Brand Development

Arcadia University Brand Foundation

Brand archetype, positioning, and visual interpretation

Role: Creative Director, Lead Designer

Outcome

Through research exercises the Arcadia University brand was reimagined into designs fitting the discovered foundational archetypes through numerous brand exercises. The end goal of the project was to interpret the research into a visual direction for Arcadia's marketing department, illustrating how the defined archetypes could be presented when rooted in a solid foundation.

Arcadia homepage concept mockup 1 — 'The world is changed by the ones that choose to change it.'

1Action oriented imagery, mirroring the CTA's message of making your choice.

2More introspective hero image, bring the decision to choose internally.

3Alumni social proof directly under the fold to set the institution's promise.

4Reinforcement of the concept that the choice is the student's. You choose Arcadia, Arcadia doesn't choose you.

5Highlight of an alumni's story. At a quick glance, it may appear to just be a success story, however the story sets Arcadia as the beginning trajectory for the individual's success, but the story is primarily about the journey.

Arcadia homepage concept mockup 2 — introspective hero and alumni story

Moodboard of elements conveying exploration, discovery, and community.

Arcadia University's prior homepage design

Problem

Arcadia University marketing had been driven by a vague sense of self.

The institution's marketing efforts didn't land or resonate fully with prospective students, because it wasn't rooted to a foundational layer.

Approach

Our team led with research to find the foundational layer the brand required. The first step in the project was brand archetyping exercises. 6 cohorts, consisting of staff, leadership, alumni, and current students, were taken through 6 separate brand exercises. Senior cabinet members were then asked to write a post mortem for Arcadia, an exercise with constraints to surface how the school should be remembered to establish its guiding principles. In conjunction with the previous exercise, the senior cabinet members were taken through an exercise to determine Arcadia's unique positioning.

After completion of the brand exercises, a competitive analysis mapping was created with Arcadia's local peer set.

Insight

Belonging and exploration surfaced everywhere, but the competitive read turned two familiar words into a position.

The archetype exercises resulted in Explorer being the primary, and Everyperson being the secondary. Though initially, this appeared to be 2 opposing archetypes sitting on opposing sides of the wheel. Belonging means finding acceptance, building a community. Exploration sets off in discovery of the world. However, in the context of the institution, this positioning was their differentiator.

At Arcadia, everyone is included, creating a local first community. Through support and facilitation, students are enabled to scale this community — regionally, nationally, globally.