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Brett S. Traylor Creative Direction & Design

Baylor College of Medicine

Brett led this project during his 17-year tenure as Thinkso’s founder and executive creative director.

We teamed up with BCM’s new Dean and President to give the brand a shot in the arm through a revamp of its communications — specifically those integral to the peer reviews of the medical school. Ultimately, the two distinct publications we created were determined to have materially contributed to a remarkable uptick in the institution’s U.S. News & World Report rankings.

A collage of Illustrated covers of Baylor College of Medicine BCM quarterly reports.

In a single year, the overall institutional ranking went up from 22 to 21 and the peer reputation score increased by 0.2. We attribute this jump to the marketing effort of which these publications were the backbone.

Debra Passner, Executive Director of Academic Marketing and Communications, BCM

Illustrated cover of Baylor College of Medicine BCM Q2 report, with the title "Treating the world's children."
Illustrated cover of Baylor College of Medicine BCM Q3 report, with the title "Targeted therapies."
Illustrated cover of Baylor College of Medicine BCM Q4 report, with the title "The knockout mouse."
Illustrated cover of Baylor College of Medicine BCM Q1 report, with the title "The patient as muse."
Illustrated cover of Baylor College of Medicine BCM Q2 report, with the title "An abundance of life."
Illustrated cover of Baylor College of Medicine BCM Q4 report, with the title "Answering the call."
Illustrated cover of Baylor College of Medicine BCM Q1 report, with the title "Stronger and healthier."
Illustrated cover of Baylor College of Medicine BCM Q2 report, with the title "A measure of excellence."
Illustrated cover of Baylor College of Medicine BCM Q3 report, with the title "Betting against the spread."

The cover of each BCMQ issue features bright, clever photo illustrations that grab the attention of industry peers and stand out from the sea of lab coats, pipettes, and smiling doctors that pervade so many medical publications. While BCM handled the bulk of interior production, we conceived of and created all covers.

Pages from BCM Quarterly report with the title "Welcome to BCM Quarterly," table of contents, and Facts & Figures infographic.
Pages from BCM Quarterly report with the title "Treating the World's Children" and photos of communities around the world.
Pages from BCM Quarterly report with the title "Family Ties," main image of orangutans, and photos of other animals.
Pages from BCM Quarterly report with the title "Research Briefs," listing several case studies.

We provided highly prescriptive guidelines to govern ongoing design and production by BCM’s in-house communications staff, including infographics, alternate layout and sidebar options, and a library of icons.

Cover of Baylor College of Medicine BCM report, featuring a close up of a cowboy and his horse.
Cover of Baylor College of Medicine BCM report, featuring a NASA scientist working on a space suit.
Cover of Baylor College of Medicine BCM report, featuring a group of students and faculty member in a classroom.

The BCM Report focuses on specific themes of Baylor’s work: the brain, genomics, community service, etc. Like BCMQ, it features distinctive cover art that avoids standard medical cliches: in this case, artful black-and-white photography depicts the benefits of BCM science and the lives of individuals that have been changed.

Pages from The BCM Report with the title "We Create Knowledge" and image of woman working in Center for Cell and Gene Therapy.
Pages from The BCM Report with images of human brain using fluorescent microscopy.
Pages from The BCM Report with the title "Empowering HIV-Positive Teens Around the World" and image of three teens walking.
Pages from The BCM Report with images of BCM doctors and other medical workers in hospitals.

Decidedly longer-form, The BCM Report is more a collection of styles that can be combined to create distinct design schemes within the broader framework. The publication was alternately used to accommodate departmental content, medical themes, and institutional initiatives. The framework afforded our client maximum flexibility and efficiency and did so in a way that is consistent with the personality of the BCM brand.