A brand rejuvenation for an educational institution

A brand rejuvenation for an educational institution steeped in tradition.

Delivers consistency, professionalism and pride across all communications materials, plus much more.

The client:

St Joseph’s College Geelong (SJC) is an all-boys’ Catholic College located in the heart of Geelong’s independent school precinct. With more than1300 students, the College seeks to provide holistic, boy-centred education through a balanced curriculum that offers choice and opportunity for every student.

The idea:

SJC imagined an updated brand to better communicate their values and professionalism to the College and wider communities.

The trigger:

SJC’s existing branding collateral had been developed haphazardly by various personnel, as the need for new material arose. The inconsistent use of logos, colours and fonts had crept into common practice, incrementally eroding the core brand value. There were numerous versions of the College crest already in use and no central definition or understanding of which was correct. In response SJC allocated a significant budget towards a re-branding effort and formed a sub-committee to manage the exercise. Although enrolment demand was strong, SJC considered the investment to be a solid foundation for the College’s future marketing and promotional direction.

The journey:

As a valued supplier to the College, DDG was invited to pitch for the re-branding development. We were successful and set about working with the Committee to plan the way forward.

The scope of the project would require multi-phasing - initially developing a fresh style and then applying it effectively to all stationery, promotional materials, signage, uniforms and eventually an updated website.

The first priority was to understand the College position and values. The new brand had to engage quite different community and stakeholder groups from the tradition of the Old Collegians, to the loyalty and expectations of the staff and students, through to the ethos of the Catholic Church. The challenge was to convey SJC’s positioning as a highly-regarded contemporary education provider with a solid, traditional foundation.

The SJC sub-committee developed a positioning statement “compassion innovation integrity” and collaborated with DDG in deciding to retain the College crest in the new branding, with support given to evolve it and the colour palette.

The DDG design team developed and presented three variant crest options, with the change level ranging from minor to quite dramatic. A consultative process found that although there was varying support from the College community at all levels of change, only moderate departure from the traditional crest would be widely accepted.

The solution:

The creative solution comprised a more stylised version of the original crest with elements centred and more clearly defined – this not only provides clearer recognition but also higher reproduction under a range of applications. The original red, yellow and black colourway attracted a great deal of loyalty and recognition so is retained, with exact colours specified to ensure consistent usage across all applications. Simple, bold lettering lends a contemporary feel and a curved graphic element (replicating the edge shape of the crest) was introduced. This fluid, dynamic line also softens the overall style.

DDG recommended development of an SJC Style Guide as a central reference point for the graphic standards underpinning the new brand. The Style Guide specifies the logo, fonts, colours and precise details of their permitted usage, and contains templates for all the newly developed stationery and digital communications including letterheads, business cards, fax headers, envelopes, press advertisements, newsletters, powerpoint presentations and much more. Available in pdf format on the SJC Intranet, it is accessible by all staff and forms the basis for every communication within and beyond the College. Digital templates have been developed for use within the College and also by external suppliers (printers, for example). To further protect brand consistency, SJC have established a centralised “approval system” to check out-going communications.

An updated library of professional photographs has added depth and choice to publications and on-line development – these images depict many aspects of College life, buildings and facilities and will be a valuable resource over the coming years

The rejuvenated brand has been distilled into the latest version of the SJC Mission Statement, Prospectus and Key Learning Areas brochure – all rolled-out to coincide with the College Open Day.

The benefits for SJC and its community:

• Improved brand management - an enlivened, contemporary identity to help drive the College’s brand, positioning and positive community perception
• A nod to tradition – excellent brand leverage via retention of the College heritage and Catholic values in a crest-centred logo, with a modernised interpretation that positions it squarely in today’s context
• Consistency - a centralised graphic standards resource that promotes quality, professionalism and uniformity, as befits any contemporary entity, but especially an educational organisation
• Accuracy and streamlined decision-making – the Style Guide leaves little room for error, setting out pre-determined formats that expedite development of in-house communications and enable clear translation to suppliers; saves time, saves money
• Pride – a suite of communications and promotional materials that SJC management, staff, students and wider community can be proud of

The results so far:

The roll-out of the new SJC brand has occurred gradually, as new stock of stationery and uniform items have been required. For a community that admits to having a strong conservative element, feedback is very positive with most stakeholder groups affirming the changes. Uptake has been high, encouraged by the management team and administration staff who have not only supported and adopted the brand but have also proactively implemented the operational and procedural changes that ensure high levels of compliance with the Style Guide.