After four years of consultations with powerhouses in the fields of advertising, sponsorship, and marketing research, the United Negro College Fund has launched a new branding campaign that differs only subtly from its old one.
Far from ditching the memorable tag line it has relied on for more than three decades — “A mind is a terrible thing to waste” — the United Negro College Fund has made the tag line a more visible part of its new logo (right), to help ensure more people make the mental connection between the slogan and the organization.
At the same time, the organization has removed its full name from its old logo (below), choosing instead to prominently display its abbreviation, UNCF.
“I see the essence of our brand identity and our logo still there,” Michael L. Lomax, president of the United Negro College Fund, said today in unveiling the new branding campaign at a press conference at Spelman College, in Atlanta. “We are tweaking it,” he said, “but we are not changing it dramatically.”
The fund’s new logo is the product of a four-year effort involving the branding specialists Landor Associates, the advertising giant Young and Rubicam —which came up with the “mind is a terrible thing to waste” slogan 35 years ago — the research firm Peter Hart and Associates, the public-relations firm McKinsey and Company, and IEG, a major facilitator of sponsorship deals.
Hayes Roth, chief marketing officer of Landor Associates, said research into the old branding campaign showed that, while the “mind” slogan was widely known, just 56 percent of people mentally connected it with the United Negro College Fund. Moreover, many people were unaware that the fund has 39 member colleges — all private, historically black institutions — and knew little about the people it had helped.
At a time when it faces increased competition from other organizations focused on raising money for college scholarships, the fund was also concerned that some people regarded it as stuck in the past, Mr. Roth said.
To convey the impression that the fund is forward-looking, the torch that has long been part of its logo has been redrawn, so that the flames no longer rise straight into the air, but furl leftward, suggesting a torch being carried by someone who is moving ahead. Color has been added to the logo as well.
The fund decided against changing its name, despite some concerns that its use of the term “Negro” turned off some young people. “Changing the name of any organization is a risky proposition,” Mr. Roth said.
Mr. Lomax said that, through the Ad Council, the United Negro College Fund benefited from $50-million in contributed advertising last year. About 300,000 donors provided it with enough money to award $80-million in scholarships to about 3,000 students. —Peter Schmidt
