Tyrone Pardue

BICSI is a professional association supporting the information transport systems (ITS) industry. ITS covers the spectrum of voice, data and video technologies. It encompasses the design, integration and installation of pathways, spaces, fiber and copper-based distribution systems, wireless-based systems and infrastructure that supports the transportation of information and associated signaling between and among communications and information gathering devices. The image below right shows a cover layout before the redesign (top) and after.

After completing the BICSI corporate identity redesign,
I was asked to make proposals for the redesign of their members magazine BICSI News. BICSI had carried out an informal readership survey that showed them readership was as low as 8% because members saw little value in the content:

• Stories were solely related to BICSI events and activities
• It was full of advertorial by vendors
• Writers were not identified
• Design and layout was unstructured and undisciplined

There seemed to be almost no editorial mission. I recommended that before beginning the visual redesign that the editorial committee completely rethink the purpose of the magazine. After carefully considering the findings of the readership survey a new approach was defined.
The redesigned BICSI News was to provide relevant, best practices, vendor-neutral and authoritative information to help ITS design and installation professionals to:

• Improve their skills and knowledge
• Enhance their professional stature
• Expand the scope of their work in the ITS industry

The visual approach to the redesign was to create a serious looking journal type design that looked rich in information and presented stories in a layout that could be easily read. I cut back the vendor advertorials to zero and instead recommended BICSI technical team leaders to write stories based on solutions to industry problems and spotlighting new thinking and the latest in products and services available. My goal was to have members look forward to their monthly copy of BICSI News because they learn something new that makes them smarter and better at their job.

And that is what BICSI is supposed to do as an organization. The magazine is an extension of their corporate mission.

Click Images Below to View Sample Covers and Spreads