Telling the story of America's pillar of democracy through the eyes of its preservationists

Research & Strategy | Marketing | Public Relations | Digital

Situation / Challenge

With more than 2,600 employees, the Architect of the Capitol (AOC) is responsible for maintaining, operating, developing and preserving the United States Capitol complex. It is dedicated to providing Congress and the public with the professional expertise and services required to preserve and enhance the Capitol buildings, grounds and related facilities in a sustainable manner for future generations.

Although it plays an integral role in the functioning of the Capitol, the AOC had no vehicle by which to showcase its great work. Sage spearheaded the development of a quarterly publication that would maintain the brand message, while capturing news and creating awareness of the AOC among stakeholders and Congress.

Approach

The Sage team worked closely with the AOC Office of Congressional and External Relations (CER) to create a 20-page, full-color quarterly newsmagazine. To present a strong, consistent brand, Sage established graphic standards for the newsmagazine, including colors, fonts and images, and featured the AOC logo on both the front and back covers. We proposed a clean, sophisticated approach to present content clearly, and included high-end photographs of real AOC staff at work to represent diversity and a balance of all AOC jurisdictions. The format was designed to support the CER objectives by highlighting AOC employees’ accomplishments and increasing the visibility of the organization among its internal and external audiences.

Results

AOC staff recognized the first edition of the newsmagazine as a major improvement in internal communications, garnering positive feedback including, “first class — and nice to see features on the day-to-day workforce that we all depend upon and trust,” and “the most professional communication the AOC has ever produced.” After producing the first edition of the newsmagazine, Sage created a 508-compliant PDF of the publication to feature on the AOC website. The magazine received more than 3,500 visitors in the first two months after posting online, building morale among AOC staff by showcasing their work to members of Congress and other stakeholders. Our team continues to provide creative services for the publication.