Building Brand Identity for
Project North Star
Designing a Modern Brand Identity for Next-Generation Learning
Discipline
Brand Identity, Web Design, Marketing & Campaigns
Duration
Oct 2025 - Present
Team
1 Designer, 2 Developers
OVERVIEW
Background
North Star rethinks college preparation by starting early and guiding students from 9th grade through graduation with expert, tech-enabled support. From 0→1, North Star needed a brand and digital experience that clearly differentiated itself in a crowded, high-stress category. Traditional college-counseling brands often skewed too far in one direction: text-heavy and outdated, overly sterile SaaS, pressure-filled test-prep visuals, or overly playful student apps that lacked credibility.
Challenge
The challenge was to design a cohesive system that avoided looking like a traditional SaaS platform, while balancing a modern and motivating experience for students with the trust and professionalism that parents expect.
Outcome
I designed a cohesive brand, website, and product foundation that balances modernity, playfulness, and trust. The result positions North Star as an alternative in a high-stress category and provides a scalable foundation for long-term growth.
BRAND STRATEGY
Brand Attributes
for students
Playful and Motivating
for parents
Trustworthy and Credible
for in-house SaaS and AI
Modern and Tech-enabled
Positioning
I introduced handwritten typography and doodle-style accents as a secondary layer on top of a structured, modern UI. These elements soften the experience for students, because they signal progress over perfection and make the journey feel guided rather than graded.
Blue and purple are chosen as core colors, with orange as an accent, and gradients are used selectively across key moments. Blue and purple establish technical credibility. A small hint of orange brings warmth and optimism. Gradients allow the brand to feel both modern and human, and reinforce the idea that technology is to guide and support progress over time.
Logo
Logo Explorations
The logo was designed around the North Star metaphor in mind: guidance, direction, and consistency, while remaining simple and scalable.
Final Logo
The final logo was chosen collaboratively with founders and developers to ensure it reflects both the brand vision and product reality.
WEB UI
Component Library
I created a modular UI component library designed for clarity, consistency, and scalability.
Landing Page
I created a clear, modular landing page that balances approachability for students with credibility for parents.
BRAND APPLICATIONS
Social Media Templates
These social media templates are designed to be recognizable and easily reusable. It allows North Star to communicate events, insights, and stats while staying visually consistent.
Tote Bag Concept
I used minimal copy and a playful, handwritten style to design everyday totes for North Star. Playful on the surface, the copy signals confidence that comes from being prepared if working with North Star, and establishes a trustworthy brand identity.
REFLECTIONS
What I learned
• Designing for two audiences at once
This project reinforced how much nuance it takes to design for students and parents simultaneously. Every decision required balancing warmth and motivation with structure and credibility. Learning to hold both perspectives in the same system sharpened my judgment around hierarchy and restraint.
• Balancing vision with real-world constraints
As a 0→1 project, not every idea could ship immediately. Working closely with founders and developers pushed me to prioritize what truly mattered for launch, and to see constraints not as blockers, but as tools for making clearer, more focused design decisions.
• Using systems to enable speed, not slow it down
Building a design system early wasn’t about polish. It was about momentum. Having a shared visual and component language made iteration faster, collaboration smoother, and future growth more sustainable.
