Just North: Building a Regional Brand

Clark County needed to tell its story—it needed a brand that reflected its character, opportunity, and sense of place. I created Just North as a community campaign and identity to showcase what makes this community unique and worth investing in. My goal? Create a regional brand that tells the authentic story of our communities—one that helps attract and retain talent, engage business partners, and fuel long-term economic growth.

Role
Marketing & Events Manager

Organization
Columbia River Economic Development Council

Contributions & Strategy

As Creative Director and Project Lead (while serving as CREDC's Marketing & Events Manager), I championed the idea that Clark County needed a brand as strong as its potential. I initiated and sold the concept of a regional identity internally—turning a vision into a fully backed initiative. I brought together partners, built consensus and led the creative and strategic execution of the Just North campaign from the ground up. I did this by ⬇️

  • Ideating and developing the campaign from the ground up – Created the Just North brand as a strategic solution to address talent retention and regional competitiveness

  • Building a regional steering committee – Convened cross-sector partners from higher education, workforce development, tourism, and business to guide brand development and champion regional alignment

  • Establishing a unified brand identity – Directed the creative vision, messaging, and design for Just North, including logos, city-specific sub-brands, brand guidelines, and tone of voice

  • Launching the campaign across platforms – Oversaw the development of a custom website, promotional video, and collateral to support the campaign’s rollout and usability by regional partners

  • Framing the narrative around place and opportunity – Crafted messaging that positioned Clark County as a welcoming, opportunity-rich community—“just north” of expected

  • Providing engagement tools for partners – Designed materials and messaging that could be used by the CREDC team, board, and regional partners to engage businesses, prospective residents, and site selectors

  • Campaign Brand

  • Campaign Website

    Click Here

  • Video Storytelling

    View Video

  • Brand & Messaging

  • Community Brands

  • Campaign Branding

  • Community Brands

  • Graphics

The Impact

Just North created a foundation for ongoing place-based marketing and regional storytelling. Highlights include⚡️

  • Just North gave Clark County a voice—and a visual identity—to stand out in the broader economic landscape

  • A cohesive, partner-backed brand – Developed a shared regional identity with cross-sector buy-in that positioned Clark County as a compelling place to live, work, and invest

  • Engagement through storytelling – Enabled CREDC and partners to use the Just North narrative in presentations, recruitment meetings, and external communications

  • New digital tools for visibility – Launched a branded website and video content to help amplify the region’s story and provide easy access to community information

  • Board and investor activation – Equipped board members and economic development partners with a brand they could use to champion the region and deepen engagement with interested parties