CLIENT: Jewish Family Service
This social service agency was looking for an update on their brand. After an assessment of all their marketing materials and a review of similar organizations in the surrounding counties, we created new language to describe the agency, a new logo, a brand presentation, and a new website to improve awareness of their services and solicit donations.
Challenge
Like many nonprofit organizations, Jewish Family Service was fully committed to its mission of helping those in need, but had paid less attention to its image and how it communicates what it does to potential clients, volunteers, and donors. They approached Red Rooster Group to create a more unified and cohesive brand for the agency so that the board and staff could more easily explain what the agency does, and project a professional look to those that came in contact with the agency. Specifically, the marketing goals were to:
- Increase donations. The agency did not have a strong base of support, was not reaching new donors, and was not raising much online.
- Increase awareness of their services at a time of increasing need in the community.
- Recruit more volunteers for its various programs.
How We Did It: The Branding Process Explained
Competitive Review
To see what other social services are available to the people in those counties served by Jewish Family Service, we conducted a Competitive Review. We examined those organizations to see the specific services offered, how clear and compelling those other offerings are, and how the other agencies position themselves and their strengths. The overall finding was that while other organizations had similar services, few did a good job in presenting themselves, in claiming a unique role in their community, or showing their impact, creating an opportunity for JFS to stake a leadership role in social services in Northern New Jersey.
Message Development
Through interviews with the staff we uncovered Jewish Family Service’s strengths and unique attributes. To help people understand the agency and the benefits it brings, we developed language to help define the brand, told in an easy-to-understand way. The tagline, “Here to Help,” reinforces the agency’s full scope of services, its staying power in the community, and personal commitment to helping people regardless of the difficulties they face. The tagline was presented in a graphic way, using the outline shape of the logo to create a connection with JFS.
Visual Identity / Logo Design
The Old Logo
The agency’s old logo was cumbersome and lacked sophistication. The tagline, “The Center for Caring” was not carried out as a theme on the agency’s materials, losing an opportunity to connect with their audiences.
The Logo Design Process
Based on the messages, we developed several approaches to the logo design. The objective was to develop a new mark that would identify the agency and encapsulate the essence of its message. Since JFS was not a unique organization, we looked at other Jewish Family Service agencies around the country as a baseline of how those agencies presented themselves. We determined that the logo for JFS needed to fit into this landscape with an abstract symbol. Many of these organizations had logos that were outdated and amateurish, creating the opportunity to set a new standard for the sector with a professional mark.
Initial Logo Concepts
In the first phase, we explored various symbols that evoked a positive, supportive environment. We presented 5 different designs including interlocking shapes forming circle with a star in the center, overlapping hearts forming a star or flower, a burst radiating energy, a sun rising over the horizon, and a comforting heart abstractly mimicking embracing hands.
Refinement
The client thought that the interlocking rings concept best represented the relationship between the agency and their clients through a circle of support and thought that the idea of having the Jewish star formed from the negative space in the center was an intriguing way to represent the Jewish values that are at the core of the agency as well as create a more memorable logo.
They wanted to see if the star could be more visible in the logo design with the hearts, so we developed that logo, presenting two other versions with a more visible star, and one with more visible hearts. We also refined the interlocking rings logo by adding more contrast to the colors and adding a soft shadow for depth. In this stage, we explored appropriate type treatments that complemented the icon. In the end, concept 1 was selected.
Exploring the Jewish Aspect
One of the issues we explored was whether or not to represent the Jewish aspect of the agency since JFS serves people of all beliefs. Our review of logos used by other Jewish Family Services showed that many used Jewish symbols to signify their heritage. To help some members of the board assess this, we presented versions of the logo that emphasized or eliminated the Jewish star. We suggested that the hint of the star in the original logo that we presented was just enough to allow people to discover it for themselves which would create more memorability for the logo. The client agreed that it was the appropriate solution.
Final Logo Formats
Once the logo was approved, we created versions in for use in full-color for printing and screen use, 2-color printing for stationery, grayscale for newspaper advertising, and a solid version for screen printing on premium items.
Brand Presentation
To help the Jewish Family Service of Metrowest present a professional face to donors and tell their story in a compelling way we developed a brand presentation. The presentation describes what makes JFS unique and how they help clients. It culminates with the line “At every age, at every stage, we are here to help.” The visual look of the presentation relates to the agency’s logo to creates a unique looks for the marketing materials to help people recognize and connect with the organization.
Website
The website focuses on creating awaiting awareness of the services, soliciting donations, and appealing to volunteers. The homepage was designed around those three goals with a rotator image dedicated to each area, and pull down menu to provide easy access to the various services for youth, adults, and seniors. The site also features a calendar of events and a robust donation section providing access to many ways to give. Sidebar features to Find Help, Volunteer, and Donate are on every page to encourage site visitors to take action.
Website Donate Page
We created a very robust custom designed donation section that included a number of unique features not found on most nonprofit donation pages including the ability to give one-time and recurring donations with pre-determined levels as well as a write-in choice on the same page.
Website Donate Section
Additional pages in the donation section allow visitors to donate their car, buy tribute cards, support endowment funds, or give in other ways.
Volunteer Section
In order to encourage volunteering the site graphically presents six main ways to volunteer with links to respective pages describing the opportunities.
Brochure
To help Jewish Family Service create awareness of their services, we created this brochure. The brochure which is based on their theme, “At every age, at every stage, we are here to help,” and presents the agency’s services across timeline representing the life stages, from birth (adoption), to death (burial services). The format is a smart way to present the range of the agency’s offerings in a logical way that helps people understand what services are appropriate for them, and shows the robust way in which JFS supports people’s well-being throughout their life.
Brand Manual
In order to help JFS staff understand the agency’s brand, and develop marketing materials that use reinforce the brand, we developed a Brand Manual. This document shows the key messages, the logo, tagline, organizational colors, typefaces, stationery, and other usage guidelines for easy reference.
Results
The entire brand process and has helped to focus the organization around their strengths and present themselves more effectively. The agency’s professional visual look engenders trust and confidence in the agency and helps boost staff pride. And the board and staff now have the tools to communicate the agency’s services and value to the community in order to raise more money.
Links
- See other nonprofit branding case studies.
- See other Jewish organizations we have helped.
- Contact Red Rooster Group for help with your brand.
Red Rooster Group is a New York based graphic design firm that creates effective brands, websites, and marketing campaigns to increase your visibility, sales, and communications effectiveness. Contact us.