Building a flexible event system

The visual identity needed to feel distinct enough to stand on its own, while still feeling clearly connected to Sprout. I built the system around forms derived from Sprout’s foundational brand shapes, combining them into connected compositions that reflected the relationships attendees would build — with one another, with new ideas, and across their organizations.

I established the full art direction, including the logo, color palette, typography, gradients, shape language and layout principles, then documented how the system should flex across cities, speakers and formats. To make the identity both scalable and easy to use, I created an extensive asset library of city-specific frames, speaker treatments, logo lockups, gradients and modular shape compositions, while partnering with the event designer to develop repeatable templates for collateral.

The result was a cohesive, graphics-led system that could move consistently from promotion and registration through signage, presentations, swag and post-event communications. Its foundations were simple enough for marketers to create on-brand assets independently, but flexible enough for the creative team to produce more bespoke expressions for physical environments, digital experiences and location-specific moments.

Designing the registration experience

Because the event team wanted to keep the entire experience on a single page, the main UX challenge was organizing city-specific details without creating unnecessary scroll or sending users down separate paths. I designed a tabbed city section that allowed attendees to move between locations, speakers and event information within one streamlined experience. To keep the page compact, speaker cards revealed short bios and social links on hover rather than expanding the layout.

I owned the full experience from information architecture and wireframes through responsive design, prototyping and QA, partnering with marketing to shape the final content and with development to bring the page to life in Contentful. Since Splash could not support the level of customization the brand required, registration was handled through city-specific forms embedded in modal windows, allowing the front-end experience to remain fully bespoke while attendee data still flowed into Splash for communications and check-in.

To incorporate photography from past events without adding significant length to the page, I created a simple rotating gallery that brought movement and social proof into the experience while keeping the path to key information and registration clear.

The result was a more polished and cohesive first impression—one that extended the event identity into the digital experience, made it easy to compare cities and register, and preserved the operational benefits of Splash behind the scenes.

Shaping the in-person experience

The live experience was designed to feel like a natural extension of everything attendees had already seen online—while taking advantage of the energy, scale and personality of each venue. I art directed the environmental system across locations, guiding how the identity showed up through signage, screens, spatial details and interactive moments while partnering closely with the event team around vendor specifications and production needs.

Backdrops created recognizable photo moments throughout the space, banners doubled as directional signage, and smaller details—from branded pillows to lighting matched to the event palette—helped connect each venue back to the larger system. The creative could also expand when a location offered something unique (column wraps, door decals, digital billboards, etc). Looping event content and an interactive screen where attendees could share photos and their “social superpower” added movement and participation without changing the core identity.

The attendee experience extended beyond the environment into materials and takeaways designed to be useful, personal and worth sharing. I art directed the system across badges, worksheets, stickers, hats and other event details, collaborating more closely on select pieces and stepping in to execute last-minute needs when necessary.

For the New York event, I concepted a hat customization station where attendees could choose a hat and add up to three pre-made enamel pins. The experience turned a traditional giveaway into something more participatory, giving guests a reason to interact while creating an item they were more likely to wear beyond the event. The hats became a visible part of the experience and were widely shared on LinkedIn and Instagram, alongside attendee photos with the branded backdrops, badges and worksheets.

Extending the campaign across channels

The event system also carried through paid and organic social, email and speaker promotion. I art directed a flexible set of templates that made it easy to adapt messaging by city, speaker and stage of the campaign while maintaining a consistent connection to the broader Sprout Sessions experience.