Coolest Offices Words and Pictures

Words and Pictures is an advertising agency providing integrated marketing services for digital, mobile, web, social and print media.

THE VIBE

Hip minimalism

THE COOL FACTOR

Since the thrust of the business at Words and Pictures is branding, that’s exactly what the company has decided to envelop itself in.

The Park Ridge building the digital marketing company calls home is floor-to-ceiling branding — accented with the company’s iconic orange and gray colors, its thought balloon logo and, as you may have guessed from its name, words and pictures that are written and drawn on walls that act as a physical manifestation of the company’s own brand. And just about every element of the trendy, vibrant space in some way complements that brand.

But it’s about more than visual flair. Because what the company essentially sells are ideas, having an environment that fostered creativity and facilitated brainstorming sessions was the primary vision for the company when it moved into its headquarters at 1 Maynard Drive three years ago. The logos echoed throughout the office are actually customized whiteboards that employees can use to jot down ideas, a feature that is splattered across the entirety of the company’s conference room.

It’s a small space that the 10-person, growing company moved to, so the firm had to plan for an efficiently laid-out office that wouldn’t feel cramped, especially when hosting clients. To that end, the company had personal storage lockers for employees installed and areas of the office reserved for lounging or for guest reception with casual furnishings that, like everything else there, match the Words and Pictures brand.

Besides all that, the woman-owned company, spearheaded by Rhonda Smith, who is also an actress, believes what it has created is a space that is, above all, a fun place to be.

THE BUSINESS CASE

The company touts the design of the office as one that expresses a young, playful and colorful perspective — promoting the agency’s vision and its talent for prospective clients. The feedback from regular clients is that they often enjoy returning to the fun space as a departure from the normal corporate environs, according to the firm.
And it certainly doesn’t hurt to have some of the company’s long-running clients, such as Sony and Hertz, with a presence not too far from the firm’s headquarters.