Skip to content
MENU

Building a Brand: The Strategy Behind APTIM’s Branding

APTIM’s brand is more than just our logo; it is the story about who we are, what we do, and how we do it.

Jennie Gutierrez is an award-winning communications and marketing leader with experience in broadcast journalism, magazine editing, video production, and campaigns. At APTIM, Jennie shapes the voice and style of our written brand, develops performance-driven content strategies, and manages creative projects and campaigns for maximum efficiency. She handles media relations, external communications, collateral of all shapes and forms, and more.THIS WEEK’S CONTRIBUTOR:
Jennie Gutierrez, Content Marketing Manager
APTIM | Marketing & Communications
Jennifer.Gutierrez@APTIM.com
Jennie Gutierrez is an award-winning communications and marketing leader with experience in broadcast journalism, magazine editing, video production, and campaigns. At APTIM, Jennie shapes the voice and style of our written brand, develops performance-driven content strategies, and manages creative projects and campaigns for maximum efficiency. She handles media relations, external communications, collateral of all shapes and forms, and more.

 

Last month, I hit my one-year anniversary on the APTIM Marketing & Communications team. As with any job, the first three to six months entailed a large learning curve about my new employer. This period is especially important for marketing and communications professionals, as we come to understand the brand of the company we are writing and creating on behalf of.

APTIM’s brand is more than just our logo; it is the story about who we are, what we do, and how we do it. Branding communicates that story to the world, shapes public awareness, and distinguishes APTIM from our competitors. Being “on brand” requires knowledge, practice, and guidance, so I thought it could be interesting to explore the APTIM brand and strategy behind it for this week’s APTBlog post.

What Is the Origin of APTIM’s Name?

Company legend has it that our name, APTIM, is a combination of the words “apt” and “optimum.” Merriam Webster defines apt as “keenly intelligent and responsive” and optimum as “greatest degree attained or attainable under implied or specified conditions.” With more than 3,000 teammates worldwide, APTIM is indeed a “keenly intelligent” workforce of engineers, architects, scientists, project managers, subject matter experts, and craftspeople who strives for the “greatest degree” of excellence for our clients.

The APTIM Logo

The foundation of a brand is the logo, of course. The logo, a notorious design challenge, is the most recognizable mark of a brand and applied on all collateral. It must balance creativity and impact with simplicity so that it can be used in a variety of sizes, colors, and contexts. The best logos can stand alone and still bring to mind not only the company’s name but all the company stands for.

The APTIM logo is bold with a strong, modern design, which represents the innovation and precision of the work we do. Mimicking the “A” in APTIM, our logo is constructed as an equilateral triangle with each side leaning at a 30-degree angle. Its balanced appearance represents our commitment to balancing our clients’ needs with the betterment of the environment. As a nod to our logo, we replicate the 30-degree angle, triangles, and other sharp lines and shapes throughout our collateral.

Our Tagline

A tagline is a memorable phrase or “audible logo” that highlights a brand’s mission and sums up the value of the products and services provided to customers. The APTIM tagline, “Expect the Extraordinary,” represents our dedication to innovation, to always push past the status quo. When our clients come to APTIM, they not only will receive the utmost quality in deliverables and safety but also in standard of service. We act as our clients’ partner and advocate with a reverence for their people, communities, and environment. We honor their current needs while taking the initiative to think long-term and ensure the resilience and sustainability of our work. Check out APTIM Policy Analyst Tim Olson’s APTBlog post for his take on the tagline, which incorporates our Southern roots.

Our Voice

To reflect the expertise and commitments of our company, the APTIM voice is strong and confident. We are transparent, unapologetic, and consistent about sharing our mission, values, and progress as a company, and we pride ourselves in having the utmost professionalism toward our clients, partners, and communities. To achieve this voice, word choices are made carefully to keep our writing clear and concise.

Our Colors and Imagery

Another key design element for a brand is a color palette. We have a robust color palette that reflects APTIM’s core services, but for brevity, I’ll stick to our three main colors. Our official APTIM Blue represents the planet, which is 71 percent water, that we work every day to protect for future generations. APTIM Orange represents the urgency of our mission to make the built and natural environment more resilient. Instead of a traditional black, we use APTIM Dark Gray as our font color, which speaks to the intersection of people and innovation that we incorporate into all our projects. When creating and selecting images to accompany our collateral, we try to incorporate this color palette for cohesion and prioritize showcasing the impact of our work.

Our goal with APTBlog is to give APTIM teammates the opportunity to share their passions and work behind the scenes, so that we can connect more with our audience and better appreciate our teammates’ work. I hope that this week’s blog gives you all just a peek at the thought process my amazing Marketing & Communications team puts behind the creative choices that we make every day. If we you have not worked with us yet, be sure to say hi. Let’s create together.

APTIM. In Pursuit of Better.

Connect with APTIM

Learn more about our corporate marketing team and their efforts to enhance and promote the APTIM brand.

    Subscribe to the APTIM Xchange Newsletter

    APTIM's newsletter, The APTIM Xchange, provides industry news flashes, regulatory updates, service spotlights, and topical columns from our subject matter experts.