We are Dijidl North

Dijidl North started out as an idea, when Kevin Barta and I (me, being Megan Soule) saw a gap in the design quality and strategy used by contracting companies that worked with the government and non-profit organizations in the DC area. There were many companies that offered just brand design, web development, social media management, or videography, but there were very few companies that offered a holistic approach to digital design and communications. We also found that those same organizations had the technical background in digital strategy, but did not have the topical knowledge in international relations or public diplomacy, and because of that even their most innovative strategies were missing the mark on what made sense for that organization and user base. Our favorite example, was a brand re-design for an international program that used a font that could not be translated into the local languages of that organization’s users.

It sounds complicated, but basically Kevin and I realized we had the technical knowledge as well as topical knowledge to provide a strategy that would work for users in the international relations and public diplomacy realm.

When Kevin and I both worked inside the federal government, we struggled with the internal bureaucracy slowing down the innovative processes we wanted to put in place. We saw that contracting companies were much more successful applying their innovative practices from the outside-in. We realized that if we really wanted to do this, we had to take that same approach and work from the outside-in. Most importantly though, working from the outside also provided us with an opportunity to expand our work to organizations outside of the federal government.  

We are passionate about working with organizations that are making a positive impact, globally and locally. These organizations often times do not prioritize digital design and communications because they feel they can’t afford it or didn’t know where to start. We want to be that starting point. We wanted to know that at the end of the day we were also making a positive social impact by helping our clients expand their reach, decrease inefficiencies in their processes, or help them get up and running.

We don’t just want to design a website, manage a social media account, or redesign a brand, we want to provide a holistic strategy that is user-centered and attainable for our clients. Even if a client comes to us and says, we want a newsletter, our first move is to do a “design audit” on the organization to see if that newsletter is actually the approach they should be taking to increase engagement. We always start by evaluating the connection from the vision and mission, down to an organization’s behavior and interactions with users. We aren’t just making designs to simply make designs, but we are thinking critically about their long-term digital strategy.

We knew what we were passionate about, who we wanted to work for, and what services we wanted to provide, but the final step was actually taking the plunge. Our company was just an idea for about a year and a half before it became reality. Our first client reached out to us and we were open for business. There was no time to worry about whether we were ready or not, we just hit the ground running. Our first month was a complete whirlwind, trying to get our brand, website, contracts, emails, and every piece of our business stood-up. Dijidl North became a reality in a matter of weeks. We are now finishing up month two and we are very excited about the progress we have made. Our first project is complete, and we have two more in the works. As we continue to expand, we will continue to provide updates about our progress.

We hope to use this blog as a place to connect with people interested in our company, future clients, or future employees. This will also be a place where we talk about design trends, work through lessons learned, and share client case studies. Our next conversation will be about our brand and our name. If there is ever a topic you want us to cover, just send us an email at info@dijidlnorth.com.