Joyful Readers

Building a Strong Nonprofit Brand Identity for Joyful Readers

With only 33% of Philadelphia’s K-3 students reading at grade level, Joyful Readers is on a mission to equip every student with the literacy skills needed to thrive. They approached me to develop a compelling nonprofit brand identity that would resonate with donors and funding sources while also bringing fun and excitement into the elementary school environment.

To ensure we built a brand that was both strategic and visually impactful, I guided the Joyful Readers team through a collaborative creative process. We worked together to define key brand values, establishing a design direction that would engage their diverse audience. The challenge was to create a logo and visual identity that would appeal to both potential donors and young students—a task that required balancing professionalism with a sense of fun.

I began by collaborating with Joyful Readers on moodboards and identifying Northstar words that captured the essence of their mission. This process established a shared visual language and clarified the brand’s core values. From there, I crafted multiple logo concepts that balanced professionalism with playfulness, aligning with the organization’s goals. Ultimately, Joyful Readers selected the “Spark” logo—a dynamic representation of the joy and confidence they inspire in young readers.

See more of my nonprofit branding work by checking out the Washtenaw County Writing Center project.

Dolan is great to work with. He’s easy to communicate with, listens to what you’re trying to convey, and provides helpful suggestions for how to move a project forward. Highly recommend!

David, Founder of Joyful Readers