- The Mount Allison Brand
- About Branding
- About the Process
- Brand Guide
- Style Guide
- Download Templates
- Download Brand Elements
- Fonts
- Wallpaper
- Design Services
- Q & A
- Marketing & Communications
A: During a review of the University’s marketing and communication materials it as discovered that there were large differences in terms of look, feel and voice, and conflict in terms of their message. Additionally, many communications did not support the institution’s strategic goals. This project was designed to help the entire community understand what the Mount Allison brand stands for and ensure key audiences receive a clear and consistent brand experience.
Additionally, the University recognized that it faces growing pressure due to regional, national and global competition in the PSE sector, a declining Atlantic Region population, and increased student mobility (students could go anywhere, so why here)? The University made the decision that if it is to position itself for long-term success/sustainability then strategic branding initiatives would need to be a key driver.
Q: Was the project about developing a new logo and tagline?
A: No, logos and taglines are expressions of a brand. A brand is the sum total of all that is known, thought, felt and perceived about an organization. Other expressions of a brand include:
- The actual product
- Advertising/promotional activities
- A Name
- A package
- Corporate colours
The goal of branding is to purposefully influence the perceptions of an audience and create an understanding of value in their mind and motivate audience(s) to see an organization as not just the best in its class but the only one that provides a solution to their particular problem or need. The value in the Mount Allison brand resides in the promise that the University will deliver what is expected – time after time.
Q: Who led the brand position project and how were decisions made?
A: The Marketing and Communications Office led the brand position project with the assistance of an external firm: The Strategic Counsel. The program also involved a University committee called the Brand Council, which was made up of internal and external representatives. We attempted to include individuals who could provide a diversity of perspectives, allowing those with marketing and branding expertise to partner with those who have a good understanding of the institution’s history and culture.
Q: What was the Mount Allison Brand Council and how did it work?
A: The Brand Council was formed to ensure that a wide University perspective was given to the brand position project. Now that the project is complete, the intention is to retain the Brand Council as a body that will help plan, promote, support, and facilitate brand- related decisions for Mount Allison University.
Q: Who was on the Brand Council?
A: Dr. Jeff Ollerhead, Dean of Science
Dr. Andrew Nurse, Canadian Studies
Dr. Rosemary Pollegato, Commerce
Samuel J. Gregg-Wallace, SAC president
Gayle Churchill, Director of Student Life
Chris Parker, Registrar
Tony Frost, Director of Marketing and Communications
Mark Fraser, Alumni
Q: Was the University community involved in the branding position program?
A: Yes. The Mount Allison community participated in the process by providing input and feedback through focus groups, one-on-one interviews, online surveys, brand workshops, and presentations.
Q: Will the University’s visual identity change?
A: The last phase of the project will involve creative design, which will include a review and development of the University’s visual identity. How much it will change will be based on the first phase of the program which is a survey on how the University is perceived by key audiences — students (prospective and current), faculty, alumni, and opinion leaders. We will also research our strengths and areas of differentiation. From that research a brand strategy will be developed that will guide the look, voice and messaging of the University’s identity.
Q: What is Mount Allison University’s strategic purpose?
A: The Mount Allison’s broad strategic objective is to position it as among the best primarily undergraduate universities in North America. We want to be known for academic and program excellence, and be identified as a distinctive and top quality university in a number of concrete areas and ways. Our aim is to be the destination place for lively, imaginative, creative and talented students, faculty, and staff, and for our alumni to characterize it this way after they graduate.
Our mission is to work together to make the Mount Allison experience a unique and creative one, which integrates an excellent academic program with compelling and lively extracurricular activities, in a series of communities that students establish amongst themselves and with faculty, staff, and the local community. There is no one single Mount Allison experience but, rather, a series of rich and compelling experiences, opportunities, and possibilities that reflect students’ interests, decisions, and choices.
The Mount Allison experience is more than a degree: it is a stepping-stone to a larger world, whether to further graduate or professional studies or employment. This experience aims to help students — and faculty and staff — to develop their capacities and their potential as fully and widely as possible, from the intellectual and the social, to the physical and the creative, so when they leave Mount Allison they have the personal capacity to make a successful, meaningful intervention into and contribution to their society and the world.
Q: What were the project deliverables?
A: Deliverables included:
- Comprehensive, written and public summary of the research findings;
- Strategic assessment and recommendations for brand opportunity areas;
- Strategies for maintaining, monitoring, and measuring success of the branding process;
- Brand strategy composed of a brand definition, positioning statement, brand promise and articulation of distinct brand personality and attributes;
- Messaging platform identifying specific positioning statements, messages and functional/emotional benefits for key audiences;
- Basic brand incorporation strategies for University entities with specialized messaging needs (e.g. faculties and departments);
- Marketing and communications plan
- Recommendations for resourcing/structure needs;
- Identification of key performance indicators;
- Brand guide;
- Graphic identity materials (e.g. logo, symbols, typography, key messages, colour palette;
- University stationery (letterhead, envelopes, business cards and labels);
- Masthead and page design for the University’s alumni magazine;
- Collateral materials such as exterior and interior signage, banner, clothing, advertising for magazine, poster, newspaper (brand, recruiting and classified);
Q: How did the University pay for the project?
A: The project was financed entirely by the donation of a Mount Allison alumnus.
Q: What agencies were involved with brand position process?
A: The Strategic Counsel developed qualitative and quantitative research to identify the core strengths, characteristics, attributes, and values that make up the University brand and set it apart from other institutions. They will also helped to measures awareness, knowledge, perception, and favourability (brand preference) of the University.
Trajectory worked with the University to develop brand strategy.
Partners and Edell performed a review of the Marketing and Communications function, structure, resources, and tactics and helped guide the development of a marketing plan.
Q: How long did the brand position project take?
A: The three-phase project took approximately 8 months to complete. You can get information on the process by clicking on the “About the Process” link in the left-hand navigation bar.
Q: I would like to provide more information. Who should I contact?
A: Contact the University’s Marketing and Communications Office at 364-2345 or send an e-mail to: tfrost@mta.ca.