We wrote the book on fur, feathers, and friendship

After pulling the contents together for a massive redesign of their global brand guidelines redesign, the renowned educational and cultural icon,  Sesame Workshop, was running short on time — and causing — and their partners, vendors, and affiliates were running, short on patience. In response, Sesame’s marketing team assembled a task force of branding professionals to get the critical project across the finish line. As the editorial lead, Thinkso’s writers were responsible for writing and editing the book that weighed in at more than 130 pages. Our work included the articulation of brand attributes and other foundational treatments, as well as all technical specifications, for both domestic and global editions.

The cover of the Sesame Workshop Brand Book with a close up of the character Bird Bird's legs on a yellow background.
A brand attributes page from the Sesame Workshop Brand Book with a group furry muppets side by side on a brick sidewalk.
A page from the Sesame Workshop Brand Book explaining the brand attributes real, heartfelt, simple, furry, and funny.

Thinkso’s editorial staff helped clarify and articulate Sesame’s brand attributes—the key qualities that define their unique personality and provide the backbone for the brand.

A brand attribute page from the Sesame Workshop Brand Book showing the brand attributes in action in scenes from the shows.

By further expanding the brand attributes, we were able to provide marketers with more meaningful contexts for working within the Sesame brand. Understanding how “heartfelt,” “simple,” and the other characteristics actually translate to voice and visuals is critical.

The identity elements cover pages from the Sesame Workshop Brand Book with a yellow feather on a bright red background.
The Brand Landscape Overview page from the Sesame Workshop Brand Book showing usage guideline for several brand logotypes.
The logo color guidelines page from Sesame Workshop Brand Book.
The case of character page from Sesame Workshop Brand Book showing 16 well known muppets, including Elmo and Big Bird.

While less philosophical perhaps, providing clear, practical instruction around logo usage, typography, color palette, and other visual elements is key for maintaining consistency across a global brand such as Sesame.