Empty white room with plain walls and floor, no furniture or objects.

Thumbtack brand system

Brand expression
Illustration system
Photography direction

2018–2021

Over five years, Thumbtack evolved from a scrappy startup to a trusted marketplace for local services. I led the creation of a cohesive brand expression that united illustration, color, motion, and photography into a single visual language — bringing warmth and humanity to the platform while maintaining simplicity and trust. The work spanned a complete visual refresh, a flexible illustration system, and a new studio photo style that grounded the brand in real people and real projects.

The word 'Thumbtack' written in bold black letters on a white background.
Text on a white background reading 'Mark for Thumbtack' with font style options below.
Color chart showing various shades of white, blue, gray, black, purple, green, yellow, and red with their respective hex codes.
Icons for various categories, including Home, Events, Weddings, Wellness, Photography, Business, Lessons, Personal, Pets, Design & Web, Repair, Crafts, Legal, and Writing.
  • Cover page of the Thumtack brand book with the Thumtack logo at the top left and bold black text on a white background.
  • Illustration of a person climbing a ladder towards a star in a cup, with another person pointing towards the star, surrounded by chat bubbles and symbols, representing achievement and support.
  • A person dressed in beige work overalls is putting on yellow work gloves, with a white long-sleeve shirt visible underneath.
  • Screenshot of a website page explaining the word "Thumbtack." The page defines it as a noun, pronounced "thuhm-tak," and states it is not a pushpin. It describes Thumbtack as an app that helps local professionals and customers find each other by matching them based on expertise, availability, and pricing. The website menu options at the top include Brand Basics, Design, Copy, Photography, Experiences, Resources.
  • A webpage from Thumback brand book explaining the logo design called "The Tack". It shows a blue circular logo with a white T inside, with a grid overlay and design guidelines.
  • Screenshot of a typography guide showing different font styles and sizes for the 'Mark for Thumbtack' branding, including bold, regular, and monospaced fonts.
  • Collection of black outlined icons for meta categories, including Home, Wedding, Events, Wellness, Business, Legal, Lessons, Design and web, Pets, Photography, Repair, and Crafts, on a webpage with navigation options at the top.
  • A webpage displaying two abstract illustration designs with a header menu including options like Brand basics, Design, Copy, Photography, Experiences, Resources. The left side has a text section titled 'Illustration style' describing the style of Thumbtack illustrations, with instructions about design ratios and padding. The right side features two abstract illustrations, one showing a magnifying glass and people climbing stairs, and the other featuring a target with an arrow and a check mark.
  • A website page titled 'Style rules' with four style guidelines, each with a brief description beneath. The first is marked correct, the second is correct, the third is incorrect, and the fourth is incorrect. The guidelines emphasize the use of punctuation, sentence case, Oxford commas, and title case in writing.
  • A woman with curly hair smiling and holding a Canon camera aimed at the viewer. She is wearing colorful clothing with a patterned scarf, standing against a white background.
  • Collection of branded merchandise including a tote bag, water bottle, notebook, and packaging box with elfMade logo for promotional use.
Illustration of people engaging in various activities related to teamwork and productivity, such as climbing stairs, holding a ladder, sitting with an umbrella, using a tablet, and relaxing in a hammock, with symbols like checkmarks, speech bubbles, and stars.
  • Type specimen
  • Checkmark icon inside a circle indicating approval or confirmation.
  • Quote by Maya Angelou that says, "We may encounter many defeats but we must not be defeated." Below the quote, it mentions Black History Month.
  • A promotional graphic encouraging viewers to get the best growth tips at Pro Rewards success workshops, featuring text and an illustration of a person climbing a lightning bolt with a checkmark.
  • A logo featuring a white faucet icon on a blue background, with a printer icon displaying rainbow-colored and pink, brown, and white striped paper in the background.
  • Graphic with a fish illustration, yellow stars, and the text 'EXPLORATION Make it a verb.'
  • Type specimen
  • Type specimen
  • Type specimen
  • Type specimen