Even in this digital age, the impulse to reach for a beautifully illustrated magazine in a waiting room or lobby is nearly impossible to ignore.
Something must be said about being able to tangibly engage—uninterrupted—with a written work. Journey Group believes the print magazine experience is still extremely valuable. If there are stories to tell—and every organization has stories to tell—why not tell them in a way that stands in stark contrast to the mindless scroll?
Why not tell stories in a way that stands in stark contrast to the mindless scroll?
After winning the chance to design the magazine for the National Association of Independent Schools (NAIS)—aptly named Independent School—Journey Group has endeavored to design issues that marry a traditional form of communication to a modern educational mission.
Effective Team-First Strategy in Magazine Design
The NAIS houses over 1,700 K-12 private schools in the U.S. and abroad, providing resources and services to the governing bodies of its members.
Independent School is published four times a year and runs about 120 pages in length per issue.
The Journey Group team collaborates with the NAIS editorial trio Andi Gabrick, Becca Scherr, and Lauri Adamson to bring each issue to life. Advertised six to nine months in advance, a theme is generated via insights and stories supplied by association members. Typically the subjects are common challenges they face as leaders within their schools. Once a theme is decided, the NAIS editors then supply content, their objectives, and what the overall tone should communicate.
Design agencies can often be hired transactionally, typically for branding and web design, and once that “transaction” is complete, the relationship ends.
But this is not the case for Journey Group and the NAIS. The teams symbiotically ensure each issue rings both familiar and compelling through the design and written content. There is no one designer in charge of a department or feature; the responsibility is shared. Through successfully executed ideas, trust is built, and more agency is granted.
Creating an immersive experience for a reader takes both imagination and strategy.
Through this collaborative work, a strong partnership is built between Journey Group and the NAIS editors. “We’re on the same team producing this magazine together. And they afford me agency to be the art director and the designer of Independent School,” says Mike Ryan, director of Journey Group’s editorial studio.
Engaging Familiar Structure with Imaginative Layouts
Creating an immersive experience for a reader takes both imagination and strategy.
The audience of Independent School is composed of heads of schools, board members, and faculty. They value the magazine as a resource to supplement their own leadership. Reader engagement is the goal, and eye-catching content is a must. That is where Journey Group’s design comes in.
Following the traditional formula of a magazine’s formatting allows creative freedom to flow within the given boundaries. The magazine departments set the boundary lines. Within the known structure of each issue, Journey Group designers have the job of making the old feel new.
There is a rhythm to be followed, much like a three-course meal. The front of the book departments are like appetizers; they contain shorter stories. There’s a variety. There are news pieces and thought pieces. The feature story is the entree, where the theme is communicated and there’s more creative space. Lastly, dessert is the back of the book, where you want to send the readership off with a good taste in their mouth.
To best create an engaging reading experience for the audience, the Journey Group team emphasizes editorial illustration.
Thanks to a generous art budget, Journey Group exercises the freedom to hire illustrators and photographers to best suit each department’s purpose. This is the gift and the challenge of the job; it is simultaneously engineering and art.
To best create an engaging reading experience for the audience, the Journey Group team emphasizes editorial illustration. The magazine itself deals with concepts regarding what it means to be an independent school—both the challenges and the joys of it. Those concepts cannot always be represented with photography or portraiture. Therefore, abstract concepts employ abstract art.
In the “Culture” issue of Independent School, published in spring 2022, ample opportunity was given for creativity to flourish as the designers tackled a more abstract theme. Featuring illustrations by Keith Negley, Sol Cotti, Brian Stauffer, and Kata Illustrations, the artwork carefully captured the complexity of the theme and depth of each written piece. The cover illustration by Keith Negley brings an anthropological and educational duality to the idea of culture.
Innovative Magazine Design
Innovation doesn’t require a reinvention of the wheel.
Sometimes simple concepts presented with fresh vision provide the necessary inspiration.
In this case, the published insights and stories provide innovative solutions to common challenges within the National Association of Independent Schools’ community. But good design is required in order to showcase and embody each new idea clearly and effectively.
Consistently attractive and beautiful issues increase the value and reliability of a publication.
Practically, being well-versed in designing for alumni magazines and association magazines has helped Journey Group develop a seamless design process for those audiences. There is an appreciation for periodicals as the client often becomes the colleague. There is a love for hiring and collaborating with artists to create original art so that each issue is distinct. And with a content-first approach, Journey Group ensures that each design decision serves a client’s needs in the best way possible.