March 14, 2016

Refreshed UOW brand identity revealed

A refreshed brand identity to support the aspirations of its refreshed 2016-2020 Strategic Plan and better position the University as an institution of international standing has been revealed.

This refreshed identity will play an important role in aligning people’s perceptions of the University with the actuality of our outstanding world-class achievements. It will be implemented across UOW communications throughout March and April, including the UOW website on 21 March.

The new identity, developed in partnership with globally recognised brand agency Frost, was unveiled as part of the launch of the 2016 – 2020 Strategic Plan today (14 March).

Vice-Chancellor Professor Paul Wellings CBE said the 2016 – 2020 Strategic Plan will guide the University into a new era of discovery, academic excellence and social leadership.

“Our new brand identity will clearly represent the University we know we are; and also the University we want to be known as,” he said.  “Our brand is important. It is the unique promise we make and keep with our students, alumni, community, collaborators, partners and colleagues.

“A strong brand will help those who don’t yet know us discover who we are in an increasingly competitive and crowded marketplace. It will help friends and partners to rediscover the value in what we offer, and our value as an institution..”

The refreshed UOW brand identity will be seen on campus and around Wollongong.

The following questions and answers will help the University community and our stakeholders learn more about the brand, how it came about and what it represents.

Why do we need a brand refresh?

The University of Wollongong has an outstanding reputation for its educational experience across a broad range of disciplines and for the truly remarkable research results that underscore our commitment to be leaders in ideas and solutions. We are also more than the sum of our parts.

Therefore, the need was identified to leverage presence and impact of our location and activities with a more consistent and singular identity by developing our branding and marketing to support all aspects of who we are and what we have to offer: our place, purpose and values. The most recent brand refresh was in 2011. 

What has changed?

We now have a modern, sophisticated colour palette that is representative of UOW’s values. A combination of elegant and contemporary typefaces to carry UOW’s voice; and we have developed a design system, graphics and photographic style that is authentic and refined.

A key to the new identity is the UOW brand mark, which is based on our historical traditions and carries the heritage of the original crest. The crest has evolved considerably over the years and we wanted to return to our roots while developing a brandmark that was easier to reproduce.

Embracing our heritage: the UOW brand mark has undergone several changes in 40 years. The current refresh embraces the origins of the crest.

What does ‘stands for purpose’ mean’?

The line ‘stands for purpose’ is our way of capturing the contribution we make to society through our impact and results. It aligns our aspirations with the motivation of individuals: their purpose. It is an organising idea that shapes our communications style.

How was the concept developed?

During the extensive staff consultation process for the 2016 – 2020 Strategic Plan it became apparent that we needed a more refined identity and messaging that conveys that we are, 40 years after independence, a mature institution operating on the world stage.

To develop this we started with our purpose, place and values to develop a brand positioning and message that extended beyond student recruitment to all areas of the University’s activities.

We engaged external agency Frost, to bring fresh ideas and a critical eye to the brand approach. Frost is a globally recognised leader in brand development and design. Frost worked with UOW on the development of the successfully Early Start brand and they were seen as a natural fit for what we wanted to achieve.

They consulted with executive, senior administrators and marketing representatives to develop a brand strategy to align to the 2016 – 2020 Strategic Plan.

Staff can find out more information about the brand via the UOW intranet.