Every year, Pivot hosts a multi-day conference in Portland, Oregon known as Pivot Forward. The conference includes a variety of presentations given by the Pivot team on trends and topics relevant to our suite of services, such as marketing trends, strategy and analysis; creative services; branding; research; training; and more. Additionally, we invite guest speakers from other industries to shed light on topics they face and share strategies that have worked to grow their business and brand recognition.

Outside of two full days of sessions, round table discussions, panels and industry updates, we facilitate a number of entertaining events to allow out-of-town guests the ability to enjoy and explore the Pacific Northwest and fellowship with peers from around the country.

The event, which serves as a retention and acquisition effort, brings our team together with current and prospective clients from around the country. Pivot Forward creates a unique space for us to share and learn from one another in a fun and energetic environment.

Each year, our team is tasked with the project of branding the conference and brining the theme to life in every element of the multi-day event, and this year, our team decided to bring our manta to life.

At the end of 2016, our design team partnered with others in the organization to come up with the theme of our Pivot Forward 2017 conference. Although a number of themes were discussed, we decided Pivot Forward would be a great opportunity to bring our own company mantra to life: Experience Matters.

As a customer engagement company, Pivot approaches work and relationships with the guiding principal that “experience matters.” Whether we are working directly with a client and their end users, or working alongside our vendors, industry-experts or even with other Pivot team members, we wholeheartedly believe that the experience matters.

With this theme in mind, the next step was to determine how we could visually represent “Experience Matters” for the upcoming conference. After a variety of avenues were explored, we ultimately decided to use line elements. Lines have the ability to express moods, and therefore, lines can create experience.

Keeping this in mind, our design team explored a variety of movement within the line qualities to create this visual expression of experience. Our team had the opportunity to work with line elements to bring the theme to life in their own way, giving us a number of visual representations all centered around the use of an “X.”

As a result, we developed a main Pivot Forward logo using a stylized version of “Experience Matters” but had a variety of line elements throughout the conference pulling it altogether. From a hand-painted mural on our office wall, to posters, stamped notebooks, design elements on handouts, and subtle hints of line expressions on presentations, room drops and invitations—the line was a connecting force throughout the event, bringing the Experience Matters theme together visually in every aspect.

We received amazing feedback in response to “Experience Matters” and the design elements used to bring this to life. With approximately 80 clients and team members in attendance, the line elements were enjoyed throughout the 2.5-day event. As a follow, up to Pivot Forward each year, we send out a survey that allows our guests to give us anonymous feedback. This year, some of our favorite responses included items that touched on experience, such as:

“As a new client, it was good to meet the team. We do a lot over the phone and on-line, but you can't beat personal interaction with the Pivot team and our peers from other companies. I met a lot of people in the industry I don't normally cross paths with.”

“Coming away refreshed and; energized after being around creative people!”
“Pivot truly cares and puts the effort in to make Pivot Forward enjoyable and relevant. The content pushes you to think bigger and outside the box. Having polished/engaging speakers is so critical, and this conference hits the mark.”

“We brought home so many ideas and were completely energized and I have already put some things into the works.”

Pivot Forward 2017 allowed us to bring our “Experience Matters” mantra to life though creative design, copy and content and inspire our clients to do the same. We are excited to engage our clients in conversations about how they’re bringing this to life in their own ways and continue to make it a daily focus for our Pivot team.