Blog
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Home Cooking: Helping Customers Feel at Home at Your Bank
There’s a saying I’ve heard that goes along the lines of “a kitchen is more tha...
Aug 16, 2019
How Credit Unions Can Connect to the People They Serve
For decades, small town business districts across the country have almost always feat...
Apr 23, 2019
Ha-CAN-a Matata: K4 and TriHealth team up to fight hunger
It’s CANstruction time here in Cincinnati and TriHealth and K4 are participating. ...
Apr 4, 2019
What Can You Do With a Drone – Pt. 1: Reality Capture
“What can you use a drone for at an architecture firm?” is a question that I get ...
Feb 28, 2019
For the Love of Design – Part III
In previous blog posts, we asked a sampling of our designers what was a particular de...
Feb 15, 2019
Keeping the Community in Community Banking
For decades, small town business districts across Ohio (and across the country) have ...
Dec 3, 2018
What Our Designers are Thankful For
This year (and every year), K4 is thankful for the blessings that have been bestowed ...
Nov 21, 2018
Scary Design Myths and How to Solve Them
Design Debunked: K4 designers discuss two common design myths. Ever wonder wha...
Nov 1, 2018
Creating a Retail Experience
Powerful changes are happening in the retail industry. As former profitable companies...
Sep 24, 2018
Building an Innovative Culture
When you hear innovation, what do you think of? Newness? Creativity? …Something sur...
Sep 7, 2018
Making Technology Personal
This is not propaganda for our future artificial intelligent overlords, but more of a...
Aug 27, 2018
Experience and Vision – The True Blueprint to Success
More than 150 years ago, the first blueprint was drawn on special photosensitive pape...
Aug 13, 2018
Graduation Season – Advice for the New Graduates!
Graduation season is upon us, and many graduates are embarking on new and exciting ad...
Jun 26, 2018
5 Non-Technology Branch Transformation Strategies
Technology is important in community banking, especially on-line access and mobile ba...
Apr 18, 2018
Considering Technology Implementation? Design for It!
The new financial branch models are embracing creative and new strategic approaches t...
Jan 4, 2018
Designing Flow
“In flow, people lived so deeply in the moment, and felt so utterly in control, tha...
Dec 18, 2017
Borrowing from Nordstrom – Design Trends for Retail Branches
As I was scrolling through my social media news feed, I saw a post with an image that...
Nov 7, 2017
Lean Urbanism in Cincinnati
There is a great deal of discussion in the last decade or two about the redevelopment...
Oct 24, 2017
K4 Takes Flight – Pt 1. Setting The Foundation
Unmanned Aerial Systems or more commonly known as drones are just about everywhere. F...
Oct 2, 2017
Hurricane Harvey, Zoning and the Common Good
“WHAT IS RESILIENCE? Resilience is the capacity of any entity—an individual, a co...
Sep 10, 2017
Baby Boomers vs. Millennials: The Showdown
At their recent Annual Convention & Trade Show, the Community Bankers Association...
Aug 9, 2017
New Design Trends to Traditional Banking within the Cincinnati Market
The K4 team couldn’t have been more thrilled when The Community Bankers Association...
Jul 25, 2017
A Case Study in Design by Layers
As designers, we at K4 go through extensive planning to get to the end result of a fu...
May 20, 2017
Architecture For Making Neighborhoods More Walkable
Walking just feels right. At least it can if given the right surroundings. A bea...
Apr 10, 2017
For the Love of Design – Part II
In 2014 we did a post called For the Love of Design in honor of Valentine’s Day. ...
Feb 4, 2017
The Branch of the Future
As design professionals in the financial arena, it is not uncommon to hear “What is...
Jan 24, 2017
Time & Life Management in 2017 – Eat That Frog!
I spoke with a friend a couple of months ago who says that he still remembers somethi...
Dec 31, 2016
Community Banking in 2017 – What Will Stay the Same?
As people in the banking industry prepare for the fast approaching changes that will ...
Dec 20, 2016
Color Theory Explained
This post will explore how we perceive color, the difference between additive and sub...
Dec 7, 2016
5 Tips for Brands in Transition
K4 is big on brand consistency! So when it came time for a website redesign we need...
Nov 16, 2016
7 Epic Design Fails & Solutions for Design Wins!
Fail: Spaces should not have everything matching exactly. Solution: Design spaces to ...
Oct 20, 2016
5 Things to Expect when you are Remodeling or Building
Alexander Graham Bell said, “Before anything else, preparation is the key to succes...
Oct 5, 2016
The “No-Vacation Nation” is Still Alive and Well Part II
Back in May of 2014, I had written a blog post on how Americans, as well as many othe...
Jul 29, 2016
Jurassic AutoCad
As a 25 year veteran of AutoCad, it pains me to say it, but it looks as if AutoCad wi...
Jul 27, 2016
Financial Design for People
No matter what business sector you are in – common shared goals include retaining a...
Jul 14, 2016
Bernie Sanders, Tiny Houses, and the Tragedy of the Commons
Egalitarian: “ asserting, resulting from, or characterized by belief in the equ...
May 21, 2016
Inside the head of an older millennial for branch design
Our financial clients always ask, “How do we get millennials inside our branches?...
May 14, 2016
Cincinnati Canstruction 2016: Design Trends & Strategies
K4 Architecture has participated in the 19th Annual Cincinnati Canstruction Competiti...
Mar 24, 2016
Using LinkedIn as a Business Development Tool Part II, The “My Network” Tab in the LinkedIn App
In my last blog post, 5 Tips for Using LinkedIn as a Business Development Tool, I tal...
Jan 24, 2016
The Destination Branch, a Blueprint for Successful Branch Transformation
“’Disney World has nothing on you’ is probably my favorite customer reaction so...
Dec 21, 2015
Why I Became an Architect
When I was in high school trying to figure out what I wanted to be when I grew up, an...
Dec 12, 2015
Branch Transformation – Where Do We Start?
As the economy is showing steady signs of the growth, many financial institutions are...
Dec 1, 2015
European Architecture
During several trips to Europe my life has been greatly enriched by enjoying numerous...
Nov 3, 2015
Financial Design for Millennials and College Students
The million dollar questions that every financial customer of ours wants to know is ...
Oct 21, 2015
5 lessons I Have Learned as a Co-op at K4
Before I started my first Co-op with K4 Architecture + Design, I had no idea what to ...
Aug 14, 2015
5 Tips for Using LinkedIn as a Business Development Tool
I am a strong believer in using LinkedIn as a tool to build business relationships, a...
Aug 7, 2015
Designing to Eliminate the Traditional “Line”: Teller Pods Vs. Counters
As branch transactions continue to decline, the thoughts of branch transformation con...
Jul 23, 2015
Enhancing Brand Identity in the Fast Casual Dining Market
In today’s busy world, dining options are constantly evolving. While companie...
Jul 1, 2015
Vacation Leads to Personal Development and Increased Creativity in Life and Work
Spring is in the air! As the warm weather rolls in and the days get longer, it’s th...
May 1, 2015
Teamwork: An Essential Feature of an Exceptional Building Program
Since the process by which buildings are designed and built entails the efforts of ma...
Mar 25, 2015
Interactive Teller Machines
As teller transactions continue to be on the decline each year, financial institution...
Mar 6, 2015
Building Industry Overdue for Disruptive Innovation
I recently finished reading The Innovators by Walter Isaacson, who also authored the...
Feb 22, 2015
Pantone Color of the Year 2015…Reactions from an Interior Design Perspective.
Whether you look forward to the announcement of Pantone’s Color of the Year or not,...
Feb 7, 2015
Biking, Architecture, and the Economic Benefits of Wasson Way.
As a mode of transportation and recreation, biking has grown exponentially in popular...
Jan 26, 2015
What Is Interior Design?
My role at K4 is an Interior Designer. So when someone asks me what I do for a livi...
Jan 20, 2015
Achieving Effective Communication in the Role of the Architect
Effective communication is a necessary component of any high quality service. Achie...
Dec 8, 2014
5 Lessons Learned from Designing & Building Banks for 25 Years
Starting my career in the Financial Industry as Director of Corporate Architecture at...
Oct 31, 2014
Convention Was Great…Now What? Part II
Part I of this post was written when K4 was on the brink of attending three conventio...
Oct 21, 2014
Implementing Revit into the Architectural Workflow
Embracing change can be difficult. It doesn’t matter what field you work in today...
Sep 11, 2014
Convention Was Great…Now What? Part I
K4’s trade show season is in full swing! See our convention and trade show sc...
Sep 3, 2014
Conducting Effective Building Project Kick-off Meetings
It has been said the journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. A build...
Jul 28, 2014
Hudepohl’s Smokestack, a Queensgate Architectural Icon
The former Hudepohl Brewing Company building, recently purchased by the Cincinnati Po...
Jul 18, 2014
Local Company Collaboration Explores the Art of Coupling Preservation with Modernization
What do you get when you mix two local companies working on a local historical projec...
Jul 7, 2014
How to Create an Infographic in 5 Easy Steps!
Last month we decided to take on the challenge of creating our first Infographic. W...
Jun 1, 2014
The “No-Vacation Nation” is Still Alive and Well
The term “No-Vacation Nation” came out of a Center for Economic and Policy Resear...
May 21, 2014
How to Obtain Permits for Your Building Project
To assure an expeditious process of obtaining permits (zoning, building, electrical, ...
May 9, 2014
Canstruction Cincinnati: A Behind the Scenes Look
As most of the U.S. has been consumed with March Madness; vigorously filling out br...
Mar 28, 2014
Financial Brand Consistency in the Physical and Digital Space
The financial brand can encompass many components in both the physical and digital sp...
Feb 26, 2014
For the Love of Design…
In the spirit of Valentine’s Day, some of us at K4 wanted to share what we love abo...
Feb 10, 2014
3D Printing: Bridging Digital Design with the Physical Environment
If it was unclear from the majority of my blog posts, one of my many passions is comp...
Feb 1, 2014
A Step-by-Step Guide for Procuring Architectural/Engineering Services
A building program is a major effort entailing the investment of much time and money....
Jan 17, 2014
Designing for the Client, not the Designer
Creative designers from all fields, whether you are an industrial designer or an adve...
Jan 3, 2014
Twas’ the Night before the Architectural Registration Exam…
Twas’ the night before the Architectural Registration Exam, when all through my apa...
Dec 20, 2013
Finding Passion, Purpose and Value in the Work You Do
Only 30 percent of American employees feel engaged or inspired at their jobs and the ...
Dec 9, 2013
K4 Gives Thanks!
This year (and every year) K4 is thankful for our clients who allow us to practice ou...
Nov 23, 2013
The Power of Three: In Business, Design and Life
We begin learning about the power of three during childhood with Goldilocks and the T...
Oct 31, 2013
The Feasibility Study – Look Before You Leap
The cost of performing a task can usually be fairly closely estimated, if not precise...
Oct 17, 2013
Trimble Sketchup – Tools for Increased Productivity
From creating simple 3D studies to fully modeled building concepts, Trimble Sketchup ...
Oct 4, 2013
5 Tips for Beating Designer’s Block
As a designer, every day tends to be different. There are some days where I sit d...
Sep 24, 2013
Making Space for More than Books – Trends in Library Design
The New York Times article, “A Place to Hang Out (Read, too),” explores the redes...
Sep 12, 2013
Affordable Care Act: Turning Crisis into Opportunity
“Let’s not pretend that things will change if we keep on doing the same thing...
Aug 26, 2013
Financial Marketing Tips for Attracting Gen Y
Who are Gen Y? Gen-Y are those born between 1980 and 1992. They have grown up wit...
Aug 13, 2013
6 Tips for Maximizing the Value of an Industry Conference
You’ve been chosen, or have decided to attend your industry’s annual conference o...
Jul 26, 2013
Environmental Graphics..An Impetus for Change?
Is it possible that something you see every day could inspire you to make a differenc...
Jul 2, 2013
8 Retail Design Tips to Create a Positive Customer Experience
Retail design is a creative endeavor combining the expertise of architecture and inte...
Jun 20, 2013
Master Builders
The ancient masterbuilder is a design-build professional, an artist of the built envi...
Jun 2, 2013
Trade Show Provides Insight on Social Media & Blogging Best Practices for Banks
Shortly after implementing social media to K4’s marketing mix, I began to like &...
May 23, 2013
Design, Discipline & Professional Problem Solving
Each year, as a new DAAPworks exhibition approaches and quickly passes, I can’t hel...
May 3, 2013
The Craft of Architecture
In 2013, it seems out-of-date to discuss architectural practices of hundreds of years...
Apr 5, 2013
K4’s Approach to Website Design for Successful Internet Marketing
K4 recently underwent a website redesign. The new website has been live since Decem...
Mar 12, 2013
Place Making: Turning Our Communities Into Places We Are Proud Of
“In one of those totally unpredictable shifts in sensibility that occur when least ...
Feb 27, 2013
Total Solutions Branding
When one thinks about the brand of an organization, they typically first think of the...
Feb 8, 2013
Gaining the Confidence to Place Yourself in the Path of Opportunity
In college, I feel like I didn’t come into my own until my third year of scho...
Jan 25, 2013
How to Create Award Winning Design Details
On November 9th the Cincinnati Design Awards celebrated design as a variety of firms ...
Jan 11, 2013
How to Get a Job in Architecture in 2013
Congrats to all recent School of Architecture graduates! Finding a job, especially ...
Dec 21, 2012
Building Brand
James Archer, CEO of fortyagency in Phoenix Arizona, emphasizes the “Experience of ...
Nov 9, 2012
- Markets We Serve:
- Banks
- Credit Unions
- Retail
- Corporate Offices
- Healthcare
- Education
- Multi Family
- Gallery
Copyright © 2020 K4 Architecture
555 Gest Street Cincinnati, OH 45203
(513) 655-5554