Communications, brand, and digital delivery

Annie McCallum

Websites, microsites, event identities, and print I took from concept to launch.

As director of advancement communications at Virginia Tech, I wrote the creative briefs, brought together the right people (in-house designers, freelancers, developers, and an agency of record), reviewed the work against the brief, brand standards, and accessibility standards, and shipped it to an audience of more than 300,000 alumni and donors. Everything below is live.

Digital

Websites, microsites, and event identities

  • Donor micrositeCurated storytelling

    Ut Prosim Society Weekend 2026 recap

    A tailored recap for members of one of Virginia Tech's giving societies, sharing the story and experience of their weekend on campus.

    My role: led strategy and execution for donor society events communications, from invitations and collateral to scripting, and oversaw storytelling microsites like this one.

    View the recap
    Guests seated at round tables in a chandelier-lit tent listen to a speaker at the Ut Prosim Society Weekend dinner.
  • Event identity and siteAnnual reunion

    Alumni Weekend

    The event identity, website, and marketing campaign for Virginia Tech's four-day alumni reunion, including a paid digital campaign placed with our agency of record.

    Result: attendance grew from 800 in the event's first year to 1,671.

    View Alumni Weekend
    Alumni gather at dusk in front of an outdoor concert stage with string lights and fire effects during Alumni Weekend.
  • Event identity and siteSignature tradition

    Hokie Hike

    An event I co-created from scratch with a colleague during the pandemic. Part of every registration is a gift that supports Rec Sports and outdoor activities for students, so the reason to give is part of the reason to show up.

    Result: now an annual tradition drawing about 2,000 participants.

    View Hokie Hike
    2026 Hokie Hike merchandise carrying the event identity: a T-shirt with sticker-style trail artwork, a hat, a lantern and a water bottle sling.
  • Publication siteMagazine

    Virginia Tech Magazine online

    The digital home of the university's flagship magazine: feature stories, class notes, and the issue archive.

    View the magazine site
  • Division websiteInstitutional

    Virginia Tech Advancement

    The division's public site, telling the story of how philanthropy and engagement support the university and recruiting the people who do that work.

    View the Advancement site

Print

Virginia Tech Magazine

I led the magazine's redesign and served as executive editor of these three issues.

~90,000 circulation2 issues a year~$350,000 annual budget managed
Spring 2026 cover: Virginia Tech head football coach James Franklin, in a suit and maroon tie, under the headline Our Next Key Play, about a new era of Hokie athletics.Issue PDFSpring 2026Executive editor Fall 2025 cover: sweeping orange ribbon-like lines on white, with the headline Defining Moments.Issue PDFFall 2025Executive editor Spring 2025 cover: a glass tower framed by bold teal, yellow and maroon graphics under the headline The Nexus of Next.Issue PDFSpring 2025Executive editor

Process

How work gets from brief to launch

Good work at high volume depends on agreeing what "done" looks like before anyone starts.

  1. Write the brief

    Turn what stakeholders need into clear direction: the audience, the goal, the message, the deliverables, the deadline, and what success looks like.

  2. Assemble the right team

    Match each project to the people it needs: in-house designers and photographers, freelancers, and developers. For paid media, that meant our agency of record, which brought audience and media expertise we didn't have in house at a lower cost than hiring staff.

  3. Review against an agreed bar

    Check every deliverable against the brief, brand standards, and accessibility standards: color contrast, alt text for sites and photo galleries, and email built with developers to meet accessibility requirements.

  4. Ship through a system

    Repeatable workflows keep volume manageable: a centralized email intake, calendar, proofing, and deployment process used by every college and unit, and automated Asana workflows that promote hundreds of events a year.