting and Validation
Throughout the project, we provided detailed reports to validate our work and demonstrate progress. This included metrics both internally and public-facing:
- Regular updates on project milestones and deliverables.
- Analytics reports to track website performance, social media engagement, and ad campaign effectiveness.
- Surveys and feedback mechanisms to gauge community need, satisfaction, and impact.
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Our efforts significantly enhanced Create Austin’s visibility and impact. We helped bring the organization into existence and integrated it into the community, increasing accessibility, transparency, and user-friendliness. By following this comprehensive approach, we ensured that Create Austin not only had a strong brand presence but also the tools and strategies necessary to support and grow Austin’s creative ecosystem.
Impact of Organization on Our Austin Community
Create Austin serves as an important conduit between the City of Austin’s Economic Development Department and the local art and creative community. By collaborating with the city to administer grants, Create Austin supports the community through resources, data, and an online platform. Our efforts have made it easier for the creative community to access grants and resources, fostering a more accessible and supportive environment for Austin’s artists and creatives.
At every step, we collaborated and created tools that empower Create Austin to succeed independently while continuing to support its mission. Our ultimate goal was to make a positive impact on Austin’s creative ecosystem, and we are proud to have achieved that through our partnership with Create Austin.
Positive Outcomes
- Launch of Create Austin website and social media channels to connect audiences and generate visibility to resources.
- Top pages on Google speak to our connecting with grant awardees and applicants with the necessary resources.
- High average engagement time on the website reflects the resources and information that is valuable to various audiences.
- In 6 months following website launch — Established 1st-page search results ranking for 10 keywords directly related to audience-needed solutions.
