Updating an already strong brand

University of Winchester - Brand Refresh

The University of Winchester undertook a striking rebrand in 2017 that underlined the evolution of the institution, conveying its unique values and ethos and focusing on outcomes. They have evolved even further since then, across a backdrop of growing challenges for the Higher Education sector and its students. They introduced a new undergraduate recruitment campaign based on the proposition “A place to become”, which was followed by the release of a new five-year Strategic Plan. Both the campaign and the strategy had moved far beyond the parameters of the previous rebrand. Bell was commissioned to conduct a brand refresh based on those elements, keeping the best of the existing brand and evolving it along the lines of the campaign and strategy.

We began with a page-by-page guidelines audit, to establish what needed to be refreshed, updated or added, including the style and mood of the brand, and numerous templates. This audit formed the basis for a new content plan. After amending the brand tone of voice, we began with the graphic design, focusing on incorporating the visual essence of their recent undergraduate campaign, highlighting a Winchester student’s transformation into their future selves. Some of the updates included updating the colour palette, with brighter colours and changing tints to a master gradient system with a 20% overlay, to match the feeling of positive change. We also replaced the main typeface and added an alternate system font.

Other graphic features included updating and simplifying the existing ‘hatching’ pattern by adding leading and making it more scalable. We rounded a single edge of what were standard boxes making it more dynamic, and a new boxed heading style that could break into the rounded boxes or exist within them. We also removed a complicated and restrictive grid system.

A key feature of the brand update was photography and video style. We developed a new one inspired by the undergraduate campaign, covering campaigns, general photography, portraiture, in-action images and direct-to-camera. We then completed new application designs for six-sheet posters, prospectuses, website pages, pull-up banners, online ads, exhibition stands, lamp-post banners, flyers, reports, stationery, social media, event materials, PPT and report cover designs. Concurrent with the brand refresh, we also designed and produced the actual strategy document in question (Our Vision for Transformational Education – Strategic Plan 2023-2028) and did two photoshoots in line with the new brand visual direction, on campus featuring eight students in their own transformative journey to ‘becoming’.