John Hall Design Group

02/10/2026

Here’s a new impact report we designed for Jim Heid, FASLA and his Building Small initiative, which has grown from a passion project into a national movement over the past six years.

This dynamic, 8-page report celebrates the growth of the movement, which has included dozens of well-attended forums, speaking engagements, and coaching events in cities across the country. The events are all in support of Jim’s vision of smaller-scale development as a way to create more humane, authentic spaces that help build community, not as a commodity.

We first began working with Jim in 2020, when we designed his awesome book Building Small for the Urban Land Institute. The book explored the what, why, and how of smaller-scale development.

We later developed Jim’s website (https://www.jheid.com) as a central place to detail his vision, and chronicle his many forums, speaking events, and writings, as well as his personal development projects.

Check out the full report and learn more about Building Small's history and exciting future here:
https://www.jheid.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/SmallImpact26_FinalWEB.pdf

05/15/2025

Interesting to read this feature about the lasting impact of one of my favorite Urban Land Institute book design projects, The Building Healthy Places Toolkit, which my studio designed 10 years ago.

"The Toolkit has proven to be an enduring, valuable ULI resource for developers, architects, planners, community practitioners, policymakers, and others aiming to create more livable, vibrant, and health-conscious spaces that benefit all communities ... Praised for its clear, concise, and accessible content—enhanced by its graphics, structure, and examples—the Toolkit remains relevant today."

As part of the Toolkit's 10th anniversary, we just completed three new update reports for ULI on strategies for mitigating noise pollution, enhancing social connection, and improving indoor air quality.

Ten years ago, ULI released the Building Healthy Places Toolkit: Strategies for Enhancing Health in the Built Environment report. The Toolkit, developed by ULI in partnership with the Center for Active Design, offered 21 practical and tactical evidence-based strategies and recommendations that real....

04/24/2025

Check out the full flipbook version of the just released 2025 edition of Discover Gloucester.

Welcome to Issuu’s blog: home to product news, tips, resources, interviews (and more) related to content marketing and publishing.

04/24/2025

The new Guidebooks are here!! This was our 6th year of designing the official Discover Gloucester Guidebook, one of our favorite annual projects. Look for your copy out in the wild throughout Gloucester and Cape Ann this summer!

This year’s visitor guides have arrived! The 2025-26 guide features everything you need to know to plan your next trip to , plus maps, an event calendar, and so much more! Order a print copy or view the digital version at discovergloucester.com.

The cover photo for this year’s guide was taken by Sperling and design was by John Hall Design Group.

04/21/2025

Another new client website launch. Check it out:

College admissions consultant and advisor guiding students from throughout metro Boston and across the country.

03/12/2025

New in Studio News: An overview of the studio's annual report work, a category that blends the storytelling expertise we’ve honed over two decades of magazine and book design with the data visualization skills we’ve developed through years of financial-services publishing and marketing.

Each year, organizations invest significant time and resources into producing their annual reports. These publications are more than financial summaries—they reflect an organization’s mission, impact, and vision for the future. Among our core categories of content-focused design, annual reports ...

03/07/2025

03/04/2025

Just wrapped up our latest annual report project for our longtime client the Urban Land Institute. Really happy with the way this one turned out. Check out the full report that celebrates all the great things this organization does to improve urban spaces around the globe at https://americas.uli.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/ULI-2024-Annual-Report.pdf?

01/04/2025

Wrote up a little recap of what the studio was up to in 2024, and a pitch to add a few new clients/projects in 2025. If you have a publication or other content-focused project in the pipeline for 2025, I'd love to discuss how we could help. Wishing you all a year filled with creativity, growth, and inspiration!

News from the John Hall Design Group, a Beverly, Massachusetts based graphic design studio specializing in print and online publication and marketing collateral design.

12/09/2024

Unboxing the print samples of our latest book project.