TRU branding more than slogans and logos as committee prepares for a year-long process

 By MIKE YOUDS

Developing an institutional branding for TRU is expected to take a year or more as the committee appointed to the task gathers input from people on and off campus.

Lucille Gnanasihamany, associate vice-president of marketing and communications, expects the process – mapped out at A Brand for TRU, a web page tru.ca/marcom/brand – to be thorough and involved.

“A big part of that would be the logistics of going out and speaking to people,” said Gnanasihamany. New to TRU and Kamloops, she was previously involved in the branding of Mount Royal University in Calgary and a private, international consultancy.

“People scratch their heads and say, ‘Really? You’re really going to talk to people for that long?”

The political bywords of consultation and transparency are as much a part of the branding lexicon. A 14-member brand development committee, including student, faculty, staff, alumni and community members, is in place to oversee the process.

“It’s very detailed and a lot needs to be done. It’s a working committee. This is not a sit-and-discuss committee.

“We also want to set up some core focus groups that the committee can go to often and say, ‘This is where we are in the process. What are your thoughts?’

“It really is a shared journey. You can’t have any preconceived notions. It is wide open.”

Branding involves far more than producing a slogan or a logo to represent the university. Branding should effectively project the image of an institution as it competes for enrolment and a higher profile.

“It has to be a strong, resilient brand that really reflects the DNA of the university.”

A few goal posts around the objective?

The TRU brand has to be distinctive, meaningful and credible in form and substance. And it should in some way capture the passion commonly expressed for the university, Gnanasihamany said.

“People should have the highest of expectations … I don’t think there is anything as important as this. I really think of a brand as actually what a university stands for.”

She’s hoping the branding will be in place in a year’s time so they can begin marketing TRU in a compelling way. The university’s administration and board of governors will have final say on the matter.