Above: Helping unveil Western Carolina University’s new logo and marketing theme, “Climb,” is parks and recreation management major Shane Baker, a graduate of Davie High School, who scaled an indoor climbing wall to unfurl the banner during Employee Appreciation Day at WCU. The new branding campaign follows a year’s worth of market research by one of the nation’s leading higher education marketing firms.

Armed with a year’s worth of research conducted by one of the nation’s leading higher education marketing firms, Western Carolina University unveiled a new institutional branding campaign Wednesday, Oct. 1, with faculty and staff the first to see new concepts for university marketing and promotions.

The internal launch of WCU’s brand, including a new logo and marketing theme, came as part of activities at the university’s annual Employee Appreciation Day. To illustrate the newly launched brand theme – “Climb” – students from the Campus Recreation Center scaled an indoor climbing wall, from which they dropped a banner emblazoned with the new university logo.

Chancellor John Bardo shared with employees assembled in the Ramsey Regional Activity Center the new brand promise statement: “WCU offers opportunities for those who aspire to make a difference in their world.”

“As we all do our jobs every day, in every thing we do, we must live up to our brand promise: to offer opportunities for those who aspire to make a difference in their world. If we do this together, Western’s reputation will continue to climb. Our enrollment will climb. The quality of our students will climb. And the overall quality of our programs and services will climb,” Bardo said. “Remember, the higher the climb, the better the view.”

Four key attributes highlight characteristics of the brand promise and link it to the WCU experience, Bardo said. They are:
Engage – “Western provides hands-on, fully involved learning with real-world applications, engaging the region through the expertise of faculty and the energy of youth,” he said.
Your – “At Western, we treat every action with the responsibility and pride of personal ownership.”
Pride of the Mountains – “Western is a beacon of intellectual know-how and achievement – for the state and Southeast.”
Climb – “We are ‘base camp’ for students and a region that seek to reach new heights of endeavor – in careers, in economic development and in leadership,” Bardo said.

As illustrated by a display of mock-ups of billboards now appearing across the state, the first wave of new messages revolves around the concept of “Climb,” a theme that surfaced time and again throughout the yearlong research process, said Eric Sickler, Stamats principal consultant who guided the branding initiative.

“As a concept or creative wrap, ‘Climb’ reminds us that, for everyone, the route to real achievement is not a horizontal straight line, but always an ascent, one that requires focus and determination, with no shortage of challenges, rewards and revelations along the way,” Sickler said. “‘Climb’ tells Western Carolina’s target audiences that here is a place where you can roll up your sleeves, engage, and work toward a better future and a desirable career. It declares to the world that at WCU you can raise yourself to a higher level.”

The university logo – the words Western Carolina University with interlocking letters – is the result of market research indicating that the institution’s name represents the strength of its brand, Bardo said. The interlocking letters subtly demonstrate the university’s commitment to Western North Carolina and its efforts to engage the faculty, staff and students in helping solve regional problems, he said.

The institutional brand launch follows extensive market research and analysis conducted by Stamats, including focus groups, interviews and surveys with faculty, staff, alumni, benefactors, community members, opinion leaders, current and prospective students, and parents and guardians, and it comes seven weeks after the university revealed a new logo for its athletics program.

“With the branding and marketing campaign now under way, university constituencies will begin to see and hear messages designed to build broader recognition of the value of a WCU education, differentiate the university from its public and private competitors, and continue to raise the institution’s profile regionally and nationally,” said Clifton Metcalf, vice chancellor for advancement and external affairs.

The university has adopted institutional identity guidelines to ensure that university communications have a similar look, feel and tone that remain consistent across departments and disciplines, Metcalf said. The university also has reverted to original shades of its school colors of purple and gold, with a deeper purple and traditional gold replacing bright hues of purple and yellow used in recent years, he said.

Photo at top right: The WCU community gathers outside the H.F.R. Administration Building to watch the raising of the newly branded flag.

CAMPUS REACTION TO THE NEW UNIVERSITY BRAND

Kyle McCurry, graduate student and general manager of WWCU-FM:

“I think it is awesome. I am just very impressed. It’s clean, crisp and professional. The design is straightforward, and I think it reflects very well on the image of the university and is a good representation of the student body. I think this will help us stand out not only as the institution of the western part of the state, but beyond.”

Keith Corzine, director of residential living:

“I like it because it is rather simple and straightforward, and I really like the color choice because we are going back to our traditional look. Now that we have the new Catamount logo representing us athletically, this new institutional logo doesn’t compete with that. Instead, it complements it. And as an alumnus, I feel like the theme of ‘Climb’ takes us back to our regional roots and our geographic location, which is so critically important to our overall identity.”

Keshia Martin, resident director of Norton Hall and The Village:

“In our positions, we try to help students climb and develop. Our programs develop responsible leaders and active, productive community members. The new logo and message affirms that.” 

Richard Tichich, director of WCU’s School of Art and Design:

“The re-imagining that Western Carolina is going through right now is recognition of changes made gradually over time. Western has been engaged with the community of Western North Carolina for a long time. This is a celebration of what we’ve been doing.”

Marty Ramsey, director of alumni affairs:

“I have already heard that alumni like that we are bringing back our old traditional shades of purple and gold. Alumni tell me that they are looking forward to seeing and hearing consistency in our messages and our graphic identity both for the university and for athletics.”

Beth Tyson Lofquist, associate provost:
 
“I particularly like the way the ‘Climb’ concept connects so well to our mountain location. I also like the way the promise statement has both a local and a global connotation, which fits with our institutional mission as we focus much of our activities on outreach – emphasizing the responsibility to improve our world. Finally, I like the way both the ‘Climb’ concept and brand promise simultaneously celebrate the achievements of students who have taken that next step through higher education and recognize that students will have to stretch in order to continue to climb.”

Bill Manware, director of operations and maintenance, Facilities Management Division:
 
“I thought the logo was marvelous. The statement ‘The higher you climb, the better the view’ can be interpreted as, ‘The better we do our jobs, and the more we learn about our jobs, the better we can keep the campus running well and looking nice.’ To me, the higher you climb, the more you learn, and the more you learn, the better job you do. And in our division, we need to maintain a global view of the university.”