Frequently asked questions
What is Canister?
What is "communication design"?
What does Canister do?
Who do you work with? Do you you specialize?
Why do you focus working with people who are improving lives?
What arenas do you have experience in?
What types of projects do you do?
What are the steps to completing a project?
What are your favourite types of projects?
How do you price projects?
Why should we work with Canister instead of some other design studio?
Why did you name your company 'Canister'?
What's with all the sky images?
What is Canister?
Canister is a communication design studio headed by Laurel and Gyasi.
What is "communication design"?
"Communication design" refers to the design of anything that is intended to communicate to people. Communication design is a more accurate and contemporary term than the more familiar, but older and less accurate term "graphic design". Either one will do the trick. Our work is about conveying messages to people. Communication design uses the right mix of graphic design, image, typography, language and ideas to convey your message to your audience in a clear, concise and captivating manner.
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What does Canister do?
We work with clients to develop and maintain their brands. We help clients convey their message to their audiences by producing communication materials that resonate both for them and their audiences. We develop brand identities, promotional material, catalogues, educational materials, websites, presentation materials — anything used to communicate.
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Who do you work with? Do you specialize?
We focus our talents and energy on working with people who are working to improve lives — like those working in health, medical technology, life sciences, and wellness. If you are improving lives, we'd probably want to work with you too. (BTW: Just being great to work improves OUR lives! So get in touch if you think we would be a good fit.)
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Why do you focus working with people who are improving lives?
It feels good. We are excited about playing a role in an organization's effort to improve lives.
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What arenas do you have experience in?
We have specific experience in the medical technology, life sciences, healthcare, biotech, film, retail, music, professional services, educational, governmental, tourism, arts and culture arenas.
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What types of projects do you do?
We develop brands and design concepts that we turn into communication materials: corporate identity systems, multi-faceted promotional campaigns, websites, email newsletters, or almost any other form of communication. We work with clients to determine their goals for the project, distill their core message and decide what form the solutions should take to best meet their goals.
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What are the steps to completing a project?
Creative solutions flourish best in conjunction with thoughtful organization and clear goals. We use our tried and true process to guide the progression of your project from start to finish.
In a nutshell: Diagnose. Recommend. Mood board. Design. Production.
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What are your favourite types of projects?
Our favourite projects are the ones with clients who know the value of branding, communicate well and sincerely, and want to leverage our expertise to the fullest. We thoroughly enjoy big, multi-component projects and feel we shine especially bright when we can flesh out a concept across many forms of communication media. We love to see the pieces come together.
How do you price projects?
For comprehensive projects and new clients we write a short document that outlines the scope of the project and include an estimated budget. We make estimates, not quotes. We create our estimates based on our experience with similar projects while taking into consideration factors that may be unique to the project in question. Long-term clients usually prefer to be billed by the hour for smaller projects as they find this to be most efficient.
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Why should we work with Canister instead of some other design studio?
We offer great work delivered thoughtfully and professionally. We are problem-solvers. Idea generators. Creative workers. While we emphasize the value of our expertise, we also believe great work comes from great relationships. We work hard to develop long-term, mutually fulfilling relationships with our clients. This means that clients are enthusiastic about starting new projects, feel proud of past ones, and know the process is efficient, trustworthy and fruitful.
There are fantastic design studios out there — and also many who are inexperienced or have varying standards. We encourage you to choose who you work with carefully and always look for a good fit. We have two articles to help you make decisions on who to work with: How to Choose a Design Company: Comparing Apples to Dumptrucks & How to Choose a Firm That Fits You Best.
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Why did you name your company 'Canister'?
Canister: a container for ideas. We wanted a simple, meaningful name that would be easy to remember and spell. (FYI: a lot of people spell is with two "n's". Sigh.)
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What's with all the sky images??
The sky imagery represents possibility, openness and beauty. Gyasi took all these amazing sky photos during our trip to South Africa last year.
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