Events add another dimension to our brand identity. They are a unique opportunity to create a lasting impression, but it goes much deeper than how we look. It’s about how we make people feel, from the time they first hear about the event all the way to post-event communications.
Whether it’s Autodesk University, a virtual event, or a trade show, the experiences we create should surprise and delight, educate and inspire. They should provoke conversation and build community. Because that is what Autodesk is all about: supporting and empowering our global community of creators and innovators.
While exhibits and messaging for events may vary depending on audience, region, budget, and other needs, they should all reinforce the Autodesk parent brand. Every asset we create should reflect our brand voice and visual identity and work together to reiterate what we stand for and who we are as a company. From big events to small, physical, virtual or hybrid, here are guidelines on how to create cohesive, thoughtful, and memorable Autodesk experiences.
The following mockups are for inspirational purposes only, and do not represent an actual event. They should serve as a guide for how our brand should look and feel throughout the customer journey of an event.
Creating a cohesive event requires a common thread—a creative idea weaved throughout every visual and verbal element of the experience, from the first social post to the website to onsite signage graphics and beyond. Like our new brand, Autodesk needs to show up at events in a bold and distinctive way, and for visual components, our symbol enables us to do just that.
Parts of our symbol—or even its negative space—are a great way to frame our imagery. This treatment creates dynamic layouts and is quite versatile and adaptable, while still adhering to brand guidelines.
The symbol itself can also be used as a standalone graphic. This helps visitors make the visual connection between the full Autodesk logo and image frames. It acts as a powerful visual cue, ensuring that Autodesk gets recognized.
And remember, visuals alone don’t create meaningful connections with our customers. What we say is just as important, so speak with our voice. Make sure what we say and how we say things throughout our events is consistent with our brand narrative and voice guidelines. The reward is clearer communication and a stronger connection to our brand.
Do's. Here are some best practices to keep in mind when designing your event assets.
Use different parts of the logo as an image frame treatment across event touch points.
Allow generous space for content/text.
Use black and white evenly.
Always ensure the symbol and/or full logo are consistently positioned on pages/layouts.
Use quality images that are still readable when cropped.
Follow all brand system and voice guidelines.
Dont's. Here are important things to avoid when designing your event assets.
Repeat the same image frame everywhere.
Crop images in ways that make the subject matter unrecognizable, especially at small sizes.
Make graphics all black or all white.
Crowd layouts or clutter graphics with too many elements or too much text.
Use inferior quality imagery, or imagery that does not follow photography guidelines.
All Autodesk events should look and feel like they’re from the same company, while allowing individual events to be personalized to the needs of their audience. To achieve this, some design elements need to be treated consistently across events, while others can be customized to each event. We’ve categorized these into two buckets: fixed elements and flexible elements.
The treatment of these elements is persistent and consistent. Visit the brand system section for detailed information about these elements.
These elements are versatile and can be adapted to meet the needs of different events or audiences.
The logo should always be in a consistent and prominent position to effectively signal ownership or endorsement of an event. Further guidance is available in the Logo section.
Use black and/or white, along with accent colors for points of emphasis, interactive elements, or calls-to-action. Further guidance is available in the Color section.
All text should be typeset in Artifakt, or in Arial where necessary, and follow best practices.
If framing an image based on our symbol, shapes should be derived only from the Autodesk symbol and no other.
A consistent approach to event names and/or themes is necessary to achieve a sense of familiarity between events. Additional guidance is available in the name/theme section.
Imagery needs vary per event: some events may use a single image across touch points, while others require more. Whichever the case, the imagery selected should be high quality and licensed to Autodesk. Further guidance is available in the brand imagery section.
Make sure messaging throughout our events is consistent with our brand narrative and voice guidelines.
Depending on the event’s focus or the content and/or imagery used, black may work better than white, or vice versa. Whichever you lead with, make sure you balance both colors across touch points. Note, however, that a white background is more suitable for components with heavy content.
The symbol itself can be used as a standalone graphic as long as the full logo is in visual proximity.
Choose frames that best fit your content requirements and show off the imagery. Vary how you use them across touch points to avoid overuse of the same frame treatment.
Furniture or booth components sourced for an event should work together to exude beauty, quality, and promote our point-of-view as the leading design and make company. Be consistent with color and materials and choose the most sustainable options whenever possible. Try to incorporate materials that convey generative design, 3D printing, or other methods that help our customers create things.
A consistent approach to name/theme treatments helps achieve a sense of familiarity between events. The goal is not sameness, but a persistent tone and treatment of messaging. The following guidance helps establish ways to cohesively communicate Autodesk’s purpose at events.
Selecting compelling imagery for your event is a crucial step in capturing your audience’s attention at every step of their journey. But what type of imagery works best?
Focus on impact. A strong image reinforces a strong message in a way that humanizes our brand, communicates what Autodesk’s stand for, and clarifies our offering. Visit the Brand Imagery section for more details. The following examples also showcase great imagery for parent-level, cross-industry, industry, and product-related events.
Look for imagery that tells our story and represents what Autodesk stands for. Imagery with people or showing people at work tends to be more impactful and relatable.
For industry events, contextual imagery depicting a specific industry or photographs showing professionals in that industry are effective.
For product events, avoid using product icons or branding that could compete with the Autodesk logo. Instead, feature rich and compelling images about the product, images of customer projects, or of the customers themselves.
At Autodesk, we believe in leading with positive impact in everything we do. We are a Net Zero Carbon company and are committed to sustainable practices across our business operations. This includes minimizing our environmental impact everywhere we can, including our events.
Whether planning an in-person or virtual experience, consult this checklist of sustainability requirements and best practices for managing events.
Are you traveling for an event? Check out and share our green travel tips.
