Not surprisingly, there are a great many folks who think a brand is all about a logo and a cool tagline. Those things are important, but a brand is so much more than that. Marketing materials and logos are merely visual representations of what businesses and organizations want stakeholders to perceive them to be. A brand itself is a perception that lives in the minds of the consumers, and the business has no control over it. A branding effort is an attempt to influence that perception, not just with a visual identity system, but through actions as well. And it won't work unless the business or organization is true to the brand promise. For example, BP worked diligently for years to promote itself as a "green" company, but the public ultimately didn't buy it. Public perception was influenced more by BP's highly publicized environmental negligence. On the flip side, Apple's "Think Different" campaign totally worked (and still does) because the public believes its products are innovative.
I could ramble on for hours about what it means to delve into a branding campaign, but I'll stop for now and take advantage of teachable moments as they arise in future blogs. My intention is to keep you here, after all. But I found a cute video that sums it up nicely, and I encourage you to watch it if you have a spare three minutes (the running time says it lasts more than five minutes, but it actually ends at 2:55).
Let's switch gears now as I unveil something new about the new brand: A lot of things are changing at Union College, but our orange isn't one of them. We're still Pantone 165—the same color on this blog's background. While we haven't taken colors away, we have added a few. One of them is the purple you see in this blog's dateline. This color will be used as an accent in marketing materials and various other applications. Here's a better look at it.
We actually developed an entire color palette inspired by Union's values. We'll show you more as time goes on, but for now, we'd love to know what you think, as it's not too late to add or substitute colors. Is there another color you have in mind to help us convey Union's commitment to Knox County and Appalachia? Leave us a comment with your recommendation, along with a rationale. We live for that kind of thing.
In closing, I've included a screen shot of the last blog post so we can reflect together on the design process. As I explained in my first post, this blog will shape up as I introduce you to elements of our visual identity that we've determined so far.
Missy Reid '91
Director of College Communications
I think a good idea(especially here in the early, early stages of the re-branding) is some type of focus group. The bigger the better. There's room for alumni, current students, faculty, staff, locals, basically anyone who is familiar with the school. The point of the focus group is to determine what Union's *current* brand is. I'm willing to bet the answers collected(at least from those who understand what branding is) will help the school get a good sense of 'what' it is. After all, once you know (1)where you're starting, and (2)where you want to go, all you have to do is find the path.
ReplyDeletePitfalls(because I am powerless to my obsession with playing Devil's Advocate, even against my own ideas):
(1) Finding a good enough cross-section of people who understand branding enough to give an informed opinion on Union's current brand..
(1a). From that group, finding people who would put forth the effort and honesty to actually give the feedback. The only thing benefiting from smoke getting blown up its rear end is a pork shoulder.
(2) What is the end goal for the re-branding? Is this a legitimate attempt to nudge the cultural climate of the school, affect public perception, etc., or just a cosmetic band-aid?
(3) This isn't a pitfall I just ran out of them and wanted to add that I wish the new purple was part of the official school colors(which is could be, since black and white don't count in my book, or any book that matters).
We appreciate your insightful reply and the thought you must have put into it. Here's the lowdown:
DeleteThe research phase has come and gone. We determined the current brand and based the new one on our board-approved mission and vision. And we gathered loads of input from various stakeholders. We're now on the "path." So the point of this blog (and other avenues) is to garner opinions to help us communicate the brand. I'll reveal a little bit at a time for two reasons: To explain our rationale behind each decision and to keep from making people feel overwhelmed. It's a lot to take in, so a gradual roll-out will help most people stay focused so they can more easily and effectively weigh in on specific issues.
The pitfalls you mention are good points. It's true that there aren't many people who truly understand branding. With that said, it's actually not important that they understand it to have an opinion and provide valuable feedback. I know you're referring to the research phase, but the same is true for the phase we're in now. When I present visual options (which I will do in the coming weeks), we won't require the critical eye of a trained designer to tell us which ad (or whatever) looks best. Rather, we'll rely on what resonates with our audiences. After all, they're the ones we're trying to please. Through this blog, we hope to give them enough information so their opinions aren't arbitrary, but rather based on our goals.
Speaking of goals... Our intention is not merely to refresh our marketing materials. As this post points out, a new logo is a very small part of a branding initiative. It's important, but it's important only because it's inspired by something far more significant. Our brand will encompass our entire identity—the intangible qualities that form our reputation. And if we don't make good on the brand promise, I'll expect people who care (like you) to call us out on it.
Regarding your non-pitfall: Amen! We need more cowbell—I mean purple! ...or some other real color. I'd love to add another primary color to complement the orange. We'll see.
Weigh in often, and take care!
--Missy