A strong brand is a valuable asset. Think of successful companies like McDonald’s or Coca-Cola. Are their products superior or do they just have excellent branding? A clear and consistent brand often trumps a premium, lesser-known product.
Your school is a bit different. Wonderful teachers and school values are key, but a good brand is still an important part of the equation! A strong brand makes your school memorable and lets your community know what to expect from you.
This article includes images from our work with Long Bay College to help demonstrate how great school branding can be achieved.
Benefits of Branding
Trust & Confidence
The key to great branding is having a clear message and conveying it successfully. If your audience feels like they know you and what you stand for, they are more likely to trust you. This is vital for attracting new students and forging ties in the community.
A Sense of Belonging
Successful branding helps your community forge an emotional connection with the school. A clear identity and unified message create a sense of belonging for students who can be proud to be part of your school.
This sense of unity and oneness extends to staff as well. If teachers understand your school’s vision and voice, they can help be a part of it and tell its story.
Organic Marketing
A strong brand and well-designed publications make marketing your school a lot easier. And ensuring the design style is consistent across mediums creates greater brand recognition. With a well-designed website, prospectus or staff business cards, your products can do all the talking without you lifting a finger!
School Branding Tips
Consistency is Key
A strong brand isn’t an isolated yearbook or email but a consistent message over time from all touch-points with your school. All school communications should have a similar tone, message and consistent design.
Make it Memorable
Great branding requires being true to your school and creating something original. Your design should set your school apart from the competition and make people want to learn more.
Choose a colour palette that represents your school to use across all your products. Always include your logo and consider adopting an original pattern or motif to incorporate in designs.
Long Bay College uses a wave design across a range of publications and the website. This creates a look that is unique and memorable.
Keep Track of Your Style
Schools have so many communication methods that it’s hard to keep track of them all! This is why it’s important to create a set of brand guidelines to follow. Create a document that outlines fonts, colour codes, and grammar rules to make the process easier. This way, staff can know how to format content to ensure it is consistent with your school brand.
If you’d like help with branding or a specific product, we would love to be a part of your project. We work on everything from yearbooks to websites to email communications, which makes it easy for us to streamline your brand and vision. Reach out for a quote or for more information.
