BRAND DEVELOPMENT
We revitalized the strategy and design of a church & school brand.
PROJECT OVERVIEW
Since 1906, St. Paul Lutheran Church has been sharing the gospel in Ann Arbor. In 1964, a fully-functioning school was in operation and amplified the reach and impact of St. Paul.
Though it has a long history, the brand of St. Paul has faced growing pains. They have struggled with accurately presenting the church & school as a unified unit while reaching different audiences. The school wanted to be better positioned in the competitive landscape. And an outdated and disjointed visual identity was in need of a modern refresh. So we set out to revitalize the brand strategy and the design of St. Paul Ann Arbor.
We started with brand strategy workshops. Before considering the look of St. Paul Ann Arbor, we wanted to have a foundation of strategic understanding.
The workshops began with diving into the story of SPAA, identifying the unique position they have of being a church & school unit. We then moved into naming structure, bringing clarity to the way the church & school are identified.
As we dove further into the brand strategy, we uncovered insights into their dream student, target audience, emotional promise, and key differentiators. We refined their vision and mission statements and polished their tone of voice. The end result of the workshops was a comprehensive strategic roadmap that unified the vision of the entire SPAA team.
CREATIVE PROCESS
As we approached the identity development stage, we had to begin by evaluating the right aesthetic direction. We wanted the school and church to be able to share a logo, strengthening the connection between them. But that meant finding the perfect visual tone that captured the personality of both and appealed to a wide audience.
Upon presenting moodboards to the team, it became apparent that we had to bring a balance of refinement and liveliness to the identity.
DESIGNING A LOGO
Three logo concepts were developed to gauge the right direction for the visual brand. By unanimous decision, we moved forward with a blossoming tree within a window. This concept brought together a few important elements to SPAA. In years past, a tree logo had been used off and on and reinforced the idea of growth and deep roots. The window element was taken directly from a prominent shape within their auditorium. And after a few rounds of revision, we were able to integrate a cross into the heart of the tree.
We spent time refining the color palette, which then came together to create a flourishing tree. This became the logo mark for the unified brand, with church and school specific lockups.
INITIAL CONCEPT PRESENTATION
NEW LOGO REVEAL
DEVELOPING AN IDENTITY
Once the logo was approved, we created a full identity system. All the crucial, foundational elements were defined, from colors to font usage to a stained glass window pattern. We also developed a set of customized icons to give support to their brand messaging. All the elements and their necessary rules were compiled with the brand strategy into a comprehensive brand book.
What St. Paul Said About Their Rebrand:
“Madison was very personable and professional. She was able to connect with us all, learned about our two organizations, and was concerned about making sure that we were all on the same page. She did an excellent job navigating our unique circumstances of having a church and a school and using her expertise to help us understand what factors are important to consider.
She spent quality time with our organization, both in person, and over video, to fully understand our brand and helped us come together to have a successful brand refresh!
Madison is an absolute pleasure to work with. She takes the time to truly understand your company and uses her expertise to guide you toward a strategy that not only ensures success but also gains full support from your entire team.”