We’ve Refined Our Process to Make Your Design Projects Easier
Over the years, we’ve streamlined how we work to make the design process easier for you. Our clear, step-by-step approach reduces unnecessary back-and-forth and helps us quickly understand your communication goals from the start—so your project stays on track and stress-free. We understand the requirements that organizations like yours has and can flag any missing parts for you up-front.
Accessibility Isn’t an Afterthought—It’s Built In
Designers who specialize in your sector are more likely to be fluent in current accessibility standards, both visual and technical. This includes:
- High contrast (tested) colour palettes–for your typography and figures
- Legible typography choices, scaled nice and large
- Clear visual hierarchy and consistent structure for type and overall design
- Encoded, tagged digital PDFs with alternative text for images and meaningful link texts
- Fully accessible websites
We design with AODA (The Accessibility for Ontario Disabilities Act), WCAG 2.1 (and soon 2.2) in mind, ensuring your materials don’t just look good—they’re usable by everyone.
Sensitivity to Political and Cultural Contexts
Colour choices and visual symbolism can carry unintended meaning, especially in public sector and institutional contexts. What might seem like a trendy palette to a generalist designer could be misread in your field as partisan, culturally loaded, or historically charged.
A sector-specialized designer can help you avoid these missteps, offering thoughtful alternatives that respect the context in which your materials will be received.
More Than Just Design: Support for Voice, Tone, and Messaging
Design doesn’t exist in a vacuum—it works in tandem with language. We have professional copywriting experience and specialize in sector-appropriate messaging. Whether you’re aiming for warm and human or official and polished, we help maintain the right tone of voice across visual and written elements.
This means less back-and-forth for you and a stronger, more professional communication overall.
Fluency in Today’s Digital Tools and Specs
Public and nonprofit organizations almost standardly use platforms like Mailchimp, Canva, Wordpress due to their ease of use–and how they integrate together. You don’t have to re-invent the wheel, get started right away with the right tools that are easy for your team to use and will evolve seamlessly over time. Don’t let a designer convince you to work on their favourite platform that only they can edit–this happens far too often and can cost your department in time and expense.
We’re experienced with the tools you use and can deliver files that actually function—no more broken templates, inaccessible newsletters, or files that only work on the designer’s machine. You get materials that are easy to use, maintain, and share.
A Trained Eye for Inclusive, Representative Imagery
Stock photography can be one of the trickiest aspects of public-facing communications. Sector-specialized designers understand that who is depicted matters just as much as how.
At Universe Design Studio, we prioritize diversity in photography—not just in terms of race and gender, but also age, ability, and body type—because we know your audience is watching closely. A design that fails to reflect the community it serves can undermine even the most well-intentioned message. We can take custom photos for you, work with your existing photo library or guide you to more inclusive stock photography choices, helping your visuals speak volumes without saying the wrong thing.
Final Thoughts
You wouldn’t hire a wedding photographer to shoot your science exhibit or a fashion copywriter to draft your annual report. Design is no different—context matters.
Hiring a sector-specialized designer means you get someone who already understands your audience, the standards you need to meet, and the real-world demands of your communications. That saves time, reduces risk, and results in design that does what it’s meant to: make your message stronger.
On this subject
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Get in touch if our work speaks to you and if we can help with your project.