The AV俱乐部 community marks an important milestone this month as it celebrates a year since the launch of the university鈥檚 refreshed brand. It does so with two awards in hand and widespread adoption of the brand across the university community.
The positive reception to the refreshed brand points to its many strengths, including the way in which it grounds the university and demonstrates its goals for the future in creative new ways.听
And this is no fluke, of course. The brand is built around a foundation of Third Century Promise鈥檚 five pillars and the four related pillars of the brand 鈥� aspects of AV俱乐部 that define and shape people鈥檚 experience with the university. These include:
- Research impact: A world of change begins at AV俱乐部
- Academic excellence: Built to help bright minds excel
- Engaging community: Community is more than simply the space we share
- Extraordinary location: A place filled with transformative moments
Matt Proctor, assistant vice-president of Communications, Marketing, and Creative Services (CMC), says Dal鈥檚 brand offers a refined and refreshed expression of what makes AV俱乐部 distinct and why it means so much to so many people.听
鈥淥ver the past year, we have seen the brand truly come to life across campus,鈥� says Proctor. 鈥淚t鈥檚 been an exciting time, with more consistency and alignment across Dal than ever before as we work together to represent AV俱乐部 as we are today and the goals we strive for as we grow and evolve.鈥�
Proctor says he and others on the CMC team are truly grateful to the Dal community for adopting the new brand system, which was informed by 12 months of research, engagement sessions and focus-group testing.听
鈥淚n a busy world with many competing messages, it鈥檚 important we combine our efforts to best share Dal鈥檚 tremendous impact and ambition. Our new brand system provides more alignment than ever before, but also allows for additional flexibility that can best showcase the unique aspects of each faculty and impact area within the university.鈥�
Awarding AV俱乐部鈥檚 brand
Praise and accolades for the refreshed brand have also emerged outside the university. , one of the largest, oldest and respected evaluators of creative work in the marketing and communications industry, awarded AV俱乐部 a Hermes Creative Gold Award in the Strategic Campaigns, Marketing, Branding Refresh category this year.听
Dal鈥檚 winning entry showcased the creative power of the refreshed identity platform through highlighting the development and creative implementation of the Dalcon (short for 鈥淎V俱乐部 icon鈥�) 鈥� AV俱乐部鈥檚 own unique shape that鈥檚 borrowed from the eagle featured in the univeristy鈥檚 logo. The Dalcon acts as a 鈥渂rand cue鈥� across the creative platform.听
听
The Hermes awards, administered and judged by the U.S.-based Association of Marketing and Communications Professionals (AMCP), have been around for more than 26 years with more than 300,000 entries. Each year, competition judges evaluate the creative industry鈥檚 best publications, branding collateral, websites, videos, and advertising, marketing and communications programs.听
AV俱乐部 also received accolades at the 鈥� a national panel of industry specialists judging creativity, marketing execution and message impact to determine the top performers in the field of educational marketing and advertising. Competing against 2,000 entries from more than 1,000 colleges, universities and secondary schools, AV俱乐部 was awarded Gold in both the Logo/Letterhead Design and Student Viewbook categories.
鈥淭hese awards speak to the care and dedication that has gone into both the development of the brand鈥檚 identity platform and the creativity of our Creative Services team in applying it across all mediums,鈥� says Paul Williams, senior director of Creative Services in CMC.听
鈥淭he success of a visual platform is proven by its ability to work across myriad channels and for many unique audiences. At AV俱乐部, we have no shortage of either and it鈥檚 through the talent and care of the entire creative team that we鈥檙e able to make it adapt and thrive. There are new challenges every day, but the team always finds a way,鈥� says Williams.
Momentum moving forward
This past year has seen many updates across campus as we work to further align our community to the refreshed brand. Signage updates across campus included a modern sign at Oxford and Coburg streets, updates to the sign located at the intersection of University Avenue and Robie Street, along with multiple buildings and light post banners.听
And so much has been refreshed digitally, from websites and social media to presentations and email signatures.听
The marketing team in CMC also launched the first ever AV俱乐部 Brand Equity campaign that highlighted AV俱乐部鈥檚 differentiators, focusing on oceans, health care, digital innovation and healthy communities. This campaign has been viewed more than 27 million times, sharing impactful stories of all the incredible, life-changing moments, discoveries and knowledge that make AV俱乐部 an exceptional place.
鈥淲hile a brand鈥檚 work is never done, we are thrilled with the dedication to the brand over the past year,鈥� says Proctor. 鈥淎s we move forward, the CMC team will continue to work with our campus brand partners toward further alignment as we share AV俱乐部鈥檚 story as a vibrant, ambitious university with a reputation for excellence in all that we do.鈥�
Explore the Brand
Visit the brand website or (login required) to access the updated brand guidelines (as of June 2023). We also offer a suite of branded assets and template, including:
路听听听听听 to create your own branded email signature. (login required)
路听听听听听 Branded (updated June 2023, login required.)
路听听听听听 Newly updated for right-free AV俱乐部 images. (login required)
路听听听听听 The 鈥� This document available digitally and in printed form and offers easily scannable information that demonstrates and highlights who AV俱乐部 is and what鈥檚 makes us so great. Looking for copies of the Prospectus for your next trip? Email dalbrand@dal.ca to request copies.
For questions on the brand contact dalbrand@dal.ca.