Services

We are a full-service design, marketing and advertising agency that loves to get products and services out there, looking fantastic. We love to get people noticing them. In fact, any sort of visual communications to push businesses forward, we love.

Brands, websites, marketing literature, signage, exhibition and display graphics, illustration, e-marketing campaigns, marketing plans, photography, retail anthropology, audio visual presentations.

You can find us on the Quayside in Sunderland, UK.

Brands

Over the past 20 years we have been involved in the development of many highly visible brands. We use our creative expertise to think of business and product names, and create an identity that will stand strong against any competitor.

If you have a brand identity that you’re fairly happy with already but you think it could do with a freshen-up then we can still help. We’ll ensure we retain your already established brand equity and add a little more.

Websites

The World Wide Web is open 24/7 and it’s now the main place to research before you make a purchase. Therefore, it makes sense to have an online presence. We apply our visual expertise and technical know-how to ensure your website does the right job, whether this is a six-page brochure site or an advanced e-commerce site built on a content management system.

We build your website with search engines in mind and can carry out on-going search engine optimisation once your website is complete. This helps to ensure your site maintains or improves upon its search rank, and is therefore more easily found by your current and potential customers.

Marketing Literature

In its broad sense, marketing literature forms a significant component of our work. Campaign literature, marketing packs, posters, brochures, business stationery, financial reports… we could go on. Our clients like our ability to create literature that stands out from the crowd, whether this is through avant-garde design, a unique technical specification or something completely off-the-wall.

Exhibition and Display

A lack of flexible and responsive suppliers prompted us to invest in some nifty equipment to allow us to produce exhibition and display materials almost entirely in-house. Aside from the more conventional exhibition and display materials, we are always happy to work on bespoke projects, often encompassing the concepts or retail anthropology.

Over the years Rufus has developed significant expertise in designing, manufacturing and even installing exhibition displays in a whole range of materials including glass, laminates, metals, plastics, wood and even synthetic stone.

From complicated exhibition displays to business awards, we have designed and manufactured them all. Often at crazy deadlines and working into the night, we never let a client down.

Retail Anthropology

Rufus is one of the only companies in the North East that specialises in retail anthropology.

It’s all about the golden rules of retail space design and consumer psychology. By understanding how your business surroundings influence your customers’ behaviour and applying our knowledge we can make your customers’ experience more enjoyable and your business more successful. The self-styled retail anthropologist Paco Underhill, calls it the science of shopping:

…the point where people, products, communication and spaces all meet. And at that point, we interact with the design world at all levels…

Store planning, websites, way-finding, packaging and consumer graphics can all have the retail anthropology theory applied to capture interest.

There are many factors to consider… People. Men and Women. Colours. Smells. Walking Paces… All have an impact on how we behave, which in turn impacts on our purchasing decisions and impressions of a company or brand name.

We have redesigned the Hays Travel shops with this theory in mind. The first shop to be refitted achieved as much turnover in one month as all the other local Hays Travel shops combined.

We have also worked with Sunderland City Council to consult on the redesign and refit of their café, Café Refresh, as well as Stockton Borough Council’s restaurant and Reg Vardy’s flagship executive car showroom.

Intrigued? Then give us a call to discuss how we can help to bring your business to life.

E-marketing Campaigns

E-marketing is a combination of art and science – it’s all about capturing interest through the use of creative design with engaging and inspiring information. Email is one of the primary methods of communication today and the Internet has changed the way products and services are sold. Consumers can now research and purchase products and access services online.

It therefore makes sense to use email communication to drive traffic to your website, position your brand and ultimately increase profit. We have the design capability and e-marketing software required to create an e-marketing campaign that is trackable and exciting to watch as data rolls in following despatch.

Marketing Plans

Being open for business doesn’t mean everyone will automatically know you exist. You need to market your business so the right people are aware of who you are, where you are and what you do that is of benefit to them.

Marketing should be planned ahead and become part of your everyday business activity. We can support you by devising a marketing strategy or a plan, to ensure you stay on top of it. If you don’t feel you have the knowledge or capacity to implement the plan, then we can handle some or all of it for you – a little bit like having your own marketing department.

Photography

Does a picture really say a thousand words?… We think so!

We have a full equipped photography studio and our own in-house photographer, Paul, who has a keen eye for that creative perfect shot. He has developed Rufus’ photography services and we now have many clients that regularly update their image gallery.

They enjoy the advantage of having their own online image gallery, where they can download images whenever they need them. We can digitally polish, output, mount and frame prints and we have the facilities in-house to output and laminate large wall graphics. Our fitting services might even come in handy too?

Why not contact us on 0191 514 4441 to discuss your photography requirements?

Audio Visual Presentations

Presentations provide an opportunity to create a long-lasting impression of your work or organisation. More than ever, clients are requesting a professional PowerPoint or digital presentation that has more impact than a run of the mill self-prepared slide show.

Our presentations can be elaborate and self contained to include music, sound effects and video if required. Or, if you need to change your content on a regular basis, we can provide templates and components that can be updated by you as and when required.